Rogers last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Rogers

An English surname derived from the given name Roger, meaning "famous spear" or "renowned warrior."

Rogers, 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 Rogers surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Rogers in America

Rogers is the 66th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Rogers surname appeared 302,261 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 102 people would have the surname Rogers.

We can also compare 2010 data for Rogers 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 66 61 7.87%
Count 302,261 294,403 2.63%
Proportion per 100k 102.47 109.13 -6.29%

The history of the last name Rogers

The surname Rogers originated in England, with the first records of the name dating back to the late 12th century. It is derived from the Old English pre-7th century personal name Rodge, itself originating from the Germanic name Rodger, meaning "famous with the spear" or "famous warrior".

The Rogers surname is found in various early English records, including the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1166, where a Richard Roger is listed. It is also mentioned in the Curia Regis Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1202, recording a William Roger.

One of the earliest documented individuals with this surname was Sir John Rogers, a Protestant martyr who was burned at the stake in 1555 during the reign of Queen Mary I. He is remembered for his efforts in translating the Bible into English.

In the late 16th century, the famous English philosopher and statesman Francis Bacon (1561-1626) had a close friend and confidant named John Rogers, who assisted him in his literary and scientific endeavors.

During the Colonial era in America, the Rogers surname was well-represented among the early settlers. One notable figure was Reverend John Rogers (1630-1684), who was a prominent Puritan minister and co-founder of Harvard College.

Another famous individual with this surname was Samuel Rogers (1763-1855), an English poet and banker who was renowned for his works such as "The Pleasures of Memory" and "Human Life".

In the 19th century, John Rogers (1829-1904) was an American sculptor and artist who gained fame for his popular genre sculptures depicting everyday life scenes.

The Rogers surname has also been associated with various place names throughout England, such as Rogers Green in Suffolk, Rogershall in Essex, and Rogersfield in Buckinghamshire, reflecting the widespread distribution of the name across the country.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Rogers

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

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 Rogers was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 75.40% 227,905
Non-Hispanic Black Only 18.53% 56,009
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.54% 1,632
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.82% 2,479
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 2.10% 6,347
Hispanic Origin 2.62% 7,919

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 Rogers has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 75.40% 77.80% -3.13%
Black 18.53% 17.66% 4.81%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.54% 0.42% 25.00%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.82% 0.77% 6.29%
Two or More Races 2.10% 1.58% 28.26%
Hispanic 2.62% 1.77% 38.72%

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

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

Reference this page

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If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Rogers last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on October 15, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/rogers-surname-popularity/.

"Rogers last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/rogers-surname-popularity/. Accessed 15 October, 2024

Rogers last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/rogers-surname-popularity/.

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