Roald Dahl
There are approximately 1 people named Roald Dahl living in the United States today. That makes this name combination very rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 342,754,338 Americans.
This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Roald with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Dahl. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and Census demographics where available.
Expected bearers
1
1 in 342,754,338
Named Roald
36
Alive today
Named Dahl
24K
Alive today
US population
343M
Denominator
Estimated living: 36
Rarity: Very Rare
Gender: Male
Peak year: 1928
Average age: 80
Top Census group: White (78.2%)
Estimated bearers: 24K
Rarity: Uncommon
Census rank: #1,657
Per 100K: 7.08
Top ancestry: White (91.8%)
First name trend
Roald: popularity over time
Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Roald. The peak year was 1928 with 18 births. The average person named Roald today is 80 years old.
Babies born per year
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Roald
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the first name Roald, from the 2020 US Census Bureau first-name tables. The largest published group is White at 78.2%.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Roald described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. These are self-reported numbers, and they describe the population who happened to carry the name Roald at the time of the Census. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity.
- White78.2% · 259
- Black or African American6.6% · 22
- Asian and Pacific Islander6.6% · 22
- Hispanic or Latino6.0% · 20
- Two or more races2.4% · 8
Ethnicity
Ancestry of the Dahl surname
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the surname Dahl, from the 2020 US Census Bureau. The largest group is White at 91.8%.
The bar chart below shows how people with the surname Dahl described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. These are self-reported numbers, and they describe the population who happened to carry the surname Dahl at the time of the Census. A surname does not determine a person's race or ethnicity.
- White91.8% · 19,419
- Two or more races3.1% · 653
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 624
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 179
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 157
- Black or African American0.6% · 124
Methodology
How we calculated this
The first name Roald has a living-bearer frequency of 0.0000% of the US population, based on 36 estimated living Americans carrying this first name (from SSA birth records going back to 1880, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables).
Even though the Census Bureau now publishes first-name tables, we do not use that file as the main first-name input for this estimate. The latest first-name Census snapshot is from 2020, which makes it 6 years old today. Because Census first-name data is only released once every 10 years, SSA birth records plus CDC survival rates give a better current estimate of how many people are likely alive with the name Roald right now.
The surname Dahl appears at a rate of 7.08 per 100,000 residents in the 2020 Census Bureau surname file, which translates to a frequency of 0.0071%.
Multiplying these two independent frequencies against the current US population of 342,754,338 gives an expected count of approximately 1 people with the full name Roald Dahl. This assumes statistical independence between first and last names, which is a simplification but produces reasonable estimates for most combinations.
Related
Other people with the surname Dahl
FAQ
Roald Dahl: questions and answers
How many people are named Roald Dahl?
We estimate approximately 1 people in the United States share the full name Roald Dahl. That works out to about 1 in 342,754,338 Americans. This is calculated by combining the first-name frequency (0.0000%) with the surname frequency (7.08 per 100K) against the current US population.
How rare is the name Roald Dahl?
We classify Roald Dahl as "Very Rare". About 1 in 342,754,338 Americans share this exact first and last name combination.
Is Roald a male or female name?
Roald is predominantly male. Out of 189 total SSA registrations, 100.0% were male and 0.0% were female. See the full Roald profile for detailed gender data.
Where does this data come from?
First-name data comes from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files (1880 to 2024). Surname data comes from the 2020 US Census Bureau decennial surname tables. Living-bearer estimates use CDC actuarial life tables to adjust for mortality. Read the full methodology.
How many people share the full name Roald Dahl?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.