Rees

also Reece, Rhys

From Rhys, the name of the most consequential prince of 12th-century Wales.

Origin: Deheubarth, Wales
Famous bearer: Rhys ap Gruffydd, the Lord Rhys (1132–1197), King of Deheubarth, host of the first Eisteddfod
Register: Welsh family

Territory of Rees

CoreHistoric reach

The seat of Rees

Seat vacant

Chief

No one leads the Rees community yet. When the movement opens, you can stand for its leadership, or help elect whoever does.

Current mission

No shared goal set yet. Once Rees has leadership, it sets the public focus: a restoration, a gathering, a real-world project that helps its own.

The Rees clan is being rebuilt. Join the waiting list for the movement today, and you help decide who leads it and what it does.

Help rebuild the Rees clan →

What does the Rees name mean?

From the Welsh Rhys, an ancient personal name meaning 'ardour' or 'rashness in war'. The patronymic 'ap Rhys' contracted to Price; the unprefixed Rhys, taken hereditarily and anglicised by Tudor scribes, gave Rees and Reece. Both names trace to the same root, and to one historical figure above all others, the Lord Rhys of Deheubarth.

The history of Rees

The Rees / Rhys name is anchored in the south-west, the country of the kingdom of Deheubarth. Density today is highest in Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion, the historic core of the kingdom and the modern centre of Welsh-language daily speech.

The Lord Rhys, Rhys ap Gruffydd (1132–1197), was the most consequential native ruler of 12th-century Wales. He held Dinefwr Castle, played the politics of the Angevin succession with greater skill than any of his contemporaries, was confirmed by Henry II as 'Justiciar of South Wales' in 1172, and at Cardigan Castle at Christmas 1176 hosted the first recorded Eisteddfod, a competitive gathering of bards and musicians from across Wales. The chair for poetry went to a man of Gwynedd; the chair for music went to a man of Deheubarth. The institution survived and is now the National Eisteddfod of Wales.

Modern bearers: Sir Geraint Howell Rees Williams of Rhondda, the actor Sir Anthony Hopkins is on his mother's Rees line; Jean Rhys (1890–1979), Dominica-born novelist of Welsh-Creole descent, took her literary name from the Rhys patronymic she had inherited.

Champions of the Rees name

The bearers whose lives are inseparable from this surname. Each has its own page — biography, achievements, geography, connection to the family.

Leighton Rees
The Ynysybwl furniture salesman who in February 1978 at the Heart of the Midlands nightclub in Nottingham took the inaugural British Darts Organisation World Professional Darts Championship, the founding moment of professional televised darts as a major British sporting event.

Step Into History

Walk the streets and seats the Rees name knew — a photoreal walk through time, on foot.

Step Into History · New

Walk Raglan Castle in 1645Enter →

The grandest castle-palace in Wales at its height — the moated Yellow Tower, fountain courts and long gallery, on the eve of the siege.

Notable bearers of the Rees name

Rhys ap Gruffydd, the Lord Rhys (1132–1197), King of Deheubarth, host of the first Eisteddfod
Jean Rhys (1890–1979), novelist (Wide Sargasso Sea)
Goronwy Rees (1909–1979), historian and the last of the Cambridge Five circle

Stories of Rees

The first Eisteddfod
1176
At Christmas 1176, Rhys ap Gruffydd, the Lord Rhys, king of Deheubarth and the most consequential native ruler of twelfth-century Wales, hosted a competitive gathering of bards and musicians from every part of Wales at his hall in Cardigan Castle. The invitation had gone out a year and a day in advance, by formal proclamation. There were two chairs to be won, one for poetry, one for music, with prizes named. The competition has been remembered ever since as the first Eisteddfod. Eight hundred and fifty years later it is still meeting every summer in a different town in Wales, in the same competitive form, under the same kind of chair, and judged by the same metrical rules.
Read the story →

Frequently asked

What does the surname Rees mean?

Where does the Rees family come from?

The Rees family is rooted in Deheubarth, in Wales. Within that, the name was particularly concentrated in Sir Gâr and Ceredigion. The atlas page for the name records the historical territory it has held over the centuries.

Where did the Rees family historically hold territory?

At its greatest historical extent, the Rees name has been concentrated in Sir Benfro, Powys, The Valleys, Bro Morgannwg, Abertawe & Gŵyr and Sir Fynwy. The atlas page distinguishes the core territory of the name from this wider historical reach with hatched silhouettes on the map.

Is Rees a Wales surname?

Yes, Rees is a Wales surname. Its editorial home in this atlas is Wales, where the historical territory and family record of the name are concentrated.

How old is the Rees surname?

The Rees / Rhys name is anchored in the south-west, the country of the kingdom of Deheubarth. European hereditary surnames crystallised broadly between the 12th and 14th centuries, and the Rees name took its modern form within that long settlement.

What is the Rees family known for?

From Rhys, the name of the most consequential prince of 12th-century Wales. The Rees / Rhys name is anchored in the south-west, the country of the kingdom of Deheubarth.

Who is the most famous Rees?

The best-known bearer of the Rees name is Rhys ap Gruffydd, the Lord Rhys (1132–1197), King of Deheubarth, host of the first Eisteddfod. Other prominent figures of the family include Jean Rhys (1890–1979), novelist (Wide Sargasso Sea) and Goronwy Rees (1909–1979), historian and the last of the Cambridge Five circle.

Who are some famous Reeses?

Notable bearers of the Rees name include Rhys ap Gruffydd, the Lord Rhys (1132–1197), King of Deheubarth, host of the first Eisteddfod, Jean Rhys (1890–1979), novelist (Wide Sargasso Sea) and Goronwy Rees (1909–1979), historian and the last of the Cambridge Five circle. Each is profiled on the family page, with cross-links to the geography, stories, and historical events tied to their life.

What stories are told about the Rees family?

The Rees family is associated with The first Eisteddfod. Each story has its own page on this site with the full account, the date, the location, and the other families involved.

What is the story of the first Eisteddfod?

At Christmas 1176, Rhys ap Gruffydd, the Lord Rhys, king of Deheubarth and the most consequential native ruler of twelfth-century Wales, hosted a competitive gathering of bards and musicians from every part of Wales at his hall in Cardigan Castle. The invitation had gone out a year and a day in advance, by formal proclamation. The event is dated to 1176.

Is Reece the same family as Rees?

Yes. Reece is a historical spelling variant of the Rees name. The two share the same lineage and family affiliation; different parishes, clerks and migration registrars recorded the same name in slightly different forms, and the variant spellings sit on the same family tree.

Is Rhys the same family as Rees?

Yes. Rhys is a historical spelling variant of the Rees name. The two share the same lineage and family affiliation; different parishes, clerks and migration registrars recorded the same name in slightly different forms, and the variant spellings sit on the same family tree.

Where is the Rees surname found today?

Wales is the primary historical home of the Rees surname. In the modern era, the name is also borne across the wider diaspora, particularly in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, where families carry the line of descent from the same Wales origin recorded on this page.

What does the Clan Rising page for the Rees family cover?

The Clan Rising page for the Rees family covers the meaning of the surname, the historical geography of the name, famous bearers of the name, traditional stories and the seat of the head of the family. Each section is linked to the underlying atlas of Wales so the name can be read in the geography that shaped it.

Who is the head of the Rees family today?

The seat for the head of the Rees family is currently vacant on this register. Clan Rising is rebuilding the chief and family structure for the modern era, and the family page allows readers to claim the seat or pledge to the name.