Reginald
Feminine
Reginald is given to boys far more often — 111,551 boys against 757 girls since 1880. See Reginald as a boy name
Reginald is a Norman name that has been in England since the Conquest, and it is recorded here for boys and girls alike. One man who carried it published, at the height of the witch panics, a book arguing that the whole thing was nonsense.
How old is the name Reginald?
Reginald first appears in US birth records in 1920 — 105 years ago. The typical Reginald alive today was born around 1969, making them about 56 years old. About 700 people named Reginald are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Reginald most popular?
Reginald peaked in 1968, reaching #2091 nationally. See the whole 1968 chart.
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Reginald
Reginald Scot published a book in the fifteen-eighties arguing that witchcraft accusations were a mixture of fraud, mental illness and misunderstanding, and that the supposed marvels were conjuring tricks. To prove the point he explained how the tricks were done, in detail, which makes the book the first substantial work on stage magic in English and the reason several standard illusions are documented at all. James the Sixth of Scotland wrote a book in reply defending the reality of witchcraft, and there is a persistent story that when he became king of England he had Scot's book burned. The tricks survived. So did the trials, for another century.
Meaningnot established
Not established
The Germanic elements are usually read as counsel and rule, and the reading is reasonably secure. What is less clear is how many separate Germanic and Norse names converged on this form in English.
Pronouncing Reginald
REJ-uh-nuld
Three syllables with the stress in front and a soft g. The French and Italian forms are quite different and are not interchangeable in speech.
Nicknames for Reginald
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1920
- Most girls named
- 196833 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2091reached in 1968
- Change vs 1990
- −37.5%5 in 1994, from 8
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Reginald in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Renaud in French — related form
- Rinaldo in Italian — related form
Reginalds among us
people named Reginald are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Reginald sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- Reggie is available as a short form and works for a child of either sex.
- The name has a documented history in English going back to the Norman period.
- It is read correctly at first sight by nearly everybody.
- In America it reads as belonging to an older generation, which is either the appeal or the obstacle.
- This spelling goes overwhelmingly to boys but is recorded for girls as well, so a form will occasionally guess wrong.
- Three syllables and a soft g mean it is occasionally spelled with a j by people writing from sound.
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Reginald
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Reginalds are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 700 people named Reginald are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Reginald in 2025?
- Reginald is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Reginald with classmates?
- Reginald will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More R names
The most-given names starting with R, all years combined.
Ruth#173 · Rebecca#349 · Rachel#250 · Rose#114 · Ruby#64 · Robin#704 · Rita#1285 · Rhonda#6116
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Reginald? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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