Roja last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Roja

A surname likely of Indian origin meaning "rose" or "red".

Roja, 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 Roja surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Roja in America

Roja is the 59901st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Roja surname appeared 337 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Roja.

We can also compare 2010 data for Roja 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 59901 71808 -18.08%
Count 337 253 28.47%
Proportion per 100k 0.11 0.09 20.00%

The history of the last name Roja

The surname ROJA is believed to have originated in Spain during the medieval period. It likely derived from the Spanish word "rojo," meaning "red," which may have referred to someone with reddish hair or a ruddy complexion. Alternatively, it could have been a toponymic surname referring to someone from a place with a name containing the word "rojo."

The earliest recorded instances of the surname ROJA can be found in Spanish historical documents from the 13th century. One notable example is Pedro ROJA, a nobleman from Seville who lived in the late 1200s and served as a royal advisor to King Alfonso X.

In the 15th century, the name appeared in the records of the Spanish Inquisition, with Juan ROJA being accused of heresy in 1487. It is also documented that a family with the ROJA surname owned land in the region of Andalusia during this time period.

As the Spanish empire expanded into the Americas, the ROJA surname spread to various colonies. One of the earliest references is Antonio ROJA, a conquistador who accompanied Hernán Cortés in the conquest of Mexico in the early 1500s.

In the 17th century, the ROJA name was found in various parts of Spain and its territories. Notable individuals include María ROJA, a nun who established a convent in Granada in 1632, and Rodrigo ROJA, a composer and musician in the court of King Philip IV.

During the 18th century, the ROJA surname gained prominence in the arts and literature. Francisco ROJA was a celebrated painter in Madrid, known for his portraits of the Spanish nobility. Additionally, Juana ROJA was a renowned poet whose works were widely published and celebrated in her time.

As the centuries progressed, the ROJA surname continued to be prominent in various fields. In the 19th century, Miguel ROJA was a renowned scientist and explorer who made significant contributions to the study of botany and geography in South America. In the early 20th century, Emilio ROJA was a prominent architect who designed several iconic buildings in Barcelona.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Roja

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

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 Roja was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 9.20% 31
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 4.45% 15
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 2.08% 7
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races (S)% (S)
Hispanic Origin 82.49% 278

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

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 9.20% 10.67% -14.80%
Black (S)% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander 4.45% 5.14% -14.39%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 2.08% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races (S)% 0.00% (S)%
Hispanic 82.49% 82.61% -0.15%

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

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!

"Roja last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on December 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/roja-surname-popularity/.

"Roja last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/roja-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 December, 2024

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

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