Ream
A surname most likely linked to the French city of Reims, with spelling simplified over time.
The #5,588 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 49,622 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Ream is generally explained as a locational name, referring to someone who came from Reims in France. The 19th-century source cited here explicitly gives this derivation, and the surname likely reflects an English spelling adapted from the French place-name. Reims was historically an important and well-known city, so it could readily supply a byname for migrants or their descendants.
History
The form appears in English surname collections as a simplified spelling of a French place-name surname. In later records, it survives as a relatively uncommon surname in English-speaking countries, including the United States. The evidence here points to an established locational surname rather than to the paper term "ream," which is a separate word.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
A 19th-century surname dictionary explicitly glossed REAM as meaning "from Rheims or Reims, a city of France."
From the historical record
“LUDUS PATRONYMICUS. 83 REAM. From Rheims or Reims, a city of France. REASON. See RAISIN. RECKLESS. The same as Ragless. See LEGG. RECORD. Found written Rickword. The same as Ricord, the name of a distinguished French physician ; from G. Reichardt, Eng. Richard. REDCOCK. See COCK.”
— Ludus Patronymicus; or, the etymology of curious surnames