How common is the surname Roman?

72,918 people in the United States had the surname Roman in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 4,234 Americans. It ranked 452nd of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Roman?

Nancy Roman, American astronomer and principal in the Hubble Space Telescope project (1925-2018), followed by Petre Roman.

Where is the surname Roman most common?

Wikidata records people named Roman in the United States, Romania and Bolivia.

How do you pronounce Roman?

Roman is /ˈɹoʊ.mən/, 2 syllables.

Is the surname Roman getting more or less common?

More common. 59,020 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 72,918 in 2010, up 24%.

Is Roman also a first name?

Yes. Roman 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 Roman

A Latin surname, carried by 72,918 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈɹoʊ.mən/ 2 syllables Soundex R550 Also a first name

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Roman is more common than 99.7% of them.

Origin

Latin origin

From Old French Romain, from Latin Rōmānus. By surface analysis, Rom(e) + -an. Doublet of Romano. Displaced native Romish. * In reference to the Byzantine Empire, via the Medieval Greek endonym Ῥωμαῖος (Rhōmaîos).

One of 91 Latin surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 72,918 people named Roman in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 4,234 Americans. That is up 24% since 2000, when the Census counted 59,020.

#452

rank among US surnames

72,918

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+23.5%

change since 2000 (was #507)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#443	Newton	74,092	4,167
#444	Burgess	73,931	4,176
#445	Reese	73,919	4,177
#446	Walton	73,854	4,180
#447	Blake	73,797	4,184
#448	Trujillo	73,664	4,191
#449	Adkins	73,599	4,195

Who is named Roman

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

76% of people named Roman identified as Hispanic or Latino (any race), 21% as white (not Hispanic) and 1.9% as Black (not Hispanic).

Hispanic or Latino (any race) 76%
White (not Hispanic) 21%
Black (not Hispanic) 1.9%
Asian and Pacific Islander 1.0%
Two or more races 0.5%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.2%

Compare: most common surnames among Hispanic and Latino Americans.

Famous Romans

8 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Nancy Roman
American astronomer and principal in the Hubble Space Telescope project (1925-2018)
Petre Roman
53rd Prime Minister of Romania (1989-1991)
Ruth Roman
American actress (1922-1999)
Brian P. Roman
American astronomer, born 2000
Phil Roman
American animator, born 1930
Andre B. Roman
American politician (1795-1866)
Tami Roman
American television personality (born 1970)
Diego Medina
Bolivian footballer, born 2002

Notable Romans come mostly from the United States (6), Romania (1) and Bolivia (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Roman

Roman has the Soundex code R550, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code R550.

Other Latin surnames

All 91 Latin surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Roman come from?: From Old French Romain, from Latin Rōmānus. By surface analysis, Rom(e) + -an. Doublet of Romano. Displaced native Romish. * In reference to the Byzantine Empire, via the Medieval Greek endonym Ῥωμαῖος (Rhōmaîos).
How common is the surname Roman?: 72,918 people in the United States had the surname Roman in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 4,234 Americans. It ranked 452nd of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Roman?: In the 2010 Census, 76% of people named Roman identified as Hispanic or Latino (any race), and 21% as white (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Roman?: Nancy Roman, American astronomer and principal in the Hubble Space Telescope project (1925-2018), followed by Petre Roman.
Where is the surname Roman most common?: Wikidata records people named Roman in the United States, Romania and Bolivia.
How do you pronounce Roman?: Roman is /ˈɹoʊ.mən/, 2 syllables.
Is the surname Roman getting more or less common?: More common. 59,020 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 72,918 in 2010, up 24%.
Is Roman also a first name?: Yes. Roman 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.