English: variant of Ash; the name arose as the result of misdivision of Middle English atter ashe ‘at the ash tree’ (Old English æt þ?re æsce). Jewish: of uncertain origin; the Guggenheimers consider it to be a variant of Rasch 1. Americanized spelling of German and Jewish Rasch.
Source: Dictionary of American Family Names ©2013, Oxford University Press Ancestry -Jeffry J. Hester