The reese Surname
reese Name Meaning and History
- Welsh: from one of the most common Welsh personal names, Rhys, Old Welsh Ris ‘ardor’. This was the name of the last ruler of an independent kingdom of Wales, Rhys ap Tewder, who died in 1093 unsuccessfully opposing the Norman advance.
- North German and Dutch: nickname for a very big man, from Middle Low German, Middle Dutch rese ‘giant’.
- German: habitational name from places called Rees or Reese, in Rhineland and Lower Saxony.
Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-508137-4
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