Show ContentsReda History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Reda family

The surname Reda was first found in Durham, where they were recorded as a family of great antiquity seated on the lands of Redheugh in that shire. Although the spelling of this name was originally Redheugh, the latter part of the name has been pronounced many ways. King David of Scotland granted them lands in Redheugh in Lanarkshire. Andrew Reddoch held lands in Stirlingshire and was succeeded by James, and then Patrick, but by 1490 they had established themselves as a significant Border Clan holding territories in Dumfries and Kirkcudbright, neighbors of the Glendennings, MacLellans, and the MacCullochs. [1]

In England, it may have been a nickname as in "the ruddock," (robin redbreast) and interestingly Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1343-1400), the Father of English literature notes in his poem "Assembly of Fowls," 'The tame ruddocke, and the coward kite.' [2]

Early History of the Reda family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Reda research. Another 193 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1273, 1591, 1597, 1604, 1621, 1628, 1689, 1690, 1742, 1744, 1787, 1799, 1803 and 1807 are included under the topic Early Reda History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Reda Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Reddoch, Reddock, Redick, Reddish, Raddish and others.

Early Notables of the Reda family

More information is included under the topic Early Reda Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Reda Ranking

In the United States, the name Reda is the 14,499th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. [3]


United States Reda migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Reda Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Diego Reda, aged 31, who landed in New Orleans, La in 1829 [4]

Contemporary Notables of the name Reda (post 1700) +

  • Lou Reda (1925-2017), American filmmaker, specializing in television documentaries
  • Vincent Reda, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from New York, 2008 [5]
  • Mario R. Reda, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Illinois 6th District, 1980 [5]


  1. Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
  2. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  3. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  4. 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)
  5. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 9) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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