Elijah Wood
There are approximately 285 people named Elijah Wood living in the United States today. That makes this name combination very rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 1,202,647 Americans.
This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Elijah with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Wood. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and Census demographics where available.
Expected bearers
285
1 in 1,202,647
Named Elijah
356K
Alive today
Named Wood
274K
Alive today
US population
343M
Denominator
Estimated living: 356K
Rarity: Common
Gender: Male
Peak year: 2011
Average age: 17
Top Census group: White (42.5%)
Estimated bearers: 274K
Rarity: Common
Census rank: #91
Per 100K: 79.94
Top ancestry: White (85.6%)
First name trend
Elijah: popularity over time
Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Elijah. The peak year was 2011 with 14,030 births. The average person named Elijah today is 17 years old.
Babies born per year
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Elijah
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the first name Elijah, from the 2020 US Census Bureau first-name tables. The largest published group is White at 42.5%.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Elijah described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. These are self-reported numbers, and they describe the population who happened to carry the name Elijah at the time of the Census. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity.
- White42.5% · 107,342
- Black or African American23.5% · 59,488
- Hispanic or Latino21.0% · 53,112
- Two or more races9.6% · 24,168
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.5% · 6,268
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 2,377
Ethnicity
Ancestry of the Wood surname
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the surname Wood, from the 2020 US Census Bureau. The largest group is White at 85.6%.
The bar chart below shows how people with the surname Wood described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. These are self-reported numbers, and they describe the population who happened to carry the surname Wood at the time of the Census. A surname does not determine a person's race or ethnicity.
- White85.6% · 204,530
- Black or African American5.2% · 12,504
- Two or more races4.1% · 9,868
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 8,250
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1,984
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 1,812
Methodology
How we calculated this
The first name Elijah has a living-bearer frequency of 0.1038% of the US population, based on 355,934 estimated living Americans carrying this first name (from SSA birth records going back to 1880, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables).
Even though the Census Bureau now publishes first-name tables, we do not use that file as the main first-name input for this estimate. The latest first-name Census snapshot is from 2020, which makes it 6 years old today. Because Census first-name data is only released once every 10 years, SSA birth records plus CDC survival rates give a better current estimate of how many people are likely alive with the name Elijah right now.
The surname Wood appears at a rate of 79.94 per 100,000 residents in the 2020 Census Bureau surname file, which translates to a frequency of 0.0799%.
Multiplying these two independent frequencies against the current US population of 342,754,338 gives an expected count of approximately 285 people with the full name Elijah Wood. This assumes statistical independence between first and last names, which is a simplification but produces reasonable estimates for most combinations.
Related
Other people named Elijah
Related
Other people with the surname Wood
FAQ
Elijah Wood: questions and answers
How many people are named Elijah Wood?
We estimate approximately 285 people in the United States share the full name Elijah Wood. That works out to about 1 in 1,202,647 Americans. This is calculated by combining the first-name frequency (0.1038%) with the surname frequency (79.94 per 100K) against the current US population.
How rare is the name Elijah Wood?
We classify Elijah Wood as "Very Rare". About 1 in 1,202,647 Americans share this exact first and last name combination.
Is Elijah a male or female name?
Elijah is predominantly male. Out of 370,593 total SSA registrations, 99.7% were male and 0.3% were female. See the full Elijah profile for detailed gender data.
Where does this data come from?
First-name data comes from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files (1880 to 2024). Surname data comes from the 2020 US Census Bureau decennial surname tables. Living-bearer estimates use CDC actuarial life tables to adjust for mortality. Read the full methodology.
How many people have the full name Elijah Wood?
You can see how common the name Elijah Wood is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.