Wade
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Meaning
surname/place name, "to ford, river crossing"
The story
Wade is the river crossing, the place shallow enough to walk, an English surname that became a steady American first name with a midcentury prime: about 8,500 in the 1950s, cresting at 12,900 in the 1960s, then the long ebb to 4,500 in the 2000s, and the vintage turn, 6,500 in the 2010s and 5,900 so far this decade. The spiritual Wade in the Water gives the name a deep American resonance older than any surname fashion, and a Miami guard spent this century making the surname synonymous with grace under pressure. In our records it goes to boys about 76,000 to 170. One syllable, a verb, a place, and a song: Wade is the rare name that tells you what to do and where, and the record shows three generations taking the suggestion.
How popular is Wade around the world?
In the United States, 5,855 babies were named Wade between 2020 and 2025.
Wade is on the official records of the United States, Canada, South Australia, England and Wales, Spain and Brazil.
United States
1 in 3,700
In the United States, 5,855 babies were named Wade between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Wade peaked in the 2010s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Canada
1 in 8,900
In Canada, 41 boys named Wade were born in 2024, the 669th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
South Australia
1 in 9,2002017
In South Australia, 2 boys were registered as Wade in 2017.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
England and Wales
1 in 27,000
In England and Wales, 22 boys named Wade were born in 2025, ranked 1,276th among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Spain
1 in 1.7M
In Spain, 26 residents are named Wade, ranked 25,054th among men, with a mean age of 36.4 years.
Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025
Brazil
At the 2022 census, 37 people in Brazil were named Wade, ranked 81,857th, with a median age of 22.
People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
Montevideo City
last on record 1948
Wade is not on the 2011 record for Montevideo, whose registry withholds nothing, so the spelling was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 1 in a year, too few to chart.
Births in the department of Montevideo (not all of Uruguay) by first name and year of birth, 1940–2011, from the city’s civil registry, which writes names in capitals, almost always without accents; counted as spelling groups (accent and punctuation variants merged), nothing is withheld at source, and 2012 is excluded as a partial year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil, Intendencia de Montevideo, Partidas de Registro Civil de Montevideo (Licencia de Datos Abiertos - Uruguay); 2012 dropped as partial
New South Wales
outside the top 100
Wade is not in the 2025 top 100 for New South Wales.
share of that year’s top-100 registrations
New South Wales (not all of Australia) publishes only each year’s 100 most popular names per sex, so a missing year means below that top 100, not rare. Source: NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, popular baby names
New Zealand
last on record 2009
Wade is not on the 2025 record for New Zealand, where names under 10 in a year are excluded at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Scotland
last on record 2018
Wade is not on the 2024 record for Scotland, where spellings under 3 in total are suppressed at source.
The count never rose above 3 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
Not on the record in Mexico City, Argentina, Puerto Rico, Ireland and Poland: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Austria record for 1984 to 2025: Statistik Austria publishes every first name down to a single birth, so this name was not given there in those years (before 2010 the record covers babies with Austrian citizenship only). Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Wade
People given the name Wade in the United States span the generations: the middle half were born anywhere from 1960 to 2009. Age is the one thing the name won't tell you.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
The Wade deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Wade truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Wade fits with your family’s names and surname.
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