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

Rother, 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 Rother surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Rother in America

Rother is the 15748th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Rother surname appeared 1,851 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Rother.

We can also compare 2010 data for Rother 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 Rother

The surname Rother has its origins in Germany, likely emerging during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German word "rot," meaning "red," and may have initially referred to someone with reddish hair or a ruddy complexion. Alternatively, it could have been a topographic name describing someone who lived near a reddish or rust-colored landscape feature.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber in Bavaria, where the "Rother" family is mentioned in records dating back to the 13th century. The name also appears in various medieval manuscripts and documents from across the German-speaking regions of Europe.

In the 14th century, a prominent figure named Johann Rother was a respected politician and merchant in the city of Nuremberg. His descendants continued to play influential roles in the city's affairs for several generations.

During the 16th century, a notable individual named Hans Rother (1492-1552) was a celebrated artist and woodcarver from Swabia, known for his intricate religious sculptures and altarpieces that can still be found in churches throughout southern Germany.

In the 17th century, a scholar and theologian named Johann Friedrich Rother (1625-1691) gained recognition for his extensive writings on Protestant theology and his role in the German Reformation.

Another notable bearer of the name was the 18th-century explorer and naturalist Johann Jakob Rother (1738-1804), who traveled extensively throughout South America and brought back numerous plant and animal specimens for study in Europe.

The surname Rother has also been associated with various place names throughout Germany, such as Rotherhithe in London, which was originally settled by German immigrants and derived its name from the German word "Rother" combined with the Old English word "hythe" meaning "landing place."

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Rother

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

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

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

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