An English surname, Rich, comes from the Old French term of ‘riche’ and ‘reich‘, a region in France. In Old English the ‘riche’ term referred to a wealthy person. It also relates to the surname and given name of Richard. Variations in spelling for Rich include Richings, Riche, Richins and Riching. In England the Rich families started in the Hampshire region. They spread out to Middlesex, Essex, Kent, Sussex, the city of London, Devon, Somerset, Cornwall and north to Yorkshire and Lanarkshire. In Scotland the main concentration of those with the Rich surname is Lanarkshire. Within the United States the Rich families centered in New York, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Maine, Pennsylvania, Michigan, New Jersey, Texas, Illinois and California. Famous: Herb Rich (professional football player), John Rich (musician), Martin Rich (music composer from Germany), Robert E. Rich, Sr. (pioneer in the processing of food and founded Rich Products Corp.), Richie Rich (popular English disc jockey), Richard Rich (film director) and Irene Rich (actress).