Reina

About Reina

Reina means “queen” in Spanish, where it combines a royal meaning with a compact, two-syllable form. The same spelling also occurs independently in Yiddish and Japanese. Those traditions give Reina several histories: its meaning can be connected to purity, or depend on the Japanese characters chosen for it.

Spanish meaning and relatives

Spanish reina comes from Latin regina, “queen.” Regina keeps the older Latin shape, while French Reine belongs to the same family. Reyna is another familiar spelling, preserving the y found in older Spanish. The Spanish name may also be used in reference to Mary as Queen of Heaven.

In Spanish, Reina is pronounced RAY-nah, with the stress on the first syllable and the ei spoken together. Its opening r is a Spanish r rather than the English sound. The ending gives the name a different rhythm from the three-syllable Regina, even though their meanings are closely related.

Other naming traditions

Yiddish Reina comes from rein, meaning “clean” or “pure,” and has also been written Rayna. This is a separate origin from the Spanish word for queen. The coincidence helps explain why closely similar forms can carry different meanings within different families.

Japanese Reina likewise has its own history. One possible spelling, 怜奈, combines rei, “wise,” with a character used for the sound na. Other combinations of kanji produce the same spoken name, so there is no single Japanese translation. Japanese pronunciation has a long opening vowel, approximately reh-na, /ɾeːna/.

Cultural connections

Japanese voice actor Reina Ueda is a contemporary bearer. Her roles include Kanao Tsuyuri in Demon Slayer and Mayu Nekoyashiki, also known as Cure Lillian, in Wonderful Precure. These performances bring the name to international audiences through Japanese animation. Her given name is written 麗奈, illustrating that the same Reina sound can appear with characters different from 怜奈.

Spanish readers may recognize Reina from the Reina-Valera Bible. Here Reina is part of a translator's name: Casiodoro de Reina produced the translation published in 1569, and Cipriano de Valera revised it in 1602. The title joins their names. This is a surname connection rather than an example of a woman named Reina, but it gives the spelling a longstanding place in Spanish religious and publishing history.

American popularity

Reina has become more familiar in recent American naming. In 2015, 285 girls received the exact spelling and it ranked #954. Its highest annual total came in 2024, with 551 girls and a rank of #553. In 2025 it remained near that level at #582, used for 510 girls.

Reyna, Rayna, and Raina are counted separately in American statistics. Reina's figures describe this particular spelling across all the naming traditions represented by it. They show a name used by several hundred families a year, with substantially greater visibility than it had a decade earlier.

How popular is Reina?

In 2025, Reina ranked #582 among girls in the United States, with 510 recorded uses. The U.S. birth records first list this spelling for girls in 1896; its largest annual count was 551 in 2024. Rankings count each spelling separately. They describe national use, so local familiarity can differ. The popularity chart shows whether the name has remained common, returned after a quieter period, or risen recently.