Tolbert
From Old English meaning "noble bright."
Name Census estimates that about 258 living Americans carry the first name Tolbert. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Tolbert today is around 71 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tolbert births was 1922 (25 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tolbert. 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
- • The typical person named Tolbert is about 71 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Tolberts were born before 1965.
People living today
258
~ 1 in 1,328,505 Americans
Peak year
1922
25 babies that year
Average age
71
years old
1987 SSA rank
#6,881
Tracked since 1881
Popularity
Tolbert: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tolbert from the 1880s through to the 1980s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 172 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tolbert 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 Tolbert during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tolberts live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. Texas, Alabama, Kentucky recorded the most babies named Tolbert, while Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 11 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Tolbert
The name Tolbert has its origins in the Germanic languages, with roots dating back to the Middle Ages. It is a compound name, formed by the combination of two elements: "tol" meaning "tax" or "toll," and "bert" meaning "bright" or "illustrious."
In its earliest known usage, the name Tolbert was likely a descriptive surname, referring to an individual who collected tolls or taxes. It may have been associated with individuals who worked as toll collectors or tax officials in medieval times.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Tolbert can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land and property commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name appears as "Tolbertus" in several entries, suggesting its usage in England during the 11th century.
Throughout the Middle Ages and the Renaissance period, the name Tolbert continued to be used, albeit infrequently, across various parts of Europe. It is worth noting that the spelling and pronunciation of the name may have varied slightly in different regions and languages.
In the 16th century, a notable figure bearing the name Tolbert was Tolbert Prentice (c. 1520 - 1585), an English theologian and author who wrote several treatises on religious topics.
Another historical figure with the name Tolbert was Tolbert Langhorne (1674 - 1751), a British colonial administrator who served as the Governor of Pennsylvania from 1737 to 1747.
In the 19th century, Tolbert Fanning (1810 - 1874) was an American religious leader and educator who co-founded the Fanning Orphan School in Tennessee.
More recently, Tolbert Lanston (1868 - 1913) was an American inventor and engineer who developed the Monotype System, a revolutionary typesetting machine that revolutionized the printing industry.
Lastly, Tolbert R. Ingram (1924 - 2011) was an American businessman and philanthropist who founded the Ingram Industries, a successful distribution company based in Nashville, Tennessee.
While the name Tolbert has remained relatively uncommon throughout history, it has left its mark in various fields, from religion and literature to governance and entrepreneurship. Its roots in the Germanic languages and its potential connection to tax collection or toll management make it a fascinating name with a rich historical tapestry.
People
Tolbert + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tolbert as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with T
Other first names starting with T with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Tolbert: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tolbert?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 258 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tolbert 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 1,328,505 US residents.
Is Tolbert a common name?
We classify Tolbert as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 792 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tolbert most popular?
The single biggest year for Tolbert was 1922, when 25 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tolbert is about 71 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Tolbert a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tolbert 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.