2000
#12,602
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,254
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.84
Rare Last name
Roloff
A German occupational surname derived from the Middle High German word "rodelære," meaning a cartwright or wheelwright.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,988 Americans carry the last name Roloff. That puts it at #16,149 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.58 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 172,412 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Roloff 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
2.0K
1 in 172,412
Census rank
#16,149
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,734 bearers of the surname Roloff in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.58 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 16149th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Roloff, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Roloff
The surname Roloff originates from Germany and can be traced back to the late Middle Ages. It is believed to have derived from the German words "rollen" meaning "to roll" and "hoff" meaning "farm" or "settlement". The name likely referred to someone who lived or worked on a farm where rolling or rolling tools were used.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Roloff can be found in the German city of Quedlinburg, where a certain Henning Roloff was mentioned in municipal records dating back to 1487. The spelling variation "Rolof" was also common in some regions during the 15th and 16th centuries.
In the town of Halberstadt, located in the present-day German state of Saxony-Anhalt, a family by the name of Roloff is mentioned in church records from the late 16th century. It is believed that this branch of the Roloff family may have originated in the nearby village of Rölsdorf, which could have influenced the spelling of their surname.
During the 17th century, a notable figure named Hans Roloff (1602-1673) was a respected theologian and pastor in the city of Wittenberg. He was known for his contributions to the Lutheran church and his writings on religious topics.
Another individual of note was Johann Roloff (1720-1789), a German composer and organist who lived and worked in the town of Magdeburg. His compositions, primarily for organ and church choir, were highly regarded during his lifetime.
In the 19th century, a prominent Roloff was Carl Roloff (1819-1887), a German painter and illustrator who specialized in portraiture and historical scenes. His works can be found in several museums and art galleries across Germany.
While the surname Roloff has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world, particularly through immigration to countries like the United States, Canada, and Australia. However, the earliest recorded examples and historical references remain firmly rooted in the German regions mentioned above.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Roloff
Among Census respondents with the surname Roloff, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Roloff 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 Roloff surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.7% · 1,625
- Two or more races2.8% · 48
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 41
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 11
- Black or African American0.3% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Roloff
Roloff 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
#14,160
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,121
-133 bearers (-5.9%)
Per 100,000 0.72
Rank movement Down 1,558 places
2020
#16,149
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,734
-387 bearers (-18.2%)
Per 100,000 0.58
Rank movement Down 1,989 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,602 | 2,254 | 0.84 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,160 | 2,121 | 0.72 | -133 bearers (-5.9%) | Down 1,558 places |
| 2020 | #16,149 | 1,734 | 0.58 | -387 bearers (-18.2%) | Down 1,989 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 Roloff 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 | #14,160 | #16,149 | -14.0% |
| Count | 2,121 | 1,734 | -18.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.72 | 0.58 | -19.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Roloff bearers went from 2,121 to 1,734 (-18.2% change). The surname moved down 1,989 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,160 to #16,149.
FAQ
Roloff surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Roloff?
Name Census estimates that about 1,988 living Americans carry the surname Roloff. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 172,412 residents.
How common is Roloff?
Roloff ranks #16,149 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.58 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 1,734 people with the surname Roloff. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,988), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.58 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.58 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 Roloff.
Has Roloff become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Roloff went from 2,121 recorded bearers to 1,734. That is a decrease of 387 (-18.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #14,160 to #16,149.
What does the Census say about the background of Roloff?
Among Census respondents with the surname Roloff, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (2.4%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Roloff in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.7% (1,625 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Roloff appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.7%), Two or More Races (2.8%), Hispanic (2.4%). 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 Roloff (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 Roloff mean?
A German occupational surname derived from the Middle High German word "rodelære," meaning a cartwright or wheelwright. 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 Roloff (0.58 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 Americans have the surname Roloff?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.