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

Rieg, 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 Rieg surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Rieg in America

Rieg is the 54864th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Rieg surname appeared 375 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 Rieg.

We can also compare 2010 data for Rieg 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 Rieg

The surname RIEG has its origins in Germany, dating back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Old German word "ric," meaning "ruler" or "powerful." This suggests that the name may have originally been a descriptive one, referring to someone who held a position of authority or influence.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Codex Traditionum Monasterii Sancti Emmerami, a medieval manuscript from the Benedictine abbey of St. Emmeram in Regensburg, Bavaria. In this document, dated around 1050 CE, a certain "Riego" is mentioned as a landowner in the region.

The RIEG surname can also be traced back to various place names in Germany, such as Riegau (now part of Riesa) in Saxony, or Rieg (now part of Schwanau) in Baden-Württemberg. These locations likely derived their names from the Old German word "riec," meaning "marshy area" or "wetland." It is possible that some RIEG families took their surnames from these place names.

Notable individuals with the RIEG surname include Johann Rieg (1668-1737), a German composer and organist who served at the court of the Prince-Bishop of Bamberg. Another prominent figure was Johann Philipp Rieg (1741-1807), a German jurist and legal scholar who wrote extensively on civil law and inheritance rights.

In the realm of art, the painter Joseph Rieg (1801-1885) gained recognition for his landscape paintings of the Black Forest region in southwestern Germany. His works can be found in various museums and galleries throughout the country.

Moving into the 20th century, Hans Rieg (1904-1976) was a German physicist and inventor who made significant contributions to the development of radar technology during World War II. His innovations played a crucial role in the advancement of radar systems for both military and civilian applications.

Finally, it is worth mentioning the German architect and urban planner Ernst Rieg (1885-1977), who was instrumental in the reconstruction and redesign of several cities in post-war Germany, including Augsburg and Freiburg im Breisgau.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Rieg

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

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

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

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