How common is the surname Rawls?

11,679 people in the United States had the surname Rawls in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 26,436 Americans. It ranked 3,074th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Rawls?

John Rawls, American political philosopher (1921–2002), followed by Lou Rawls.

Where is the surname Rawls most common?

Wikidata records people named Rawls in the United States.

Is the surname Rawls getting more or less common?

More common. 11,265 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 11,679 in 2010, up 3.7%.

Is Rawls also a first name?

Yes. Rawls is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Rawls

A patronymic surname, carried by 11,679 people in the United States.

1 syllable Soundex R420

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Rawls is more common than 98.1% of them.

Origin

Patronymic from a medieval form of the personal name Ralph.

Rawls is a patronymic surname: formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 11,679 people named Rawls in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 26,436 Americans. That is up 3.7% since 2000, when the Census counted 11,265.

#3,074

rank among US surnames

11,679

people in 2010

4.0

per 100,000 Americans

+3.7%

change since 2000 (was #2,933)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#3,065	Morrell	11,700	26,389
#3,066	Havens	11,699	26,391
#3,067	Brice	11,697	26,395
#3,068	Finnegan	11,695	26,400
#3,069	Soares	11,694	26,402
#3,070	Godoy	11,690	26,411
#3,071	Carl	11,689	26,413

Who is named Rawls

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

53% of people named Rawls identified as white (not Hispanic), 42% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.5% as two or more races.

White (not Hispanic) 53%
Black (not Hispanic) 42%
Two or more races 2.5%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.2%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.5%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.4%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Rawlss

3 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

John Rawls
American political philosopher (1921–2002)
Lou Rawls
American singer (1933–2006)
Katherine Rawls
American swimmer, diver, Olympic silver medalist, aviator (1917-1982)

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Rawls

Rawls has the Soundex code R420, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code R420.

Questions

Where does the surname Rawls come from?: Patronymic from a medieval form of the personal name Ralph.
How common is the surname Rawls?: 11,679 people in the United States had the surname Rawls in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 26,436 Americans. It ranked 3,074th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Rawls?: In the 2010 Census, 53% of people named Rawls identified as white (not Hispanic), and 42% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Rawls?: John Rawls, American political philosopher (1921–2002), followed by Lou Rawls.
Where is the surname Rawls most common?: Wikidata records people named Rawls in the United States.
What type of surname is Rawls?: Rawls is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Rawls getting more or less common?: More common. 11,265 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 11,679 in 2010, up 3.7%.
Is Rawls also a first name?: Yes. Rawls is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.