2000
#5,647
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,638
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.09
Rare Last name
Rhoden
A habitational surname derived from places in Germany, likely referring to a clearing or fields.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,949 Americans carry the last name Rhoden. That puts it at #5,544 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 49,324 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rhoden surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Rhoden with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.9K
1 in 49,324
Census rank
#5,544
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,060 bearers of the surname Rhoden in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5544th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rhoden, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.8%. The next largest groups are Black (27.1%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rhoden
The surname Rhoden originated in Scotland during the Middle Ages. It is believed to be derived from the Scottish Gaelic words "rhu" meaning red and "dun" meaning hill or fort, referring to someone who lived near a red-colored hill or fortified area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Register of the Great Seal of Scotland in 1494, where a John Rhuddone is mentioned as a tenant in the lands of Lenzie, near Glasgow. The name is also found in various spellings like Ruidon, Rhuddone, and Rhudden in historical documents from the 15th and 16th centuries.
In the early 17th century, the Rhoden family was well-established in the Scottish Borders region, particularly in the area around Jedburgh. Notable members from this time include Robert Rhoden (c. 1580-1650), who was a prominent landowner and elder of the local church.
During the Scottish Reformation, several individuals with the surname Rhoden were persecuted for their Protestant beliefs. One such example is James Rhoden (c. 1532-1589), who was imprisoned and later executed for his role in the Protestant movement.
As the centuries passed, the name spread to other parts of the British Isles and beyond. In the 18th century, a branch of the Rhoden family settled in County Antrim, Ireland. One of their descendants, William Rhoden (1773-1854), became a successful merchant and landowner in Belfast.
Another notable figure was John Rhoden (1828-1892), a Scottish-born engineer who played a crucial role in the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway in the late 19th century.
In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the name is from the Revolutionary War era, when a soldier named Robert Rhoden (c. 1755-1832) served in the Virginia Militia.
Other significant individuals with the surname Rhoden include Sir Robert Rhoden (1859-1934), a British politician and businessman who served as a Member of Parliament, and Mary Rhoden (1901-1976), an American artist and illustrator known for her depictions of rural life.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rhoden
Among Census respondents with the surname Rhoden, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.8%. The next largest groups are Black (27.1%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Rhoden bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Rhoden surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White63.8% · 3,867
- Black or African American27.1% · 1,643
- Two or more races4.1% · 251
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 234
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 37
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 28
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rhoden
Rhoden appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#5,617
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,187
+549 bearers (+9.7%)
Per 100,000 2.10
Rank movement Up 30 places
2020
#5,544
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,060
-127 bearers (-2.1%)
Per 100,000 2.03
Rank movement Up 73 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,647 | 5,638 | 2.09 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,617 | 6,187 | 2.10 | +549 bearers (+9.7%) | Up 30 places |
| 2020 | #5,544 | 6,060 | 2.03 | -127 bearers (-2.1%) | Up 73 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Rhoden surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #5,617 | #5,544 | 1.3% |
| Count | 6,187 | 6,060 | -2.1% |
| Per 100K | 2.10 | 2.03 | -3.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rhoden bearers went from 6,187 to 6,060 (-2.1% change). The surname moved up 73 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,617 to #5,544.
FAQ
Rhoden surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rhoden?
Name Census estimates that about 6,949 living Americans carry the surname Rhoden. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 49,324 residents.
How common is Rhoden?
Rhoden ranks #5,544 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,060 people with the surname Rhoden. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,949), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Rhoden.
Has Rhoden become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rhoden went from 6,187 recorded bearers to 6,060. That is a decrease of 127 (-2.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #5,617 to #5,544.
What does the Census say about the background of Rhoden?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rhoden, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.8%. The next largest groups are Black (27.1%) and Two or More Races (4.1%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Rhoden in the 2020 Census, accounting for 63.8% (3,867 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rhoden appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (63.8%), Black (27.1%), Two or More Races (4.1%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Rhoden (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Rhoden mean?
A habitational surname derived from places in Germany, likely referring to a clearing or fields. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Rhoden (2.03 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people share the surname Rhoden?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.