Renatus

a first name of Latin origin which means "born again" (natus = born). In countries of Italian, Portuguese and Spanish languages it exists in a masculine and feminine form i.e., Renato and Renata. In the French language they have been translated to René and Renée. The feminine form Renate is also common in Dutch and German language-speaking countries. Renata is a common female name in Poland, Czech Republic, Croatia, Lithuania and Slovakia. In Russia the names Renat (or "Rinat") and Renata are widespead among Tatar polulation. In some Spanish speaking countries, the name has taken on a different meaning: as a contraction for Rey (king) and Nato (birth), it has come to mean "born a king." The name has a spiritual, not literal meaning, i.e., to be born again with baptism, i.e, from water and the Holy Spirit). It was extensively adopted by early Christians in Ancient Rome, due to the importance of baptism. The onomastic is San Renato, a martyr, Bishop of Sorrento in the 5th century, which is celebrated on December 12. In Persian Mithraism, which spread widely in the West as a religion of the soldiers and officials under the Roman Empire, persons initiated into its mysteries were designated renatus (with the meaning of regenerated).