# Rene (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/rene/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | boys and girls |
| Origin | French |
| Meaning | not recorded |
| Pronunciation | /rəˈneɪ/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |
| US babies named this | 72,779 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 50,940 / 21,839 (30% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 564, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

Borrowed from French René.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 29 | 4,890 |
| 2012 | 14 | 8,539 |
| 2013 | 23 | 5,794 |
| 2014 | 21 | 6,166 |
| 2015 | 19 | 6,673 |
| 2016 | 20 | 6,367 |
| 2017 | 16 | 7,366 |
| 2018 | 18 | 6,734 |
| 2019 | 13 | 8,514 |
| 2020 | 20 | 6,036 |
| 2021 | 15 | 7,564 |
| 2022 | 15 | 7,569 |
| 2023 | 20 | 6,117 |
| 2024 | 18 | 6,596 |
| 2025 | 13 | 8,244 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 363 | 649 |
| 2012 | 315 | 736 |
| 2013 | 291 | 772 |
| 2014 | 287 | 804 |
| 2015 | 277 | 820 |
| 2016 | 246 | 889 |
| 2017 | 260 | 850 |
| 2018 | 226 | 932 |
| 2019 | 230 | 940 |
| 2020 | 217 | 985 |
| 2021 | 231 | 967 |
| 2022 | 235 | 965 |
| 2023 | 201 | 1,078 |
| 2024 | 227 | 991 |
| 2025 | 197 | 1,092 |

### England and Wales, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 8 | 2,759 |
| 2010 | 7 | 3,156 |
| 2011 | 10 | 2,432 |
| 2012 | 5 | 4,171 |
| 2013 | 6 | 3,536 |
| 2014 | 9 | 2,659 |
| 2015 | 4 | 4,736 |
| 2016 | 8 | 2,966 |
| 2017 | 5 | 4,063 |
| 2018 | 8 | 2,901 |
| 2019 | 6 | 3,541 |
| 2020 | 5 | 3,899 |
| 2021 | 7 | 3,192 |
| 2022 | 3 | 5,669 |
| 2024 | 10 | 2,574 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 15 | 1,522 |
| 2012 | 13 | 1,756 |
| 2013 | 13 | 1,706 |
| 2014 | 16 | 1,486 |
| 2015 | 11 | 2,020 |
| 2016 | 12 | 1,903 |
| 2017 | 9 | 2,324 |
| 2018 | 11 | 1,991 |
| 2019 | 4 | 3,937 |
| 2020 | 8 | 2,404 |
| 2021 | 17 | 1,448 |
| 2022 | 8 | 2,529 |
| 2023 | 10 | 2,160 |
| 2024 | 10 | 2,263 |
| 2025 | 14 | 1,798 |

## People named Rene

- René Descartes, French philosopher, mathematician, and scientist (1596–1650)
- René Magritte, Belgian surrealist (1898–1967)
- François-Auguste-René de Chateaubriand, French writer, politician and historian (1768–1848)
- René Goscinny, French comic book artist and author (1926-1977)
- René Coty, 17th President of the French Republic (1882–1962)
- Rene Russo, American actress and model
- René Laennec, French physician, inventor of stethoscope (1781-1826)
- René Guénon, French metaphysician (1886-1951)
- René Higuita, Colombian footballer and manager (born 1966)
- René Préval, Ex-President of Haiti (1943-2017)
- René Clair, French filmmaker and writer (1898–1981)
- René Thom, French mathematician (1923–2002)

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.