Reynolds Name Meaning and Origin

The common last name Reynolds is a patronymic surname meaning "son of Reynold." The given name Reynold derives from the Germanic name Reginold composed of the elements ragin, meaning "counsel, advice" and wald, meaning "rule. "

Mac Raghnaill is the Irish version of the Reynolds surname, deriving from the Old Norse Rognvald a Latin given name composed of rogn for "regal" and vald, or "valor."

• Surname Origin: English, Irish
• Alternate Surname Spellings: REYNOLDSON, REYNOLD, MAC RAGHNAILL, M'RAINELL, M'RANALD, M'RANDAL, MACRANNALL, MACRANALD, MACRANDELL, MACCRINDLE, MACREYNOLD, MACREYNOLDS, RANDALSON, RONALDSON, RANNALS, RANDALS, RANDLES, RANOLDS

Famous People

• Ryan Reynolds: Canadian actor
• General John F. Reynolds: Union leader during the U.S. Civil War

Genealogy Resources for the Surname REYNOLDS:

• Most Common U.S. Surnames & Their Meanings
  Smith, Johnson, Williams, Jones, Brown... Are you one of the millions of Americans sporting one of these top 250 common last names from the 2000 census?
• The Reynolds Family Circle
  A non-profit organization open to any descendant of William Reynolds and Jane Milliken who were married on August 23, 1790, in Greene County, Tennessee.
• Reynolds Family Genealogy Forum
  Search this popular genealogy forum for the Reynolds surname to find others who might be researching your ancestors, or ask your own question about your Reynolds ancestors.
• FamilySearch
  Find records, queries, and lineage-linked family trees posted for the Reynolds surname and its variations.
• Reynolds Surname & Family Mailing Lists
  RootsWeb hosts several free mailing lists for researchers of the Reynolds surname.
• DistantCousin.com
  Free databases and genealogy links for the last name Reynolds.

References

• Cottle, Basil. Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Baltimore, MD: Penguin Books, 1967.
• Menk, Lars. A Dictionary of German Jewish Surnames. Avotaynu, 2005.
• Beider, Alexander. A Dictionary of Jewish Surnames from Galicia. Avotaynu, 2004.
• Hanks, Patrick and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1989.
• Hanks, Patrick. Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press, 2003.
• Smith, Elsdon C. American Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 1997.