Unseld
A masculine name of German origin meaning "graceless" or "ungraceful".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Unseld. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Unseld today is around 50 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Unseld births was 1971 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Unseld. 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 Unseld. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
1971
5 babies that year
Average age
50
years old
1971 SSA rank
#5,622
Tracked since 1971
Popularity
Unseld: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Unseld 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 Unseld during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Unseld
The given name Unseld is believed to have originated from the Old High German language, which was spoken in southern Germany and parts of modern-day Switzerland and Austria during the Early Middle Ages, between the 5th and 11th centuries. The name is thought to be derived from the Old High German words "un" meaning "not" and "seld" meaning "fortunate" or "happy," potentially suggesting a meaning along the lines of "unfortunate" or "unhappy."
While the exact origins of the name are uncertain, it is possible that Unseld may have been used as a descriptive name or nickname in ancient Germanic societies. However, there are no definitive records of the name appearing in any significant historical texts or religious scriptures from that time period.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Unseld was a German monk named Unseld von Heilbronn, who lived in the 13th century. He is known for his works on theology and his contributions to the monastic community in the region of Heilbronn, Germany.
In the 15th century, a German painter named Unseld Goldschmidt was active in the city of Augsburg, Bavaria. His works, primarily depicting religious scenes and portraits, can still be found in various art collections across Europe.
During the 16th century, a German scholar and philosopher named Unseld Schröder gained recognition for his writings on ethics and moral philosophy. He was born in 1523 in the town of Wittenberg and is known to have influenced some of the leading thinkers of the Renaissance era.
In the late 18th century, an Austrian composer and violinist named Unseld Hofmann made significant contributions to the classical music scene in Vienna. His compositions, which included chamber works and concertos, were widely performed and appreciated during his lifetime.
In more recent history, one notable figure with the name Unseld was Wes Unseld, an American basketball player and coach who was born in 1946 and passed away in 2020. Unseld played for the Baltimore/Capital/Washington Bullets in the NBA and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1988, recognized for his exceptional rebounding skills and leadership on the court.
People
Unseld + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Unseld 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
Unseld: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Unseld?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Unseld 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Unseld a common name?
We classify Unseld as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Unseld most popular?
The single biggest year for Unseld was 1971, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Unseld is about 50 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Unseld a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Unseld 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.