Underwood
From the Old English "under" and "wudu," meaning "dweller in the woods."
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Underwood. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Underwood today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Underwood births was 1914 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Underwood. 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 Underwood. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1914
5 babies that year
Average age
-
1922 SSA rank
#4,912
Tracked since 1914
Popularity
Underwood: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Underwood from the 1910s through to the 1920s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 10 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Underwood 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 Underwood 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 Underwood
The given name Underwood has its origins in the Old English language, tracing back to the Anglo-Saxon period between the 5th and 11th centuries. It is a compound word, formed by combining the elements "under" and "wudu," which together translate to "under the wood" or "beneath the forest." This name likely originated as a descriptive term for individuals who lived or worked in forested areas or near wooded regions.
During the Middle Ages, Underwood was primarily used as a surname, particularly in England, where it referred to those residing near or in association with woodlands. However, its usage as a given name can be traced back to the 16th century, though it remained relatively uncommon until more recent times.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Underwood appears in the historical records of the English county of Staffordshire in the late 13th century, where it is mentioned as a surname. In the 14th century, the name is found in various medieval documents and records across England, such as the Subsidy Rolls and the Hundred Rolls.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Underwood as their given name. One of the earliest examples is John Underwood (c. 1545-1624), an English clergyman and author who served as the Bishop of Oxford and later the Bishop of Norwich. Another notable figure was Thomas Underwood (1609-1672), an English Puritan minister and author who was known for his controversial writings on religious topics.
In the 18th century, Francis Underwood (1734-1796) was a British soldier and colonial administrator who served as the Governor of Gibraltar from 1790 to 1794. During the American Revolutionary War, John Underwood (1770-1837) was a prominent merchant and politician from Georgia who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives.
In more recent times, one of the most famous individuals with the given name Underwood was Carrie Underwood (born 1983), an American country music singer and songwriter who rose to fame after winning the fourth season of the popular television competition show American Idol. She has since become a multi-platinum recording artist and has won numerous awards, including seven Grammy Awards.
People
Underwood + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Underwood as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with U
Other first names starting with U with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Underwood: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Underwood?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Underwood 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 Underwood a common name?
We classify Underwood 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, 15 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Underwood most popular?
The single biggest year for Underwood was 1914, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Underwood 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 Underwood in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Underwood a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Underwood 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 Underwood still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Underwood 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 Underwood 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 common is the name Underwood?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Underwood at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.