2000
#865
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 36,539
First available Census row
Per 100,000 13.54
Uncommon Last name
Rosario
A locational surname referring to someone from a place called Rosario, derived from the Latin "rosarium" meaning "rose garden."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 60,109 Americans carry the last name Rosario. That puts it at #627 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 17.54 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 5,702 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rosario 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 Rosario with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
60K
1 in 5,702
Census rank
#627
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
17.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
52K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 52,418 bearers of the surname Rosario in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 17.54 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 627th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rosario, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 87.3%. The next largest groups are White (5.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rosario
The surname Rosario originated in Italy during the medieval period. It is derived from the Italian word 'rosario', which means 'rosary' and refers to the Catholic devotion involving the recitation of prayers and the contemplation of sacred mysteries. The name was likely adopted by individuals or families who were particularly devoted to this religious practice.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Rosario can be found in the 13th century, when a certain Giovanni del Rosario was mentioned in a document from the city of Genoa. This suggests that the name was already in use by that time in the regions of northern Italy.
In the 14th century, the surname appears in various records from the Italian city-states, such as Florence, Venice, and Naples. For example, a Niccolò Rosario was a prominent merchant in Florence during the reign of the Medici family.
As the surname spread across Europe, it underwent some variations in spelling, such as Rosario, Rosarii, and Rosari. These different forms were often used interchangeably and reflected regional linguistic differences.
One notable bearer of the Rosario surname was the Venetian explorer and navigator Giovanni Battista Rosario, who lived from 1492 to 1556. He participated in several voyages to the Americas and was among the first Europeans to explore the coasts of Brazil and the Caribbean.
Another significant figure was the Italian philosopher and theologian Giovanni Maria Rosario (1544-1621), who was a prominent figure during the Counter-Reformation and served as a papal advisor.
In the 17th century, the Rosario surname gained prominence in Spain, where it was often associated with nobility and landowners. One example is Don Pedro de Rosario y Castilla (1600-1673), a Spanish military commander who played a crucial role in the defense of the city of Cadiz against the English during the Anglo-Spanish War.
During the colonial era, the surname Rosario was carried across the Atlantic by Italian and Spanish emigrants, eventually spreading to various parts of the Americas, including Latin America and the Caribbean.
One notable figure from this period was the Cuban revolutionary leader and patriot José Martí Rosario (1853-1895), who played a crucial role in the fight for Cuban independence from Spain.
In more recent times, the surname Rosario has been borne by several renowned individuals, such as the American actress and singer Rosario Dawson, born in 1979, and the Puerto Rican boxer and former world champion Tito Rosario, born in 1972.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rosario
Among Census respondents with the surname Rosario, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 87.3%. The next largest groups are White (5.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Rosario 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 Rosario surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino87.3% · 45,767
- White5.6% · 2,917
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.4% · 2,291
- Black or African American1.8% · 931
- Two or more races0.9% · 453
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 59
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rosario
Rosario 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
#725
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 48,051
+11,512 bearers (+31.5%)
Per 100,000 16.29
Rank movement Up 140 places
2020
#627
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 52,418
+4,367 bearers (+9.1%)
Per 100,000 17.54
Rank movement Up 98 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #865 | 36,539 | 13.54 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #725 | 48,051 | 16.29 | +11,512 bearers (+31.5%) | Up 140 places |
| 2020 | #627 | 52,418 | 17.54 | +4,367 bearers (+9.1%) | Up 98 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 Rosario 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 | #725 | #627 | 13.5% |
| Count | 48,051 | 52,418 | 9.1% |
| Per 100K | 16.29 | 17.54 | 7.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rosario bearers went from 48,051 to 52,418 (+9.1% change). The surname moved up 98 positions in the national ranking, going from #725 to #627.
FAQ
Rosario surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rosario?
Name Census estimates that about 60,109 living Americans carry the surname Rosario. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 5,702 residents.
How common is Rosario?
Rosario ranks #627 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 17.54 per 100,000 residents, which is about 18 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 52,418 people with the surname Rosario. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (60,109), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 17.54 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 17.54 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 18 of them to have the surname Rosario.
Has Rosario become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rosario went from 48,051 recorded bearers to 52,418. That is an increase of 4,367 (+9.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #725 to #627.
What does the Census say about the background of Rosario?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rosario, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 87.3%. The next largest groups are White (5.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.4%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Rosario in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.3% (45,767 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rosario appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (87.3%), White (5.6%), Asian/Pacific Islander (4.4%). 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 Rosario (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 Rosario mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from a place called Rosario, derived from the Latin "rosarium" meaning "rose garden." 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 Rosario (17.54 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 Rosario?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Rosario, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.