2000
#1,956
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,881
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.26
Uncommon Last name
Rosenthal
A German and Jewish toponymic surname referring to someone living in a place where roses were grown.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 18,004 Americans carry the last name Rosenthal. That puts it at #2,256 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.25 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 19,038 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rosenthal 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 Rosenthal with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
18K
1 in 19,038
Census rank
#2,256
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
16K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 15,700 bearers of the surname Rosenthal in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.25 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2256th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rosenthal, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rosenthal
The surname Rosenthal originated in German-speaking regions of Europe, particularly in Germany and Austria. It is derived from the German words "Rose" meaning rose and "Thal" meaning valley, essentially translating to "Rose Valley." The earliest known records of the surname date back to the 13th century.
During the Middle Ages, the surname Rosenthal was likely given to individuals who lived in a valley where roses grew abundantly or near a town or village with the name Rosenthal. Similar spellings from that time period include Rosenthal, Rosenthaler, and Rosendahl.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the surname Rosenthal can be found in a 14th-century German manuscript referring to a landowner named Hans Rosenthal. Another notable early reference is in the Württemberg tax records of 1495, which list a Jacob Rosenthal residing in the town of Stuttgart.
In the 16th century, a prominent figure with the surname Rosenthal was Isaak Rosenthal, a German-Jewish scholar and rabbi who lived from 1515 to 1585. He was renowned for his expertise in Talmudic law and Hebrew literature.
During the 17th century, a notable bearer of the name was Johann Rosenthal, a German composer and organist who lived from 1617 to 1672. He is recognized for his contributions to the development of the north German organ school.
In the 18th century, Johann Friedrich Rosenthal, a German physician and botanist who lived from 1723 to 1776, made significant contributions to the study of plant taxonomy and authored several influential works on the subject.
Another notable figure with the surname Rosenthal was Isaak Rosenthal, a German-Jewish financier and philanthropist who lived from 1779 to 1858. He was instrumental in establishing several educational institutions and charitable organizations in Germany.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rosenthal
Among Census respondents with the surname Rosenthal, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Rosenthal 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 Rosenthal surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.2% · 14,166
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 591
- Two or more races2.4% · 371
- Black or African American2.4% · 370
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 166
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 36
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rosenthal
Rosenthal 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
#2,194
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,583
-298 bearers (-1.8%)
Per 100,000 5.62
Rank movement Down 238 places
2020
#2,256
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,700
-883 bearers (-5.3%)
Per 100,000 5.25
Rank movement Down 62 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,956 | 16,881 | 6.26 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,194 | 16,583 | 5.62 | -298 bearers (-1.8%) | Down 238 places |
| 2020 | #2,256 | 15,700 | 5.25 | -883 bearers (-5.3%) | Down 62 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 Rosenthal 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 | #2,194 | #2,256 | -2.8% |
| Count | 16,583 | 15,700 | -5.3% |
| Per 100K | 5.62 | 5.25 | -6.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rosenthal bearers went from 16,583 to 15,700 (-5.3% change). The surname moved down 62 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,194 to #2,256.
FAQ
Rosenthal surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rosenthal?
Name Census estimates that about 18,004 living Americans carry the surname Rosenthal. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 19,038 residents.
How common is Rosenthal?
Rosenthal ranks #2,256 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.25 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 15,700 people with the surname Rosenthal. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (18,004), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.25 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.25 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Rosenthal.
Has Rosenthal become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rosenthal went from 16,583 recorded bearers to 15,700. That is a decrease of 883 (-5.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,194 to #2,256.
What does the Census say about the background of Rosenthal?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rosenthal, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (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 Rosenthal in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.2% (14,166 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rosenthal appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.2%), Hispanic (3.8%), Two or More Races (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 Rosenthal (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 Rosenthal mean?
A German and Jewish toponymic surname referring to someone living in a place where roses were grown. 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 Rosenthal (5.25 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 share the surname Rosenthal?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.