2000
#8,986
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,345
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.24
Rare Last name
Rossiter
Derived from a place name meaning "red site," referring to someone living near a red-colored feature or building.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,659 Americans carry the last name Rossiter. That puts it at #9,708 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 93,674 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rossiter 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Rossiter with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.7K
1 in 93,674
Census rank
#9,708
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,191 bearers of the surname Rossiter in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9708th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rossiter, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rossiter
The surname Rossiter has its origins in England and traces back to the late 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "rossiere," which referred to a person who bred or cared for horses. This occupation was highly regarded at the time, as horses were crucial for transportation, agriculture, and warfare.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rossiter can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Worcestershire from 1195, where a person named Robert le Rossiter is mentioned. This document suggests that the surname was already in use by the end of the 12th century.
In the 13th century, variations of the name, such as Rosser and Rossour, appeared in various records across England. For instance, a Nicholas Rosser was listed in the Patent Rolls of 1272, while a John Rossour was mentioned in the Assize Rolls of Staffordshire in 1292.
The Rossiter name has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest was Sir Edward Rossiter (1618-1692), an English colonist who served as the Governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations from 1686 to 1687.
Another prominent figure was Thomas Prichard Rossiter (1817-1871), an American painter known for his landscapes and genre scenes. His works were highly acclaimed and are now held in various museums across the United States.
In the literary world, Arthur Rossiter (1866-1943) was a British author and playwright who wrote several novels and plays, including "The Damask Robe" and "The Widow's Cruse."
Moving into the 20th century, John Leonard Rossiter (1899-1983) was a British civil servant who served as the Governor of Bermuda from 1949 to 1954, and later as the Governor of Cyprus from 1954 to 1957.
More recently, James Robert Rossiter (born 1970) is an American computer scientist and professor at the University of Michigan, known for his contributions to the field of robotics and control systems.
While the Rossiter surname has its roots in England, it has since spread across the globe, with families bearing this name found in various countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rossiter
Among Census respondents with the surname Rossiter, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Rossiter 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 Rossiter surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.5% · 2,887
- Two or more races4.0% · 129
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 115
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 42
- Black or African American0.4% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rossiter
Rossiter 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
#9,770
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,316
-29 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 1.12
Rank movement Down 784 places
2020
#9,708
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,191
-125 bearers (-3.8%)
Per 100,000 1.07
Rank movement Up 62 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,986 | 3,345 | 1.24 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,770 | 3,316 | 1.12 | -29 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 784 places |
| 2020 | #9,708 | 3,191 | 1.07 | -125 bearers (-3.8%) | Up 62 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 Rossiter 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 | #9,770 | #9,708 | 0.6% |
| Count | 3,316 | 3,191 | -3.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.12 | 1.07 | -4.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rossiter bearers went from 3,316 to 3,191 (-3.8% change). The surname moved up 62 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,770 to #9,708.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Rossiter
FAQ
Rossiter surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rossiter?
Name Census estimates that about 3,659 living Americans carry the surname Rossiter. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 93,674 residents.
How common is Rossiter?
Rossiter ranks #9,708 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.07 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,191 people with the surname Rossiter. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,659), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.07 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Rossiter.
Has Rossiter become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rossiter went from 3,316 recorded bearers to 3,191. That is a decrease of 125 (-3.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #9,770 to #9,708.
What does the Census say about the background of Rossiter?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rossiter, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Rossiter in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.5% (2,887 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rossiter appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.5%), Two or More Races (4.0%), Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Rossiter (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 Rossiter mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "red site," referring to someone living near a red-colored feature or building. 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 Rossiter (1.07 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 common is the surname Rossiter?
See how common the surname Rossiter is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.