Jerrald
Strong, brave, and vigorous descendant.
Name Census estimates that about 581 living Americans carry the first name Jerrald. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Jerrald today is around 60 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Jerrald births was 1962 (24 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Jerrald. 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
581
~ 1 in 589,939 Americans
Peak year
1962
24 babies that year
Average age
60
years old
2009 SSA rank
#13,346
Tracked since 1918
Popularity
Jerrald: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Jerrald from the 1910s through to the 2000s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 176 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Jerrald 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 Jerrald during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Jerralds live
Origin
Meaning and history of Jerrald
The name Jerrald is an English variation of the Germanic name Gerald, which is derived from the Old German elements "gair" meaning "spear" and "waltan" meaning "to rule" or "to wield". The name was originally spelled as "Gerold" or "Gerhald" and was popular among the Franks, a Germanic tribe that settled in parts of modern-day France and Germany during the 5th century AD.
The earliest recorded usage of the name Gerald can be traced back to the 8th century, when it was mentioned in the Frankish legal texts known as the Leges Barbarorum. It became more widespread during the Middle Ages and was borne by several notable historical figures, including St. Gerald of Aurillac (855-909), a French abbot and founder of the Benedictine monastery of Aurillac.
As the name spread across Europe, it underwent various spelling variations, including Jerrald, which emerged as an English form in the 16th century. One of the earliest recorded individuals with this spelling was Jerrald Saltonstall (1566-1647), an English merchant and colonist who was among the founders of Watertown, Massachusetts.
Throughout history, several prominent individuals have borne the name Jerrald or its variants. These include Jerrald Tickell (1905-1975), an English author and journalist who served as a war correspondent during World War II. Jerrald Underwood (1931-2021) was an American civil rights activist and politician who served as the first African American mayor of Lansing, Michigan, from 1969 to 1973.
In the arts, Jerrald Goldsmith (1929-2003) was an American composer and conductor who won an Academy Award for his score for the film "The Omen" in 1976. Jerrald King (1937-2011) was a Canadian actor best known for his roles in television series such as "The Littlest Hobo" and "Road to Avonlea".
Another notable figure was Jerrald Symons (1898-1965), an English cricketer who played for Gloucestershire County Cricket Club and captained the English national team in the 1920s. He was known for his attacking batting style and was a part of the famous "Gloucestershire Bisley" team.
These examples illustrate the rich history and diverse backgrounds of individuals who have borne the name Jerrald throughout the centuries, reflecting its enduring popularity and significance across various cultures and contexts.
People
Jerrald + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Jerrald as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with J
Other first names starting with J with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Jerrald: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Jerrald?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 581 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Jerrald 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 589,939 US residents.
Is Jerrald a common name?
We classify Jerrald as "Very Rare". It ranks above 85.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 835 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Jerrald most popular?
The single biggest year for Jerrald was 1962, when 24 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Jerrald is about 60 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Jerrald a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Jerrald 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.