Rees
The name Rees is a Welsh name derived from "ap Rees" meaning "son of Rhys."
Name Census estimates that about 987 living Americans carry the first name Rees. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 88.0% of registrations being male. The average person named Rees today is around 27 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rees births was 2006 (44 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rees. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
987
~ 1 in 347,269 Americans
Peak year
2006
44 babies that year
Average age
27
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,382
Tracked since 1914
Gender
Gender distribution for Rees
Rees leans heavily male at 88.0% of total registrations, but 136 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Rees as a male name
- Ranked #6,382 in 2024
- 14 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2000 (36 births)
Rees as a female name
- Ranked #17,069 in 2023
- 5 female births in 2023
- Peak: 2010 (14 births)
Popularity
Rees: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Rees from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 349 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Rees by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Rees during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Rees' live
Origin
Meaning and history of Rees
The name Rees has its origins in the Welsh language and culture. It is derived from the Welsh word "rhys," which means "ardor" or "passion." This name has been in use since the medieval period in Wales.
The name Rees is thought to have been derived from the Old Welsh name "Res," which was a variation of the name "Rhys." The earliest recorded use of the name Rees dates back to the 13th century in Wales.
One of the most famous historical figures to bear the name Rees was Rees ap Griffith (c. 1132-1201), a Welsh prince and the Lord of Senghenydd. He played a significant role in the conflicts between the Welsh and the Normans during the late 12th century.
Another notable individual with the name Rees was Rees Pritchard (c. 1600-1670), a Welsh Anglican priest and poet. He is best known for his collection of poems titled "Cambro-Brytannicae Cymraecaeve Linguae Institutiones" (The Institution of the Welsh Language).
In the 18th century, Rees Goring Thomas (1768-1828) was a Welsh clergyman and author. He wrote several works on Welsh history and literature, including "The History of the Revival of Druidism in Wales" and "The History of the Welsh Baptists."
Rees Davies (1938-2005) was a prominent Welsh historian and academic. He was a professor at various universities, including the University of Oxford, and made significant contributions to the study of Welsh history and culture.
Rees Howells (1879-1950) was a Welsh Christian evangelist and intercessor. He founded the Bible College of Wales and is known for his influential teachings on prayer and intercession.
While the name Rees has Welsh origins, it has been used in other parts of the world, particularly in English-speaking countries, due to the influence of Welsh immigration and cultural exchange.
People
Rees + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rees as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Rees: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rees?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 987 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rees going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 347,269 US residents.
Is Rees a common name?
We classify Rees as "Very Rare". It ranks above 90% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,136 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rees most popular?
The single biggest year for Rees was 2006, when 44 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rees is about 27 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Rees a male name?
Yes, 88.0% of people registered as Rees in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.