2000
#2,669
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,456
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.62
Uncommon Last name
Rees
A Welsh surname derived from the given name Rhys, meaning "enthusiastic" or "ardent."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 14,402 Americans carry the last name Rees. That puts it at #2,795 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.20 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 23,799 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rees surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Rees with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
14K
1 in 23,799
Census rank
#2,795
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
13K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 12,559 bearers of the surname Rees in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.20 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2795th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rees, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rees
The surname REES is of Welsh origin, deriving from the Welsh word "rhys" meaning ardor or enthusiasm. It is believed to have originated in the 13th century in the counties of Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire in South Wales.
The name is thought to have been initially a Welsh personal name, likely derived from the Welsh word "rhys" or "res" meaning ardent or fiery. It was later adopted as a hereditary surname during the medieval period when surnames became more commonplace.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname REES can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from the year 1195, where a person named Rees ap Griffith is mentioned. This suggests that the name was already in use as a surname or a patronymic by the late 12th century.
The REES surname is also found in the famous Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of landowners and tenants ordered by William the Conqueror. The name appears as "Rees" in the records for the county of Gloucestershire.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname REES. One of the earliest was Sir Rice ap Thomas (c. 1449-1525), a Welsh soldier and landowner who fought in the Wars of the Roses. Another notable figure was Morgan Rees (1536-1599), a Welsh Protestant reformer and Bishop of Bangor.
Other famous individuals with the surname REES include Thomas Rees (1777-1864), a Welsh clergyman and author, and William Rees (1836-1912), a Welsh journalist and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Montgomery Boroughs.
In more recent times, one of the most prominent bearers of the REES surname was Merlyn Rees (1920-2006), a British Labour politician who served as Home Secretary under Prime Minister James Callaghan in the late 1970s.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rees
Among Census respondents with the surname Rees, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Rees bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Rees surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.5% · 11,369
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 497
- Two or more races3.1% · 393
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 149
- Black or African American1.0% · 124
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 27
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rees
Rees appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#2,828
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,754
+298 bearers (+2.4%)
Per 100,000 4.32
Rank movement Down 159 places
2020
#2,795
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,559
-195 bearers (-1.5%)
Per 100,000 4.20
Rank movement Up 33 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,669 | 12,456 | 4.62 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,828 | 12,754 | 4.32 | +298 bearers (+2.4%) | Down 159 places |
| 2020 | #2,795 | 12,559 | 4.20 | -195 bearers (-1.5%) | Up 33 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Rees surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #2,828 | #2,795 | 1.2% |
| Count | 12,754 | 12,559 | -1.5% |
| Per 100K | 4.32 | 4.20 | -2.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rees bearers went from 12,754 to 12,559 (-1.5% change). The surname moved up 33 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,828 to #2,795.
FAQ
Rees surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rees?
Name Census estimates that about 14,402 living Americans carry the surname Rees. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 23,799 residents.
How common is Rees?
Rees ranks #2,795 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.20 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 12,559 people with the surname Rees. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (14,402), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.2 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.20 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Rees.
Has Rees become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rees went from 12,754 recorded bearers to 12,559. That is a decrease of 195 (-1.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #2,828 to #2,795.
What does the Census say about the background of Rees?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rees, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.1%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Rees in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.5% (11,369 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rees appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.5%), Hispanic (4.0%), Two or More Races (3.1%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Rees (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Rees mean?
A Welsh surname derived from the given name Rhys, meaning "enthusiastic" or "ardent." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Rees (4.20 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How common is the surname Rees?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Rees, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.