2000
#19,642
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,270
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.47
Rare Last name
Roh
A toponymic surname derived from a German place name meaning "reed" or "marsh".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,224 Americans carry the last name Roh. That puts it at #14,704 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.65 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 154,116 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Roh 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
2.2K
1 in 154,116
Census rank
#14,704
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,939 bearers of the surname Roh in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.65 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14704th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Roh, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 75.8%. The next largest groups are White (21.0%) and Two or More Races (1.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Roh
The surname Roh originated in Germany, with its earliest known occurrences dating back to the 13th century. The name is believed to be derived from the Middle High German word "ror," which means "reed" or "cane." This suggests that the name may have initially been used to identify people who lived near reed beds or worked with reeds in some capacity.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Roh can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony, Germany, which mentions a "Johannes Roh" in the year 1288. Additionally, the name appears in various other medieval records from German-speaking regions, such as the "Liber Censualis" of the Archdiocese of Mainz, which lists a "Henricus Roh" in 1457.
In the 16th century, the name Roh was associated with the town of Rohr, located in the present-day German state of Bavaria. It is possible that some individuals with the surname Roh may have taken their name from this place, or that the place itself was named after an early settler with the surname.
Notable individuals with the surname Roh throughout history include Johannes Roh (c. 1360-1437), a German theologian and author who wrote extensively on the spiritual life and mysticism. Another prominent figure was Philipp Roh (1594-1667), a German mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the field of celestial mechanics.
In the 18th century, Johann Georg Roh (1737-1808) was a German composer and organist known for his church music and organ works. Additionally, Johann Friedrich Roh (1777-1848) was a German jurist and legal scholar who played a crucial role in the development of German civil law.
The 19th century saw the birth of Heinrich Roh (1819-1892), a German businessman and industrialist who founded the Roh & Co. company, which became a leading manufacturer of agricultural machinery and equipment.
While the surname Roh has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and various historical events. However, the core meaning and origins of the name remain closely tied to its German heritage and the linguistic roots that gave rise to it centuries ago.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Roh
Among Census respondents with the surname Roh, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 75.8%. The next largest groups are White (21.0%) and Two or More Races (1.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Roh 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 Roh surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander75.8% · 1,470
- White21.0% · 408
- Two or more races1.4% · 27
- Hispanic or Latino1.2% · 24
- Black or African American0.4% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Roh
Roh 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
#15,871
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,833
+563 bearers (+44.3%)
Per 100,000 0.62
Rank movement Up 3,771 places
2020
#14,704
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,939
+106 bearers (+5.8%)
Per 100,000 0.65
Rank movement Up 1,167 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #19,642 | 1,270 | 0.47 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,871 | 1,833 | 0.62 | +563 bearers (+44.3%) | Up 3,771 places |
| 2020 | #14,704 | 1,939 | 0.65 | +106 bearers (+5.8%) | Up 1,167 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 Roh 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 | #15,871 | #14,704 | 7.4% |
| Count | 1,833 | 1,939 | 5.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.62 | 0.65 | 4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Roh bearers went from 1,833 to 1,939 (+5.8% change). The surname moved up 1,167 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,871 to #14,704.
FAQ
Roh surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Roh?
Name Census estimates that about 2,224 living Americans carry the surname Roh. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 154,116 residents.
How common is Roh?
Roh ranks #14,704 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.65 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 1,939 people with the surname Roh. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,224), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.65 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.65 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 Roh.
Has Roh become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Roh went from 1,833 recorded bearers to 1,939. That is an increase of 106 (+5.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #15,871 to #14,704.
What does the Census say about the background of Roh?
Among Census respondents with the surname Roh, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 75.8%. The next largest groups are White (21.0%) and Two or More Races (1.4%). 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?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Roh in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.8% (1,470 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Roh appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (75.8%), White (21.0%), Two or More Races (1.4%). 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 Roh (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 Roh mean?
A toponymic surname derived from a German place name meaning "reed" or "marsh". 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 Roh (0.65 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 common is the surname Roh?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the surname Roh on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.