Grundy
A German surname meaning "ground" or "underworld" in reference to geography.
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Grundy. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Grundy today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Grundy births was 1916 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Grundy. 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 Grundy. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1916
5 babies that year
Average age
-
1916 SSA rank
#4,163
Tracked since 1916
Popularity
Grundy: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Grundy 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 Grundy during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Grundy
The name Grundy is an English surname that originated as a nickname derived from the Old English word 'grunde', meaning ground or earth. It is believed to have been initially bestowed upon someone who lived near the ground or in a low-lying area.
This surname-turned-given name gained popularity in the 18th and 19th centuries, particularly in rural areas of England and Scotland. It is thought to have been first used as a first name around this time, as a way for families to honor their ancestral roots and ties to the land.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the first name Grundy was Grundy Pelers, a farmer from Yorkshire, England, who was born in 1734. Another notable early bearer of the name was Grundy Swain, a Scottish soldier who fought in the Battle of Culloden in 1746.
In literature, the name Grundy appears in the play "Speed the Plough" by Thomas Morton, first performed in 1798. The character Mrs. Grundy represented the personification of narrow-minded and hypocritical societal views, leading to the phrase "keeping up with the Joneses" or "what will Mrs. Grundy think?"
One of the most famous individuals named Grundy was Grundy Stevenson, an English explorer and naturalist who traveled extensively in the South Pacific in the early 19th century. His detailed accounts of the flora and fauna of the region were groundbreaking for the time.
Another notable Grundy was Grundy Wilkinson, a British abolitionist and advocate for women's rights, who was born in 1812. She actively campaigned against slavery and for equal rights for women throughout her life.
Grundy Petersen, born in 1864, was a Norwegian-American inventor and entrepreneur who patented several important innovations in the field of refrigeration. His inventions played a significant role in the development of modern refrigeration systems.
Despite its somewhat unconventional origins, the name Grundy has endured through the centuries, carried by individuals from diverse backgrounds and professions. While it may have started as a humble nickname, it has become a unique and distinguished given name with a rich history.
People
Grundy + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Grundy 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
Grundy: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Grundy?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Grundy 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 - US residents.
Is Grundy a common name?
We classify Grundy as "Very Rare". It ranks above 2.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Grundy most popular?
The single biggest year for Grundy was 1916, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Grundy is about 0 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 Grundy in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Grundy a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Grundy 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 Grundy still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Grundy 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 Grundy 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 Grundy?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the name Grundy at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.