2000
#139,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Roedig
From German, meaning "red" or "reddish", likely descriptive of hair color or complexion.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 116 Americans carry the last name Roedig. That puts it at #155,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,954,779 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Roedig 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.
Bearers in the US
116
1 in 2,954,779
Census rank
#155,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
101
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 101 bearers of the surname Roedig in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 155270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Roedig, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Roedig
The surname ROEDIG is of German origin, originating in the medieval period around the 13th century. It is derived from the Old German word "rodig," which means "cleared land" or "cultivated area." This suggests that the name may have been initially given to individuals who lived or worked on newly cleared farmland or settlements.
The earliest known records of the name ROEDIG can be found in various Germanic regions, such as Bavaria and Saxony. One of the earliest documented instances is in the town records of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, a medieval town in Bavaria, where a person named Hans ROEDIG is mentioned in a property deed dated 1387.
In the 15th century, the name ROEDIG appeared in the Bremische Ehrenbuch, a historical record book of Bremen, a city-state in northern Germany. This record includes a merchant named Gerhard ROEDIG, who was a prominent member of the local guild in 1458.
During the 16th century, the name ROEDIG was also found in the Stadtbücher (city books) of Nuremberg, a major city in the German state of Bavaria. These records mention a family of artisans and craftsmen with the surname ROEDIG, including a master craftsman named Hans ROEDIG, who was born in 1512.
One notable figure with the surname ROEDIG was Johann Friedrich ROEDIG (1693-1767), a German theologian and academic who served as the rector of the University of Greifswald in Pomerania (now part of modern-day Germany and Poland).
Another individual of historical significance was Carl Friedrich Wilhelm ROEDIG (1805-1867), a German painter and etcher known for his landscape paintings and portraiture. He was born in Dresden and studied at the Dresden Academy of Fine Arts.
In the 19th century, the name ROEDIG was also found in various regions of Germany, such as Saxony and Thuringia. A prominent figure from this period was Carl August ROEDIG (1819-1891), a German architect who designed several notable buildings in Dresden, including the Semper Opera House.
The surname ROEDIG has also been associated with several place names in Germany, such as Rödigen, a village in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, and Rödig, a municipality in the state of Thuringia. These place names likely originated from the same root word as the surname, indicating areas of cleared or cultivated land.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Roedig
Among Census respondents with the surname Roedig, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Roedig 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 Roedig surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.1% · 93
- Two or more races5.9% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.0% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Roedig
Roedig 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
#145,220
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
+4 bearers (+3.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,463 places
2020
#155,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
-13 bearers (-11.4%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 10,050 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #139,757 | 110 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #145,220 | 114 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+3.6%) | Down 5,463 places |
| 2020 | #155,270 | 101 | 0.03 | -13 bearers (-11.4%) | Down 10,050 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 Roedig 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 | #145,220 | #155,270 | -6.9% |
| Count | 114 | 101 | -11.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -15.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Roedig bearers went from 114 to 101 (-11.4% change). The surname moved down 10,050 positions in the national ranking, going from #145,220 to #155,270.
FAQ
Roedig surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Roedig?
Name Census estimates that about 116 living Americans carry the surname Roedig. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,954,779 residents.
How common is Roedig?
Roedig ranks #155,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 101 people with the surname Roedig. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (116), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Roedig.
Has Roedig become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Roedig went from 114 recorded bearers to 101. That is a decrease of 13 (-11.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #145,220 to #155,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Roedig?
Among Census respondents with the surname Roedig, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%). 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 Roedig in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (93 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Roedig appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.1%), Two or More Races (5.9%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%). 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 Roedig (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 Roedig mean?
From German, meaning "red" or "reddish", likely descriptive of hair color or complexion. 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 Roedig (0.03 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 surname Roedig?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.