Find out how popular the last name Rock is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Rock.

Rock, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Rock surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Rock in America

Rock is the 1859th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Rock surname appeared 19,313 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 7 people would have the surname Rock.

We can also compare 2010 data for Rock to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Rock

The surname ROCK is of English origin, derived from the Old English word 'rocca' meaning a rock or boulder. It was initially used as a nickname for someone who lived near a prominent rock formation or came from a rocky area.

The earliest known record of the surname dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as 'Rocca' and 'Rokka'. This suggests that the name was already in use before the Norman Conquest of 1066 and likely emerged in the 8th or 9th century.

In the 13th century, the surname is found in various spellings such as 'Rokke', 'Rocc', and 'Rok' in various medieval records and charters. One notable early bearer of the name was John de la Rokke, who was mentioned in the Court Rolls of Kent in 1293.

The surname ROCK was also derived from certain place names, such as Rock in Worcestershire and Rockhampton in Gloucestershire. William de la Rok, born around 1250, took his name from the latter location.

Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname ROCK. One of the earliest was Sir John de la Roche, a prominent knight who fought alongside King Edward III during the Hundred Years' War in the 14th century.

During the 16th century, the ROCK surname gained prominence with the birth of John Rock (1490-1561), an English Protestant reformer and chaplain to Thomas Cromwell. He played a significant role in the English Reformation and was known for his vocal opposition to the Catholic Church.

Another notable bearer of the name was Edmund Rock (1600-1677), an English lawyer and author who wrote extensively on legal matters during the reign of Charles II.

In the 18th century, James Rock (1707-1792) was a renowned English painter and engraver, best known for his landscape paintings and etchings of the English countryside.

More recently, the ROCK surname has been associated with Maria Rock (1778-1836), an English novelist and playwright, and Michael Rock (1951-2022), an American graphic designer and educator who co-founded the design firm 2x4.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Rock

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Rock.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Rock was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Rock has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Rock was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Rock, please contact us.

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