How common is the surname Roy?

53,159 people in the United States had the surname Roy in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 5,808 Americans. It ranked 640th of 162,253 surnames.

What ethnicity is the surname Roy?

In the 2010 Census, 75% of people named Roy identified as white (not Hispanic), and 9.7% as Asian and Pacific Islander.

Who is the most famous person named Roy?

Brandon Roy, American basketball player and coach (born 1984), followed by Avijit Roy.

Where is the surname Roy most common?

Wikidata records people named Roy in the United States, India and Bangladesh and 3 other countries.

How do you pronounce Roy?

Roy is /ˈɹoɪ̯/, one syllable.

Is the surname Roy getting more or less common?

More common. 49,725 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 53,159 in 2010, up 6.9%.

Is Roy also a first name?

Yes. Roy 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 Roy

A Norman surname, carried by 53,159 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈɹoɪ̯/ 1 syllable Soundex R000 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). Roy is more common than 99.6% of them.

Origin

Norman origin

From various sources: * Anglo-Norman roy (“king”) a variant of Old French roi, from Latin rēx, rēgem from Proto-Indo-European *h₃rḗǵs (“ruler, king”). Doublet of Rey. * Scottish Gaelic ruadh (“red, red-haired”) from Old Irish rúad, from Proto-Celtic *roudos from Proto-Indo-European *h₁rewdʰ-. * Anglicisation of Bengali রায় (raẏ, surname). Doublet of Rai, rex, and rajah.

One of 128 Norman surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 53,159 people named Roy in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 5,808 Americans. That is up 6.9% since 2000, when the Census counted 49,725.

#640

rank among US surnames

53,159

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+6.9%

change since 2000 (was #621)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#631	Wall	53,794	5,739
#632	Boone	53,792	5,740
#633	Kirby	53,767	5,742
#634	Wilkinson	53,739	5,745
#635	Bridges	53,682	5,751
#636	Bruce	53,419	5,780
#637	Atkinson	53,376	5,784

Who is named Roy

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

75% of people named Roy identified as white (not Hispanic), 9.7% as Asian and Pacific Islander and 9.0% as Black (not Hispanic).

White (not Hispanic) 75%
Asian and Pacific Islander 9.7%
Black (not Hispanic) 9.0%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.6%
Two or more races 2.0%
American Indian and Alaska Native 1.5%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Roys

17 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Brandon Roy
American basketball player and coach (born 1984)
Avijit Roy
Bangladeshi-American engineer, blogger and activist (1972-2015)
Drew Roy
American actor, born 1986
Chip Roy
American politician (born 1972)
Sarah Roy
Australian cyclist, born 1986
Callista Roy
American nurse and professor, born 1939
Vesta M. Roy
American politician (1925-2002)
Maria Roy
Actress, born 1987
André Roy
American-born Canadian ice hockey player, born 1975
Matt Roy
American professional ice hockey Defenseman, born 1995
Willy Roy
American soccer player-coach, born 1943
Devapriya Roy
Author, born 1984

Notable Roys come mostly from the United States (9), India (2) and Bangladesh (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Roy

Roy has the Soundex code R000, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code R000.

Other Norman surnames

All 128 Norman surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Roy come from?: From various sources: * Anglo-Norman roy (“king”) a variant of Old French roi, from Latin rēx, rēgem from Proto-Indo-European *h₃rḗǵs (“ruler, king”). Doublet of Rey. * Scottish Gaelic ruadh (“red, red-haired”) from Old Irish rúad, from Proto-Celtic *roudos from Proto-Indo-European *h₁rewdʰ-. *…
How common is the surname Roy?: 53,159 people in the United States had the surname Roy in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 5,808 Americans. It ranked 640th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Roy?: In the 2010 Census, 75% of people named Roy identified as white (not Hispanic), and 9.7% as Asian and Pacific Islander.
Who is the most famous person named Roy?: Brandon Roy, American basketball player and coach (born 1984), followed by Avijit Roy.
Where is the surname Roy most common?: Wikidata records people named Roy in the United States, India and Bangladesh and 3 other countries.
How do you pronounce Roy?: Roy is /ˈɹoɪ̯/, one syllable.
Is the surname Roy getting more or less common?: More common. 49,725 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 53,159 in 2010, up 6.9%.
Is Roy also a first name?: Yes. Roy 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.