Maxfield
A masculine compound name meaning "greatest field" or "greatest meadow".
Name Census estimates that about 847 living Americans carry the first name Maxfield. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Maxfield today is around 26 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Maxfield births was 2002 (40 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Maxfield. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Maxfield with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
847
~ 1 in 404,669 Americans
Peak year
2002
40 babies that year
Average age
26
years old
2024 SSA rank
#13,487
Tracked since 1927
Census
Maxfield in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 769 people with the first name Maxfield, which placed it at #15,074 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#15,074
National first-name rank
People counted
769
769 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
84.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Maxfield
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Maxfield is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.0%) and Hispanic (5.6%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Maxfield described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Maxfield at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.4% · 649
- Two or more races6.0% · 46
- Hispanic or Latino5.6% · 43
- Black or African American1.7% · 13
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 5
Popularity
Maxfield: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Maxfield from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 303 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Maxfield 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 Maxfield during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Maxfields live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. California, Washington, Minnesota recorded the most babies named Maxfield, while Minnesota, Washington, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 47 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Maxfield
The name Maxfield has its origins in the Old English language, tracing back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the combination of two words: "max," meaning "greatest," and "field," referring to an open expanse of land or a meadow. This name carries a sense of grandeur and connection to nature.
During the Anglo-Saxon period in Britain, the name Maxfield was likely used to describe someone who lived or worked on a large field or estate. It was a descriptive name that reflected the individual's association with the land.
While there are no definitive historical records of the name appearing in ancient texts or religious scriptures, it is believed to have been in use among the Anglo-Saxon people as early as the 7th century.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Maxfield was Maxfield Overton, an English writer and philosopher who lived from 1609 to 1678. He was a prominent figure during the English Civil War and authored several works on religion and philosophy.
In the 18th century, Maxfield Sparrow (1728-1789) was a British merchant and philanthropist who made significant contributions to the establishment of schools and hospitals in London.
During the American Revolutionary War, Maxfield Parrish (1770-1835) was a notable soldier who fought alongside George Washington's Continental Army. He later became a respected politician and served as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates.
In the field of art, Maxfield Parrish (1870-1966), an American painter and illustrator, gained widespread acclaim for his distinctive and vibrant works. His paintings, such as "Daybreak" and "The Lute Players," have become iconic representations of the Golden Age of American illustration.
Another notable figure was Maxfield Stanley Weston (1861-1929), a British soldier and explorer who led expeditions in Africa and wrote extensively about his adventures. His writings provided valuable insights into the cultures and landscapes he encountered during his travels.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who have carried the name Maxfield, each leaving their mark in various fields and contributing to the rich tapestry of human experience.
People
Maxfield + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Maxfield 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
Maxfield: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Maxfield?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 847 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Maxfield 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 404,669 US residents.
Is Maxfield a common name?
We classify Maxfield as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 874 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Maxfield most popular?
The single biggest year for Maxfield was 2002, when 40 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Maxfield is about 26 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Maxfield in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 769 people with the name Maxfield, or 0.25 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #15,074 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Maxfield in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Maxfield?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Maxfield leans strongly male. 763 people counted with this name were male (99.0%), compared with 8 female bearers (1.0%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Maxfield?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Maxfield is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.0%) and Hispanic (5.6%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Maxfield most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Maxfield in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.4% (649 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
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 Maxfield in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Maxfield a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Maxfield 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 Maxfield still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Maxfield 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 Maxfield 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.
How many people have the name Maxfield?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.