Geofrey
An English masculine name transferred from Old French Geoffroi, of Germanic origin, meaning "peace seeker".
Name Census estimates that about 130 living Americans carry the first name Geofrey. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Geofrey today is around 48 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Geofrey births was 1990 (10 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Geofrey. 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.
People living today
130
~ 1 in 2,636,572 Americans
Peak year
1990
10 babies that year
Average age
48
years old
1992 SSA rank
#7,793
Tracked since 1953
Popularity
Geofrey: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Geofrey from the 1950s through to the 1990s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 57 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Geofrey 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 Geofrey 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 Geofrey
The name Geofrey has its origins in the Germanic languages, with its earliest roots traced back to the Old English and Old Norman French forms, "Gaufrid" or "Geoffroi." The name is believed to have derived from the Germanic elements "gau," meaning "territory" or "district," and "frid," meaning "peace" or "secure." Collectively, the name Geofrey can be interpreted as "peaceful territory" or "secure land."
During the Middle Ages, the name Geofrey gained widespread popularity across Europe, particularly in England and France. It was a common name among the nobility and upper classes, with several notable historical figures bearing the name. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the 11th century, with Geofrey of Monmouth, a British cleric and one of the major figures in the propagation of the Arthurian legends.
In the 12th century, Geofrey Plantagenet, Count of Anjou and father of King Henry II of England, was a prominent figure in medieval English history. His son, Geofrey, Duke of Brittany, also played a significant role in the political affairs of the time.
The name Geofrey also appeared in religious and literary works of the era. Geofrey Chaucer, the renowned English poet and author of "The Canterbury Tales," lived from circa 1343 to 1400 and is considered one of the greatest literary figures of the Middle Ages.
In the 16th century, Geofrey Tory, a French scholar and Renaissance humanist, made significant contributions to the development of the French language and typography. His work on standardizing the French alphabet and improving printing techniques had a lasting impact on the field of typography.
Another notable bearer of the name was Geofrey Keating, an Irish Catholic priest and historian who lived from 1569 to 1644. His seminal work, "Foras Feasa ar Éirinn" (The History of Ireland), is considered one of the most important historical sources on early Irish history and culture.
Throughout the centuries, the name Geofrey has maintained a consistent presence, though its popularity has waxed and waned over time. It has been borne by individuals from various walks of life, including scholars, writers, nobility, and religious figures, leaving an indelible mark on the cultural and historical landscapes of their respective eras.
People
Geofrey + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Geofrey as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Geofrey: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Geofrey?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 130 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Geofrey 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 2,636,572 US residents.
Is Geofrey a common name?
We classify Geofrey as "Very Rare". It ranks above 68.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 141 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Geofrey most popular?
The single biggest year for Geofrey was 1990, when 10 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Geofrey is about 48 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Geofrey a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Geofrey 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.
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.