1) A descriptive name or nickname signifying a person with red hair or a ruddy complexion, deriving from the Old English read meaning "red."
2) A topographical surname for someone who lived in a clearing in woodland, deriving from the Olde English ried, ryd.
3) A geographical name from any of the various places called Read or Reed.
Reed is the 65th most popular surname in the United States. The REID spelling of the surname is extremely common in Scotland, where it is ranked #11.
100 Most Common U.S. Surnames & Their Meanings
Smith, Johnson, Williams, Jones, Brown... Are you one of the millions of Americans sporting one of these top 100 common last names from the 2000 census?
REED Family Genealogy Forum
Search this popular genealogy forum for the Reed surname to find others who might be researching your ancestors, or post your own Reed query.
FamilySearch - REED Genealogy
Find records, queries, and lineage-linked family trees posted for the Reed surname and its variations.
REED Surname & Family Mailing Lists
RootsWeb hosts several free mailing lists for researchers of the Reed surname.
Cousin Connect - REED Genealogy Queries
Read or post genealogy queries for the surname Reed, and sign up for free notification when new Reed queries are added.
DistantCousin.com - REED Genealogy & Family History
Free databases and genealogy links for the last name REED.
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References: Surname Meanings & Origins
Cottle, Basil. Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Baltimore, MD: Penguin Books, 1967.
Menk, Lars. A Dictionary of German Jewish Surnames. Avotaynu, 2005.
Beider, Alexander. A Dictionary of Jewish Surnames from Galicia. Avotaynu, 2004.
Hanks, Patrick and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1989.
Hanks, Patrick. Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press, 2003.
Smith, Elsdon C. American Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 1997.
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