Find out how popular the last name Reay is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Reay.

Reay, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Reay surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Reay in America

Reay is the 22646th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Reay surname appeared 1,133 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Reay.

We can also compare 2010 data for Reay to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Reay

The surname Reay originates from the northern Scottish county of Caithness. It is derived from the Old Norse words 'rà' meaning a boundary and 'ey' meaning an island, referring to the island of Reay off the coast of Caithness. The name dates back to the 12th century when Vikings settled in the area.

Historical records show the surname Reay appearing in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which recorded the names of Scottish landowners who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England. One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was William de Reay, who is mentioned in a charter from the year 1334.

The Reay family held lands in Caithness for centuries and played a significant role in the history of the region. In the 16th century, Donald Reay, known as the "Crowner of Caithness," was a powerful figure and served as the sheriff of the county.

A notable member of the Reay family was John Reay, born in 1594, who was a Scottish soldier and adventurer. He fought in the Thirty Years' War and later served as a colonel in the Swedish army. He was granted lands in Sweden and his descendants became part of the Swedish nobility.

Another prominent individual with the surname Reay was Alexander Reay, born in 1625. He was a Scottish lawyer and judge who served as Lord President of the Court of Session, the highest civil court in Scotland, from 1676 to 1689.

In the 18th century, Hugh Reay, born in 1707, was a Scottish merchant and philanthropist who made a significant contribution to the development of the city of Glasgow. He donated funds for the construction of the Reay Asylum, which provided housing and education for orphaned children.

The name Reay has also been associated with various place names in Scotland, such as the village of Reay in Caithness and the Reay Forest, which was once part of the Reay family's estates.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Reay

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Reay.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Reay was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Reay has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Reay was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Reay, please contact us.

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