Dearld
Derived from Old English elements meaning "dear" and "bold".
Name Census estimates that about 4 living Americans carry the first name Dearld. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Dearld today is around 82 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Dearld births was 1937 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Dearld. 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 Dearld is about 82 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Dearlds were born before 1954.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Dearld. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
4
~ 1 in 85,688,585 Americans
Peak year
1937
5 babies that year
Average age
82
years old
1943 SSA rank
#3,656
Tracked since 1937
Popularity
Dearld: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Dearld from the 1930s through to the 1940s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1940s, with 5 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Dearld 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 Dearld 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 Dearld
The name Dearld has its origins in the ancient Germanic languages, dating back to the 5th century AD. It is derived from the Old High German words "diur," meaning "precious" or "beloved," and "ald," meaning "old" or "venerable." This combination suggests that the name Dearld was initially bestowed upon individuals who were highly esteemed within their communities, perhaps for their wisdom, experience, or revered status.
In the early medieval period, the name Dearld was primarily found in regions inhabited by Germanic tribes, such as present-day Germany, Austria, and parts of Switzerland. As these tribes migrated and settled in various parts of Europe, the name spread to other areas, undergoing slight variations in spelling and pronunciation.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dearld can be found in the Carolingian chronicles, which documented the reigns of the Frankish kings during the 8th and 9th centuries. The chronicles mention a nobleman named Dearld who served as a trusted advisor to Charlemagne, the renowned Frankish king and Holy Roman Emperor.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name Dearld maintained a certain level of prominence, particularly among the nobility and aristocracy. In the 11th century, a Dearld von Hohenzollern was a prominent figure in the Holy Roman Empire, known for his military exploits and his role in the expansion of the Hohenzollern dynasty.
During the Renaissance period, the name Dearld experienced a resurgence in popularity, particularly in the artistic and intellectual circles of Italy. One notable bearer of the name was Dearld Boccaccio, a renowned Italian poet and scholar born in 1313, best known for his masterpiece, the Decameron.
In the 17th century, a Dearld van Rijn, a Dutch Golden Age painter, achieved considerable fame for his vivid and dramatic depictions of biblical and mythological scenes. His works, such as "The Night Watch" and "The Blinding of Samson," are celebrated as masterpieces of the Baroque era.
Another historical figure with the name Dearld was Dearld Galilei, an Italian astronomer, physicist, engineer, and philosopher who played a pivotal role in the scientific revolution of the 16th and 17th centuries. His groundbreaking discoveries and advocacy of the heliocentric model of the solar system earned him both acclaim and condemnation from the Catholic Church during his lifetime.
People
Dearld + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Dearld 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
Dearld: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Dearld?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 4 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Dearld 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 85,688,585 US residents.
Is Dearld a common name?
We classify Dearld as "Very Rare". It ranks above 6.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 10 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Dearld most popular?
The single biggest year for Dearld was 1937, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Dearld is about 82 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 Dearld in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Dearld a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Dearld 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 Dearld still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Dearld 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 Dearld 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 Dearld?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.