2000
#595
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 51,336
First available Census row
Per 100,000 19.03
Uncommon Last name
Rosales
A Spanish toponymic surname referring to someone living near rose bushes or a place abundant with roses.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 85,740 Americans carry the last name Rosales. That puts it at #433 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 25.01 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,998 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rosales 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Rosales with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
86K
1 in 3,998
Census rank
#433
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
25.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
75K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 74,769 bearers of the surname Rosales in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 25.01 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 433rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rosales, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.3%. The next largest groups are White (4.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rosales
The surname Rosales originates from Spain and can be traced back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Spanish word "rosal" which means "rose bush" or "rose garden". This suggests that the name may have been initially given to someone who lived near or cultivated rose bushes.
One of the earliest records of the name Rosales can be found in the "Becerro de las Behetrías" which was a medieval census of landowners and their properties in the Kingdom of Castile. In this document, there are several references to individuals with the surname Rosales living in various villages and towns across northern Spain.
During the 15th century, there are mentions of the Rosales family in historical documents related to the Spanish Inquisition. One notable individual was Juan de Rosales, a merchant from Seville who was accused of secretly practicing Judaism but was eventually acquitted of the charges.
In the 16th century, the name Rosales began to spread across the Spanish colonies in the Americas. One of the earliest known bearers of the name in the New World was Juan de Rosales, a Spanish conquistador who participated in the conquest of Guatemala alongside Pedro de Alvarado.
Another prominent figure with the surname Rosales was Diego de Rosales, a Jesuit priest and historian who lived in the 17th century. He wrote an important chronicle about the indigenous people of Chile and their conflicts with the Spanish colonizers, titled "Historia General del Reino de Chile".
In the 18th century, there was a small village in the province of Burgos, Spain, called Rosales. It is possible that some individuals from this village may have adopted the place name as their surname, contributing to the further spread of the name Rosales.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Rosales, including:
1. Francisco de Rosales (1642-1704), a Spanish painter known for his religious works and portraits.
2. José María Rosales (1770-1842), a Venezuelan military leader and politician who played a significant role in the Venezuelan War of Independence.
3. María Rosales (1915-2008), a Mexican actress and singer who appeared in numerous films and television shows during the Golden Age of Mexican cinema.
4. César Rosales (1944-2022), a Mexican artist and sculptor known for his large-scale public installations and abstract works.
5. Víctor Rosales (born 1961), a former professional boxer from Ecuador who held the WBC light flyweight title from 1988 to 1989.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rosales
Among Census respondents with the surname Rosales, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.3%. The next largest groups are White (4.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Rosales 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 Rosales surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino92.3% · 68,997
- White4.1% · 3,086
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 1,938
- Black or African American0.4% · 270
- Two or more races0.4% · 270
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 208
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rosales
Rosales 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
#431
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 75,185
+23,849 bearers (+46.5%)
Per 100,000 25.49
Rank movement Up 164 places
2020
#433
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 74,769
-416 bearers (-0.6%)
Per 100,000 25.01
Rank movement Down 2 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #595 | 51,336 | 19.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #431 | 75,185 | 25.49 | +23,849 bearers (+46.5%) | Up 164 places |
| 2020 | #433 | 74,769 | 25.01 | -416 bearers (-0.6%) | Down 2 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 Rosales 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 | #431 | #433 | -0.5% |
| Count | 75,185 | 74,769 | -0.6% |
| Per 100K | 25.49 | 25.01 | -1.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rosales bearers went from 75,185 to 74,769 (-0.6% change). The surname moved down 2 positions in the national ranking, going from #431 to #433.
FAQ
Rosales surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rosales?
Name Census estimates that about 85,740 living Americans carry the surname Rosales. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,998 residents.
How common is Rosales?
Rosales ranks #433 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 25.01 per 100,000 residents, which is about 25 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 74,769 people with the surname Rosales. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (85,740), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 25.01 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 25.01 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 25 of them to have the surname Rosales.
Has Rosales become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rosales went from 75,185 recorded bearers to 74,769. That is a decrease of 416 (-0.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #431 to #433.
What does the Census say about the background of Rosales?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rosales, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.3%. The next largest groups are White (4.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Rosales in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.3% (68,997 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rosales appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (92.3%), White (4.1%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%). 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 Rosales (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 Rosales mean?
A Spanish toponymic surname referring to someone living near rose bushes or a place abundant with roses. 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 Rosales (25.01 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 last name Rosales?
See how common the surname Rosales is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.