# Rudd (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/rudd/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A surname transferred from the nickname.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | English |
| Type | nickname, from a description or nickname of an ancestor |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 14,732 |
| US rank (2010) | 2,451 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 20,957 people |
| Change since 2000 | +4.0% (14,167 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /ɹʌd/, 1 syllable |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |

## Etymology

Originally a nickname from Middle English, meaning "red".

## Who carries it

Share of people named Rudd in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 80% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 14% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.4% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.5% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 1.1% |
| Two or more races | 2.0% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Rudd in the United States, Australia and South Africa.

## People named Rudd

- Kevin Rudd, 26th Prime Minister of Australia
- Paul Rudd, American actor (born 1969)
- Phil Rudd, Australian drummer
- Emily Rudd, American actress
- Bevil Rudd, athletics competitor (1894–1948)
- Roswell Rudd, American jazz trombonist and composer (1935–2017)
- Xavier Rudd, Australian singer and songwriter
- Victor Rudd, American basketball player (born 1991)
- Delaney Rudd, American basketball player (born 1962)
- Ricky Rudd, American racecar driver

## Similar surnames

Redd, Rueda, Rudy, Rude, Ruddy, Rud, Ruud, Ruda, Reed, Reid, Roth, Root.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.