René (''

born again Born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelicalism, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is distinctly and sepa ...

'' or ''reborn'' in

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

) is a common first name in French-speaking, Spanish-speaking, and German-speaking countries. It derives from the Latin name

Renatus Renatus is a first name of Latin origin which means "born again" (natus = born). In Italian, Portuguese and Spanish it exists in masculine and feminine forms: Renato and Renata. In French they have been translated to René and Renée. Renata i ...

. René is the masculine form of the name (

Renée Renée (without the accent in non-French speaking countries) is a French/Latin feminine given name. Renée is the female form of René, with the extra –e making it feminine according to French grammar. The name Renée is the French form of t ...

being the feminine form). In some non-Francophone countries, however, there exists the habit of giving the name René (sometimes spelled without an accent) to girls as well as boys. In addition, both forms are used as

surname In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community. Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...

s (family names). René as a first name given to boys in the United States reached its peaks in popularity in 1969 and 1983 when it ranked 256th. Since 1983 its popularity has steadily declined and it ranked 881st in 2016. René as a first name given to girls in the United States reached its peak in popularity in 1962 when it ranked 306th. The last year for which René was ranked in the top 1000 names given to girls in the United States was 1988.

Persons with the given name

* René, Duke of Anjou (1409–1480), titular king of Naples and Jerusalem *

René II, Duke of Lorraine René II (2 May 1451 – 10 December 1508) was Count of Vaudémont from 1470, Duke of Lorraine from 1473, and Duke of Bar from 1483 to 1508. He claimed the crown of the Kingdom of Naples and the County of Provence as the Duke of Calabria 1480& ...

(1451–1508), grandson of René of Anjou *

René I, Viscount of Rohan René I de Rohan, (1516–1552) 18th Viscount of Rohan, Viscount and Prince de Léon, and Marquis de Blain married Isabella of Navarre daughter of jure uxoris King John III of Navarre and Catherine of Navarre, Queen of Navarre. Life René I was ...

(1516–1552), warrior of the Italian War of 1551–1559 * René II, Viscount of Rohan (1550–1586), his huguenot son * René Angélil (1942–2016), Canadian music producer and agent *

Rene Aranda Rene Michelle Aranda, sometimes credited as Ren Aranda, (born December 6, 1990) is an American singer and actress, best known for ''Papa'' and ''Expelled''. She has won Best Actress (Silverstate Film Festival, 2018), Best Supporting Actress (LA ...

(born 1990), American actress * René Auberjonois (1940–2019), American actor * René Ballet (1928–2017), French journalist, novelist and essayist * René Barents (born 1951), Dutch judge and legal scholar * René Bernards (born 1953), Dutch oncologist * René Binder (born 1992), Austrian racing driver *Cardinal

René de Birague René de Birague (original name: Renato Birago; 2 February 1506 – 24 November 1583) was an Italian patrician who became a French cardinal and chancellor. Biography Born at Milan, he was the son of Giangiacomo Galeazzo Birago, ambassador o ...

(1505–1583) *

Rene Bitorajac Rene Bitorajac (; born 2 March 1972) is a Croatian actor. He has appeared in a number of Croatian and Bosnian films since the 1980s. Most notably, he starred in the 2001 Academy Award-winning Bosnian film ''No Man's Land''. He is also known for st ...

, Croatian actor * Rene Capo, Cuban-American judoka * René Chamussy (1936–2016), French-Lebanese Jesuit priest and academic administrator * René Coty, former president of France * René Descartes, French philosopher * Rene Farrait (born 1967), Puerto Rican singer, member of boy band Menudo * René Favaloro, Argentine cardiac surgeon * René Fonck, French aviator and most successful pilot in World War I * René Frégni (born 1947), French novelist * René de Froulay de Tessé (1648–1725), French marshal * Rene Gagnon, American World War II veteran, raised the American flag during the battle of Iwo Jima * René Goscinny (1926–1977), French comic book editor and writer * René Goupil (1608–1642), Canadian Catholic martyr and saint * René Guénon (1886–1951), French metaphysician and Sufi initiate *

René Janssen René A.J. Janssen (born Roermond NL, 1959) is a Dutch University Professor of the Moleculair Materials and Nanosystems group (M2N group) within the department of Chemical engineering and Chemistry at Eindhoven University of Technology. In 2013 Ja ...

