Rocco
A surname that usually began as a personal name, ultimately tied to the old Germanic name Rocco.
The #5,289 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 46,900 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Rocco is best understood as a surname taken from the medieval personal name Rocco, which spread widely in Italy. The name is usually traced to an old Germanic element, though 19th-century writers sometimes gave conflicting explanations because the medieval forms are hard to pin down exactly. In practice, the surname most often means ‘descendant of someone named Rocco.’
History
The given name Rocco became especially familiar in Italy through medieval and later Christian usage, and the surname developed from that personal name. It is well established in Italian-speaking areas and later appears more widely through migration. Some older surname dictionaries also record medieval and early modern spellings related to Rocca and Roche forms, but those are not enough to make the origin certain in every case.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The name Rocco became especially popular in Christian Europe because of Saint Roch, whose name forms are closely related in many traditions.
From the historical record
“simple FORMS. Old German Rocco, Ruccho, Roho, Roo, Crucus, Crocus Itock Xiuclc stridere (^^^S ^^ ^^^ Alamanni, 4th cent.) English Rock, Rockey, RoAKE, Roach, Ruck, Rugg, Rook, Rue, Crock. Modem”
— The Teutonic Name-System applied to the family names of France, England and Germany