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Rix History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Rix History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The Anglo-Saxon name Rix comes from when the family resided in the county of Somerset. Rix is a topographic surname, which was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree. In this case the surname was originally derived from the Old English word risc which refers to those individuals who lived near the rushes. 1

Alternatively, the name could have been Saxon in origin, denoting "a powerful, rich, or generous disposition, from ric, rich." 2

Rixon is a village near Sturminster Newton in Dorset.

Early Origins of the Rix family

The surname Rix was first found in Cheshire where the mononym Rike was recorded in the Assize Rolls of 1260. A few years later, Osbert, John de la Rixe was recorded in Somerset in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1274. In Suffolk, Ema Ricke and David Rickes were listed there in the Subsidy Rolls of 1327 and later, Richard Rycke and Milcentia Ryckes were listed at Colchester in 1330 and 1351. In Devon, Roger ate Rixe was listed in 1302 and back in Somerset, William atte Ryxe was listed there in 1333. 1

Early History of the Rix family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Rix research. Another 54 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1274 and 1333 are included under the topic Early Rix History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Rix Spelling Variations

The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore,spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Rix has been recorded under many different variations, including Ricks, Rickes, Rick, Rix, Rixon, Ricke and others.

Early Notables of the Rix family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

John Rixe, 13th century landholder

Rix Ranking

In the United States, the name Rix is the 13,423^rd most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 3

Rix migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Rix or a variant listed above:

Rix Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Rix, who arrived in Boston, Massachusetts in 1657 4
Peter Rix, who landed in Virginia in 1663-1664 4
Peter Rix, who sailed to Virginia in 1663

Rix Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Daniel Rix moved to Galveston Texas in 1850
Daniel F Rix, who landed in Galveston, Tex in 1850 4
H Rix, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 4

Rix migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Rix Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

James Rix, married at St. John's, Newfoundland in 1798 5

Rix migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Rix Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. John Rix, English convict who was convicted in Chelmsford, Essex, England for life, transported aboard the "Emerald Isle" on 25th June 1842, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 6
Israel Rix, aged 24, who arrived in South Australia in 1853 aboard the ship "Shackamaxon" 7

Contemporary Notables of the name Rix (post 1700) +

Mark S. Rix, American Republican politician, Elected New Hampshire State House of Representatives from Dummer 1956 8
Mark Rix, American politician, Delegate to New Hampshire State Constitutional Convention from Shelburne, 1948 8
James M. Rix, American politician, Member of New Hampshire State Senate 12th District, 1852-54 8
Howard A. Rix, American Republican politician, Member of Connecticut State House of Representatives, 1905-06, 1931-32 8
Charles N. Rix, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Arkansas, 1888, 1900, 1912, 1916, 1920 8
Carl B. Rix, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Wisconsin, 1940 8
Tyler Rix, English saxophonist
Graham Rix (b. 1957), English football player and coach
Chris Rix (b. 1981), American football quarterback for Florida State University from 2000-2004
Brian Norman Roger Rix CBE, DL (1924-2016), Baron Rix, a British actor and activist
... (Another 5 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Arthur, William , An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names. London: 1857. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Seary E.R., Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland, Montreal: McGill's-Queen's Universtity Press 1998 ISBN 0-7735-1782-0
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 27th March 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/emily
South Australian Register Thursday 20 January 1853. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) SHACKAMAXON 1853. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/shackamaxon1853.shtml
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 10) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html