Valdean
An English masculine name derived from the French words "val" meaning valley and "de" meaning of or from.
Name Census estimates that about 3 living Americans carry the first name Valdean. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 54.5% of registrations being male. The average person named Valdean today is around 80 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Valdean births was 1933 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Valdean. 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 Valdean is about 80 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Valdeans were born before 1956.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Valdean. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
3
~ 1 in 114,251,446 Americans
Peak year
1933
6 babies that year
Average age
80
years old
1933 SSA rank
#3,612
Tracked since 1933
Gender
Gender distribution for Valdean
Valdean is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 11 total registrations, 6 (54.5%) were male and 5 (45.5%) were female.
Valdean as a male name
- Ranked #3,612 in 1933
- 6 male births in 1933
- Peak: 1933 (6 births)
Valdean as a female name
- Ranked #5,036 in 1941
- 5 female births in 1941
- Peak: 1941 (5 births)
Popularity
Valdean: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Valdean from the 1930s through to the 1940s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1930s, with 6 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
Valdean 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 Valdean 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 Valdean
The name Valdean is believed to have originated from the old Slavic language, with its roots dating back to the 9th century AD. It is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "val," which means "wave" or "billow," and the suffix "-dean," which signifies "belonging to" or "associated with." This suggests that the name may have been initially assigned to individuals living near bodies of water, such as rivers or seas.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Valdean can be found in the Chronicle of Novgorod, a medieval Russian chronicle that documents the history of the Novgorod Republic from the 9th to the 15th centuries. In this text, a man named Valdean is mentioned as a prominent figure in the city's affairs during the late 11th century.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Valdean. One such person was Valdean of Trier, a renowned scholar and theologian who lived in the 9th century AD. He is known for his contributions to the development of medieval scholasticism and his commentaries on the works of Aristotle.
Another prominent figure was Valdean the Brave, a military commander who fought alongside Prince Vladimir the Great of Kievan Rus' in the late 10th century AD. He is celebrated for his bravery and leadership during the campaigns against the Pecheneg tribes that threatened the Kievan Rus' territories.
In the 12th century, a monk named Valdean of Volokolamsk played a significant role in the spread of Orthodox Christianity in the Russian lands. He is remembered for his ascetic lifestyle and his efforts in establishing monasteries and promoting monastic traditions.
During the Renaissance period, Valdean Gherardi, an Italian painter and architect born in 1472, gained recognition for his frescoes and architectural designs in various churches and palaces across Italy.
Lastly, in the 19th century, Valdean Shevchenko, a Ukrainian writer and poet born in 1814, made significant contributions to the development of modern Ukrainian literature and the promotion of national identity.
People
Valdean + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Valdean as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with V
Other first names starting with V with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Valdean: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Valdean?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 3 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Valdean 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 114,251,446 US residents.
Is Valdean a common name?
We classify Valdean as "Very Rare". It ranks above 4.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 11 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Valdean most popular?
The single biggest year for Valdean was 1933, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Valdean is about 80 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 Valdean in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Valdean a male name?
Yes, 54.5% of people registered as Valdean 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 Valdean still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Valdean 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 Valdean 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 many Americans are named Valdean?
Want to know how many people have the name Valdean? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.