Rene History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
France

Etymology of Rene

What does the name Rene mean?

The prestigious French surname Rene is a proud sign of a rich and dynamic ancestry. Many of the most common French surnames are derived from personal names of Germanic origin. They derive from the language of the Visigoths, who controlled France between the mid-5th and early 8th centuries. The French Rene surname comes from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements "ragin," meaning "counsel," and "wald," meaning "rule."

Early Origins of the Rene family

The surname Rene was first found in Lorraine where they held a family seat.

They also branched to Brittany where they held a family seat at Beauregard, and to Beauvais. The family branched to Champagne and held a family seat at Landes. In Provence they were the Marquis de Aleine. Bernard Renau d'Elissagaray (1652-1719), invented a flat-bottomed boat. He was an engineer of the French Navy. After the French Revolution they were made Barons of the Empire.

Guillaume Renaud, born in 1643, son of Guillaume and Suzanne, travelled from France to Canada in the 17th century. After arriving in Quebec he married Marie Delamarre, born in 1650, daughter of David and Anne, on 27th November 1668. They remained together in Quebec until Marie's death on 23rd December 1708. Guillaume passed away on 6th January 1709. 1

Early History of the Rene family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Rene research. Another 30 words (2 lines of text) covering the years 1527, 1568, 1581, 1591, 1606, 1624, 1662 and 1701 are included under the topic Early Rene History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Rene Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Renault, Renauld, Renaut, Renau, De Renault, de Renault, De Renaud, de Renauld, Renaud, Des Renaud, des Renaud and many more.

Early Notables of the Rene family

Notable in the family name was Renaud de Beaune (1527-1606) of Tours, a French Catholic ecclesiastic, who was made Bishop of Mende in 1568, Archbishop of Bourges in 1581, and was made...
Another 32 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Rene Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Rene World Ranking

In the United States, the name Rene is the 12,967^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2 However, in Quebec, Canada, the name Rene is ranked the 776^th most popular surname. 3 And in France, the name Rene is the 2,138^th popular surname with an estimated 2,967 people with that name. 4

Rene migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Rene Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Robert Rene, who landed in Virginia in 1653 5
William Rene, who arrived in Virginia in 1664 5

Contemporary Notables of the name Rene (post 1700) +

Wendy Rene (1947-2014), stage name of Mary Frierson, American soul singer and songwriter
Jean Gaspard Pascal René, French Brigadier General during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars from 1789 to 1815 6
France-Albert René (b. 1935), French socialist President of Seychelles from 1977 to 2004
Ronald Rene Lagueux (1931-2023), American jurist, Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island (2001-2023) 7
Jean Rene Potvin (1949-2022), Canadian professional NHL ice hockey defenceman from Ottawa, Ontario who played for the Los Angeles Kings, Philadelphia Flyers, New York Islanders, Cleveland Barons, and Minnesota North Stars between 1970 and 1981
Jennifer Rene Psaki (b. 1978), American political advisor, White House Communications Director (2015-2017), 34th White House Press Secretary (2021-)
Lynn Rene Anderson (1947-2015), American multi-award-winning country music singer, perhaps best known for her mega hit "(I Never Promised You a) Rose Garden"
Alana Rene Blanchard (b. 1990), American professional surfer and model
Brayan Rene Villarreal (b. 1987), Venezuelan Major League Baseball pitcher for the Detroit Tigers
Adrían Rene Granados (b. 1989), Mexican American professional boxer

Sources +

Olivier, Reginald L. Your Ancient Canadian Family Ties. Logan: The Everton Publishers, Inc., P.O. Box 368, 1972. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"The first 1,000 family names by rank, Quebec (in French only)" Institut de la statistique du Quebec, https://statistique.quebec.ca/en/document/family-names-in-quebec/tableau/the-first-1000-family-names-by-rank-quebec
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Generals Who Served in the French Army during the Period 1789-1815. (Retrieved 2015, August 27) Jean RenÃ©. Retrieved from http://www.napoleon-series.org/research/c_frenchgenerals.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, February 1) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html