How common is the surname Russ?

16,300 people in the United States had the surname Russ in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 18,941 Americans. It ranked 2,237th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Russ?

Joanna Russ, American author (1937-2011), followed by Tim Russ.

Where is the surname Russ most common?

Wikidata records people named Russ in the United States and Austria.

Is the surname Russ getting more or less common?

Less common. 17,136 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 16,300 in 2010, down 4.9%.

Is Russ also a first name?

Yes. Russ 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 Russ

A surname, carried by 16,300 people in the United States.

1 syllable Soundex R200 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). Russ is more common than 98.6% of them.

Origin

Diminutive of Russell.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 16,300 people named Russ in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 18,941 Americans. That is down 4.9% since 2000, when the Census counted 17,136.

#2,237

rank among US surnames

16,300

people in 2010

5.5

per 100,000 Americans

-4.9%

change since 2000 (was #1,931)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#2,228	Joiner	16,349	18,885
#2,229	Goldsmith	16,346	18,888
#2,230	Baum	16,334	18,902
#2,231	Ruffin	16,324	18,914
#2,232	Laughlin	16,323	18,915
#2,233	Rader	16,320	18,918
#2,234	Baron	16,308	18,932

Who is named Russ

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

72% of people named Russ identified as white (not Hispanic), 23% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.5% as two or more races.

White (not Hispanic) 72%
Black (not Hispanic) 23%
Two or more races 2.5%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.0%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.5%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.5%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Russs

4 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Joanna Russ
American author (1937-2011)
Tim Russ
American actor, born 1956
Kurt Russ
Austrian association football player, born 1964
William Russ
Actor, television director, born 1950

Notable Russs come mostly from the United States (3) and Austria (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Russ

Russ has the Soundex code R200, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code R200.

Questions

Where does the surname Russ come from?: Diminutive of Russell.
How common is the surname Russ?: 16,300 people in the United States had the surname Russ in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 18,941 Americans. It ranked 2,237th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Russ?: In the 2010 Census, 72% of people named Russ identified as white (not Hispanic), and 23% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Russ?: Joanna Russ, American author (1937-2011), followed by Tim Russ.
Where is the surname Russ most common?: Wikidata records people named Russ in the United States and Austria.
Is the surname Russ getting more or less common?: Less common. 17,136 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 16,300 in 2010, down 4.9%.
Is Russ also a first name?: Yes. Russ 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.