2000
#42,134
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 485
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.18
Very Rare Last name
Roddenberry
A location name referring to a place named Roddenbury.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 631 Americans carry the last name Roddenberry. That puts it at #42,463 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.18 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 543,192 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Roddenberry 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
631
1 in 543,192
Census rank
#42,463
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
550
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 550 bearers of the surname Roddenberry in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.18 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 42463rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Roddenberry, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.1%) and Hispanic (1.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Roddenberry
The surname Roddenberry is believed to have originated in England, likely during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from a place name, perhaps a town or village where an early bearer of the name resided or hailed from. One possibility is that it stems from the Old English words "rod" (meaning a clearing or rode) and "bury" (a fortified town or manor), suggesting a connection to a settlement situated in a cleared area.
Early recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 13th and 14th centuries. For example, the Hundred Rolls of Bedfordshire from 1279 mention a John de Rodenebury, while the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex from 1296 include a reference to a William Roddingbery. These variations in spelling were common in historical records, reflecting the fluid nature of surname spellings before they became standardized.
The Roddenberry name appears to have been concentrated in certain regions of England during its early history, particularly in the counties of Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, and Sussex. This may indicate that the name originated from a specific location within one of these areas.
One notable bearer of the Roddenberry surname was Sir John Roddenbury (c. 1350-1412), a knight and landowner from Bedfordshire. Another was William Roddenbury (c. 1480-1545), a merchant and alderman in the city of London during the reign of Henry VIII.
In the 17th century, a Roddenberry family settled in the American colonies, with records showing a John Roddenberry residing in Virginia as early as 1635. This branch of the family later spread to other parts of the country, including Kentucky and Texas.
Among the more prominent individuals with the Roddenberry surname was Eugene Wesley Roddenberry (1921-1991), the American writer and producer best known for creating the iconic science fiction series Star Trek. His father, Eugene Edward Roddenberry (1886-1969), was a Baptist minister and police officer.
Other notable Roddenberrys throughout history include:
- William Roddenberry (1756-1841), an American Revolutionary War soldier and early settler in Kentucky.
- John Roddenberry (1789-1857), a Texas pioneer and rancher, one of the first settlers in present-day Harris County.
- Hubert Roddenberry (1888-1949), an American football player and coach who led the Rice University football team from 1919 to 1927.
- Majel Barrett Roddenberry (1932-2008), an American actress and producer, wife of Gene Roddenberry and a regular performer in the Star Trek franchise.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Roddenberry
Among Census respondents with the surname Roddenberry, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.1%) and Hispanic (1.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Roddenberry 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 Roddenberry surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.6% · 504
- Two or more races5.1% · 28
- Hispanic or Latino1.3% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 5
- Black or African American0.2% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Roddenberry
Roddenberry 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
#37,848
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 587
+102 bearers (+21.0%)
Per 100,000 0.20
Rank movement Up 4,286 places
2020
#42,463
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 550
-37 bearers (-6.3%)
Per 100,000 0.18
Rank movement Down 4,615 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #42,134 | 485 | 0.18 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #37,848 | 587 | 0.20 | +102 bearers (+21.0%) | Up 4,286 places |
| 2020 | #42,463 | 550 | 0.18 | -37 bearers (-6.3%) | Down 4,615 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 Roddenberry 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 | #37,848 | #42,463 | -12.2% |
| Count | 587 | 550 | -6.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.20 | 0.18 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Roddenberry bearers went from 587 to 550 (-6.3% change). The surname moved down 4,615 positions in the national ranking, going from #37,848 to #42,463.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Roddenberry
FAQ
Roddenberry surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Roddenberry?
Name Census estimates that about 631 living Americans carry the surname Roddenberry. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 543,192 residents.
How common is Roddenberry?
Roddenberry ranks #42,463 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.18 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 550 people with the surname Roddenberry. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (631), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.18 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.18 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 Roddenberry.
Has Roddenberry become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Roddenberry went from 587 recorded bearers to 550. That is a decrease of 37 (-6.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #37,848 to #42,463.
What does the Census say about the background of Roddenberry?
Among Census respondents with the surname Roddenberry, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.1%) and Hispanic (1.3%). 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 Roddenberry in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.6% (504 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Roddenberry appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.6%), Two or More Races (5.1%), Hispanic (1.3%). 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 Roddenberry (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 Roddenberry mean?
A location name referring to a place named Roddenbury. 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 Roddenberry (0.18 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 share the surname Roddenberry?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.