Last names linked to RUFUS:

Origin

Rufus : 1: English: variant of Ruff (see Rough) with post-medieval excrescent -(e)s. The spelling of the surname has been modified to look like the personal name Rufus which came into vernacular use in England in the 19th century. This personal name however may be the origin of the surname among African Americans (see 3 below).3: African (mainly Nigeria) and probably also African American: from the personal name Rufus borne by various minor early Christian saints. Originally it was a Latin nickname for someone with red hair (see 2 above).2: Slovak (mainly Rúfus): nickname for a red-haired man from Latin rufus ‘red(dish) red-haired’.

Ruffin : 1: English and French: from the Old French personal name Ruffin from Latin Rufinus a diminutive of Rufus ‘red’ borne by several early Christian saints including a 3rd-century martyr of Soissons and a 4th-century Church Father. Compare Ruffo.2: English: nickname from Middle English ruffine (Old French rufin) ‘reddish’ for someone with red hair or a ruddy complexion.3: English: possibly also a nickname from Middle English ruffin ‘fiend devil’.

Ruffino : Italian: from the personal name Ruf(f)ino from Latin Rufinus a development of Rufus (see Ruffo).

Ruffo : Italian (southern):: 1: from the personal name Ruffo from Latin Rufus originally a nickname for someone with red hair from a dialect form of the standard Latin word rubeus. The name Rufus was borne by various minor early Christian saints.2: from a personal name of ancient Germanic origin but uncertain form and meaning. The Calabrian noble family of this name is said to be of Norman origin.3: perhaps also from a short form of a personal name ending in ruffo such as Macaruffo and Peruffo.

Rufino : Spanish and Italian: from the personal name Rufino from Latin Rufinus from rufus ‘red’.

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Last name frequency

Geographic distribution of the 4,034 individuals with the name RUFUS: on Geneanet.

This last name in the family trees

See below the Geneanet members' family trees which contain the last name RUFUS: