Malford
A masculine name of uncertain origin, possibly meaning "unfortunate counsel".
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Malford. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Malford today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Malford births was 1930 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Malford. 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 Malford. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1930
6 babies that year
Average age
-
1930 SSA rank
#3,848
Tracked since 1930
Popularity
Malford: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Malford 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 Malford during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 6 | 0 | 6 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Malford
The given name Malford has its origins in Old English, deriving from the words "mæl" meaning "speech" or "discourse" and "ford" meaning "a shallow place for crossing a river or stream." This suggests that the name could have originally referred to a place where people gathered to converse or hold meetings near a ford.
The earliest recorded instance of the name Malford dates back to the 10th century, where it appears in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, a collection of annals written in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. This indicates that the name was in use during the late Anglo-Saxon period in England.
In the 12th century, a Malford de Cressingham is mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Hertfordshire, which were records of financial transactions maintained by the Exchequer of England. This suggests that the name was still in use during the Norman period and may have been adopted by Norman settlers in England.
One of the earliest notable individuals bearing the name was Malford de Strigul, a Norman knight who accompanied William the Conqueror during the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. He was granted lands in Herefordshire and is recorded as a tenant-in-chief in the Domesday Book of 1086.
In the 13th century, a Malford of Canterbury was a renowned scholar and theologian at the University of Oxford. He is known for his work on the interpretation of Scripture and his contributions to the development of medieval scholasticism.
During the Renaissance period, Malford Caxton (1422-1492) was an English writer, merchant, and one of the earliest English printers. He introduced the printing press to England and is credited with printing the first book in English, "The Recuyell of the Historyes of Troye."
Another notable figure was Malford Crompton (1585-1647), an English lawyer and Member of Parliament during the English Civil War. He was a supporter of the Parliamentary cause and served as a judge during the trial of King Charles I.
In the 18th century, Malford Bingham (1701-1776) was a prominent English clergyman and author. He wrote several influential works on Christian antiquities and ecclesiastical law, including "Origines Ecclesiasticae" and "Antiquities of the Christian Church."
People
Malford + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Malford as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Malford: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Malford?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Malford 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 Malford a common name?
We classify Malford 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, 6 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Malford most popular?
The single biggest year for Malford was 1930, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Malford 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 Malford in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Malford a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Malford 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 Malford still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Malford 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 Malford 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 Malford?
See how many people have the name Malford on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.