2000
#10,037
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,962
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.10
Rare Last name
Roux
A French occupational surname referring to a person with red hair or a ruddy complexion.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,467 Americans carry the last name Roux. That puts it at #10,161 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.01 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 98,862 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Roux 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 Roux with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.5K
1 in 98,862
Census rank
#10,161
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,023 bearers of the surname Roux in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.01 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10161st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Roux, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.2%. The next largest groups are Black (5.7%) and Hispanic (5.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Roux
The surname Roux has its origins in France, where it first emerged in the late Middle Ages, around the 12th or 13th century. It is derived from the Old French word "rous," meaning "red" or "reddish," which likely referred to the hair color or complexion of the original bearer.
The name was particularly prevalent in the regions of Normandy and Brittany, where it can be traced back to several early records. One of the earliest known references to the name is found in the "Livre des Bourgeois de Rouen," a registry of citizens in the Norman city of Rouen, dating back to the 13th century.
In the 14th century, a notable figure bearing the name Roux was Jacques Roux, a influential cleric and scholar who served as the Chancellor of the University of Paris from 1367 to 1378. His contemporaries included the philosopher Jean de Roux, a renowned logician and theologian active in the late 14th century.
The Roux surname also appears in various medieval charters and land records from the 15th and 16th centuries, particularly in the regions of Normandy and Brittany. One such example is the mention of a Jean Roux, a landowner in the village of Évreux in 1482.
During the Renaissance period, the name gained further prominence with figures like François Roux, a celebrated poet and playwright born in Paris in 1541. Another notable bearer was Pierre Roux, a French explorer and cartographer who accompanied Samuel de Champlain on his voyages to the New World in the early 17th century.
As the name spread across France and beyond, it evolved into various regional spellings, such as Rous, Rouz, and Rouze. Some of these variants can be found in historical records from other parts of Europe, indicating the migration of French families bearing the Roux name.
In the 18th century, the Roux surname was carried by several notable individuals, including Jacques Roux, a influential figure in the French Revolution and a leading voice of the radical Enragés faction. Another prominent bearer was the French chemist and physician Auguste Roux, born in Auxerre in 1765, who made significant contributions to the early understanding of cellular biology.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Roux
Among Census respondents with the surname Roux, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.2%. The next largest groups are Black (5.7%) and Hispanic (5.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Roux 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 Roux surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.2% · 2,456
- Black or African American5.7% · 173
- Hispanic or Latino5.1% · 155
- Two or more races5.1% · 154
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.4% · 73
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Roux
Roux 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
#9,594
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,387
+425 bearers (+14.3%)
Per 100,000 1.15
Rank movement Up 443 places
2020
#10,161
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,023
-364 bearers (-10.7%)
Per 100,000 1.01
Rank movement Down 567 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,037 | 2,962 | 1.10 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,594 | 3,387 | 1.15 | +425 bearers (+14.3%) | Up 443 places |
| 2020 | #10,161 | 3,023 | 1.01 | -364 bearers (-10.7%) | Down 567 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 Roux 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 | #9,594 | #10,161 | -5.9% |
| Count | 3,387 | 3,023 | -10.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.15 | 1.01 | -12.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Roux bearers went from 3,387 to 3,023 (-10.7% change). The surname moved down 567 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,594 to #10,161.
FAQ
Roux surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Roux?
Name Census estimates that about 3,467 living Americans carry the surname Roux. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 98,862 residents.
How common is Roux?
Roux ranks #10,161 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.01 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 3,023 people with the surname Roux. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,467), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.01 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.01 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 Roux.
Has Roux become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Roux went from 3,387 recorded bearers to 3,023. That is a decrease of 364 (-10.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,594 to #10,161.
What does the Census say about the background of Roux?
Among Census respondents with the surname Roux, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.2%. The next largest groups are Black (5.7%) and Hispanic (5.1%). 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 Roux in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.2% (2,456 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Roux appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (81.2%), Black (5.7%), Hispanic (5.1%). 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 Roux (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 Roux mean?
A French occupational surname referring to a person with red hair or a ruddy complexion. 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 Roux (1.01 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 Roux?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.