Relfe Surname

1,359,010th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 163 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
United States
Highest density in:
England

Relfe Surname Definition:

A surname recorded in the town of Naim. Most probably from Norse Hrdlfr (from ON. Hrothuwolfar, 'wolf of fame'), as other names of undoubted Norse origin (Main, Manson) are current in the town. Elsewhere the name may be from the personal name Ralph (from Old English Rædwulf, 'wolf of counsel').

Read More About This Surname

Relfe Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States751:4,832,786249,377
England681:819,38343,863
Sweden71:1,406,680102,017
Canada61:6,140,932260,641
Mexico61:20,687,70153,861
Wales11:3,094,53244,023
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England1111:219,59816,839
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States1131:444,41332,195

Relfe (22) may also be a first name.

Relfe Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

A surname recorded in the town of Naim. Most probably from Norse Hrdlfr (from ON. Hrothuwolfar, 'wolf of fame'), as other names of undoubted Norse origin (Main, Manson) are current in the town. Elsewhere the name may be from the personal name Ralph (from Old English Rædwulf, 'wolf of counsel'). Ralph, abbot of Jedburgh, died 1205 (Chron. Mail.). Magy Rauff appears in Aberdeen, 1400 (CWA., p. 313), Amy Rauff occurs in a list of Aberdeen thieves in 1411, and Henrie Raife was master of a barge there in 1444 (CRA., p. 4, 11). Alexander Rauff was chaplain in Aberdour, Banffshire, 1506 (REA., II, p. 97), John Rauff appears as monk of Inchaffray, 1544 and 1564 (Inchaffray, p. xcviii-xcix), and Wallace Rauff is in record in Edinburgh, 1595 (Edinb. Marr.). John Raif, merchant and burgess of Glasgow, 1607 (Burgesses), George Rauff in Nethermains, 1627 (Craw, Chirnside Common, p. 15), and Thomas Ralph in Partick, 1711 (Minutes, p. 115). As forename: Rafe Pott in Kelso, 1567 (Kelso, p. 524).

The Surnames of Scotland (1946) by George Fraser Black (1866-1948)

For Ralf, Ralph (q.v.), through the pron. Ralf, Rālph.

Surnames of the United Kingdom (1912) by Henry Harrison

The personal name Radulphus, introduced at the time of the Norman Conquest. It has given rise to Relfe, Realf, Ralfs, Raw, Rawes, Rawson, Rason, Rawlins, Rawlings, Rawlinson, Roaf, Rolfe, and other surnames.

Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

(Saxon.) From Rad, counsel, and ulph, help, French, Raoul, Latin, Rodolphus, a helper, a counselor.

An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names (1857) by William Arthur

Relfe Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name Relfe Come From? nationality or country of origin

Relfe is more commonly found in The United States than any other country/territory. It may also be found in the variant forms:. For other potential spellings of this name click here.

How Common Is The Last Name Relfe? popularity and diffusion

This surname is the 1,359,010th most frequent last name internationally, held by approximately 1 in 44,708,871 people. The last name Relfe occurs mostly in The Americas, where 53 percent of Relfe reside; 53 percent reside in North America and 50 percent reside in Anglo-North America. Relfe is also the 2,301,746th most widely held first name on earth, held by 22 people.

It is most commonly used in The United States, where it is borne by 75 people, or 1 in 4,832,786. In The United States Relfe is most common in: Alabama, where 27 percent are found, New York, where 24 percent are found and California, where 11 percent are found. Outside of The United States Relfe occurs in 5 countries. It is also found in England, where 42 percent are found and Sweden, where 4 percent are found.

Relfe Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The frequency of Relfe has changed through the years. In The United States the number of people bearing the Relfe surname fell 34 percent between 1880 and 2014 and in England it fell 39 percent between 1881 and 2014.

Relfe Last Name Statistics demography

In The United States those holding the Relfe surname are 49.23% more likely to be registered with the Republican Party than The US average, with 96% registered to vote for the political party.

Relfe earn a lot more than the average income. In United States they earn 37.44% more than the national average, earning $59,304 USD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Roelfe912/
Relfer911/
Relffe910/
Relfes910/
Relf893,268/
Rlfe891/
Roelf80662/
Rielf8023/
Ruelf8017/
Relff8010/
Relfi801/
Reelf801/
Rellf801/
Reulf801/
Relfs800/
Rlf756/
Reelfs73117/
Riolfe7314/
Rölfer7311/
Rlefer733/
Rilfet733/
Roelff732/
Relfid731/
Rehlfs730/
Relphe730/
Rölf6720/
Rülf676/
Rleffer673/
Rlfy672/
Rlhf671/
Rlfs671/
Rlfj671/
Rlfh671/
Rhlf671/
Relb671/
Rylf671/
Rlef671/
Rilf670/

Search for Another Surname

The name statistics are still in development, sign up for information on more maps and data

By signing up to the mailing list you will only receive emails specifically about name reference on Forebears and your information will not be distributed to 3rd parties.

Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
  • Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
  • Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
  • Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
  • Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to Relfe
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis