Rockey
A masculine name derived from the English word "rock", symbolizing strength and steadfastness.
Name Census estimates that about 767 living Americans carry the first name Rockey. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Rockey today is around 59 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rockey births was 1957 (51 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rockey. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
767
~ 1 in 446,877 Americans
Peak year
1957
51 babies that year
Average age
59
years old
2023 SSA rank
#11,952
Tracked since 1924
Census
Rockey in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 614 people with the first name Rockey, which placed it at #17,775 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#17,775
National first-name rank
People counted
614
614 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
76.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rockey
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Rockey is White at 76.5%. The next largest groups are Black (10.3%) and Hispanic (5.2%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Rockey 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 name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Rockey at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White76.5% · 470
- Black or African American10.3% · 63
- Hispanic or Latino5.2% · 32
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.1% · 19
- Two or more races2.9% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.0% · 12
Popularity
Rockey: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Rockey from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 343 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Rockey by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Rockey during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Rockeys live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. Texas, California, Ohio recorded the most babies named Rockey, while Oklahoma, Ohio, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 14 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Rockey
The given name Rockey is believed to have originated from the Old English word "rocca," which means "rock" or "rocky area." This name gained popularity in the British Isles during the Middle Ages, particularly in regions with rocky landscapes and terrains.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rockey can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name appeared as "Rocchius," referring to a landowner or tenant in the county of Sussex.
In the 12th century, the name Rockey was mentioned in the writings of the renowned English historian and scholar, William of Malmesbury. He documented the exploits of a knight named Rockey de Warenne, who fought alongside King Richard I during the Third Crusade in the late 12th century.
During the Renaissance period, the name Rockey gained further recognition with the birth of Rockey Balducci (1454-1512), an Italian Renaissance painter and architect. Balducci's works can still be admired in various churches and palaces across Italy.
In the 17th century, Rockey Cradock (1633-1695) was a prominent English Quaker and writer. He was known for his influential pamphlets advocating for religious tolerance and pacifism during the tumultuous period of the English Civil War.
Another notable figure bearing the name Rockey was Rockey Marciano (1923-1969), an American professional boxer and former heavyweight champion. Marciano retired undefeated in 1956, with a record of 49 wins, including 43 knockouts, and cemented his place as one of the greatest boxers in history.
While the name Rockey may have ancient roots, it has maintained a certain degree of popularity throughout the centuries, with various individuals leaving their mark in different fields, from art and literature to sports and beyond.
People
Rockey + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rockey as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Rockey: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rockey?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 767 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rockey going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 446,877 US residents.
Is Rockey a common name?
We classify Rockey as "Very Rare". It ranks above 88.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 941 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rockey most popular?
The single biggest year for Rockey was 1957, when 51 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rockey is about 59 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Rockey in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 614 people with the name Rockey, or 0.20 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #17,775 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Rockey in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Rockey?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Rockey leans strongly male. 601 people counted with this name were male (97.1%), compared with 18 female bearers (2.9%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Rockey?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Rockey is White at 76.5%. The next largest groups are Black (10.3%) and Hispanic (5.2%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Rockey most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Rockey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 76.5% (470 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Rockey in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Rockey a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Rockey in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Rockey still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Rockey in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Rockey can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people are called Rockey?
You can see how many people share the name Rockey on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.