Explore the Family Name Ruge

The meaning of Ruge

German: 1. nickname from Middle High German ruowe, rūge ‘quiet, calm’ or in the north from Low German rūg ‘rough, crude’. 2. from the personal name Rugo, a shortened form of Rüdiger (see Rudiger).

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Ruge in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Ruge saw a slight dip in popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it ranked 25,242nd most popular, but by 2010, it had dropped to 26,339th, marking a 4.35% decrease. However, the actual count of people with this surname slightly increased from 921 in 2000 to 927 in 2010, reflecting a growth of 0.65%. The proportion per 100,000 individuals also decreased by 8.82%, going from 0.34 in 2000 to 0.31 in 2010.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#25,242	#26,339	-4.35%
Count	921	927	0.65%
Proportion per 100k	0.34	0.31	-8.82%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Ruge

When it comes to the ethnic identity associated with the surname Ruge, there were some notable changes from 2000 to 2010 as per the Decennial U.S. Census. The percentage of those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander almost doubled during that period, growing from 0.54% to 0.86%. Similarly, the percentage of those claiming two or more races increased by 11.49%, rising from 0.87% to 0.97%. The majority of individuals with the Ruge surname identified as White, although this number decreased slightly from 92.51% in 2000 to 91.37% in 2010. Hispanic representation also rose during this decade, moving from 5.43% to 6.69%. No individuals with this surname identified as Black or American Indian and Alaskan Native during either census year.

	2000	2010	Change
White	92.51%	91.37%	-1.23%
Hispanic	5.43%	6.69%	23.2%
Two or More Races	0.87%	0.97%	11.49%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0.54%	0.86%	59.26%
Black	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%