Coleridge
A masculine name of English origin meaning "coal-ridge" or "charcoal hill".
Name Census estimates that about 10 living Americans carry the first name Coleridge. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Coleridge today is around 47 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Coleridge births was 1950 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Coleridge. 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 Coleridge. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
10
~ 1 in 34,275,434 Americans
Peak year
1950
7 babies that year
Average age
47
years old
2005 SSA rank
#11,764
Tracked since 1924
Popularity
Coleridge: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Coleridge from the 1920s through to the 2000s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 7 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1950s peak, Coleridge remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Coleridge 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 Coleridge 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 Coleridge
Coleridge is an English given name derived from the Old English words "col" meaning coal or charcoal, and "ridge" meaning a ridge or hill. It is believed to have originated as a surname referring to someone who lived near a coal ridge or a charcoal-burning area.
The name Coleridge has been recorded in various forms throughout English history, including Colridge, Colerige, and Colredge. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name dates back to the 13th century in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire, where a person named William de Colridge was mentioned.
In the 16th century, the poet and playwright Ben Jonson included a character named Coleridge in his play "The Devil is an Ass," which was first performed in 1616. This early literary reference suggests that the name was in use during that period.
One of the most famous individuals with the name Coleridge was Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834), an English poet, literary critic, and philosopher who, along with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake Poets. His works include "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" and the philosophical treatise "Biographia Literaria."
Another notable Coleridge was Hartley Coleridge (1796-1849), the eldest son of Samuel Taylor Coleridge. He was a writer and essayist who published several volumes of poetry and prose works.
In the 20th century, the name Coleridge was borne by Coleridge Goode (1915-2015), a British bass-baritone singer and actor. He performed in numerous operas and had a successful career on stage and screen.
Coleridge Samuel Dobree (1928-2006) was a British academic and author who specialized in the study of ancient Greek literature and culture. He held positions at various universities, including the University of Cambridge and the University of Bristol.
Coleridge Kenner (1884-1952) was an American actor and director who appeared in numerous films during the early 20th century. He is best known for his work in silent films and his collaborations with directors such as D.W. Griffith.
People
Coleridge + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Coleridge as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Coleridge: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Coleridge?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 10 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Coleridge 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 34,275,434 US residents.
Is Coleridge a common name?
We classify Coleridge as "Very Rare". It ranks above 28.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 17 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Coleridge most popular?
The single biggest year for Coleridge was 1950, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Coleridge is about 47 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 Coleridge in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Coleridge a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Coleridge 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 Coleridge still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Coleridge 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 Coleridge 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 have the name Coleridge?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.