Buryl
Of Old English origin, meaning "wooded meadow" or "fortified place".
Name Census estimates that about 29 living Americans carry the first name Buryl. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Buryl today is around 84 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Buryl births was 1932 (9 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Buryl. 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 Buryl is about 84 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Buryls were born before 1952.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Buryl. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
29
~ 1 in 11,819,115 Americans
Peak year
1932
9 babies that year
Average age
84
years old
1955 SSA rank
#3,947
Tracked since 1913
Popularity
Buryl: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Buryl from the 1910s through to the 1950s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1930s, with 55 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1930s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Buryl 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 Buryl during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Buryl
The name Buryl is an Old English name that dates back to the 5th century. It is derived from the Proto-Germanic word "burg", which means "fortress" or "stronghold". The name was popular among the Anglo-Saxons who settled in Britain during the 5th and 6th centuries.
Buryl is first referenced in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, a collection of annals that recorded the history of the Anglo-Saxons from the late 9th century until the 12th century. The name appears in several entries, indicating that it was a common name among the ruling class of the time.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Buryl was Buryl of Mercia, who was a nobleman and military leader in the Kingdom of Mercia during the 7th century. He is mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle for his role in the Battle of Deorham, where he led the Mercian forces to victory against the Britons in 577 AD.
Another notable figure was Buryl the Scribe, who lived in the 9th century and was a monk at the monastery of Lindisfarne. He is known for his work in transcribing and preserving important religious texts and historical documents.
In the 11th century, Buryl of Normandy was a Norman knight who accompanied William the Conqueror during the Norman conquest of England in 1066. He fought in the Battle of Hastings and was later granted lands in England for his service.
During the Middle Ages, the name Buryl was also popular among the nobility and clergy in various parts of Europe. One example is Buryl of Burgundy, who was a French nobleman and crusader who participated in the Third Crusade in the late 12th century.
Buryl of Gloucester was an English cleric who lived in the 13th century and served as the Bishop of Hereford from 1234 to 1263. He was known for his involvement in the political affairs of the time and his advocacy for the rights of the Church.
While the name Buryl was widely used throughout the Middle Ages, its popularity began to decline in the later centuries. However, it has remained a part of the historical record, with several individuals bearing the name in various parts of the world.
People
Buryl + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Buryl 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
Buryl: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Buryl?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 29 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Buryl 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 11,819,115 US residents.
Is Buryl a common name?
We classify Buryl as "Very Rare". It ranks above 46% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 138 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Buryl most popular?
The single biggest year for Buryl was 1932, when 9 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Buryl is about 84 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 Buryl in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Buryl a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Buryl 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 Buryl still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Buryl 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 Buryl 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 Buryl?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.