Reh
A surname that likely began as a nickname or house-name referring to a roe deer.
The #8,780 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 82,685 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname is most naturally explained from German Reh, meaning “roe deer.” In surname use, it likely began as a nickname, house-name, or sign-name for someone associated with the animal, its qualities, or a house marked with a deer image. Related German surnames in the same pattern include Rehbein, Rehkopf, Rehbock, and Rehfuss.
History
German surname collections from the 19th and early 20th centuries treat Reh as part of a productive family of animal-based surnames. It appears chiefly in German-speaking regions and also in forms recorded in Low German and Dutch-related settings. The bare form Reh is less common than expanded compounds, which may help explain its relatively low modern census count.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same animal word also turned up in a small cluster of surnames built around roe deer imagery, including Rehbein, Rehbock, and Rehfues.
From the historical record
“: St. Ceo. H: _reh Fenton (Yorkmf, i, n, o; Wat HCooit Dir, o, 1,0; Sbeffield,Q. 1769. John Beardudl >”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances