2000
#1,779
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,510
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.86
Uncommon Last name
Rock
An English topographic surname referring to someone who lived near a prominent crag, cliff, or boulder.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 21,435 Americans carry the last name Rock. That puts it at #1,885 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.25 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 15,990 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rock 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 Rock with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
21K
1 in 15,990
Census rank
#1,885
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
19K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 18,692 bearers of the surname Rock in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.25 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1885th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rock, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (8.6%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rock
Among Census respondents with the surname Rock, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (8.6%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Rock 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 Rock surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.5% · 15,052
- Black or African American8.6% · 1,599
- Two or more races3.9% · 721
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 709
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.4% · 455
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 156
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rock
Rock 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
#1,859
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,313
+803 bearers (+4.3%)
Per 100,000 6.55
Rank movement Down 80 places
2020
#1,885
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,692
-621 bearers (-3.2%)
Per 100,000 6.25
Rank movement Down 26 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,779 | 18,510 | 6.86 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,859 | 19,313 | 6.55 | +803 bearers (+4.3%) | Down 80 places |
| 2020 | #1,885 | 18,692 | 6.25 | -621 bearers (-3.2%) | Down 26 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 Rock 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 | #1,859 | #1,885 | -1.4% |
| Count | 19,313 | 18,692 | -3.2% |
| Per 100K | 6.55 | 6.25 | -4.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rock bearers went from 19,313 to 18,692 (-3.2% change). The surname moved down 26 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,859 to #1,885.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Rock
FAQ
Rock surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rock?
Name Census estimates that about 21,435 living Americans carry the surname Rock. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 15,990 residents.
How common is Rock?
Rock ranks #1,885 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.25 per 100,000 residents, which is about 6 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 18,692 people with the surname Rock. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (21,435), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.25 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.25 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 6 of them to have the surname Rock.
Has Rock become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rock went from 19,313 recorded bearers to 18,692. That is a decrease of 621 (-3.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,859 to #1,885.
What does the Census say about the background of Rock?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rock, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (8.6%) and Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Rock in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.5% (15,052 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rock appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.5%), Black (8.6%), Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Rock (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 Rock mean?
An English topographic surname referring to someone who lived near a prominent crag, cliff, or boulder. 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 Rock (6.25 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 have the last name Rock?
Find out how many people have the last name Rock on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.