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

Rodríguez, 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 Rodríguez surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Rodríguez in America

Rodríguez is the 9th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Rodríguez surname appeared 1,094,924 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 371 people would have the surname Rodríguez.

We can also compare 2010 data for Rodríguez 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 Rodríguez

The surname Rodriguez is of Spanish origin, derived from the name Rodrigo, which itself is derived from the Germanic name Roderic, meaning "famous power" or "powerful leader." It is believed to have originated in the region of Castile, Spain, during the Middle Ages.

The earliest recorded instance of the name Rodriguez dates back to the 10th century, when it appeared in a document from the monastery of San Pedro de Montes in the province of León, Spain. In this document, a nobleman named Roderico Rodríguez was mentioned as a landowner.

In the 12th century, the name Rodriguez was found in the Codex Calixtinus, a medieval manuscript that served as a guide for pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago, a famous pilgrimage route across northern Spain. The manuscript mentioned a person named Rodrigo Rodríguez who was a wealthy landowner in the region of Galicia.

During the Reconquista, the period when Christian kingdoms in the Iberian Peninsula fought to reclaim territories from the Moors, several notable figures bore the name Rodriguez. One such figure was Rodrigo Rodríguez de Lara (c. 1170-1242), a powerful nobleman and military leader who played a significant role in the conquest of Andalusia.

Another notable bearer of the name was Gonzalo Rodríguez de Avilés (1520-1603), a Spanish explorer and conquistador who founded the city of Havana, Cuba, in 1519. He was appointed as the first governor of the island by the Spanish Crown.

In the realm of literature, one of the most famous individuals with the surname Rodriguez was Ventura Rodríguez (1717-1785), a renowned Spanish architect and urban planner who designed several iconic buildings in Madrid, including the Royal Palace and the Basilica of San Francisco el Grande.

During the colonial era, the name Rodriguez spread to various parts of the Spanish Empire, including Latin America and the Philippines. One notable figure from this period was Pedro Rodríguez de Campomanes (1723-1802), a Spanish politician and economist who served as the president of the Council of Castile and played a significant role in promoting economic reforms in Spain and its colonies.

Throughout history, the surname Rodriguez has been borne by many other notable individuals, including writers, artists, scientists, and political figures, cementing its place as one of the most prominent Spanish surnames worldwide.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Rodríguez

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

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 Rodríguez 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 Rodríguez 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 Rodríguez was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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