Reinhold
Masculine · “counsel”
Reinhold is the German form of a name English has as Reynold and Scotland has as Ronald, and its most widely quoted bearer wrote something almost everybody knows and could not later remember writing. The Serenity Prayer is his, composed for a service in the nineteen thirties, and he was genuinely uncertain about it afterwards.
How old is the name Reinhold?
Reinhold first appears in US birth records in 1882 — 143 years ago. The typical Reinhold alive today was born around 1920, making them about 105 years old. About 200 people named Reinhold are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Reinhold most popular?
Reinhold peaked in 1882, reaching #611 nationally. See the whole 1882 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From A Germanic compound of counsel and rule to Reinhold
The story of Reinhold
Reinhold Niebuhr was a theologian and a political writer whose books were read well outside the church, and the prayer asking for serenity to accept what cannot be changed, courage to change what can, and wisdom to know the difference is his. He wrote it for a sermon in a small chapel and did not think much of it. When it began circulating in the nineteen forties, attached to recovery movements and printed on cards by the million, he was asked whether it was his and gave answers that varied: he thought it probably was, he could not swear he had not read it somewhere. Scholars have since found no earlier version. It is one of the most quoted texts of the century and its author was not sure he had produced it.
Meaning
counsel, rule
Two Germanic elements, one meaning advice or counsel and one meaning to rule or hold power, and the reading is settled. The German spelling keeps an h that the English forms dropped and preserves the second element more clearly than they do. The same compound produces Reynold, Ronald, Rinaldo and Reinaldo across Europe.
How the name formed
- A Germanic compound of counsel and rule
- Reinhold in German, Reynold in English, Ronald in Scotland
- Carried to America by German families
- Rare on the register since the early twentieth century
Related forms: Reinhold · Reinhold · Reynold
Pronouncing Reinhold
RINE-hold
Two syllables, stress on the first, with the ei said as a long i, which is the German rule and the opposite of what English speakers expect. English speakers meeting it cold often say RAIN-hold, which is a reasonable guess and not the sound.
Nicknames for Reinhold
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
- 1882
- Most boys named
- 191772 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #611reached in 1882
- Change vs 1980
- +40.0%7 in 1988, from 5
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.
Reinhold in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Reinhold in German — same name
- Reinhold in Swedish — same name
- Reynold in English — related form
Reinholds among us
people named Reinhold 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
Reinhold 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
- It is a genuine German name with a documented meaning and a long record.
- It carries a bearer whose most famous work is known to almost everybody.
- The compound is transparent and can be explained in a sentence.
- The ei is said as a long i, which English speakers will get wrong every time.
- It reads as strongly German, which is a feature for some families and not others.
- It is very firmly of an earlier generation in American records.
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Reinhold
Masculine
Frequently asked
- How many Reinholds are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 200 people named Reinhold are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Reinhold in 2025?
- Reinhold is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 boy names.
- Will my child share the name Reinhold with classmates?
- Reinhold will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More R names
The most-given names starting with R, all years combined.
Robert#92 · Richard#234 · Ronald#637 · Ryan#99 · Raymond#394 · Roger#832 · Ralph#1046 · Roy#525
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Reinhold? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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