2000
#5,044
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,380
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.37
Rare Last name
Rocco
An Italian occupational surname referring to a person who lived near or worked with rocks or stones.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,099 Americans carry the last name Rocco. That puts it at #5,440 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 48,282 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rocco 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 Rocco with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
7.1K
1 in 48,282
Census rank
#5,440
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,191 bearers of the surname Rocco in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5440th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rocco, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.9%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rocco
The surname Rocco has its origins in Italy, with records dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Italian personal name Rocco, which itself is a form of the Germanic name Hroch, meaning "rest" or "repose."
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Rocco Porzio, an Italian philosopher and humanist born in Naples in 1479. His works, published in the early 16th century, contributed to the spread of Renaissance ideas in Italy.
In the 13th century, a Benedictine monk named Rocco is said to have dedicated his life to caring for victims of the plague in various parts of Italy. His veneration as a saint, particularly in Palermo and Naples, may have contributed to the popularity of the name Rocco in those regions.
The surname Rocco can also be traced back to the town of Rocca Priora, located near Rome. It is possible that the name originated as a locative surname, referring to individuals who hailed from this particular town or its surrounding areas.
Another notable bearer of the surname was Rocco Benedetto Guicciardini, an Italian politician and historian born in Florence in 1561. He is best known for his historical work "Cose Fiorentine," which chronicled the political events of Florence during his lifetime.
In the 18th century, Rocco Galdieri, born in Naples in 1722, gained recognition as a prolific composer of Neapolitan opera and sacred music. His works were performed throughout Italy and contributed to the vibrant musical culture of the time.
The name Rocco has also been associated with Sicily, where it was common in various towns and villages. For instance, Rocco Toscano, a Sicilian painter born in Palermo in 1807, is renowned for his depictions of rural life and landscapes in his native region.
While the surname Rocco is most prevalent in Italy, it has also been found in other parts of Europe and the Americas, likely due to Italian immigration patterns over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rocco
Among Census respondents with the surname Rocco, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.9%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Rocco 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 Rocco surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.3% · 5,407
- Hispanic or Latino7.9% · 491
- Two or more races2.7% · 166
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 63
- Black or African American0.7% · 42
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 22
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rocco
Rocco 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
#5,289
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,583
+203 bearers (+3.2%)
Per 100,000 2.23
Rank movement Down 245 places
2020
#5,440
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,191
-392 bearers (-6.0%)
Per 100,000 2.07
Rank movement Down 151 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,044 | 6,380 | 2.37 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,289 | 6,583 | 2.23 | +203 bearers (+3.2%) | Down 245 places |
| 2020 | #5,440 | 6,191 | 2.07 | -392 bearers (-6.0%) | Down 151 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 Rocco 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 | #5,289 | #5,440 | -2.9% |
| Count | 6,583 | 6,191 | -6.0% |
| Per 100K | 2.23 | 2.07 | -7.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rocco bearers went from 6,583 to 6,191 (-6.0% change). The surname moved down 151 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,289 to #5,440.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Rocco
FAQ
Rocco surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rocco?
Name Census estimates that about 7,099 living Americans carry the surname Rocco. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 48,282 residents.
How common is Rocco?
Rocco ranks #5,440 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.07 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 6,191 people with the surname Rocco. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,099), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.07 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 Rocco.
Has Rocco become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rocco went from 6,583 recorded bearers to 6,191. That is a decrease of 392 (-6.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,289 to #5,440.
What does the Census say about the background of Rocco?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rocco, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.9%) and Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Rocco in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.3% (5,407 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rocco appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.3%), Hispanic (7.9%), Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Rocco (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 Rocco mean?
An Italian occupational surname referring to a person who lived near or worked with rocks or stones. 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 Rocco (2.07 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 Rocco?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.