Frequency: (129)
(number of times this surname appears in a sample database of 88.7 million names, representing one third of the 1997 US population)
German: from Middle High German rephān ‘partridge’, a metonymic occupational name for a hunter of partridges or a nickname for someone supposedly resembling a partridge in some way.
GIVEN NAME German 5%. Heinz.
See the Key to the Dictionary or consult the General Introduction for further explanation.
Dictionary of American Family Names. Copyright © 2006 Patrick Hanks. All rights reserved.
