NameCensus.

UK surname

Reiss

A Jewish occupational surname referring to someone who traveled frequently, from the German word "reisen" meaning "to travel."

In the 1881 census there were 50 people recorded with the Reiss surname, ranking it #26,587 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 211, ranked #18,904, up from #26,587 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Ribbesford (Bewdley), Abberley, Rock, Winwick and London parishes. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Barnet, Camden and East Hampshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Reiss is 224 in 2014. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 322.0%.

1881 census count

50

Ranked #26,587

Modern count

211

2016, ranked #18,904

Peak year

2014

224 bearers

Map years

4

1911 to 2016

Key insights

  • Reiss had 50 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #26,587 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 211 in 2016, ranked #18,904.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 130 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Diverse Educated Urban Singles.

Reiss surname distribution map

The map shows where the Reiss surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Reiss surname density by area, 2016 modern.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Reiss over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 4 #32,658
1861 historical 12 #32,329
1881 historical 50 #26,587
1891 historical 59 #29,325
1901 historical 99 #22,999
1911 historical 130 #19,504
1997 modern 187 #18,398
1998 modern 194 #18,451
1999 modern 202 #18,127
2000 modern 206 #17,880
2001 modern 194 #18,287
2002 modern 207 #17,911
2003 modern 211 #17,513
2004 modern 197 #18,368
2005 modern 193 #18,572
2006 modern 208 #17,835
2007 modern 211 #17,856
2008 modern 208 #18,171
2009 modern 202 #18,896
2010 modern 212 #18,726
2011 modern 208 #18,783
2012 modern 206 #18,837
2013 modern 218 #18,441
2014 modern 224 #18,202
2015 modern 214 #18,712
2016 modern 211 #18,904

Geography

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Where Reiss' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Ribbesford (Bewdley), Abberley, Rock, Winwick, London parishes and Sandbach. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Barnet, Camden, East Hampshire, Leeds and Hackney. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Ribbesford (Bewdley), Abberley, Rock Worcestershire
2 Winwick Lancashire
3 London parishes London 1
4 London parishes London 3
5 Sandbach Cheshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Barnet 034 Barnet
2 Camden 008 Camden
3 East Hampshire 010 East Hampshire
4 Leeds 109 Leeds
5 Hackney 004 Hackney

Forenames

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First names often paired with Reiss

These lists show first names that appear often with the Reiss surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Reiss

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Reiss, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Multicultural and Educated Urbanites

Group

Diverse Educated Urban Singles

Nationally, the Reiss surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Diverse Educated Urban Singles, within Multicultural and Educated Urbanites. This does not mean every Reiss household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

This Group includes many never-married individuals not living with dependent children. Many were born in EU countries and are now aged between 25-44. This Group is characterised by its ethnic group diversity, although those identifying as Asian are not well represented. Affiliation with the Christian religion amongst residents is low. Reported disability rates are low. Neighbourhoods include some central locations in London and other major cities. Private renting is the norm, and there is some overcrowding. Many individuals are educated to degree level, and full-time employment is common, particularly in managerial and professional occupations.

Wider pattern

Established populations comprising ethnic minorities together with persons born outside the UK predominate in this Supergroup. Residents present diverse personal characteristics and circumstances: while generally well-educated and practising skilled occupations, some residents live in overcrowded rental sector housing. English may not be the main language used by people in this Group. Although the typical adult resident is middle aged, single person households are common and marriage rates are low by national standards. This Supergroup predominates in Inner London, with smaller enclaves in many other densely populated metropolitan areas.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

European Enclaves

Within London, Reiss is most associated with areas classed as European Enclaves, part of Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many residents of these accessible neighbourhoods have wide-ranging non-UK European origins. Typically residing in privately rented flats, many residents live alone and are beyond normal retirement age. There are more students than elsewhere in the Supergroup, some of which live in communal establishments. Household residents are often drawn from different ethnic groups.

