Randahl
A name with multiple potential origins, possibly derived from Old German/Norse roots.
Name Census estimates that about 46 living Americans carry the first name Randahl. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Randahl today is around 54 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Randahl births was 1963 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Randahl. 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 Randahl. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
46
~ 1 in 7,451,181 Americans
Peak year
1963
6 babies that year
Average age
54
years old
1995 SSA rank
#8,630
Tracked since 1952
Census
Randahl in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 136 people with the first name Randahl, which placed it at #47,733 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
#47,733
National first-name rank
People counted
136
136 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
83.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Randahl
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Randahl is White at 83.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.9%) and Black (4.4%). 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 Randahl 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 Randahl at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.1% · 113
- Hispanic or Latino5.9% · 8
- Black or African American4.4% · 6
- Two or more races3.7% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.9% · 4
Popularity
Randahl: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Randahl from the 1950s through to the 1990s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 21 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1960s peak, Randahl remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Randahl 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 Randahl 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 Randahl
The name Randahl has its roots in Old Norse and Old Germanic languages. It is derived from the Germanic elements "rand" meaning "rim" or "edge," and "valr" meaning "the slain" or "battlefield." Together, these elements give Randahl the meaning of "rim of the battlefield" or "edge of the slain."
The name first appeared in ancient Scandinavian records and texts, where it was often associated with warriors and battles. It was a popular name among Vikings and other Norse peoples during the Viking Age, which lasted from the late 8th century to the late 11th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Randahl can be found in the Icelandic Sagas, a collection of stories and historical accounts written in the 13th and 14th centuries. These sagas often mentioned Norsemen with the name Randahl, depicting them as brave and skilled warriors.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Randahl. One of the most renowned was Randahl the Red (c. 950 – 1021), a Viking chieftain and explorer who is said to have led expeditions to Greenland and Vinland (possibly parts of modern-day Canada and New England).
Another significant figure was Randahl Bjornsson (1123 – 1198), a powerful Norwegian nobleman and military commander who played a crucial role in the civil wars that plagued Norway during the 12th century.
In the 14th century, Randahl Röde (1280 – 1344) was a Swedish statesman and diplomat who served as the chancellor of Sweden and negotiated several important treaties with neighboring countries.
During the Renaissance period, Randahl Högfeldt (1530 – 1597) was a Swedish reformer and theologian who played a significant role in the spread of Protestantism in Sweden.
In more recent times, Randahl Frahm (1919 – 2006) was a German soldier and author who served in World War II and later wrote several books about his experiences.
While the name Randahl has its origins in ancient Germanic and Norse cultures, it has been adopted and used in various forms across different regions and languages over the centuries.
People
Randahl + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Randahl as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Randahl: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Randahl?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 46 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Randahl 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 7,451,181 US residents.
Is Randahl a common name?
We classify Randahl as "Very Rare". It ranks above 53.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 53 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Randahl most popular?
The single biggest year for Randahl was 1963, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Randahl is about 54 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Randahl in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 136 people with the name Randahl, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #47,733 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 Randahl 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 Randahl?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Randahl leans strongly male. 125 people counted with this name were male (89.9%), compared with 14 female bearers (10.1%). 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 Randahl?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Randahl is White at 83.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.9%) and Black (4.4%). 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 Randahl most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Randahl in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.1% (113 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 Randahl in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Randahl a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Randahl 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 Randahl still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Randahl 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 Randahl 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 Americans are named Randahl?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.