Zack de la Rocha

photo by Prphotos

Birth Name: Zacarias Manuel de la Rocha

Place of Birth: Long Beach, Los Angeles, California, United States

Date of Birth: January 12, 1970

Ethnicity:
*75% Mexican [Spanish, some African and Sephardi Jewish]
*25% mix of English, French, German, Irish, Scots-Irish, Scottish, Welsh, and remote Dutch and Swiss-German

Zack de la Rocha is an American musician, singer, songwriter, rapper, and political activist. He is the vocalist and lyricist of rock band Rage Against the Machine. The band’s other members are Tim Commerford, Tom Morello, and Brad Wilk.

Zack is the son of Olivia Lorryne and Robert de la Rocha (Robert Isaac “Beto” de la Rocha), a painter, graphic artist, and muralist, who was a member of Chicano art collective Los Four. His paternal grandparents and maternal grandfather were Mexican immigrants. His maternal grandmother was American.

Zack’s patrilineal ancestry can be traced back to his sixth great-grandfather, Juan Ignacio de la Rocha.

Zack’s paternal grandfather was Isaac de la Rocha Beltrán (the son of José Isaac de la Rocha Acosta and Sahara Beltrán Ojeda). Zack’s grandfather Isaac was Mexican. Zack’s great-grandfather Isaac was the son of Francisco de la Rocha Coronel and María Cecilia Acosta García. Sahara was the daughter of Juan Beltrán López and María Loreto Ojeda Félix.

Zack’s paternal grandmother was Cecilia Torres Cañedo (the daughter of Francisco Torres Angulo and María Josefa Cañedo Benítez). Cecilia was Mexican. Francisco was the son of Cirilo Torres Medina and María Cecilia Angulo Partida. Josefa was the daughter of Francisco Cañedo Aguilasocho and Elodia Benítez Lizárraga. Francisco’s great-grandfather, José Mónico Partida Sandoval, was described as “mulatto” on records, indicating partial African ancestry.

Zack’s maternal grandfather was Manuel García Urias (later Bradley Manuel Carter, the son of Braulio García, Jr. and Teresa Urias Figueroa). Manuel was a Mexican emigrant, from Cananea, Sonora. Braulio was born in Tucson, Arizona, United States, to Mexican emigrants, Braulio García and María de la Nieves Camacho, both of Hermosillo, Sonora. Teresa was the daughter of Ramón Urias Ramírez and María Matilde Josefa Trinidad de los Dolores Figueroa Escalante.

Zack’s maternal grandmother was Olive Pearl Fleming (the daughter of Orville Leroy Fleming and Clara Belle Case). Olive was of English, French, German, Irish, Scots-Irish, Scottish, Welsh, as well as remote Dutch and Swiss-German, descent. Orville was the son of John Fleming and Nancy Jane Powell. Clara was the daughter of James Thomas Case and Mary Emaline Elizabeth “Emma” Herod.

Zack’s matrilineal ancestry can be traced back to his ninth great-grandmother, Ann Sterling.

Sources: Zack’s father on the 1940 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org

Baptismal record of Zack’s paternal great-grandfather, Francisco Torres Angulo – https://familysearch.org

Record of Zack’s paternal great-great-great-great-grandfather, José Mónico Partida Sandoval – https://familysearch.org