Ellard
A masculine name of English origin meaning "prosperous army".
Name Census estimates that about 30 living Americans carry the first name Ellard. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Ellard today is around 80 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ellard births was 1918 (14 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ellard. 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 Ellard is about 80 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Ellards were born before 1956.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Ellard. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
30
~ 1 in 11,425,145 Americans
Peak year
1918
14 babies that year
Average age
80
years old
1959 SSA rank
#3,722
Tracked since 1913
Popularity
Ellard: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ellard from the 1910s through to the 1950s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 70 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1920s peak, Ellard remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ellard 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 Ellard 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 Ellard
The name Ellard has its origins in the Germanic languages, derived from the elements "ald" meaning "old" and "hard" meaning "brave" or "hardy." It is believed to have emerged during the medieval period, around the 5th to 10th centuries.
Historically, the name was most prevalent in areas of present-day Germany, England, and the Netherlands, where it was borne by individuals of Germanic descent. Variations in spelling, such as Elhard, Elhart, and Ellert, were also common during this time.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ellard can be found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript record of landowners in England compiled in 1086 under the orders of William the Conqueror. In this text, an individual named Ellard is listed as a landowner in the county of Surrey.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Ellard. In the 12th century, Ellard of Rivaulx was a Cistercian monk and writer who lived from approximately 1110 to 1167. His writings on monastic life and spirituality were influential during his time.
Another prominent figure was Ellard van Ath, a 14th-century Flemish painter known for his religious works, who lived from around 1320 to 1390. His paintings adorned several churches and monasteries in what is now Belgium and the Netherlands.
In the 16th century, Ellard Krakau was a German scholar and humanist who lived from 1516 to 1589. He was known for his contributions to the study of classical literature and his advocacy for educational reform.
During the 17th century, Ellard Koenig was a German composer and organist who lived from 1610 to 1687. He is remembered for his compositions for church music and his innovations in organ building.
More recently, in the 19th century, Ellard Governs was a British businessman and philanthropist who lived from 1820 to 1905. He made significant contributions to various charitable causes and the establishment of educational institutions in his hometown of Liverpool, England.
While the name Ellard may not be as common today as it once was, its rich history and linguistic roots provide a glimpse into the diverse cultural heritage of the Germanic peoples and the individuals who bore this name throughout the centuries.
People
Ellard + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ellard 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
Ellard: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ellard?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 30 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ellard 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 11,425,145 US residents.
Is Ellard a common name?
We classify Ellard as "Very Rare". It ranks above 46.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 179 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ellard most popular?
The single biggest year for Ellard was 1918, when 14 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ellard is about 80 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 Ellard in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ellard a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ellard 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 Ellard still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ellard 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 Ellard 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 have the name Ellard?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.