Rouse last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Rouse

An English occupational surname for a maker or seller of ropes and nets, or a nickname for an agile person.

Rouse, 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 Rouse surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Rouse in America

Rouse is the 1330th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Rouse surname appeared 26,519 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 9 people would have the surname Rouse.

We can also compare 2010 data for Rouse 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 1330 1292 2.90%
Count 26,519 25,022 5.81%
Proportion per 100k 8.99 9.28 -3.17%

The history of the last name Rouse

The surname ROUSE is of English origin and dates back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Old French word "rous" meaning red or ruddy, likely referring to someone with a reddish complexion or hair color. The name was initially found in areas of Oxfordshire and Northamptonshire.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire from 1195, which mentions a Roger Rouse. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 also lists a Thomas le Rous from Oxfordshire. This spelling variation, using "le" before the surname, was common during the medieval period.

The surname is also mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of landowners commissioned by William the Conqueror. The book includes references to individuals with similar names such as "Radulfus Russus" and "Hugo Russatus."

During the 13th century, the name was found in various locations across England, including the counties of Berkshire, Gloucestershire, and Wiltshire. Several place names, such as Rouse Lench in Worcestershire and Rouse Hill in Oxfordshire, are also thought to be derived from this surname.

Notable individuals with the surname ROUSE throughout history include:

  1. John Rouse (c. 1420-1491), an English monk and historian who wrote the "Historia Regum Angliae" (History of the Kings of England).

  2. Edward Rouse (1619-1677), an English politician and member of the Parliament of England during the English Civil War.

  3. Henry Rouse (1744-1800), a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the American Revolutionary War and the French Revolutionary Wars.

  4. James Rouse (1914-1996), an American entrepreneur and pioneer of the modern shopping mall concept, known for developing projects like Columbia, Maryland.

  5. John Rouse (1923-2015), an American philosopher and scholar who taught at Yale University and made significant contributions to the study of ancient Greek philosophy.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Rouse

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

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 Rouse was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 68.83% 18,253
Non-Hispanic Black Only 25.28% 6,704
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.44% 117
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 1.03% 273
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 2.02% 536
Hispanic Origin 2.39% 634

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

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 68.83% 71.94% -4.42%
Black 25.28% 23.75% 6.24%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.44% 0.30% 37.84%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 1.03% 0.87% 16.84%
Two or More Races 2.02% 1.45% 32.85%
Hispanic 2.39% 1.69% 34.31%

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

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

Reference this page

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If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Rouse last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on December 3, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/rouse-surname-popularity/.

"Rouse last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/rouse-surname-popularity/. Accessed 3 December, 2024

Rouse last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/rouse-surname-popularity/.

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