Wider London pattern

These neighbourhoods house people of all ages, predominantly of White British or European extraction. Resident turnover is low. Religious affiliation is less common than average and tends to be Christian if expressed. Homeownership, typically of terraced houses, is common but use of the social rented sector is not. Employment is typically in professional, managerial and associate professional or technical occupations. There are few full-time students. Level 4 qualifications are common. More households lack dependent children than have them which, considered alongside low levels of crowding and over-all age structure, indicates that many households may be post child-rearing and in late middle age. Incidence of disability is low, as is residence in communal establishments.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Reiss is most concentrated in decile 10 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the healthier end of the index.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

10
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Reiss falls in decile 8 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the less deprived end of the index.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

8
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Reiss is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 60-70 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

9
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - Other

This describes the area pattern most associated with Reiss, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Reiss

The surname Reiss is of German origin, derived from the Middle High German word "rîs" meaning a branch or twig. It is believed to have originated as an occupational name for a basket maker, someone who wove baskets and other wicker products from twigs and branches.

The earliest recorded instances of the name Reiss can be traced back to the 13th century in various regions of Germany. It was commonly found in areas such as Bavaria, Saxony, and the Rhineland, where basket making was a prominent occupation among the rural population.

One of the earliest known references to the name Reiss appears in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of historical documents from the region of Saxony, dating back to the year 1268. This record mentions a certain "Henricus Reiss" who was a resident of the town of Meissen.

In the 14th century, the surname Reiss can be found in the records of the Hanseatic League, a powerful commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Northern Europe. Several merchants and traders with the name Reiss were involved in the thriving trade networks of the Hanseatic League.

Notable individuals with the surname Reiss throughout history include Johann Reiss (1532-1603), a German botanist and author of the influential work "De Plantis" (On Plants). Another notable figure was Johann Philipp Reiss (1655-1718), a German composer and Kapellmeister at the court of the Prince-Bishop of Würzburg.

In the 18th century, Johann Georg Reiss (1722-1786) was a renowned German architect and urban planner who designed several notable buildings in the city of Berlin. His son, Johann Christian Reiss (1758-1832), followed in his footsteps and became a prominent architect in his own right.

One of the most famous individuals with the surname Reiss was the German painter and printmaker Adolf Reiss (1849-1912), known for his landscapes and cityscapes depicting the modern industrial age. His works are held in various prestigious museums around the world.

The surname Reiss has also been associated with several place names throughout Germany, such as Reissdorf, Reissenbach, and Reisskirchen, which likely derived their names from early settlers with the Reiss surname in those areas.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Reiss families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Reiss surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Middlesex leads with 10 Reiss' recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.33x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 10 2.33x
Cheshire 8 8.44x
Lancashire 8 1.57x
Worcestershire 8 14.28x
Surrey 3 1.43x
Sussex 3 4.15x
Buckinghamshire 1 3.85x
Lanarkshire 1 0.72x
Westmorland 1 10.60x
Wiltshire 1 2.64x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Rock in Worcestershire leads with 8 Reiss' recorded in 1881 and an index of 3636.36x.

Place Total Index
Rock 8 3636.36x
Pendleton In Salford 5 82.37x
Twemlow 5 25000.00x
Westminster St 4 253.16x
Kensington London 3 12.57x
Penge 3 109.49x
Poulton Cum Seacombe 3 275.23x
West Derby 3 20.13x
Hastings St Leonards 2 188.68x
Bethnal Green London 1 5.36x
Brighton 1 6.85x
Govan 1 2.91x
Kendal 1 57.80x
Langley Marish 1 312.50x
Preshute 1 434.78x
St Clement Danes 1 144.93x
St George Bloomsbury 1 40.65x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Reiss surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Reiss surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Charles 4
Arthur 2
Fredrick 2
James 2
Cecil 1
E. 1
Edward 1
Emil 1
Ferdinand 1
George 1
Godfrey 1
Henry 1
John 1
Julius 1
Leopold 1
Louis 1
M. 1
Robert 1

Top occupations

Occupational titles are kept as recorded and later transcribed, so related jobs, spelling variants and mistakes stay separate. Scholar was the census term for a child in education. That means the other rows often tell you more about adult work in Reiss households.

FAQ

Reiss surname: questions and answers

How common was the Reiss surname in 1881?

In 1881, 50 people were recorded with the Reiss surname. That placed it at #26,587 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Reiss surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 211 in 2016. That gives Reiss a modern rank of #18,904.

What does the Reiss surname mean?

A Jewish occupational surname referring to someone who traveled frequently, from the German word "reisen" meaning "to travel."

What does the Reiss map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Reiss bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.