Ruf Surname Meaning & Coat of Arms

Ruf is how some branches of the Ruff family came to write their name. At root, the name means “Ruff / Rudolf”. Ruf drops the “f” of Ruff, a shortening that clerks often made. The same family of names includes Ruffe.

In the 2010 US Census, 1,794 Americans gave Ruf as their last name (rank 16,130). It sits among the 25,000 most common last names in the country. In Spain, the INE population register lists 296 people with Ruf as their first surname and 248 as their second.

Looking for a Ruf coat of arms? Arms were granted to families, not to surnames, and our research shows which heraldic tradition fits yours. Get the complete Ruf report, with a museum-style coat of arms.