2000
#5,142
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,263
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.32
Rare Last name
Roybal
A Spanish habitational surname referring to someone from a place called Roybal or Roibal, likely derived from "roble" meaning "oak."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,378 Americans carry the last name Roybal. That puts it at #5,238 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 46,456 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Roybal 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
7.4K
1 in 46,456
Census rank
#5,238
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,434 bearers of the surname Roybal in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5238th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Roybal, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 78.9%. The next largest groups are White (16.8%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Roybal
The surname ROYBAL originated in Spain during the medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Spanish word "royal," which means "royal" or "kingly." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who worked in the service of a royal household or had some connection to royalty.
The name likely originated in the regions of Aragon or Castile, where the Spanish language developed from a blend of Latin and local Iberian dialects. Early spellings of the name may have included variations like Roibal, Royval, or Roival.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the ROYBAL name can be found in the Apellidos Españoles ("Spanish Surnames") manuscript from the 15th century, which cataloged surnames used in various regions of Spain at the time.
In the 16th century, a man named Juan Roybal was mentioned in historical records as a renowned artist and architect who worked on several notable buildings in Seville, Spain. His birth and death dates are unknown, but his contributions to the city's architecture are well-documented.
Another notable figure with the ROYBAL surname was María Roybal, a Spanish writer and poet who lived in the 17th century. She was known for her work celebrating the struggles and resilience of women during that era. Her exact birth and death years are uncertain, but her works are still studied and analyzed by scholars today.
In the 18th century, a man named Sebastián Roybal was a prominent military leader who fought in the Spanish-American War of Independence. He was born in 1765 in Zaragoza, Spain, and died in 1832 after a distinguished career in the Spanish army.
During the 19th century, the ROYBAL name spread to various regions of Spain and beyond, as families migrated and settled in new areas. One notable figure from this time was Juana Roybal, a Spanish educator and women's rights activist who founded several schools for girls in Madrid. She was born in 1825 and died in 1902.
Another significant individual with the ROYBAL surname was Ramón Roybal, a Spanish-American explorer and cartographer who was instrumental in mapping several regions of the American West in the late 19th century. He was born in 1850 in Seville, Spain, and died in 1920 in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Roybal
Among Census respondents with the surname Roybal, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 78.9%. The next largest groups are White (16.8%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Roybal 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 Roybal surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino78.9% · 5,078
- White16.8% · 1,079
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.4% · 154
- Two or more races1.1% · 68
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 44
- Black or African American0.2% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Roybal
Roybal 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
#5,197
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,725
+462 bearers (+7.4%)
Per 100,000 2.28
Rank movement Down 55 places
2020
#5,238
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,434
-291 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 2.15
Rank movement Down 41 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,142 | 6,263 | 2.32 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,197 | 6,725 | 2.28 | +462 bearers (+7.4%) | Down 55 places |
| 2020 | #5,238 | 6,434 | 2.15 | -291 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 41 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 Roybal 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 | #5,197 | #5,238 | -0.8% |
| Count | 6,725 | 6,434 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 2.28 | 2.15 | -5.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Roybal bearers went from 6,725 to 6,434 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 41 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,197 to #5,238.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Roybal
FAQ
Roybal surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Roybal?
Name Census estimates that about 7,378 living Americans carry the surname Roybal. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 46,456 residents.
How common is Roybal?
Roybal ranks #5,238 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.15 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,434 people with the surname Roybal. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,378), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.15 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Roybal.
Has Roybal become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Roybal went from 6,725 recorded bearers to 6,434. That is a decrease of 291 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,197 to #5,238.
What does the Census say about the background of Roybal?
Among Census respondents with the surname Roybal, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 78.9%. The next largest groups are White (16.8%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.4%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Roybal in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.9% (5,078 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Roybal appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (78.9%), White (16.8%), American Indian/Alaska Native (2.4%). 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 Roybal (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 Roybal mean?
A Spanish habitational surname referring to someone from a place called Roybal or Roibal, likely derived from "roble" meaning "oak." 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 Roybal (2.15 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 last name Roybal?
Find out how many people are called Roybal on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.