Fun Facts About the Name Roe
- More than 1 thousand babies named Roe: U.S. records list 1,117 babies given the name Roe from 1880 through 2025. Even 210 girls received the name Roe - about 1 girl for every 4 boys.
What Does the Name Roe Mean?
Roe is an English surname and given name whose usual meaning is "roe deer." It comes from the Old English word rā for the small deer, which appears in Middle English as ro or roe. The name began as a byname - a nickname for someone likened to the animal, or a surname for someone who lived where roe deer were common or near a place named for them.
In Ireland, Roe also serves as an anglicized form of Gaelic surnames built on ruadh, "red," such as Ó Ruaidh, "descendant of Ruadh." That is a separate origin from the English deer word; the two strands only came to share a spelling in English records.
Roe Name History & Origins
Roe belongs to the large group of English family names taken from animals and landscape features in the centuries after the Norman Conquest, when hereditary surnames spread through England. The deer word existed in both Old English (rā) and Old Norse (rá), so the surname took different spellings in different regions, with northern forms shaped by Norse-speaking settlement. Families named Roe are found in many English counties.
In Ireland the name developed separately, as English officials and record-keepers rendered various Gaelic names as Roe. Because anglicization varied from place to place, more than one unrelated Irish family ended up with the same English spelling.
As a given name Roe is uncommon. It has been used for girls, and in Charlaine Harris's Aurora Teagarden mysteries the main character uses Roe as a short form of Aurora. In American law the name is best known from the pseudonym "Jane Roe" in Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision on abortion; there the surname was a conventional placeholder, following the older English legal pair "John Doe and Richard Roe," fictitious names used in court actions for centuries.
How Popular is the Name Roe?
Roe recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 1916. Its best rank was #647 in 1881.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #8,248 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 2024 | #9,408 | 11 | 0.0007% |
| 2023 | #6,613 | 18 | 0.0011% |
| 2022 | #8,426 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 2021 | #6,912 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 2019 | #17,481 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2018 | #9,690 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2017 | #10,551 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2016 | #9,967 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2014 | #16,133 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1961 | #7,324 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1958 | #6,823 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1957 | #6,839 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1956 | #4,755 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1955 | #3,997 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1954 | #6,451 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1952 | #4,058 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1949 | #5,894 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1948 | #4,551 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1947 | #4,687 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1938 | #4,871 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1936 | #3,649 | 7 | 0.0007% |
| 1925 | #4,362 | 7 | 0.0006% |
| 1924 | #5,748 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1890 | #1,500 | 5 | 0.0026% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #9,530 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2024 | #8,796 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2023 | #6,440 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2022 | #7,644 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2021 | #8,693 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2020 | #10,379 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2018 | #5,983 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2017 | #8,013 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2016 | #9,498 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2011 | #11,965 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1998 | #10,968 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1977 | #6,664 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1975 | #5,331 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1974 | #5,839 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1973 | #5,727 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1964 | #3,239 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1961 | #2,677 | 11 | 0.0005% |
| 1959 | #2,636 | 11 | 0.0005% |
| 1958 | #3,860 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1957 | #2,990 | 9 | 0.0004% |
| 1956 | #4,365 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1955 | #2,718 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1954 | #2,706 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1953 | #2,021 | 16 | 0.0008% |
| 1952 | #2,837 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1951 | #2,348 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 1950 | #4,109 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1949 | #2,432 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1948 | #2,584 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1947 | #2,234 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1946 | #2,377 | 11 | 0.0007% |
| 1945 | #2,111 | 12 | 0.0009% |
| 1944 | #1,966 | 14 | 0.0010% |
| 1943 | #2,382 | 11 | 0.0008% |
| 1942 | #3,504 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1941 | #2,182 | 12 | 0.0010% |
| 1940 | #2,293 | 11 | 0.0009% |
| 1939 | #2,036 | 13 | 0.0012% |
| 1938 | #2,452 | 10 | 0.0009% |
| 1937 | #2,860 | 8 | 0.0008% |
| 1936 | #2,278 | 11 | 0.0011% |
| 1935 | #1,901 | 15 | 0.0014% |
| 1934 | #2,534 | 10 | 0.0010% |
| 1933 | #1,535 | 21 | 0.0021% |
| 1932 | #1,770 | 18 | 0.0017% |
| 1931 | #1,683 | 19 | 0.0018% |
| 1930 | #2,973 | 9 | 0.0008% |
| 1929 | #2,732 | 10 | 0.0009% |
| 1928 | #3,031 | 9 | 0.0008% |
| 1927 | #2,283 | 14 | 0.0012% |
| 1926 | #2,169 | 15 | 0.0014% |
| 1925 | #2,300 | 14 | 0.0013% |
| 1924 | #2,601 | 12 | 0.0011% |
| 1923 | #1,860 | 19 | 0.0017% |
| 1922 | #2,017 | 17 | 0.0016% |
| 1921 | #1,815 | 20 | 0.0018% |
| 1920 | #1,950 | 18 | 0.0017% |
| 1919 | #1,681 | 21 | 0.0021% |
| 1918 | #1,588 | 23 | 0.0023% |
| 1917 | #1,522 | 23 | 0.0025% |
| 1916 | #1,410 | 25 | 0.0028% |
| 1915 | #1,649 | 19 | 0.0022% |
| 1914 | #1,594 | 16 | 0.0024% |
| 1913 | #1,784 | 11 | 0.0021% |
| 1912 | #1,857 | 9 | 0.0021% |
| 1911 | #1,272 | 9 | 0.0040% |
| 1909 | #1,252 | 7 | 0.0043% |
| 1908 | #1,196 | 7 | 0.0045% |
| 1905 | #1,208 | 6 | 0.0045% |
| 1904 | #1,181 | 6 | 0.0047% |
| 1903 | #995 | 7 | 0.0059% |
| 1900 | #1,145 | 7 | 0.0047% |
| 1897 | #1,037 | 6 | 0.0053% |
| 1896 | #1,080 | 6 | 0.0050% |
| 1895 | #670 | 11 | 0.0094% |
| 1894 | #936 | 7 | 0.0060% |
| 1892 | #938 | 7 | 0.0057% |
| 1891 | #940 | 6 | 0.0059% |
| 1890 | #1,129 | 5 | 0.0045% |
| 1889 | #1,087 | 5 | 0.0045% |
| 1888 | #1,155 | 5 | 0.0041% |
| 1887 | #1,042 | 5 | 0.0049% |
| 1885 | #921 | 6 | 0.0056% |
| 1883 | #1,015 | 5 | 0.0048% |
| 1881 | #647 | 9 | 0.0089% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Roe Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are a law unto itself. Your tendency is to finish whatever you start. You are tolerant and like to help humanity. You are very active. You are generally warmhearted and gives freely of your time, energy, and sympathetic understanding. You have tolerance and acceptance of the frailties of others. Universal and humanitarian in outlook. This is very compassionate name. You are frank, methodical and believe in law, system and order.
You are always looking for an opportunity to achieve financial and emotional security. You are basically peacemaker. You understand the law of harmony and desire to balance your life with those around you. You may feel incomplete without someone to share your love, ideals, wealth or work. You can be very sensitive and could appear a bit shy and perceptive. You have developed intuition, patience and the ability to nurture others. You can achieve the state of happiness if you are willing to accept your needs in a complimentary relationship and go to create them.
✦ Roe's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Roe's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.