2000
#42,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 477
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.18
Very Rare Last name
Rossen
Germanic surname meaning "son of Ross" or "son of the red-haired one".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 571 Americans carry the last name Rossen. That puts it at #46,181 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.17 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 600,270 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rossen 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
571
1 in 600,270
Census rank
#46,181
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
498
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 498 bearers of the surname Rossen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.17 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 46181st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rossen, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.4%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rossen
The surname Rossen is believed to have originated in Germany, where it was likely derived from the Germanic word "ros," meaning a horse or small pony. This suggests that the name may have initially been an occupational surname for someone who worked with horses or perhaps bred or traded them.
Alternatively, some sources indicate that Rossen could be a locational surname stemming from various place names in Germany, such as Rossen in Saxony or Roßen in Brandenburg. These places may have been named after a person or derived from the word "ros" as well.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rossen can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony dating back to the 13th century. Specifically, a record from 1285 mentions a "Henricus de Rossen."
In the 16th century, there are references to a German scholar and author named Johann Rossen (1522-1584), who wrote works on astronomy and astrology. Another notable individual with this surname was Johann Rossen (1726-1809), a German Protestant theologian and author from Pomerania.
Moving forward in time, one prominent figure with the Rossen surname was Joseph Rossen (1823-1909), an American politician who served as the 28th Governor of Wyoming from 1893 to 1895. He was born in Prussia and immigrated to the United States in the mid-19th century.
In the 20th century, Robert Rossen (1908-1966) was a notable American screenwriter, film director, and producer. He is best known for directing the classic film "The Hustler" (1961), which earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Director.
Another individual of note was Sammy Rossen (1916-1967), an American boxer and actor who appeared in several films in the 1940s and 1950s, including "On the Waterfront" (1954) and "The Killers" (1964).
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rossen
Among Census respondents with the surname Rossen, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.4%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Rossen 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 Rossen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.8% · 442
- Hispanic or Latino5.4% · 27
- Two or more races2.6% · 13
- Black or African American1.4% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rossen
Rossen 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
#43,811
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 492
+15 bearers (+3.1%)
Per 100,000 0.17
Rank movement Down 1,054 places
2020
#46,181
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 498
+6 bearers (+1.2%)
Per 100,000 0.17
Rank movement Down 2,370 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #42,757 | 477 | 0.18 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #43,811 | 492 | 0.17 | +15 bearers (+3.1%) | Down 1,054 places |
| 2020 | #46,181 | 498 | 0.17 | +6 bearers (+1.2%) | Down 2,370 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 Rossen 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 | #43,811 | #46,181 | -5.4% |
| Count | 492 | 498 | 1.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.17 | 0.17 | -2.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rossen bearers went from 492 to 498 (+1.2% change). The surname moved down 2,370 positions in the national ranking, going from #43,811 to #46,181.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Rossen
FAQ
Rossen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rossen?
Name Census estimates that about 571 living Americans carry the surname Rossen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 600,270 residents.
How common is Rossen?
Rossen ranks #46,181 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.17 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 498 people with the surname Rossen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (571), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.17 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.17 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 Rossen.
Has Rossen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rossen went from 492 recorded bearers to 498. That is an increase of 6 (+1.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #43,811 to #46,181.
What does the Census say about the background of Rossen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rossen, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.4%) and Two or More Races (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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Rossen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.8% (442 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rossen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.8%), Hispanic (5.4%), Two or More Races (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 Rossen (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 Rossen mean?
Germanic surname meaning "son of Ross" or "son of the red-haired one". 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 Rossen (0.17 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 Rossen?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.