Rees
Masculine · “ardor”
Rees is given to both — 1,014 boys and 136 girls since 1880. See other names given to both
Rees is the anglicized spelling of Rhys, one of the oldest and most Welsh of all Welsh names — borne by the princes of Deheubarth and by the Lord Rhys, who held southern Wales against the Normans for thirty years. The word means ardor. Its American peak is 1939.
How old is the name Rees?
Rees first appears in US birth records in 1914 — 111 years ago. The typical Rees alive today was born around 2000, making them about 25 years old. About 900 people named Rees are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Rees most popular?
Rees peaked in 1939, reaching #2050 nationally. Today it ranks #6143, 4,093 places below that high. See the whole 1939 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Rhys to Rees
The story of Rees
Rhys ap Gruffydd, known as the Lord Rhys, ruled Deheubarth in south-west Wales from 1155 to 1197, held his territory against Henry II, and hosted at Cardigan in 1176 what is traditionally counted the first eisteddfod. The name has been continuously used in Wales since and produced the surnames Rees, Reece, Rice and Price — the last from ap Rhys, son of Rhys. Welsh emigration brought all of these to America. Rees as a given name has stayed small in the United States while Rhys and Reece have both risen sharply since 2000.
Meaning
ardor, enthusiasm, fiery spirit
Welsh Rhys is generally read as meaning ardor, rashness or enthusiasm — the quality of throwing oneself into something. It is an old Welsh personal name attested from the early medieval period. The English spellings Rees, Reece and Rice all descend from it, the last by a route that produced a surname indistinguishable from the grain. The derivation is settled.
How the name formed
- Rhys
- Rees
Related forms: Rhys · Reece · Price
Pronouncing Rees
REESS
One syllable, rhyming with peace. Identical to Rhys and Reece; the three spellings sound the same. The Welsh rh is a voiceless r that Welsh speakers pronounce and English speakers do not.
Nicknames for Rees
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1914
- Most boys named
- 200036 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2050reached in 1939
- Change vs 2023
- +133.3%14 in 2025, from 6
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Rees in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Rhys in Welsh — spelling variant
- Reece in English — spelling variant
- Price in Welsh — related form
Reess among us
people named Rees are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 122,005 born in 2025 was named Rees
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Seymore test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Rees's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Seymore climbed just as high around 1920, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Seymore's path sketches the road Rees is walking now.
Rees sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Rees beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Rees in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- The meaning is a single vivid word and easy to explain.
- Four letters and one syllable, immediately sayable and spellable.
- It has a genuinely distinguished Welsh royal history.
- Rhys, Reece and Rees all circulate and hers will be written another way.
- The Welsh rh is not reproduced in the English spelling or pronunciation.
- One-syllable names leave a bearer with no nickname in reserve.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Rees
Masculine · #6143 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Reess are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 900 people named Rees are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Rees in 2025?
- Rees ranks #6143 among US boy names in 2025, with 14 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Rees?
- About 1 in every 122,005 US boys born in 2025 was named Rees — 14 in all.
- Will my child share the name Rees with classmates?
- Rees will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Rees
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Ruel#6143 · Cornell#6143 · Vasco#6143 · Kemper#6143 · Yates#6143 · Roark#6143 · Raja#6143 · Orville#6143
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Rees? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Rees and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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