Alwood
A masculine name of Old English origin meaning "from the old wood".
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Alwood. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Alwood today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Alwood births was 1924 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Alwood. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Alwood. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1924
6 babies that year
Average age
-
1924 SSA rank
#3,886
Tracked since 1921
Popularity
Alwood: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Alwood by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Alwood during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s | 11 | 0 | 11 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Alwood
The given name Alwood has its origins in the Old English language, which was spoken in parts of what is now England and southern Scotland during the early medieval period, roughly from the 5th to the 11th centuries. The name is believed to be derived from the Old English words "ald" and "wudu," which translate to "old" and "wood," respectively. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near an ancient forest or a dwelling located within a wooded area.
Despite its Old English roots, the name Alwood does not appear to have been widely documented or recorded in historical texts or ancient manuscripts from that era. The earliest known use of the name can be traced back to the late 12th century, when it was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire, a collection of financial records from the English county of Gloucestershire.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Alwood was a man named Alwood de Kenilworth, who lived in the 13th century and was a landowner in the town of Kenilworth, Warwickshire. Another notable figure from the same period was Alwood de Arundel, a member of the influential Arundel family from Sussex, England.
In the 14th century, there was a prominent clergyman named Alwood Brome, who served as the Archdeacon of Worcester from 1331 to 1349. He played a significant role in the administration of the Diocese of Worcester during his tenure.
Moving forward to the 15th century, one can find references to Alwood Whittingham, a merchant and alderman from the city of Norwich, who was actively involved in local affairs and served as the city's mayor in 1457.
Another individual of note was Sir Alwood Leke, a knight who lived during the late 15th and early 16th centuries. He was a member of the English gentry and held lands in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.
While the name Alwood may have been relatively uncommon throughout history, it has managed to endure and survive to the present day, albeit in a more limited capacity. Its Old English origins and connections to the natural world, particularly forests and woodlands, make it a unique and intriguing name with a rich historical background.
People
Alwood + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Alwood as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Alwood: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Alwood?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Alwood going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about - US residents.
Is Alwood a common name?
We classify Alwood as "Very Rare". It ranks above 2.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 11 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Alwood most popular?
The single biggest year for Alwood was 1924, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Alwood is about 0 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Alwood in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Alwood a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Alwood in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Alwood still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Alwood in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Alwood can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How common is the name Alwood?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.