2000
#136,783
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Riehs
A German surname derived from a place name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 138 Americans carry the last name Riehs. That puts it at #142,049 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,483,727 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Riehs 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.
Bearers in the US
138
1 in 2,483,727
Census rank
#142,049
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
120
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 120 bearers of the surname Riehs in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142049th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Riehs, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.0%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Riehs
The surname RIEHS is of German origin, emerging in the late 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Lower German word "rie," meaning a small stream or brook. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near a small waterway or a particular location with a stream.
Early records indicate that the RIEHS surname was prominent in various regions of Germany, including Bavaria, Saxony, and Westphalia. In the 17th century, the name appeared in church records and municipal documents, often with varying spellings such as Riehes, Riehs, and Riesch.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the RIEHS name dates back to 1612, when a Johannes Riehs was mentioned in a baptismal record from the town of Nürnberg, Bavaria. Similarly, in 1634, a Matthias Riehs was recorded in a marriage register from the city of Leipzig, Saxony.
During the 18th century, the RIEHS surname gained recognition through several notable individuals. Johann Friedrich Riehs (1710-1784), a German theologian and philosopher, was born in Erfurt and authored influential works on ethics and natural law. Another prominent figure was Wilhelm Riehs (1768-1832), a German painter known for his landscape and genre scenes.
In the 19th century, the RIEHS name continued to be associated with accomplished individuals. August Riehs (1823-1898) was a German jurist and legal scholar who made significant contributions to the field of civil law. Additionally, Gustav Riehs (1868-1941), born in Berlin, was a renowned architect and urban planner known for his work in the city of Hamburg.
One of the most notable figures with the RIEHS surname was Walter Riehs (1880-1956), a German engineer and inventor. He is credited with developing the Riehs Rotary Engine, a unique internal combustion engine design that gained recognition in the early 20th century.
Throughout its history, the RIEHS surname has been associated with various locations and place names, including the town of Riehstadt in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, which likely derives its name from the same linguistic root as the surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Riehs
Among Census respondents with the surname Riehs, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.0%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Riehs 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 Riehs surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.0% · 108
- Hispanic or Latino5.0% · 6
- Two or more races2.5% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Riehs
Riehs 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
#143,149
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
+3 bearers (+2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,366 places
2020
#142,049
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
+4 bearers (+3.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 1,100 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #136,783 | 113 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #143,149 | 116 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.7%) | Down 6,366 places |
| 2020 | #142,049 | 120 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+3.4%) | Up 1,100 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 Riehs 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 | #143,149 | #142,049 | 0.8% |
| Count | 116 | 120 | 3.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 0.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Riehs bearers went from 116 to 120 (+3.4% change). The surname moved up 1,100 positions in the national ranking, going from #143,149 to #142,049.
FAQ
Riehs surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Riehs?
Name Census estimates that about 138 living Americans carry the surname Riehs. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,483,727 residents.
How common is Riehs?
Riehs ranks #142,049 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 120 people with the surname Riehs. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (138), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Riehs.
Has Riehs become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Riehs went from 116 recorded bearers to 120. That is an increase of 4 (+3.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #143,149 to #142,049.
What does the Census say about the background of Riehs?
Among Census respondents with the surname Riehs, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.0%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Riehs in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.0% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Riehs appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.0%), Hispanic (5.0%), Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Riehs (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 Riehs mean?
A German surname derived from a place name. 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 Riehs (0.04 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 many people have the last name Riehs?
Find out how many people are called Riehs on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.