Contents [hide]

Roos History Etymology Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables World Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Motto Citations

Roos History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland/England
England
Germany
Scotland
Ireland

Etymology of Roos

What does the name Roos mean?

The name Roos is part of the ancient legacy of the early Norman inhabitants that arrived in England after the Norman Conquest of 1066. Roos was a Norman name used for a person who had the given name Andrew, which is derived from Anrias. The name may also be a nickname derived from the Old English word rouse, which means red or red-haired. 1

Early Origins of the Roos family

The surname Roos was first found in Yorkshire, although there seems to be two distinct origins of this surname. This history discusses in detail the English/Scottish borders origin of the name. For this origin, the first reference of the name was Godfrey de Ross, a vassal of the de Morevilles, obtaining from Richard de Moreville the lands of Stewarton in Cuningham. 2

This family of Ros or Ross came from Yorkshire. James de Ros, Reginald de Ross and Peter de Ross appear about the same time also as vassals of Richard de Moreville. These people are also listed as witnesses in his charters. The aforementioned Godfrey de Ross witnessed de Moreville's charter of Gillemoristun with Edulfus filius Utredi c. 1189. A few years later in 1205, Sir Godfrey de Rose, Arthur de Ross and Fergus de Rosse witnessed an agreement between the burgesses of Irvine and Brice of Eglunstone.

Robert de Ros or Rosse (d. 1227), "baron, was the son of Everard de Ros of Helmsley or Hamlake in the North Riding of Yorkshire. The family also held lands in Holderness, where was situated Ros, to which they gave, or from which they received, their name. Robert succeeded to his father's lands in 1191, paying a relief of one thousand marks. In 1195 he was bailiff and castellan of Bonneville-sur-Touques in Lower Normandy, near which the Norman lands of the family lay." 3

"The manor [at Roos, Yorkshire] was from the reign of Henry I. the seat and property of the noble family of Roos, one of whose barons had the glory of leading the second division of the English army at the battle of Cressy. The site is still visible of the castle of the former barons; and in part of the old moat have been lately found a misericorde dagger and some amber beads. The place confers the original title on the present family of De Ros." 4

Early History of the Roos family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Roos research. Another 169 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1296, 1363, 1370, 1372, 1390, 1394, 1396, 1403, 1404, 1413, 1414, 1455, 1508 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Roos History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Roos Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names tend to be marked by an enormous number of spelling variations. This is largely due to the fact that Old and Middle English lacked any spelling rules when Norman French was introduced in the 11th century. The languages of the English courts at that time were French and Latin. These various languages mixed quite freely in the evolving social milieu. The final element of this mix is that medieval scribes spelled words according to their sounds rather than any definite rules, so a name was often spelled in as many different ways as the number of documents it appeared in. The name was spelled Ros, Roose, Ross, Ruse and others.

Early Notables of the Roos family

Notable amongst bearers of this family name during their early history was The 5th Earl of Ross, William, who died in 1372; and William de Ros, 6th Baron de Ros of Helmsley, (c.1370-1414), Lord Treasurer of England, already a Knight and inherited the rank and privileges of his deceased brother, first summoned to the Parliament of England on November 20 1394, He would regularly attend sessions till 1413, first assignment from Richard II of England was to join Walter Skirlaw, Bishop of Durham, Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland and others in negotiating for a peace treaty with Robert III of...
Another 188 words (13 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Roos Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Roos World Ranking

In the United States, the name Roos is the 8,251^st most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 5 However, in France, the name Roos is ranked the 2,898^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,000 - 2,500 people with that name. 6 And in Netherlands, the name Roos is the 94^th popular surname with an estimated 10,635 people with that name. 7 South Africa ranks Roos as 499^th with 14,434 people. 8

Migration of the Roos family to Ireland

Some of the Roos family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 60 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Roos migration to the United States +

Because of the political and religious discontent in England, families began to migrate abroad in enormous numbers. Faced with persecution and starvation at home, the open frontiers and generally less oppressive social environment of the New World seemed tantalizing indeed to many English people. The trip was difficult, and not all made it unscathed, but many of those who did get to Canada and the United States made important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers with Roos name or one of its variants:

Roos Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Cornelia Roos, aged 4, who arrived in New York in 1659 9

Roos Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Kristoffel Roos, who landed in New York in 1709 9
Andreas Roos, who landed in New York, NY in 1710-1714 9
Gerret Roos, who landed in New York in 1715 9
Francis Roos, who arrived in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania in 1741 9
Caspar Roos, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1752 9
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Roos Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Simon Roos, who arrived in New York in 1835 9
Mr. Georg Herm. Roos, aged 18, German who arrived in Galveston, Texas in 1845 aboard the ship "Garonne"
Margareta Katharina Roos, who arrived in Brazil in 1845 9
Mr. Anton Roos, German who arrived in Galveston, Texas in 1846 aboard the ship "Element"
Jacob Roos, who arrived in Texas in 1846 aboard the ship "Element" 9
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Roos migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Roos Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Elizabeth Roos, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Ramillies" in 1849 10

Contemporary Notables of the name Roos (post 1700) +

Fred Roos (1934-2024), born Frederick Ried Roos, an American film producer and casting director, best known for his work with Francis Ford Coppola, winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture for The Godfather: Part II (1974)
Michael Y. Roos, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from California, 1988 11
Lawrence K. Roos, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Missouri, 1956, 1972 11
John V. Roos, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from California, 2008 11
Frederick B. Roos, American Republican politician, Member of Illinois State Senate 7th District; Elected 1922 11
Elbert S. Roos, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Michigan, 1892 11
Caroline Kreisel Roos, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Ohio, 2008 11
Timo Antero Roos (1936-2023), Finnish teacher and politician
William Roos (1808-1878), born as Roose, Welsh painter born in Amlwch, was the most productive Welsh painter of the first three quarters of the nineteenth century. He has an exhibition, the largest ever showing of his work, through The National Lottery Heritage Fund and the Oriel Môn Trust 12
Bertil Roos (1943-2016), Swedish racing driver from Gothenburg
... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Roos Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Spem successus alit
Motto Translation: Success nourishes hope

Citations +

Arthur, William , An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names. London: 1857. Print
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
"Most Common Last Names in Netherlands." Forebears, https://forebears.io/netherlands/surnames
"Most Common Last Names in South Africa." Forebears, https://forebears.io/south-africa/surnames
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) RAMILIES 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Ramillies.htm
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 20) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
https://www.orielmon.org/en-gb/whats-on/william-roos-portrait-of-an-artist