Wilferd
An Old English masculine name derived from "wil" meaning desire and "frid" meaning peace.
Name Census estimates that about 67 living Americans carry the first name Wilferd. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Wilferd today is around 83 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Wilferd births was 1925 (24 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Wilferd. 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 Wilferd is about 83 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Wilferds were born before 1953.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Wilferd. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
67
~ 1 in 5,115,736 Americans
Peak year
1925
24 babies that year
Average age
83
years old
1966 SSA rank
#3,934
Tracked since 1912
Popularity
Wilferd: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Wilferd from the 1910s through to the 1960s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 190 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
Wilferd 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 Wilferd during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Wilferds live
Origin
Meaning and history of Wilferd
The name Wilferd is of Old Germanic origin, derived from the elements "wil" meaning "will" or "desire" and "frid" meaning "peace". It likely emerged in the early Middle Ages, around the 6th to 8th centuries, as a name commonly used among the Germanic tribes that inhabited various regions of Europe.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Wilferd was a Frankish nobleman who lived in the 7th century. He served as a courtier under the Merovingian King Clovis II and is mentioned in several historical chronicles of the time.
In the 9th century, a monk named Wilferd is recorded as having been a prominent scholar and scribe at the Abbey of Fulda in present-day Germany. He is credited with transcribing and preserving several important manuscripts from the era.
During the 11th century, a nobleman named Wilferd de Beaumont was a prominent figure in the court of William the Conqueror, the Norman king of England. He is said to have accompanied William on his invasion of England in 1066 and was later granted lands in the English county of Leicestershire.
In the 12th century, a Benedictine monk named Wilferd of Ripon is noted for his writings on theology and his work as a chronicler, documenting the events and affairs of his time in the northern English town of Ripon.
Another notable figure with the name Wilferd was a 14th-century German knight and military commander named Wilferd von Hohenzollern. He served under several Holy Roman Emperors and played a significant role in various battles and campaigns during the late medieval period.
While the name Wilferd has fallen out of widespread use in modern times, it remains a part of historical records and chronicles, reflecting its roots in the ancient Germanic cultures and the individuals who bore this name throughout the centuries.
People
Wilferd + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Wilferd as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with W
Other first names starting with W with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Wilferd: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Wilferd?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 67 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Wilferd 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 5,115,736 US residents.
Is Wilferd a common name?
We classify Wilferd as "Very Rare". It ranks above 58.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 481 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Wilferd most popular?
The single biggest year for Wilferd was 1925, when 24 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Wilferd is about 83 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 Wilferd in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Wilferd a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Wilferd 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 Wilferd still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Wilferd 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 Wilferd 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 Wilferd?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the name Wilferd on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.