Explore the Family Name Rainer
The meaning of Rainer
1. English: variant of Raynor. 2. German: variant of Reiner. 3. German: topographic name, a variant of Rain 2. 4. French: variant of Rainier and, in North America, (also) an altered form of this or of one of its variants. 5. Americanized or Germanized form of Slovenian and Croatian Rajner or Slovenian Rajnar: from a personal name of German origin (see Reiner 1, compare 2 above). The surname in the form Rainer is also found in Slovenia. Compare also Rayner and Reiner 3.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Rainer in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname Rainer has seen a slight increase from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, the name ranked 9,598 in popularity with a count of 3,107 individuals bearing the name, accounting for about 1.15 people per 100,000. By 2010, the name had moved up the ranks to 9,255 with an increased count of 3,518, or about 1.19 people per 100,000. This represents a change of 3.57% and 13.23% respectively.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #9,598 | #9,255 | 3.57% |
| Count | 3,107 | 3,518 | 13.23% |
| Proportion per 100k | 1.15 | 1.19 | 3.48% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Rainer
The ethnic identity associated with the surname Rainer shows noticeable changes between 2000 and 2010 according to the Decennial U.S. Census data. The largest proportion of individuals with this surname identified as White, though this number slightly decreased from 73.45% in 2000 to 71.60% in 2010. Those identifying as Black remained almost constant at 22.59% in 2000 and 22.6% in 2010. The percentage of those with Asian/Pacific Islander ethnicity increased by 20%, while those identifying with two or more races saw the most significant jump of 78.62%. The percentage identifying as Hispanic also rose from 1.35% to 2.10%. However, those identifying as American Indian and Alaskan Native dropped by 19.72% over the decade.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 73.45% | 71.6% | -2.52% |
| Black | 22.59% | 22.6% | 0.04% |
| Two or More Races | 1.45% | 2.59% | 78.62% |
| Hispanic | 1.35% | 2.1% | 55.56% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.71% | 0.57% | -19.72% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.45% | 0.54% | 20% |
Rainer ancestry composition
23andMe computes an ancestry breakdown for each customer. People may have ancestry from just one population or they may have ancestry from several populations. The most commonly-observed ancestry found in people with the surname Rainer is British & Irish, which comprises 46.3% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (25.3%) and Ashkenazi Jewish (5.1%). Additional ancestries include Italian, Scandinavian, Eastern European, Nigerian, and Ghanaian, Liberian & Sierra Leonean.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| British & Irish | 46.3% |
| French & German | 25.3% |
| Ashkenazi Jewish | 5.1% |
| Other | 23.3% |
Possible origins of the surname Rainer
Your DNA provides clues about where your recent ancestors may have lived. Having many distant relatives in the same location suggests that you may all share common ancestry there. Locations with many distant relatives can also be places where people have migrated recently, such as large cities. If a large number of individuals who share your surname have distant relatives in a specific area, it could indicate a connection between your surname and that location, stemming from either recent ancestral ties or migration.
Based on 23andMe data, people with last name Rainer have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| West Midlands, United Kingdom | 65.40% |
| Glasgow City, United Kingdom | 65.40% |
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 65.40% |
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 64.10% |
| Tyne And Wear, United Kingdom | 64.10% |
What Rainer haplogroups can tell you
Haplogroups are genetic population groups that share a common ancestor on either your paternal or maternal line. These paternal and maternal haplogroups shed light on your genetic ancestry and help tell the story of your family.
The top paternal haplogroup of people with the surname Rainer is O-F2415, which is predominantly found among people with East Asian & Indigenous American ancestry. Haplogroup O-F2415 is descended from haplogroup O-M1359. Other common haplogroups include E-M183 and O-F2859, which are predominantly found among people with European and East Asian & Indigenous American ancestry.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Rainer surname are: H1, U2_3_4_7_8_9, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.
Paternal Haplogroup Origins O-M1359
Your paternal lineage may be linked to the Cham
One of the many populations harboring members of haplogroup O1b1a1a1a1 is the Cham ethnic group, a group of people who speak Austronesian languages in Mainland Southeast Asia. Austronesian languages make up a language family that is extremely large and widespread, comprising over 350 million people on islands such as Madagascar, Easter Island, and many others. However, Austronesian languages are less common on mainland Asia, with a notable exception being the Chamic language. Research suggests that ancestors of the Cham people migrated from Southeast Asian islands to the mainland around the year 500 BCE, and that early Cham populations quickly began mixing with indigenous southern Vietnamese populations. As a result, the Chamic language now has words that were borrowed from languages spoken by indigenous Vietnamese people. It is likely that an ancestral Kinh population was one of the populations that mixed with the Cham people shortly after their migration to mainland Asia.
Your maternal lineage may be linked to Marie Antoinette
Because it is so dominant in the general European population, haplogroup H also appears quite frequently in the continent's royal houses. Marie Antoinette, an Austrian Hapsburg who married into the French royal family, inherited the haplogroup from her maternal ancestors. So did Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, whose recorded genealogy traces his female line to Bavaria. Scientists also discovered that famed 16th century astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus traced his maternal lineages to haplogroup H.
What do people with the surname Rainer have in common?
Spoiler alert: it's complicated. People with the same last name are usually no more genetically similar than a randomly sampled group of people from the same population. That said, people with the same surname are more likely to have similar ancestries than randomly sampled individuals. The reason is the tendency of people with similar cultural or geographical backgrounds to preferentially mate with one another. That's why people who share a surname may be more likely to share traits and tendencies in common than people within the general population. Check out the percentages below to see the prevalences of tastes, habits, and traits of people with your surname compared with prevalences among 23andMe users.
Preferences
Chocolate Ice Cream
Prefers chocolate flavored ice cream over other flavors.
"Rainer" Surname 46.4%
23andMe Users 41.3%
Traits
Misophonia
When sounds made by others, like the sound of chewing or yawning, provoke strong emotional reactions in an individual.
"Rainer" Surname 38.1%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Vitamin Use
Takes vitamins on a regular basis.
"Rainer" Surname 35.3%
23andMe Users 45.5%
Wellness
Migraine
A severe headache characterized by intense pain, sensitivity to light and sound, and often accompanied by nausea and vomiting.
"Rainer" Surname 19.7%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Rainer?
The short answer is that, if there is an association between surname and health, it's usually more about your ancestry than your name. Individuals with a given surname are no more genetically similar than the general population but often have similar ancestries. The populations of people associated with those shared ancestries often have sets of genetic variations, also known as alleles, in common. Some of those alleles are associated with a greater likelihood of developing certain diseases.
Disease variant frequency by ancestry
Disease allele frequencies in populations associated with the surname Rainer are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition