| Pilar | Reina | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | pillar | queen |
| Origin | spanish | spanish |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | pee-LAR | RAY-nah |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1896 | 0 |
| Peak year | 2005 (137) | 2024 (551) |
| In 2025 | 47 | 0 |
| Trend | Declining | Rising |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Pilar | Reina |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 288 | 2,973 |
| 2010s | 627 | 3,232 |
| 2000s | 1,099 | 2,721 |
| 1990s | 760 | 2,002 |
| 1980s | 573 | 1,326 |
| 1970s | 626 | 790 |
| 1960s | 530 | 412 |
| 1950s | 246 | 232 |
| 1940s | 138 | 126 |
| 1930s | 165 | 122 |
| 1920s | 261 | 97 |
| 1910s | 154 | 31 |
| 1900s | 28 | 0 |
| 1890s | 10 | 16 |
A Marian devotional name from 'María del Pilar', Our Lady of the Pillar — commemorating the tradition that the Virgin appeared to Saint James standing on a pillar in Zaragoza. Pilar is simply the Spanish word 'pillar, column', from the Latin pila.
The Spanish word 'reina' means 'queen', descending from Latin 'regina'. Also spelled Reyna. (A separate Hebrew/Yiddish name Reina meaning 'pure' exists; the Spanish 'queen' sense is the relevant one here.)
Pilar is more popular than Reina today: about 47 US babies were given the name Pilar in 2025, compared with 0 named Reina.
Pilar means pillar (spanish origin), while Reina means queen (spanish origin).
In US records, Pilar first appears in 1896 and Reina in 0, so Reina has the longer recorded history.