Rea family name history and map

No data was found
No data was found

Rea in 1911 Ireland

The 1911 Census recorded 2,233 people named Rea in Ireland, about 0.051% of everyone living in the country at the time and the 389th most common surname overall. The name was split fairly evenly between men and women: 1,060 men and 1,170 women. (A small number, 3, had no sex recorded.)

Counties with Rea in Ireland

Antrim was Rea country: 45.1% of them (1,007 people) lived there in 1911. Next came Down (554), Cork (163), Limerick (87) and Tyrone (81).
Surname distribution map, 1911 census

Rea average age in 1911

The average Rea in 1911 was 28.6 years old, 28.2 for men and 28.9 for women; a touch younger than the national averages of 29.6 for men and 30.5 for women. That low figure reflects just how many children there were in Edwardian Ireland, along with high infant mortality and the limits of public health at the time. For comparison, average life expectancy in Ireland today is around 83.

Rea literacy in 1911

Of the Reas whose literacy was recorded, 82.1% could both read and write, 3% could read but not write, and 15% could do neither. The figures were much the same for men and women. Bear in mind these figures include young children; the census itself only counted people aged nine and over when calculating illiteracy, on the grounds that it was unfair to label a child illiterate before they'd had a chance to learn.

Rea common first names

The most common male names were John (127), James, William, Thomas and David. For women it was Mary (101), followed by Margaret, Sarah, Jane and Elizabeth.

Rea occupations in 1911

The most common entry on a Rea's census form was "Scholar"; 20.3% (453) were children at school. Among the rest, the most common occupations were farmer (9%), textile worker (4.6%), general labourer (3.7%) and shopkeeper / shop assistant / dealer (3%). Grouped by sector, agriculture accounted for 12.4% of all Reas, followed by textiles & clothing, general labourers and retail & commerce.

What religion is Rea?

The largest religious group among Reas was Presbyterian, at 45.5%. The remainder were mostly Roman Catholic (23.7%), Anglican (22.8%), Methodist (2.5%) and Plymouth Brethren (1.9%).

Visitor Notes

Review type for post source and surnames source type not found
Added by
Picture of Pete F
Pete F
IrishHistory.com is passionate about helping people discover and connect with the rich stories of their local communities.
Please use the form below to submit any photos you may have of Rea. We're happy to take any suggested edits you may have too. Please be advised it will take us some time to get to these submissions. Thank you.
Name
Email
Message
Upload images/documents
Maximum file size: 100 MB
If you'd like to add an image or a PDF please do it here.

Rea statistics (1911)

Number: 2,233
Rank: 389
Average Age: 29

Reain the USA (2020)

Number: 14,490
Rank: 2,437

Note: If there were less than 100 in the USA census it will show as zero. 

Ref: rea

Places

Also see...

Reavy
51 people in 1911

Advertisement