Wilmoth
An Old English masculine name meaning "resolute protector".
Name Census estimates that about 7 living Americans carry the first name Wilmoth. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 85.6% of registrations being female. The average person named Wilmoth today is around 97 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Wilmoth births was 1927 (21 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Wilmoth. 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 Wilmoth is about 97 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Wilmoths were born before 1939.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Wilmoth. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
7
~ 1 in 48,964,905 Americans
Peak year
1927
21 babies that year
Average age
97
years old
1927 SSA rank
#3,443
Tracked since 1909
Gender
Gender distribution for Wilmoth
Wilmoth leans heavily female at 85.6% of total registrations, but 30 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Wilmoth as a male name
- Ranked #3,443 in 1927
- 8 male births in 1927
- Peak: 1927 (8 births)
Wilmoth as a female name
- Ranked #4,411 in 1941
- 6 female births in 1941
- Peak: 1927 (13 births)
Popularity
Wilmoth: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Wilmoth from the 1900s through to the 1940s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 90 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
Wilmoth 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 Wilmoth 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 Wilmoth
The name Wilmoth is a variant of the Old English name Wilmund, which is derived from the Germanic elements "wil" meaning "will" or "desire" and "mund" meaning "protection." It's believed to have originated in the Anglo-Saxon regions of England during the 8th or 9th century CE.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wilmoth can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landowners and tenants commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name appears in several entries, suggesting it was in use among the Anglo-Saxon population at that time.
In the Middle Ages, the name Wilmoth was occasionally associated with figures from religious texts or hagiographies, although specific references are scarce. It's possible that some bearers of the name were named after Saint Wilmund, a 7th-century Benedictine monk and abbot of the monastery of St. Michael in Gaillenreuth, Bavaria.
One notable historical figure with the name Wilmoth was Wilmoth Raleigh (c. 1585-1617), the wife of the famous English explorer and courtier Sir Walter Raleigh. She played a significant role in advocating for her husband's release from imprisonment during the reign of King James I.
Another individual of note was Wilmoth Bradbury (1693-1757), an early American settler and one of the founders of the town of Newbury, Massachusetts. He was a prominent figure in the colonial era and served as a deacon in the local church.
In the 19th century, Wilmoth Sadler (1834-1922) was a British author and poet who wrote several books and contributed to various literary magazines. She was born in Derbyshire and was known for her works on local history and folklore.
A more recent example is Wilmoth Carter (1912-2003), an American author and journalist who wrote several books on Southern culture and history. She was born in Mississippi and worked as a columnist for several newspapers in the region.
While the name Wilmoth has fallen out of common usage in recent decades, it remains a part of the rich tapestry of English names with roots stretching back to the early medieval period and the Anglo-Saxon heritage of Britain.
People
Wilmoth + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Wilmoth 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
Wilmoth: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Wilmoth?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 7 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Wilmoth 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 48,964,905 US residents.
Is Wilmoth a common name?
We classify Wilmoth as "Very Rare". It ranks above 23.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 208 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Wilmoth most popular?
The single biggest year for Wilmoth was 1927, when 21 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Wilmoth is about 97 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 Wilmoth in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Wilmoth a female name?
Yes, 85.6% of people registered as Wilmoth in the SSA data are female. 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 Wilmoth still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Wilmoth 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 Wilmoth 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 people are named Wilmoth?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.