Origins of the Rose Family Name

It is generally accepted that family names were introduced into England around the time of the Norman conquest of 1066 although they did not become common until the time of the crusades. We have found procurers to the name 'Rose' in many countries. These include Ros, de Ros, Roos, de Roos, Royce, Rohese, Rows, Rouse & Ross. We find a Robert de Roos who was a signer of the Magna Carta. Ross, which may not be related, is clearly of Scottish origin and predates the Norman conquest. The Oxford Dictionary of Proper Names, edited by E. G. Withcombe in 1947 says: "Rose was introduced into England by the Normans who spelled the name Ros."

The exact origin of our Rose lineage will probably never be know with certainty unless we can identify the origin and family of the first immigrant. Unfortunately we do not know the original immigrant ancestor of our line of Roses. We do know that there were many 'Rose' immigrants from many different countries. Ship passenger lists show a number of Rose immigrants coming into the Virginia Colony very early in its existence. These Roses were all from England although that may not have necessarily been their country of origin.

It is really surprising to see how diverse the Rose name really is, at least in the Southern states. Census reports in any of these states will show large number of Roses. Most of these Roses were born in the United States but it is not unusual to find in these census reports Roses born in five or ten foreign countries.