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

Rosario, 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 Rosario surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Rosario in America

Rosario is the 725th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Rosario surname appeared 48,051 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 16 people would have the surname Rosario.

We can also compare 2010 data for Rosario 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.

The history of the last name 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.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Rosario

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

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 Rosario was:

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

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

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

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