Rainulf

Rainulf is a given name associated with Norman adventurers who played a role in the early Norman expansion in southern Italy during the 11th century. The most prominent figure bearing the name is Rainulf Drengot (often rendered Rainulf Drengott), a Norman mercenary leader who moved into Campania with his kin and fellow soldiers after 1010–1020.

In the early 1030s, Rainulf established control over Aversa and became its first count, founding the County of Aversa. This marked one of the first stable Norman polities in the Mezzogiorno and helped pave the way for broader Norman influence in southern Italy. Rainulf’s leadership solidified the Drengot family’s prominence in the region, and the county remained under their influence for generations. He is generally thought to have died in the mid‑1040s.

Beyond Rainulf Drengot, other individuals named Rainulf appear in later chronicles and genealogies connected to the Norman presence in southern Italy, though details about their lives and titles are less certain. The name itself is a Latinized form of Germanic roots, and in Italian sources it may appear as Rainulfo or Rainulfo Drengottus.

Rainulf’s historical significance lies chiefly in his role as founder of a Norman county in Campania, one of the early steps in the long Norman involvement in southern Italy that ultimately contributed to the formation of the Kingdom of Sicily in the 12th century.