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 [ 2 syll. ro-nal(d), ron-a-ld ] The boy name Ronald is pronounced as RAANahLD KEY. Ronald is used predominantly in the English and Scottish languages, and it is derived from Old Norse origins. The name is of the meaning well-advised ruler. Two-element name derived from the elements 'regin' meaning advice, decision, protection, the gods ; 'valdr' meaning to rule. Rögnvaldr (Old Norse) is an old form of Ronald. The name has the same Germanic roots as Reynold. It was popular in medieval lands with strong Scandinavian influence, especially in Scotland and northern England where it was also found as Ranald and Raghnall. The name was adopted by English speakers from the end of the 19th century, and it has since lost its Scottish flavor. The name Ronalda (English) is the female version of Ronald. Ronald has 17 variants that are used in both English and other languages. Variants of Ronald used in English include Ranald and Rey (used in Spanish as well). The short form Ron, and the pet forms Ronnie and Ronny are other English variants. Foreign variants of Ronald include Naldo (Spanish), Raghnall (Irish), Ragnvald (Scandinavian), Rainald (German and Spanish), Ranaldo (Spanish), Raynaldo (Spanish), Reinaldo (Spanish), Renaldo (Italian and Spanish), Reynaldo (Spanish), Rinhaldo (Portuguese), Ronaldo (Portuguese), and Ronand (Dutch). See also the related forms, Reynold (English) and Rhona (English and Scottish). Ronald is a classic favorite. Today it is still fairly popular as a baby name for boys, though to a lesser extent than it was before. The name's popularity rose from the 1900s up to the 1940s; before that, it was of occasional use only. At the peak of its usage in 1943, 2.010% of baby boys were given the name Ronald. Its ranking then was #9. The baby name has since markedly fallen in popularity. In 2008, its usage was 0.050% and its ranking #308, but it was nonetheless the most popular out of all boy names in its group. In 2008, Ronald was thrice as popular as the next most popular name, Ronnie (English and Spanish). Ronald has predominantly been a boy name, though in the past century it has also been used for girls. In 1949, Ronald as a boy name outnumbered its use as a girl name by 364 times. Baby names that sound like Ronald include Rainald (German and Spanish), Ranald (English), Reinald (German), Reinhold (German and Scandinavian), Reinold (Dutch and German), Reinwald (German), Renault (French), Reynold (English), Rumold (German), Ranaldo (Spanish), Raynaldo (Spanish), Reinaldo (Spanish), Renaldo (Italian and Spanish), Renauld (French), Reynaldo (Spanish), Rinaldo (Italian), Rinhaldo (Portuguese), Romuald (German), Ronaldo (Portuguese), and Romualdo (Spanish). A famous person named Ronald is Ronald Reagan, US President, born 6 February 1911 - 5 June 2004, Tampico, Illinois. KEY: Pronunciation for Ronald: R as in "read (R.IY.D)" ; AA as in "odd (AA.D)" ; N as in "knee (N.IY)" ; AH as in "hut (HH.AH.T)" ; L as in "lee (L.IY)" ; D as in "dee (D.IY)"   |
