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REESE Family History

This unusual and interesting surname is of Old Welsh origin, and derives from the Old Welsh personal name "Ris", Welsh "Rhys" meaning ardour. The popularity of the name is borne out by the number of surnames it has generated. The personal name appears as "Hris" (1052) in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle of Cambridgeshire, as "Rees" (1086) in the Domesday Book, and as "Res" (1198) in the Pipe Rolls of Shropshire. The surname dates back to the early 13th Century (see below), and early recordings include John Rees (1288) in the Feet of Fines, Suffolk.