Barksdale
From an English surname, possibly meaning "valley of the birch trees".
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Barksdale. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Barksdale today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Barksdale births was 1918 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Barksdale. 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 Barksdale. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1918
5 babies that year
Average age
-
1918 SSA rank
#4,227
Tracked since 1918
Popularity
Barksdale: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Barksdale 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 Barksdale during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Barksdale
The given name Barksdale has its origins in the Old English language, traced back to the Anglo-Saxon era in Britain between the 5th and 11th centuries. It is derived from two Old English words: "bærce" meaning "bark" or "tree bark," and "dæl" meaning "valley" or "dell." Essentially, Barksdale signifies "a valley or dell covered in bark or trees."
This name likely originated as a descriptive term for a particular location, potentially a wooded valley or a settlement situated in a forested area. It may have initially referred to a specific place before evolving into a surname and later a given name.
While there are no known direct references to the name Barksdale in ancient texts or religious scriptures, it is consistent with the naming conventions of the Anglo-Saxon period, during which many place names and surnames were derived from geographic features or natural elements.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Barksdale was Sir John Barksdale, an English politician and member of Parliament who lived from 1595 to 1668. He was a prominent figure during the English Civil War and supported the Royalist cause.
Another notable figure was Clement Barksdale (1609-1687), an English clergyman and author who served as the Master of Bene't College, Cambridge, and wrote several religious works.
In the 18th century, William Barksdale (1721-1776) was a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy and participated in various battles during the Seven Years' War and the American Revolutionary War.
Moving to the 19th century, Ethelbert Barksdale (1824-1863) was a Confederate general during the American Civil War, known for his leadership at the Battle of Gettysburg, where he was mortally wounded.
In more recent history, Jim Barksdale (born 1943) is an American businessman and philanthropist, best known for his role as the former CEO of Netscape Communications Corporation, a pioneer in web browser technology.
People
Barksdale + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Barksdale as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with B
Other first names starting with B with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Barksdale: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Barksdale?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Barksdale 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 Barksdale a common name?
We classify Barksdale 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, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Barksdale most popular?
The single biggest year for Barksdale was 1918, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Barksdale 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 Barksdale in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Barksdale a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Barksdale 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 Barksdale still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Barksdale 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 Barksdale 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 many people are named Barksdale?
Find out how many people have the name Barksdale on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.