Russ
A diminutive form of the name Russell, which derives from the French, meaning "red-haired, ruddy complexion."
Name Census estimates that about 4,788 living Americans carry the first name Russ. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Russ today is around 59 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Russ births was 1959 (350 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Russ. 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
4.8K
~ 1 in 71,586 Americans
Peak year
1959
350 babies that year
Average age
59
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,386
Tracked since 1898
Census
Russ in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 9,490 people with the first name Russ, which placed it at #2,552 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
#2,552
National first-name rank
People counted
9.5K
9,490 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
3.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
91.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Russ
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Russ is White at 91.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Russ 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 Russ at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.1% · 8,649
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 235
- Two or more races2.3% · 223
- Black or African American1.8% · 170
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 166
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 47
Popularity
Russ: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Russ from the 1890s through to the 2020s, spanning 14 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 2,217 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Russ 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 Russ during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Russ' live
The SSA's state-level files cover 37 states and territories. California, New York, Michigan recorded the most babies named Russ, while Wyoming, North Dakota, Kentucky recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 84 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Russ
The name Russ originated as a diminutive or short form of the name Russell, which has its roots in the French surname Roussel or Rousseau. These French surnames can be traced back to the Old French words "rous" or "roux," meaning red or reddish-brown, potentially referring to someone with reddish hair or complexion.
The name Russell gained prominence in the Middle Ages, particularly in England and Scotland, where it was adopted as a first name. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Russ can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Russel."
In the late 12th century, a Scottish nobleman named Russ de Soules was mentioned in historical records as a participant in the Third Crusade. This early usage of Russ as a first name suggests its adoption and circulation among the Scottish nobility during that period.
Another notable historical figure bearing the name Russ was Russ ель-Deen Sinan, a 12th-century leader of the Nizari Ismaili state in Persia. His name, which means "Russ of the Faith" in Arabic, reflects the spread and adaptation of the name across various cultures and regions.
In the 16th century, the English historian and writer Russ Whythorne (c. 1520-1590) gained recognition for his autobiographical work "The Book of Russ Whythorne." His work provides valuable insights into the lives of ordinary people during the Tudor period.
During the American Revolutionary War, Russ Feversham (1753-1826) was a notable British army officer who served under General Cornwallis. His name appears in various military records and accounts from the era.
In the 19th century, the Scottish writer and poet Russ Stevenson (1850-1894) became known for his works depicting the lives of ordinary people in Scotland. His poetry and novels, such as "Travels with a Donkey in the Cévennes," have endured as classics of Scottish literature.
These examples illustrate the historical presence and usage of the name Russ across various cultures, time periods, and regions, from its French origins to its adoption and adaptation in different contexts throughout history.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Russ
People
Russ + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Russ 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
Russ: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Russ?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 4,788 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Russ 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 71,586 US residents.
Is Russ a common name?
We classify Russ as "Rare". It ranks above 96.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 6,111 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Russ most popular?
The single biggest year for Russ was 1959, when 350 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Russ 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 Russ in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 9,490 people with the name Russ, or 3.14 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #2,552 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 Russ 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 Russ?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Russ appears almost entirely male. Of the 9,491 people counted with this name, 99.5% were male and only a very small share were female. 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 Russ?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Russ is White at 91.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Russ most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Russ in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.1% (8,649 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 Russ in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Russ a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Russ 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 Russ still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Russ 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 Russ 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 have the name Russ?
If you just want to know how many Americans are named Russ, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.