The settlement was first mentioned as Ceel in a 1317 deed issued by King Charles I of Hungary, its name derived from Hungarian szil for Elm, later translated into German Rüster or Rusten. The present-day Hungarian name Ruszt is again a translation from the German term. Rust's citizens received market rights in 1470 and the privilege to mark the corks of their wine barrels with the famous 'R' brand in 1524. The affluent town finally gained independence at the 1681 diet at Sopron by the order of Emperor Leopold I, King of Hungary.
With the Burgenland region, Rust passed from Hungary to the Republic of Austria in 1921
