Bradfield
A masculine name of English origin meaning "broad open field".
Name Census estimates that about 3 living Americans carry the first name Bradfield. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Bradfield today is around 83 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Bradfield births was 1949 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Bradfield. 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
- • The typical person named Bradfield is about 83 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Bradfields were born before 1953.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Bradfield. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
3
~ 1 in 114,251,446 Americans
Peak year
1949
5 babies that year
Average age
83
years old
1949 SSA rank
#3,748
Tracked since 1949
Popularity
Bradfield: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Bradfield 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 Bradfield during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1940s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Bradfield
The name Bradfield is an English place name derived from the Old English words "brad" meaning broad and "feld" meaning field. It is likely that the name originated in an area with a particularly wide field or meadow.
The earliest recorded use of the name Bradfield dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it was listed as a settlement in Berkshire, England. Over the centuries, the name has been used as both a surname and a given name, though its use as a first name has been relatively uncommon.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name Bradfield was Robert de Bradfield, a 13th-century English landowner mentioned in the records of the Hundred Rolls of 1274-1275. Another notable figure was John Bradfield, a 16th-century English landowner and member of parliament who lived from around 1530 to 1590.
In the 17th century, there was Thomas Bradfield, an English clergyman and author who lived from 1600 to 1663. He is known for his work "The True State of the Church of England," which was published in 1660.
Moving into the 18th century, Bradfield Billings was a British naval officer who served during the American Revolutionary War. He was born in 1745 and died in 1808.
In more recent history, there was Bradfield Dyer, a British artist and illustrator who lived from 1864 to 1941. He was known for his illustrations in publications such as Punch and The Graphic.
While the name Bradfield has not been particularly common throughout history, it has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including landowners, clergymen, naval officers, and artists. The name's origins can be traced back to the Old English language and its meaning is closely tied to the physical landscape of England.
People
Bradfield + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Bradfield 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
Bradfield: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Bradfield?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 3 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Bradfield 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 1 in 114,251,446 US residents.
Is Bradfield a common name?
We classify Bradfield as "Very Rare". It ranks above 4.9% 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 Bradfield most popular?
The single biggest year for Bradfield was 1949, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Bradfield is about 83 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 Bradfield in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Bradfield a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Bradfield 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 Bradfield still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Bradfield 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 Bradfield 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 called Bradfield?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Bradfield at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.