Surname Van Rees - Meaning and Origin
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Van Rees: What does the surname Van Rees mean?
The last name Van Rees is of Dutch origin and it is a toponymic surname. In Dutch, "Van" translates to "from," pointing to geographic origin, while "Rees" is a town in the northwest of North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany, near the border with the Netherlands. Therefore, the surname "Van Rees" suggests that the initial bearers of the name hailed from the town of Rees. It is important to note that the geography or location signified by a surname does not necessarily imply that the family resided there— often, it could mean the family owned estates or properties in that location. It is also common for surnames to reflect a prominent landmark in the family's surroundings. Hence, the surname Van Rees either points to the geographic location of Rees or a significant feature within the family's original region.
Order DNA origin analysisVan Rees: Where does the name Van Rees come from?
The last name Van Rees is most commonly found in the Netherlands where it is estimated that around 20,000 bearers of this surname live today. It is also found in substantial numbers in Belgium, where Van Rees is a diminutive of the more frequent name Van de Ree. In South Africa, the Van Rees surname is found primarily among Dutch-Afrikaner families. It is also fairly common in Belgium’s French-speaking areas, as well as in Germany, France, and the United States.
The Van Rees surname has Dutch origins and is derived from the Old Dutch words “van” meaning “of” and “rees” which possibly originates from Middle Dutch rees meaning “wood, bush”. An alternate, more likely origin of the root of this surname was Old Germanic “hraez” meaning “brushwood”. This suggests that the original bearer of the Van Rees surname may have lived or worked in an area which contained a lot of brushwood.
The Dutch version of Van Rees is spelt as Van Rijs, and the other international variants are all derived from this original spelling. The request spelling is found across the world today, largely found in the countries listed above, but also in Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
Variations of the surname Van Rees
The surname Van Rees is one of the oldest family names in The Netherlands and it has several variants, spellings and surnames of the same origin. In The Netherlands the name is often spelled as Van Rees, however, due to migrations abroad and variations in dialect it can also be seen as Van Rees and van Rees.
Variants of the surname can also be found in other countries such as Belgium, France, New Zealand, the United States, Canada, and Australia. In other countries the surname can be seen as VanRees, Van Rees, Vannie Rees, Vanrees, VannRees, VanRis, VanRhees, Van Ree.
Additionally, the surname can also take on other surnames of Germanic and French origin, depending on what country the family has migrated. Some of these names include van Reesman, Reesink, Reeser, Resener, Reesman, Resman, Reisser, Reesgen, Reesen, Reesser, Reesberg, Resendorf, and Ressner.
The original spelling of the name is provided to have started as Van Ree and the modern spelling of Van Rees is usually the result of migration to other regions or variations in dialect. There may even be some alternative spellings and variations depending on the individual and their ancestry.
Famous people with the name Van Rees
- Indy Van Rees: Former Dutch Volleyball Player for the Netherlands National Team
- Gerlof van Rees: Dutch Activist and Politician
- Egbert Jules van Rees: Dutch Jazz Pianist
- Jonas Van Rees: Dutch Singer-Songwriter
- Remco van Rees: Dutch Politician
- Nico van Rees: Dutch Entrepreneur and Angel Investor
- Sacha van Rees: Dutch Model and Beauty Pageant Winner
- Willem Jacob van Rees: Dutch Physicist
- Karen van Rees: Dutch Badminton Player
- Jerome van Rees: Dutch Musician