2000
#26,361
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 871
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.32
Rare Last name
Rochefort
A French surname referring to someone from the rocky fortification.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,003 Americans carry the last name Rochefort. That puts it at #28,895 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.29 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 341,729 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rochefort 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.
Bearers in the US
1.0K
1 in 341,729
Census rank
#28,895
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
875
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 875 bearers of the surname Rochefort in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.29 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 28895th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rochefort, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rochefort
The surname Rochefort originated in France and can be traced back to the 11th century. It is a locational name derived from one of several places in France called Rochefort, meaning "rocky ford" or "rock fortress" in French. The name likely referred to someone who lived near a rocky river crossing or a fortified settlement built on a rocky outcrop.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Rochefort can be found in medieval documents from the regions of Poitou and Normandy in northwestern France. It appears in the Cartulary of the Abbey of Fontenay in Poitou as early as 1095, with references to individuals like Gaufridus de Rochafort and Robertus de Rochafort.
In the 12th century, the name is mentioned in the famous Chronicles of Gervase of Canterbury, where a certain William de Rochefort is recorded as being present at the coronation of King Richard I in 1189. This suggests that the Rochefort family had gained some prominence by this time.
During the 13th and 14th centuries, the name appears in various records and manuscripts across France, including the Rolls of the Parlement of Paris and the Trésor des Chartes. Notable individuals from this period include Guillaume de Rochefort (c. 1225-1292), a French nobleman and crusader who participated in the Seventh Crusade, and Hugues de Rochefort (c. 1310-1378), a French chronicler and historian who wrote about the Hundred Years' War.
In the 15th century, the name Rochefort is associated with several prominent figures, such as Jean de Rochefort (c. 1420-1492), a French diplomat and adviser to King Charles VII, and Guillaume de Rochefort (c. 1450-1520), a French military commander who served under King Louis XII.
The 16th and 17th centuries saw the name spread beyond France, with individuals like William Rochefort (c. 1540-1618), an English merchant and explorer who traveled to the Americas, and Henri de Rochefort (c. 1630-1696), a French writer and pamphleteer known for his satirical works criticizing the reign of King Louis XIV.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, the Rochefort name continued to be associated with notable figures, including Victor Henri de Rochefort (1831-1913), a French journalist and political activist who played a role in the events of the Paris Commune, and Comte Joseph de Rochefort (1761-1832), a French naval officer and explorer who served under Napoleon Bonaparte.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rochefort
Among Census respondents with the surname Rochefort, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Rochefort 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 Rochefort surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.3% · 799
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 27
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.9% · 17
- Two or more races1.8% · 16
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 10
- Black or African American0.7% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rochefort
Rochefort 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
#27,228
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 888
+17 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 0.30
Rank movement Down 867 places
2020
#28,895
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 875
-13 bearers (-1.5%)
Per 100,000 0.29
Rank movement Down 1,667 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #26,361 | 871 | 0.32 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #27,228 | 888 | 0.30 | +17 bearers (+2.0%) | Down 867 places |
| 2020 | #28,895 | 875 | 0.29 | -13 bearers (-1.5%) | Down 1,667 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 Rochefort 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 | #27,228 | #28,895 | -6.1% |
| Count | 888 | 875 | -1.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.30 | 0.29 | -2.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rochefort bearers went from 888 to 875 (-1.5% change). The surname moved down 1,667 positions in the national ranking, going from #27,228 to #28,895.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Rochefort
FAQ
Rochefort surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rochefort?
Name Census estimates that about 1,003 living Americans carry the surname Rochefort. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 341,729 residents.
How common is Rochefort?
Rochefort ranks #28,895 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.29 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 875 people with the surname Rochefort. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,003), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.29 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.29 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Rochefort.
Has Rochefort become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rochefort went from 888 recorded bearers to 875. That is a decrease of 13 (-1.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #27,228 to #28,895.
What does the Census say about the background of Rochefort?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rochefort, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%). 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 Rochefort in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.3% (799 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rochefort appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.3%), Hispanic (3.1%), American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%). 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 Rochefort (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 Rochefort mean?
A French surname referring to someone from the rocky fortification. 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 Rochefort (0.29 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 have the surname Rochefort?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.