Old High German origin
Source-reportedMeaning: “decision, advice, counsel + ruler”
From Old High German Raginald, from Proto-Germanic *Raginawaldaz; see there for cognates and further etymology. The replacement of earlier -old by -hold is secondary and probably due to association with the Middle High German holt (“friendly, loyal”). The first element, originally ragin-/regin-, may now be identified with rein (“pure”) through folk etymology. This name was popularised by various heroic figures of medieval legend, particularly from the Dietrich von Bern cycle, such as Reinhold von Montalban (The Four Sons of Aymon), Reinhold von Meilan (The Dietrich Saga), and Saint Reinhold von Köln.
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Read from more recent borrowed forms toward older source forms. This is a derivation account, not a dated timeline.
- Old High German
- Proto-Germanic
Only explicit language links are shown. The full passage may also discuss word roots, comparisons or uncertain proposals.
Proto-language forms marked with an asterisk in the source are reconstructions, rather than dated records of a person using the name.
Read the cited Wiktionary entrySources for this account (5)
- Wiktionary: ReinholdCC-BY-SA-4.0 · retrieved 2026-10-15
- German Wiktionary: ReinholdCC-BY-SA-4.0 · retrieved 2026-10-14
- Greek Wiktionary: ReinholdCC-BY-SA-4.0 · retrieved 2026-10-15
- Polish Wiktionary: ReinholdCC-BY-SA-4.0 · retrieved 2026-10-14
- Wikipedia (en): ReinholdCC-BY-SA-4.0 · retrieved 2026-10-15
