Durland
Of Anglo-Norman origin, meaning "door guard" or "guardian of the threshold".
Name Census estimates that about 1 living Americans carry the first name Durland. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Durland today is around 73 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Durland births was 1933 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Durland. 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 Durland is about 73 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Durlands were born before 1963.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Durland. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
1
~ 1 in 342,754,338 Americans
Peak year
1933
5 babies that year
Average age
73
years old
1933 SSA rank
#3,792
Tracked since 1933
Popularity
Durland: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Durland 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 Durland during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Durland
The name Durland has its origins in the Old English language, tracing back to the Anglo-Saxon era in Britain, around the 5th to 11th centuries. It is derived from the Old English words "dur" meaning "door" or "gate," and "land," referring to a piece of land or territory. The name likely originated as a descriptive term for someone who lived near a prominent gate or entrance to a settlement or fortified area.
While the name does not appear extensively in ancient texts or religious scriptures, it has been documented in various historical records from medieval England. One of the earliest known mentions of the name was in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landowners and properties commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This suggests that individuals bearing the name Durland were present among the Anglo-Saxon population at that time.
Throughout the Middle Ages and into the early modern period, the name Durland can be found in various legal documents, court records, and parish registers across England. Notable individuals who bore this name include Sir John Durland, a 14th-century landowner and knight from Gloucestershire, and William Durland, a 16th-century merchant and alderman in the city of Bristol.
In the 17th century, the name Durland made its way to the American colonies, carried by early English settlers. One of the earliest recorded instances was Robert Durland, who arrived in Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1635. His descendants went on to establish roots in various parts of New England and the eastern United States.
Another noteworthy figure was John Durland, an English soldier and explorer born in 1659. He served in King William's War and later joined the expedition of English sea captain William Dampier, becoming one of the first Englishmen to set foot in Australia in 1688.
In the 18th century, Durland remained a relatively uncommon name, but it continued to be represented by individuals such as Samuel Durland, a Revolutionary War soldier from Connecticut who fought in the Battle of Long Island in 1776.
As the centuries progressed, the name Durland maintained a presence, though it never achieved widespread popularity. Individuals bearing this name can be found scattered throughout historical records, contributing to various fields and endeavors across different regions and time periods.
People
Durland + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Durland 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
Durland: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Durland?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Durland 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 342,754,338 US residents.
Is Durland a common name?
We classify Durland as "Very Rare". It ranks above 3.8% 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 Durland most popular?
The single biggest year for Durland was 1933, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Durland is about 73 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 Durland in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Durland a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Durland 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 Durland still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Durland 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 Durland 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 Americans are named Durland?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.