2000
#10,344
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,852
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.06
Rare Last name
Roesch
A German occupational surname referring to someone who made or sold rushes or reeds for thatching.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,165 Americans carry the last name Roesch. That puts it at #11,003 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.92 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 108,295 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Roesch 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
3.2K
1 in 108,295
Census rank
#11,003
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,760 bearers of the surname Roesch in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.92 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11003rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Roesch, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Roesch
The surname Roesch has its origins in Germany, where it first appeared in the 13th century. It is derived from the German word 'Rosch', which means 'reed' or 'rush'. This suggests that the earliest bearers of the name may have lived near areas of marshland or bodies of water.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of historical documents from the 13th century. In this text, a certain 'Conradus Rosch' is mentioned as a resident of the town of Eilenburg in Saxony.
During the medieval period, the name appears to have spread to various regions of Germany, with different spelling variations emerging. For instance, in the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, the name was recorded as 'Roesche' in the 14th century.
In the 16th century, a notable figure with the surname Roesch was Johannes Roesch, a Lutheran theologian and reformer born in 1516 in Nuremberg. He played a significant role in the religious upheavals of that era and authored several influential works.
Another prominent individual was Johann Roesch, a German painter and engraver born in 1592 in Nuremberg. He is best known for his detailed landscapes and architectural representations, many of which can be found in museums across Europe.
In the 17th century, the name Roesch appears in the records of the town of Oppenheim, where a certain Hans Roesch was a respected vintner and landowner. His descendants continued to cultivate vineyards in the region for several generations.
During the 18th century, a notable bearer of the name was Johann Philipp Roesch, a German composer and violinist born in 1725 in Trier. He served as the court musician to several noble families and composed numerous works for chamber ensembles.
In the 19th century, Friedrich Roesch, born in 1825 in Heidelberg, gained prominence as a pioneering German archaeologist and Egyptologist. He participated in several excavations in Egypt and made significant contributions to the field of Egyptology.
These are just a few examples of individuals with the surname Roesch who have left their mark on history. The name continues to be found throughout Germany and other parts of Europe, as well as among descendants of German immigrants around the world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Roesch
Among Census respondents with the surname Roesch, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Roesch 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 Roesch surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.6% · 2,556
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 99
- Two or more races2.8% · 76
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 19
- Black or African American0.2% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Roesch
Roesch 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
#10,034
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,210
+358 bearers (+12.6%)
Per 100,000 1.09
Rank movement Up 310 places
2020
#11,003
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,760
-450 bearers (-14.0%)
Per 100,000 0.92
Rank movement Down 969 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,344 | 2,852 | 1.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,034 | 3,210 | 1.09 | +358 bearers (+12.6%) | Up 310 places |
| 2020 | #11,003 | 2,760 | 0.92 | -450 bearers (-14.0%) | Down 969 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 Roesch 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 | #10,034 | #11,003 | -9.7% |
| Count | 3,210 | 2,760 | -14.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.09 | 0.92 | -15.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Roesch bearers went from 3,210 to 2,760 (-14.0% change). The surname moved down 969 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,034 to #11,003.
FAQ
Roesch surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Roesch?
Name Census estimates that about 3,165 living Americans carry the surname Roesch. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 108,295 residents.
How common is Roesch?
Roesch ranks #11,003 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.92 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 2,760 people with the surname Roesch. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,165), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.92 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.92 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 Roesch.
Has Roesch become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Roesch went from 3,210 recorded bearers to 2,760. That is a decrease of 450 (-14.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,034 to #11,003.
What does the Census say about the background of Roesch?
Among Census respondents with the surname Roesch, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Roesch in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.6% (2,556 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Roesch appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.6%), Hispanic (3.6%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Roesch (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 Roesch mean?
A German occupational surname referring to someone who made or sold rushes or reeds for thatching. 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 Roesch (0.92 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 share the surname Roesch?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.