Elfreda
Feminine name of Anglo-Saxon origin meaning "elf counsellor" or "elf strength".
Name Census estimates that about 196 living Americans carry the first name Elfreda. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Elfreda today is around 72 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Elfreda births was 1917 (40 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Elfreda. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Elfreda with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Elfreda is about 72 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Elfredas were born before 1964.
People living today
196
~ 1 in 1,748,747 Americans
Peak year
1917
40 babies that year
Average age
72
years old
1978 SSA rank
#7,854
Tracked since 1887
Census
Elfreda in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 465 people with the first name Elfreda, which placed it at #21,716 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#21,716
National first-name rank
People counted
465
465 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
61.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Elfreda
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Elfreda is Black at 61.5%. The next largest groups are White (29.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (3.0%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Elfreda described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Elfreda at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American61.5% · 286
- White29.7% · 138
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.0% · 14
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 12
- Two or more races1.9% · 9
- Hispanic or Latino1.3% · 6
Popularity
Elfreda: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Elfreda from the 1880s through to the 1970s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 222 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Elfreda 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 Elfreda during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Elfredas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. Pennsylvania, North Carolina, New York recorded the most babies named Elfreda, while New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 5 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Elfreda
The name Elfreda finds its origins in the Old English language, derived from the elements "ælf" meaning "elf" and "ræd" meaning "counsel" or "advice." It was a name commonly used during the Anglo-Saxon period in England, particularly between the 7th and 11th centuries.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Elfreda can be found in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, where it is mentioned as the name of a daughter of King Alfred the Great (849-899). Although little is known about her life, her name serves as an early example of its usage.
In the 10th century, there was an Elfreda who was the wife of King Edgar the Peaceful (943-975), the first monarch to be crowned King of England. Her influence and involvement in political affairs during her husband's reign have been documented in various historical records.
Another notable bearer of the name was Elfreda, Countess of Mercia (c. 888-920), a powerful noblewoman and landowner in the Kingdom of Mercia. She played a significant role in the politics of the time and was known for her patronage of religious institutions.
During the Middle Ages, the name Elfreda was also borne by several abbesses and nuns, reflecting its usage among the religious orders of the time. One such example is Elfreda of Romsey (c. 960-1002), who served as the abbess of the Romsey Abbey in Hampshire, England.
In the 16th century, there was Elfreda Clavering (c. 1520-1587), an English noblewoman and courtier who served as a Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Elizabeth I. She was known for her loyalty and service to the monarch during her reign.
While the name Elfreda was more prevalent in earlier centuries, it has remained in use throughout history, though with varying degrees of popularity. Its unique blend of Old English elements and connection to the Anglo-Saxon era have contributed to its enduring appeal and historical significance.
People
Elfreda + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Elfreda 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
Elfreda: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Elfreda?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 196 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Elfreda 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 1,748,747 US residents.
Is Elfreda a common name?
We classify Elfreda as "Very Rare". It ranks above 74% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 934 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Elfreda most popular?
The single biggest year for Elfreda was 1917, when 40 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Elfreda is about 72 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Elfreda in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 465 people with the name Elfreda, or 0.15 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #21,716 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Elfreda in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Elfreda?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Elfreda appears almost entirely female. Of the 472 people counted with this name, 100.0% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Elfreda?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Elfreda is Black at 61.5%. The next largest groups are White (29.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (3.0%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Elfreda most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Elfreda in the 2020 Census, accounting for 61.5% (286 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
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 Elfreda in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Elfreda a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Elfreda in the SSA data are female. 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 Elfreda still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Elfreda 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 Elfreda 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.
How many people share the name Elfreda?
You can see how many people share the name Elfreda on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.