Wilford
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Meaning
“Old English compound of willow and ford, a river crossing; a place name and surname before becoming a first name.”
How popular is Wilford around the world?
In the United States, 38 babies were named Wilford between 2020 and 2025.
Wilford is on the official records of the United States.
United States
1 in 570,000
In the United States, 38 babies were named Wilford between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Wilford peaked in the 1910s and the 1930s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
England and Wales
last on record 2024
Wilford is not on the 2025 record for England and Wales, where spellings under 3 in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 3 in a year, too few to chart.
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
Montevideo City
last on record 1952
Wilford 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
Not on the record in Spain, Mexico City, Argentina, Puerto Rico, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Scotland 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 South Australia record for 1944 to 2017: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. 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 Wilford
People given the name Wilford in the United States span the generations: the middle half were born anywhere from 1940 to 1979. 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.
The Wilford deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Wilford 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 Wilford fits with your family’s names and surname.
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