How common is the surname Rainey?

23,291 people in the United States had the surname Rainey in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 13,256 Americans. It ranked 1,545th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Rainey?

Ma Rainey, American blues singer (1886–1939), followed by Wayne Rainey.

Where is the surname Rainey most common?

Wikidata records people named Rainey in the United States and Israel.

Is the surname Rainey getting more or less common?

More common. 22,397 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 23,291 in 2010, up 4.0%.

What are other spellings of Rainey?

Rainy, Raney, Ranney, Rannie, Rany and Raynie.

Is Rainey also a first name?

Yes. Rainey is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Rainey

An Irish patronymic surname, carried by 23,291 people in the United States.

2 syllables Soundex R500 Also a first name

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Rainey is more common than 99% of them.

Origin

Irish origin

Reduced Anglicized form of Irish Ó Raighne (“descendant of Raighne”), a Gaelicized form of the Old Norse personal name Rognvaldr.

Rainey is a patronymic surname: formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.

One of 880 Irish surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 23,291 people named Rainey in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 13,256 Americans. That is up 4.0% since 2000, when the Census counted 22,397.

#1,545

rank among US surnames

23,291

people in 2010

7.9

per 100,000 Americans

+4%

change since 2000 (was #1,462)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#1,536	Thao	23,404	13,192
#1,537	Connelly	23,398	13,195
#1,538	Driscoll	23,385	13,203
#1,539	Dubois	23,366	13,213
#1,540	Feldman	23,356	13,219
#1,541	Coker	23,348	13,224
#1,542	Dickey	23,320	13,240

Who is named Rainey

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

63% of people named Rainey identified as white (not Hispanic), 32% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.1% as two or more races.

White (not Hispanic) 63%
Black (not Hispanic) 32%
Two or more races 2.1%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.0%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.7%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.3%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Raineys

5 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Ma Rainey
American blues singer (1886–1939)
Wayne Rainey
American motorcycle racer, born 1960
Ford Rainey
American actor (1908–2005)
Anson Rainey
American historian (1930–2011)
Henry Thomas Rainey
American politician (1860-1934)

Notable Raineys come mostly from the United States (4) and Israel (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Variant spellings

Rainy
Raney
Ranney
Rannie
Rany
Raynie
Reaney
Reany
Rennie
Renny

Surnames that sound like Rainey

Rainey has the Soundex code R500, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code R500.

Other Irish surnames

All 880 Irish surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Rainey come from?: Reduced Anglicized form of Irish Ó Raighne (“descendant of Raighne”), a Gaelicized form of the Old Norse personal name Rognvaldr.
How common is the surname Rainey?: 23,291 people in the United States had the surname Rainey in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 13,256 Americans. It ranked 1,545th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Rainey?: In the 2010 Census, 63% of people named Rainey identified as white (not Hispanic), and 32% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Rainey?: Ma Rainey, American blues singer (1886–1939), followed by Wayne Rainey.
Where is the surname Rainey most common?: Wikidata records people named Rainey in the United States and Israel.
What type of surname is Rainey?: Rainey is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Rainey getting more or less common?: More common. 22,397 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 23,291 in 2010, up 4.0%.
What are other spellings of Rainey?: Rainy, Raney, Ranney, Rannie, Rany and Raynie.
Is Rainey also a first name?: Yes. Rainey is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.