Elrod
Name of uncertain origin, possibly meaning "noble counsellor" in Old English.
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Elrod. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Elrod today is around 60 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Elrod births was 1971 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Elrod. 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 Elrod. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
1971
6 babies that year
Average age
60
years old
1971 SSA rank
#4,564
Tracked since 1971
Popularity
Elrod: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Elrod 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 Elrod during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 6 | 0 | 6 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Elrod
The name Elrod is of English origin, derived from the Old English elements "ƫl" meaning "eel" and "rod" meaning "clearing" or "meadow." It is believed to have originated in the Anglo-Saxon period, around the 5th to 11th centuries AD, as a surname describing someone who lived near an eel-infested clearing or meadow.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Elrod is found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is listed as a surname. This suggests that the name was already in use by the late 11th century in England.
During the Middle Ages, the name Elrod was relatively uncommon, but it did appear sporadically in historical records. One notable bearer of the name was Elrod of Rievaulx, a 12th-century English monk and author who lived from around 1109 to 1167. He wrote several influential works on monastic life and spirituality.
In the 16th century, the name Elrod gained some prominence with the birth of Elrod of Barnes (c. 1516 - 1598), an English jurist and Member of Parliament. He served as a member of the Privy Council under Queen Elizabeth I and was involved in the prosecution of Mary, Queen of Scots.
Another historically significant figure with the name Elrod was Elrod Terrell (1794 - 1859), an American politician and military officer from Georgia. He served as a brigadier general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War.
In the 20th century, one of the most notable individuals named Elrod was Elrod P. Hendricks (1944 - 2005), an American baseball player and coach. He played for the Baltimore Orioles from 1968 to 1976 and later served as the team's bullpen coach, helping them win the 1983 World Series.
While not as common as some other names, Elrod has been carried by a diverse range of individuals throughout history, from monks and authors to politicians and athletes, reflecting the name's enduring presence across various cultures and time periods.
People
Elrod + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Elrod 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
Elrod: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Elrod?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Elrod 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Elrod a common name?
We classify Elrod as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 6 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Elrod most popular?
The single biggest year for Elrod was 1971, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Elrod is about 60 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 Elrod in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Elrod a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Elrod 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 Elrod still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Elrod 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 Elrod 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 Elrod?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.