Reese
Masculine · “Ardor”
Reese is given to both — 19,606 boys and 44,775 girls since 1880. See Reese as a girl nameSee other names given to both
Reese is the English spelling of the Welsh name Rhys, a name carried by rulers in medieval Wales long before it became a surname and traveled to America. It is one syllable, ending in a clean s, which is why it sits easily beside almost any longer middle name. Familiar to nearly everyone in the US, yet rarely doubled up in a classroom.
How old is the name Reese?
Reese was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Reese alive today was born around 2005, making them about 20 years old. About 17,500 people named Reese are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Reese most popular?
Reese peaked in 2003, reaching #368 nationally. Today it ranks #602, 234 places below that high. See the whole 2003 chart.
Reese appears on these lists:
Where it comes from
From Rhys to Reese
The story of Reese
The name begins in Wales as Rhys, borne by princes of the medieval Welsh kingdoms and common enough among ordinary Welsh families that it hardened into surnames — Rees, Reese, Rice, and Preece, from ap Rhys, "son of Rhys". Those surnames crossed the Atlantic with Welsh emigrants and settled into American records, where Reese became the usual spelling. Like many family names, it then stepped back over the line and began to be used as a first name, for boys first, in the Welsh manner. Its move onto the girls' side is far more recent in the US, helped along by the actress Reese Witherspoon, whose own Reese came down to her as a family surname.
Meaning
Ardor, enthusiasm; fiery zeal
The Welsh root rhys is usually glossed as ardor or enthusiasm, and often rendered in name books as "fiery" or "ardent".
How the name formed
- Rhys
- Rees
- Reese
Related forms: Rhys · Reece · Rees · Rice · Preece
Pronouncing Reese
REESS
One syllable, rhyming with peace. The final sound is a hissed s, not a z; the same pronunciation covers Reece, Rees and Welsh Rhys.
Nicknames for Reese
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
- 1880
- Most boys named
- 2005699 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #368reached in 2003
- Change vs 2022
- +11.0%475 in 2025, from 428
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.
Reese in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Rhys in Welsh — same name
- Reece in English — spelling variant
- Rees in English — spelling variant
- Rice in Welsh (surname) — related form
- Preece in Welsh (surname) — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: Texas, California, Florida.
Reeses among us
people named Reese are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 3,596 born in 2025 was named Reese
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Reese
- #602
- Reese on the 2025 chart
- #286
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Reese went to 475 boys in 2025, but Reece and Rece are the same name said out loud. Together the 3 spellings went to 1,159, which makes it the 286th most-given boys’ name of the year — 316 places above the chart.
About 1 boy in 1,474 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 3,596 for Reese itself.
Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Milford test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Reese's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Milford climbed just as high around 1904, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Milford's path sketches the road Reese is walking now.
Reese is on its second act. Revived names age gently: the generation that wore them first is far enough away that the name feels classic rather than dated.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Reese is headed
Reese should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
High confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Reese beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Reese in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- One syllable, one clear sound — easy to say, easy to hear across a playground, and it needs no shortening.
- Instantly familiar to Americans as a word and a surname, so it is read correctly on sight even by people meeting it for the first time.
- A documented line back to medieval Welsh Rhys, which gives it real depth for families with Welsh roots.
- Works for a boy or a girl, and travels without translation to Wales, England, Ireland, Australia and Canada.
- In the US, Reese is also the name of a very well-known peanut butter candy, spelled identically. Most children shrug it off, but expect the joke at some point.
- Four spellings compete — Reese, Reece, Rees, Rhys — so the name will often be spelled back to you wrong even when it is heard right.
- Most American Reeses are girls, so a boy called Reese may be assumed female on paperwork and rosters, even though the boys' line is the older one.
- Being a single syllable, it can run together with a short surname. Saying the full name out loud a few times settles the question quickly.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Reese
Masculine · #602 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Reeses are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 17,500 people named Reese are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Reese?
- Reese is one of 3 recorded spellings. Reece is the more common one — 675 births in 2025 against 475 for Reese.
- How popular is the name Reese in 2025?
- Reese ranks #602 among US boy names in 2025, with 475 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Reese?
- About 1 in every 3,596 US boys born in 2025 was named Reese — 475 in all.
- Will my child share the name Reese with classmates?
- Reese will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Reese
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Caiden#602 · Amiri#604 · Krew#599 · Kolter#599 · Jonas#599 · Nikolai#605 · Alden#598 · Lachlan#606
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Reese? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Reese and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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