Eddward
Guardian of prosperity, derived from Old English elements.
Name Census estimates that about 11 living Americans carry the first name Eddward. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Eddward today is around 63 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Eddward births was 1963 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Eddward. 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 Eddward. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
11
~ 1 in 31,159,485 Americans
Peak year
1963
7 babies that year
Average age
63
years old
1963 SSA rank
#3,417
Tracked since 1956
Popularity
Eddward: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Eddward from the 1950s through to the 1960s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 7 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
Eddward 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 Eddward 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 Eddward
The name Eddward is of Old English origin, derived from the elements "ead" meaning "rich, blessed" and "weard" meaning "guard" or "protector." This combination suggests the meaning "rich or blessed guardian." The name can be traced back to the Anglo-Saxon period, which spanned from the 5th to the 11th centuries in Britain.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Eddward can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, a detailed survey of landholdings and resources in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. This historical document mentions an individual named Eddward, indicating the name's usage during the Norman period in England.
In the 12th century, an English nobleman named Eddward the Black Prince played a significant role in the Hundred Years' War between England and France. Born in 1330, he was the eldest son of King Edward III and was renowned for his military prowess and leadership on the battlefield.
Another notable figure with the name Eddward was Eddward Trelawny, an English adventurer and writer who lived from 1792 to 1881. He was a close friend of the Romantic poets Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley, and his memoirs provide valuable insights into their lives and the literary circle of the time.
In the 16th century, Eddward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, was a prominent figure in English history. Born in 1506, he served as Lord Protector during the minority of King Edward VI and played a significant role in the English Reformation.
The name Eddward also appears in religious texts, such as the King James Bible, where it is mentioned in the Book of Genesis as the name of one of the descendants of Shem.
Throughout its history, the name Eddward has undergone various spelling variations, including Edouard, Eduard, and Edward, reflecting the linguistic and cultural influences of different regions and time periods.
People
Eddward + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Eddward as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Eddward: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Eddward?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 11 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Eddward 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 31,159,485 US residents.
Is Eddward a common name?
We classify Eddward as "Very Rare". It ranks above 30.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 13 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Eddward most popular?
The single biggest year for Eddward was 1963, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Eddward is about 63 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 Eddward in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Eddward a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Eddward 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 Eddward still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Eddward 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 Eddward 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 are named Eddward?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people share the name Eddward at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.