(born 1959), Dutch nanotechnologist * Rene Kirby, American actor * René Kollo, German tenor * René Lamps (1915–2007), French politician * René Lépine, Canadian businessman and real estate developer * René Lévesque, Canadian journalist and politician, premier of Quebec * René Magritte, Belgian surrealist painter * René Marqués, Puerto Rican short story writer and playwright * René Mauriès (1921–1999), French journalist, reporter and writer *

Rene Mederos Felix René Mederos Pazos (20 November 1933 – 24 September 1996) was a prominent Cuban poster artist and graphic designer. Mederos, a self-taught artist from Sagua la Grande, began work in a Havana printshop in 1944 and was appointed Chief D ...

, Cuban poster artist and graphic designer *

Rene Medvešek Rene Medvešek (born 21 June 1963) is a Croatian film and theatre actor and director. He was born in Velika Gorica. He has appeared in more than 10 films and several television series. To the international audience he is probably best known for ...

, Croatian actor *

René Mornex René Mornex (12 August 1927 – 11 April 2022) was a French doctor and academic. He is honorary dean of the Faculty of Medicine of University of Lyon and pioneer of endocrinology, more particularly of neuroendocrinology Neuroendocrinology is ...

(1927–2022), French doctor and academic * René Muñoz (1938–2000), Cuban actor and scriptwriter *

René Pape René Pape (born 4 September 1964) is a German operatic bass. Pape has received two Grammys, was named "Vocalist of the Year" by Musical America in 2002, "Artist of the Year" by the German opera critics in 2006, and won an ECHO award (the German ...

, German opera singer *

Rene Plasencia Rene "Coach P" Plasencia (born January 8, 1973) is an American Republican politician who currently serves as a member of the Florida House of Representatives, representing the 50th District (including southeast Orange County and the northern por ...

, (born 1973) Florida House of Representatives member * René Juan Pérez Joglar (born 1978), known professionally as Residente, is a Puerto Rican rapper, writer and filmmaker * Rene Ranger (born 1986), New Zealand rugby player * René Rast (born 1986), German racing driver * René Reyes, American baseball player * René Robert, Canadian ice hockey player * René Prêtre, Swiss pediatric cardiovascular surgeon * René Reille (1835-1898), French soldier, industrialist, politician *

René Rougeau René Anthony Rougeau (born March 25, 1986) is an American professional basketball player for Hermine Nantes Basket of the LNB Pro B. He played college basketball for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas where he starred in his four seasons with th ...

(born 1986), American basketball player for Maccabi Haifa of the

Israeli Basketball Premier League Ligat HaAl ( he, ליגת העל, lit., ''Supreme League or Premier League''), or the Israeli Basketball Premier League, is the top-tier level league of professional sports, professional competition in Israeli sports club, club basketball, making ...

* René Rozet (1858–1939), French sculptor * Rene Russo, American actress * René Simard, Canadian singer * René Steinke, German actor *

René Thom René Frédéric Thom (; 2 September 1923 – 25 October 2002) was a French mathematician, who received the Fields Medal in 1958. He made his reputation as a topologist, moving on to aspects of what would be called singularity theory; he became w ...

, French mathematician *

René Toribio René Toribio (born 10 December 1912 in Lamentin, Guadeloupe; died 27 July 1990 in the same town) was a French politician and was a member of the French Senate representing Guadeloupe from 1959 to 1968. Biography Before WWII he was a teacher ...

(1912–1990), Guadeloupean politician * René Vydarený, Slovakian Ice Hockey Player * René Villa, Costa Rican singer The name was also given to the French Cafe owner and war hero René Artois in popular British TV series 'Allo 'Allo.

Persons with this surname

* Denise René (1919–2012), French art dealer * France-Albert René (1935–2019), second President of Seychelles * Lisa Rene (1978–1994), American murder victim * Mélanie René (born 1990), Swiss singer *

Wendy Rene Mary Frierson, later Mary Cross (1947 – December 16, 2014), better known by her stage name of Wendy Rene, was an American soul music, soul singer and songwriter. She recorded for Stax Records in the mid 1960s. Biography Mary Frierson was born ...

(1947–2014), American soul singer and songwriter

Variants in different languages

*Renát Hungarian, Slovak *Renat Catalan, Polish *Renato Italian, Portuguese, Spanish *Renátus Slovak *Renatus Latin *René Czech,

, German, Slovak, Spanish, Dutch, Danish *Röné Hungarian *Ренат Russian

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rene French masculine given names