Early brain injury is considered to be a primary reason for the poor prognosis of patients suffering from subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). Due to its pro-inflammatory activity, cold-inducible RNA-binding protein (CIRP) has been implicated in the ischemic brain insult, but its possible interplay with hypothermia in SAH treatment remains to be evaluated. One-hundred and thirty-eight Sprague-Dawley rats (300-350 g males) were randomly allocated into the following groups: sham-operated (Sham); SAH; and SAH + hypothermia (SAH + H), each comprised of 46 animals. After treatments, the brain tissues of the three groups were randomly collected after 12 h, 1 d, 3 d, and 7 d, and the expression levels of the CIRP and mitochondrial apoptosis pathway-related proteins Bax, Bcl-2, caspase-9, caspase-3, and cytochrome c measured using Western blotting and real-time PCR. Brain damage was assessed by TUNEL and Nissl staining, the electron microscopy of brain tissue slices as well as functional rotarod tests. Expression of CIRP, Bax, caspase-9, caspase-3, and cytochrome c as well as reduced motor function incidence were higher in the SAH group, particularly during the first 3 d after SAH induction. Hypothermia blunted these SAH responses and apoptosis, thereby indicating reduced inflammatory signaling and less brain cell injury in the early period after SAH. Hypothermia treatment was found to effectively protect the brain tissue from early SAH injury in a rat model and its further evaluation as a therapeutic modality in SAH patients requires further study.