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

Royce, 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 Royce surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Royce in America

Royce is the 6622nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Royce surname appeared 5,115 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Royce.

We can also compare 2010 data for Royce 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 Royce

The surname Royce is of Anglo-Norman origin, derived from the Old French word "rous" meaning red-haired or ruddy-complexioned. It likely originated as a nickname or descriptive name for someone with these physical characteristics. The name can be traced back to the early medieval period in England and Normandy, France.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Royce dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of land ownership in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. In this document, there is a reference to a landowner named Rudicus, which is believed to be an early variation of the name Royce.

During the 12th and 13th centuries, the name began to appear more frequently in various historical records and manuscripts, often spelled as Rous, Rouse, or Rowse. Some notable individuals with this surname include Sir John Rous (c. 1420-1492), an English antiquary and historian who wrote the influential work "Historia Regum Angliae" (History of the Kings of England).

Another significant figure was John Royce (c. 1500-1558), a prominent English clergyman who served as the Bishop of Rochester and later as the Bishop of Norwich. He played a key role in the English Reformation and was a supporter of the religious reforms initiated by King Henry VIII.

In the 16th century, the spelling of the name began to evolve further, with variants like Royce, Roys, and Royse becoming more common. One notable bearer of the name during this period was Sir William Royce (c. 1550-1616), an English lawyer and politician who served as a Member of Parliament and was appointed as a Judge of the Court of King's Bench.

Moving forward to the 17th century, a prominent figure was Sir Benjamin Royce (1616-1687), an English landowner and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Bedfordshire. He was a prominent supporter of the Parliamentarian cause during the English Civil War.

In the 19th century, the Royce surname gained further recognition with the birth of Frederick Henry Royce (1863-1933), the co-founder of the renowned Rolls-Royce automotive company. His engineering expertise and innovative designs contributed significantly to the development of luxury automobiles and aircraft engines.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Royce

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

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

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

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