2000
#8,733
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,463
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.28
Rare Last name
Rode
An occupational surname referring to someone who cleared land or rode horses.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,596 Americans carry the last name Rode. That puts it at #9,837 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.05 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 95,315 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rode 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 Rode with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.6K
1 in 95,315
Census rank
#9,837
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,136 bearers of the surname Rode in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.05 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9837th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rode, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rode
The surname RODE is of German origin, first appearing in the historical records of the 12th century. It is believed to be derived from the German word "rod" or "rot," meaning "red," and may have originally referred to someone with reddish hair or a ruddy complexion.
The earliest known bearers of the name were concentrated in the regions of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, where the name is still relatively common today. Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the medieval charters and tax rolls of these areas.
One notable early bearer of the name was Johann Rode, a 14th-century monk and chronicler from the town of Eisenach in Thuringia. His chronicle, known as the "Chronicon Eisenacense," provides valuable insights into the history and daily life of medieval Germany.
Another significant figure with the RODE surname was Hans Rode, a 16th-century artist and engraver from Nuremberg. His intricate woodcuts and engravings were highly prized during the Renaissance and can be found in numerous museums and collections throughout Europe.
In the 17th century, the name RODE appears in the records of the German settlements in Pennsylvania, indicating that some bearers of the name were among the early German immigrants to America. One such individual was Johann Rode, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1683 and later settled in Germantown.
The RODE name can also be found in the records of the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) during the 18th and 19th centuries, when the Netherlands controlled much of the region. Johannes Rode, born in 1786 in Rotterdam, served as a colonial administrator in Java and played a significant role in the development of the island's infrastructure.
As the name spread across Europe and beyond, various spelling variations emerged, such as Roade, Rohde, and Rood. However, the original German spelling of RODE remained predominant throughout its history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rode
Among Census respondents with the surname Rode, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Rode 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 Rode surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.9% · 2,787
- Two or more races3.3% · 105
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 103
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.0% · 94
- Black or African American1.1% · 35
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rode
Rode 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
#9,648
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,363
-100 bearers (-2.9%)
Per 100,000 1.14
Rank movement Down 915 places
2020
#9,837
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,136
-227 bearers (-6.7%)
Per 100,000 1.05
Rank movement Down 189 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,733 | 3,463 | 1.28 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,648 | 3,363 | 1.14 | -100 bearers (-2.9%) | Down 915 places |
| 2020 | #9,837 | 3,136 | 1.05 | -227 bearers (-6.7%) | Down 189 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 Rode 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 | #9,648 | #9,837 | -2.0% |
| Count | 3,363 | 3,136 | -6.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.14 | 1.05 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rode bearers went from 3,363 to 3,136 (-6.7% change). The surname moved down 189 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,648 to #9,837.
FAQ
Rode surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rode?
Name Census estimates that about 3,596 living Americans carry the surname Rode. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 95,315 residents.
How common is Rode?
Rode ranks #9,837 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.05 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,136 people with the surname Rode. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,596), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.05 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.05 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Rode.
Has Rode become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rode went from 3,363 recorded bearers to 3,136. That is a decrease of 227 (-6.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,648 to #9,837.
What does the Census say about the background of Rode?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rode, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Rode in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.9% (2,787 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rode appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.9%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Rode (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 Rode mean?
An occupational surname referring to someone who cleared land or rode horses. 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 Rode (1.05 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 Americans have the surname Rode?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.