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

Reuther, 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 Reuther surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Reuther in America

Reuther is the 18715th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Reuther surname appeared 1,468 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Reuther.

We can also compare 2010 data for Reuther 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 Reuther

The surname Reuther originated in Germany, with its earliest recorded instances dating back to the 13th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old German word "riuti," which means "clearing" or "open space," often referring to a person who lived in or near a clearing in a forested area.

One of the earliest known records of the Reuther surname can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of medieval documents from the region of Saxony, where a "Henricus Rüther" is mentioned in a charter dated 1283.

During the Middle Ages, the name appears to have been concentrated in various regions of Germany, including Bavaria, Saxony, and Franconia. Different spellings, such as Rüther, Reuter, and Rutter, were also common due to regional variations in pronunciation and spelling conventions.

In the 16th century, the Reuther surname gained prominence when Johannes Reuther, a German theologian and reformer, played a significant role in the Protestant Reformation. Born in 1491 in Nuremberg, he was a close associate of Martin Luther and helped spread the Reformation teachings throughout Bavaria.

Another notable figure bearing the Reuther name was Johann Reuther, a German painter and engraver who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. His works, primarily religious paintings and engravings, can be found in various churches and museums across Germany.

In the 19th century, the Reuther family gained prominence in the United States with the birth of Walter Reuther (1907-1970), a prominent American labor union leader who served as the president of the United Automobile Workers (UAW) from 1946 to 1970. He played a crucial role in the American labor movement and was instrumental in securing better working conditions and benefits for autoworkers.

Another noteworthy individual with the Reuther surname was Victor Reuther (1912-2004), the younger brother of Walter Reuther. He was also actively involved in the labor movement and served as a high-ranking official in the UAW, as well as playing a role in civil rights activism.

In more recent times, the Reuther surname has been associated with notable figures such as Heidi Reuther (born 1961), a German politician and member of the European Parliament, and Michael Reuther (born 1956), a German business executive who served as the CEO of the insurance company Allianz from 2000 to 2009.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Reuther

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

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 Reuther 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 Reuther 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 Reuther was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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