The Ross surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 229,368 people carried this name — #98 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 1,290 people counted. That is up 4% from 219,961 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Ross surname
A surname A surname from placenames An English and Scottish habitational surname from Scottish Gaelic derived from any of several places of that name, from Scottish Gaelic ros (“headland”).
Also as a Jewish surname, Americanized from Rose.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Ross» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890
Ireland registered 73 births for the Ross name in 1890.
They were registered in all four provinces, most of all in Ulster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 3,200 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born, 1890
Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 1,704 people named Ross live in Argentina.
RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In Poland’s population register
321 people named Ross have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 553 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 15 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Silesian.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
241 people named Ross live in Switzerland.
They live in 18 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 207 people named Ross.
Most of them — 111 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 23 départements, most often Bas-Rhin.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Belgium’s population register
At least 31 people named Ross live in Belgium.
Statbel only publishes a name in a municipality when five or more people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Liège.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In the Nordic population registers
735 people named Ross are counted in Sweden, Norway and Finland.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Norway publishes only surnames with 200 or more bearers. Finland counts its citizens, at home or abroad.
Counted, by country
Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown) · Statistics Norway (SSB, ssb.no), table 12891, 2025 — CC BY 4.0 · Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In print
Ross in American newspapers,
1910.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 1,675,964 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Ross,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Hew Dalrymple Ross 1779–1868 · military personnel -
Horatio Ross 1801–1886 · photographer -
David Alexander Ross 1819–1897 · lawyer -
James Gibb Ross 1819–1888 · politician -
Archibald Hilson Ross 1821–1900 · politician
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 272 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Ross.
- Rosiere 241 · U.S. census
- Rosin 2,028 · U.S. census
- Rosina 154 · U.S. census
- Rosine 350 · U.S. census
- Rosinski 1,898 · U.S. census
- Roso 335 · U.S. census
- Rossa 604 · U.S. census
- Rossano 741 · U.S. census
- Rossato 131 · U.S. census
- Rosse 531 · U.S. census
- Rossel 412 · U.S. census
- Rossell 1,267 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Ross is.
A volume says what happened to it.
Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.