2000
#147,095
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Rooyakkers
Dutch occupational surname meaning cultivator of plowed fields or arable land.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 125 Americans carry the last name Rooyakkers. That puts it at #150,205 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,742,035 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rooyakkers 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
125
1 in 2,742,035
Census rank
#150,205
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
109
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 109 bearers of the surname Rooyakkers in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150205th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rooyakkers, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rooyakkers
The surname ROOYAKKERS is of Dutch origin, originating in the Netherlands during the late medieval period. It is derived from the Dutch words "rooij" meaning "reed" or "clearing" and "akker" meaning "field" or "acre". The name likely referred to someone who lived near or worked on a cultivated field that was cleared from reed vegetation.
The earliest known record of the ROOYAKKERS surname dates back to the 16th century in the Dutch province of Noord-Brabant. In 1583, a farmer named Jan Rooyakkers was mentioned in a land registry document from the town of Tilburg. This suggests the name may have originated in this region.
Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, the ROOYAKKERS name appeared in various parish records and tax rolls across the southern Netherlands and neighboring regions of modern-day Belgium. Some notable individuals include:
1. Adriaen Rooyakkers (1621-1689), a wealthy merchant from Antwerp who owned several trading ships.
2. Johanna Rooyakkers (1738-1802), a renowned lace maker from Breda whose intricate designs were highly sought after by nobility.
3. Pieter Rooyakkers (1770-1843), a farmer and militia captain during the French Revolutionary Wars.
4. Willem Rooyakkers (1825-1901), a prominent architect responsible for designing several churches and public buildings in the Brabant region.
5. Maria Rooyakkers (1867-1932), a respected educator and author of children's books promoting Dutch language and culture.
During the 19th century, many individuals with the ROOYAKKERS surname emigrated from the Netherlands to other parts of the world, particularly North America and South Africa, where they established new branches of the family line.
The name has also been found in various historical records with slight spelling variations such as "Rooijackers", "Rooyackers", and "Roijakkers", which reflect regional dialects and scribal inconsistencies of the time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rooyakkers
Among Census respondents with the surname Rooyakkers, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Rooyakkers 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 Rooyakkers surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.9% · 98
- Hispanic or Latino4.6% · 5
- Two or more races4.6% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rooyakkers
Rooyakkers 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
#150,452
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
+6 bearers (+5.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,357 places
2020
#150,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 247 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #147,095 | 103 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #150,452 | 109 | 0.04 | +6 bearers (+5.8%) | Down 3,357 places |
| 2020 | #150,205 | 109 | 0.04 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Up 247 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 Rooyakkers 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 | #150,452 | #150,205 | 0.2% |
| Count | 109 | 109 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rooyakkers bearers went from 109 to 109 (+0.0% change). The surname moved up 247 positions in the national ranking, going from #150,452 to #150,205.
FAQ
Rooyakkers surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rooyakkers?
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the surname Rooyakkers. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,742,035 residents.
How common is Rooyakkers?
Rooyakkers ranks #150,205 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 109 people with the surname Rooyakkers. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (125), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Rooyakkers.
Has Rooyakkers become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rooyakkers went from 109 recorded bearers to 109. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #150,452 to #150,205.
What does the Census say about the background of Rooyakkers?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rooyakkers, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Rooyakkers in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.9% (98 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rooyakkers appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.9%), Hispanic (4.6%), Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Rooyakkers (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 Rooyakkers mean?
Dutch occupational surname meaning cultivator of plowed fields or arable land. 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 Rooyakkers (0.04 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 have the surname Rooyakkers?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.