2000
#10,470
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,815
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.04
Rare Last name
Rothe
A German occupational surname referring to someone who clears land by grubbing out roots and stumps.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,860 Americans carry the last name Rothe. That puts it at #11,977 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.83 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 119,844 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rothe 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
2.9K
1 in 119,844
Census rank
#11,977
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,494 bearers of the surname Rothe in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.83 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11977th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rothe, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rothe
The surname Rothe is of German origin and dates back to the Middle Ages. It was originally derived from the Germanic root word "rod" or "rot," meaning "red" in English. This suggests that the name was likely given as a descriptive nickname to someone with reddish hair or a ruddy complexion.
Rothe is believed to have first emerged in the regions of Saxony and Thuringia in central Germany. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of medieval Saxon documents from the 12th century, where a "Henricus Rothe" is mentioned.
The name also appears in various medieval German records and manuscripts, such as the Constitutiones et Acta Publica Imperatorum et Regum, a compilation of imperial and royal decrees from the 13th century, which includes references to individuals with the surname Rothe.
In the 14th century, the Rothe family established themselves in the city of Erfurt, where they became prominent merchants and landowners. One notable member of this family was the chronicler and author Johannes Rothe (c. 1360-1434), who wrote the "Thüringische Chronik," a valuable historical account of the region.
Another significant figure bearing the Rothe surname was the German writer and pastor Johann Andreas Rothe (1688-1758), known for his works on theology and philosophy. He was born in Lübben, Brandenburg, and served as a pastor in various churches throughout his life.
In the 19th century, the Rothe name gained further recognition with the birth of the German philosopher and theologian Richard Rothe (1799-1867). He was a prominent figure in the field of speculative theology and published several influential works, including "Theologische Ethik" and "Stille Stunden."
The surname Rothe has also been associated with various place names in Germany, such as Rothenburg ob der Tauber, a town in Bavaria, and Rothenburg an der Fulda, a municipality in Hesse. These place names likely derived from the same Germanic root word as the surname, indicating a connection to the color red or a reddish landscape feature.
While the surname Rothe has its roots firmly planted in German history, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and diaspora. Individuals with this surname can be found in various countries, each with their own unique family histories and stories to tell.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rothe
Among Census respondents with the surname Rothe, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Rothe 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 Rothe surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.4% · 2,279
- Hispanic or Latino4.5% · 112
- Two or more races2.5% · 63
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 25
- Black or African American0.5% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rothe
Rothe 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
#11,172
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,831
+16 bearers (+0.6%)
Per 100,000 0.96
Rank movement Down 702 places
2020
#11,977
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,494
-337 bearers (-11.9%)
Per 100,000 0.83
Rank movement Down 805 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,470 | 2,815 | 1.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,172 | 2,831 | 0.96 | +16 bearers (+0.6%) | Down 702 places |
| 2020 | #11,977 | 2,494 | 0.83 | -337 bearers (-11.9%) | Down 805 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 Rothe 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 | #11,172 | #11,977 | -7.2% |
| Count | 2,831 | 2,494 | -11.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.96 | 0.83 | -13.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rothe bearers went from 2,831 to 2,494 (-11.9% change). The surname moved down 805 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,172 to #11,977.
FAQ
Rothe surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rothe?
Name Census estimates that about 2,860 living Americans carry the surname Rothe. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 119,844 residents.
How common is Rothe?
Rothe ranks #11,977 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.83 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,494 people with the surname Rothe. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,860), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.83 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.83 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Rothe.
Has Rothe become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rothe went from 2,831 recorded bearers to 2,494. That is a decrease of 337 (-11.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,172 to #11,977.
What does the Census say about the background of Rothe?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rothe, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Rothe in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.4% (2,279 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rothe appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.4%), Hispanic (4.5%), Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Rothe (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 Rothe mean?
A German occupational surname referring to someone who clears land by grubbing out roots and stumps. 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 Rothe (0.83 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 surname Rothe?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.