Riehl
A German surname most likely from a short-form personal name, especially linked to names like Riedel or Riehl as a nickname or family-name form.
The #8,551 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 80,152 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The name is generally treated as a German surname built from an old short form beginning with Riel- or Rihl-, rather than from an occupation or place-name. One historical source connects it with a descriptive root meaning “hairy” or “rough,” but that explanation is not secure and may reflect older speculative surname lore. Another source treats Riehl as a family-name form related to broader southern German short-name patterns, which is the safer reading.
History
Riehl is found chiefly in German-speaking areas, especially in southern Germany. It also appears in immigrant records in the United States, where it is usually preserved in this spelling. Because the name has several similar-looking German surname forms, older authors sometimes gave different explanations for it.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The surname is common enough to have produced multiple spellings in older records, a normal feature of German names before spelling was standardized.
From the historical record
“beispielsweise die Illzacher im Elsaß „ Mondfänger ", die zwischen Hl und Rhein Wohnenden „Rheinschnaken", die Schlesier „Eselsfresser'* — in Pommern die Wolliner „Stmtköppe*' und die Kamminer „Flunnerköppe" (nicht „Plunderköppe", wie Riehl angibt), wegen der vielen dort gefangenen Stinte und Flundern. 2) Den…”
— Die deutschen Familiennamen