Danford
Valley deer in Old English.
Name Census estimates that about 194 living Americans carry the first name Danford. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Danford today is around 72 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Danford births was 1948 (19 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Danford. 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 Danford is about 72 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Danfords were born before 1964.
People living today
194
~ 1 in 1,766,775 Americans
Peak year
1948
19 babies that year
Average age
72
years old
1987 SSA rank
#7,181
Tracked since 1918
Popularity
Danford: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Danford from the 1910s through to the 1980s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1940s, with 98 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1940s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Danford 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 Danford 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 Danford
The name Danford has its roots in the Old English language, originating in the region of England during the Anglo-Saxon period, which lasted from the 5th to the 11th century AD. The name is believed to be a combination of two Old English words, "denn" meaning "a valley" or "a wooded pasture," and "ford," referring to a shallow crossing point over a river or stream.
This name was likely first given to someone who lived near a ford or crossing point in a valley or wooded area. The earliest recorded instances of the name date back to the late 11th century, shortly after the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name Danford was Sir William Danford, a knight who fought alongside King Richard I during the Third Crusade in the late 12th century. Another notable figure was John Danford, a wealthy landowner and merchant from Bristol, England, who lived in the 14th century.
In the 15th century, there was a prominent English family surnamed Danford, hailing from the county of Wiltshire. One member of this family, Thomas Danford (c. 1420-1490), was a renowned scholar and clergyman who served as the Dean of St. Paul's Cathedral in London.
During the 16th century, the name Danford appeared in several historical records, including those of Sir Robert Danford (c. 1510-1578), a member of the English gentry and a supporter of Queen Elizabeth I.
In the 17th century, the name Danford was associated with the English Civil War, with both Royalist and Parliamentarian soldiers bearing this name, such as Captain Edward Danford (c. 1625-1680), who fought for the Parliamentarian forces under Oliver Cromwell.
People
Danford + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Danford as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with D
Other first names starting with D with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Danford: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Danford?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 194 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Danford 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 1,766,775 US residents.
Is Danford a common name?
We classify Danford as "Very Rare". It ranks above 73.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 374 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Danford most popular?
The single biggest year for Danford was 1948, when 19 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Danford is about 72 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Danford a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Danford 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.
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.