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

Riess, 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 Riess surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Riess in America

Riess is the 15370th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Riess surname appeared 1,908 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 Riess.

We can also compare 2010 data for Riess 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 Riess

The surname Riess originated in Germany, dating back to the early medieval period around the 11th or 12th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old German word 'riz', meaning 'branch' or 'twig', likely referring to someone who lived near a bush or shrub. Alternatively, it may also have evolved from the word 'rise', meaning 'giant' or 'tall person'.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the town records of Nürnberg, Bavaria, where a certain Heinricus Riess was mentioned in 1297. This suggests that the name was already well-established in southern Germany by the late 13th century.

In the 15th century, the Riess family had a notable presence in the city of Nuremberg, with several members serving as respected merchants and guild members. Johannes Riess (1441-1508) was a prominent goldsmith and member of the city council.

As the name spread across various regions of Germany, several variations in spelling emerged, such as Rieß, Riesse, Riesz, and Ries. These differences often reflected local dialects and the preferences of individual families.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Riess name appeared in various historical records across central and southern Germany. Notably, Johann Riess (1549-1618) was a respected Lutheran theologian and professor at the University of Tübingen.

In the 18th century, the Riess family had a strong presence in the city of Frankfurt, where several members were involved in the thriving banking and finance industries. Johann Friedrich Riess (1718-1785) was a prominent banker and financier.

As German immigration to North America increased in the 19th century, many individuals bearing the surname Riess settled in various parts of the United States and Canada. Johann Georg Riess (1799-1872), a skilled watchmaker from Bavaria, was among the early German immigrants to Pennsylvania.

Other notable individuals with the surname Riess include the German painter and illustrator Gustav Riess (1860-1939), known for his landscape paintings and illustrations of fairy tales, and the American economist Steven Riess (1944-2022), who made significant contributions to the study of sports economics and labor markets.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Riess

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!