Old English Boy Names

229 old english boy names with meanings, U.S. popularity, and audio pronunciation on every page.

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There is a reason so many American boys answer to a name that used to describe a job or a patch of ground. Old English boy names are sturdy in a way that never has to announce itself, and the trade names are the backbone of the list. Cooper made barrels. Mason cut stone. Walker trod cloth for a living, which is a far better story than most people realise when they pick it. Brooks simply lived by the water. None of these sound antique on a kindergarten roster, and every one of them ages into an adult perfectly well — which is the real test.

Then come the place names, and they are where the sound gets big and open. Weston is the west town and Easton its mirror, while Wesley is the west meadow — three names, one compass. Hudson, Jackson and Grayson ride the -son ending that has dominated American boy naming for twenty years, with Jaxon as the streamlined respelling. For something with more grain in it, Everett reads bookish and kind, Wyatt has a frontier swagger, and Waylon comes with a country-music drawl attached. We list 205 boy names of Old English origin.

Every name below opens to its full page — a sourced meaning, the trade or place it grew out of, its U.S. popularity, and a clear audio pronunciation so you can hear it before you fall for it.

Old English Boy Names — Page 2

Elsworth#6552 in the U.S.Elsworth is a variant of the English surname Ellsworth, from an Old English place name meaning ▶Gilford#6677 in the U.S.Gilford is a surname and place name, generally a variant of Guildford, from Old English element▶Sewell#7104 in the U.S.Sewell is an English surname from an Old English personal name, usually explained as Sigeweald,▶Cleven#7119 in the U.S.Cleven's precise root is not certain; it may clip the surname Cleveland, from the Old English c▶Cliford#7146 in the U.S.Cliford is a single-f spelling of Clifford, an English surname turned first name from Old Engli▶Ashdon#7806 in the U.S.Ashdon most plausibly echoes Ashton, from the Old English aesc 'ash tree' and tun 'settlement,'▶Wulfric#8254 in the U.S.From the Old English wulf, 'a wolf', + ric, 'power; ruler', hence 'a wolf ruler; wolf power'▶Alwyn#8319 in the U.S.From the Old English Aethelwine/Aelfwine, variously 'a noble friend' and 'an elf friend' (aelf,▶Egbert#8331 in the U.S.Egbert is an Old English name combining ecg, 'edge, sword-edge', with beorht, 'bright, famous',▶Dolton#9931 in the U.S.Dolton is an English surname-name from place names in England, likely combining an Old English ▶Osvin#10508 in the U.S.A name that echoes the Old English/Germanic Oswin, 'god (os) + friend (wine),' so 'god-friend.'▶Osborn#10604 in the U.S.From the Old Norse/Old English Osbeorn, 'divine bear; god-bear' (os, 'god,' + beorn/bjorn, 'bea▶Ozwald#10610 in the U.S.A spelling of Oswald, from the Old English os ('god') and weald ('ruler; power'), so 'divine ru▶Aldan#10650 in the U.S.A form of Alden, from the Old English Ealdwine, 'old friend' (eald, 'old,' + wine, 'friend'); i▶Earle#11106 in the U.S.A variant of Earl, from Old English eorl, 'nobleman, warrior' (a rank of nobility). The final -▶Goodwin#11113 in the U.S.Goodwin comes directly from Old English god 'good' and wine 'friend,' meaning 'good friend'; it▶Holman#11257 in the U.S.Holman is an English surname adopted as a first name. It comes from Old English elements meanin▶Osmund#11880 in the U.S.From the Old English Osmund, 'god (os) + protection (mund)' - so 'divine protection.' Borne by ▶Osric#11929 in the U.S.From Old English os ('god') plus ric ('ruler, power') — 'god-ruler'. Borne by early Anglo-Saxon▶Wulf#12165 in the U.S.From the Old English/Germanic wulf, 'wolf' — an element in many old names (Wulfric, Wulfstan) a▶Alwin#12331 in the U.S.From the Germanic/Old English, 'elf-friend' or 'noble friend' (aelf, 'elf,' or aethel, 'noble,'▶Clayborn#12425 in the U.S.Clayborn comes from the English surname Claiborne, built from clay, describing the soil, and bu▶Beowulf#12537 in the U.S.Beowulf is the hero of the Old English epic poem of the same name. The name is often read as 'b▶Daltin#12599 in the U.S.Daltin is a respelling of Dalton, an English place-name and surname from Old English dael, 'val▶Lindell#13386 in the U.S.Lindell is an English place-and-surname name from Old English lind, 'lime or linden tree,' plus▶Rayburn#13705 in the U.S.Rayburn is an English surname turned given name, most likely from Old English elements meaning ▶Stanly#13775 in the U.S.Stanly is a reduced spelling of Stanley, an English place-name and surname from Old English sta▶Shelden#13786 in the U.S.Shelden is a spelling variant of Sheldon, an English surname-turned-given-name from Old English▶Theodin#13988 in the U.S.Theodin is a modern respelling of Theoden, the King of Rohan in Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings▶

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Frequently Asked

What are the most popular Old English boy names?

Recent U.S. birth data puts Hudson, Cooper, Jackson, Wyatt and Mason at the front of this group.

Why do so many Old English boy names sound like surnames?

Because they were. English surnames formed from trades, such as Cooper and Walker, and from places, such as Weston. American parents then moved them back to the first-name slot, and the habit stuck.

Are Old English and Anglo-Saxon names the same thing?

Yes, the terms are used interchangeably for names built from the language spoken in England before the Norman Conquest. It describes a historical language, not a modern nationality.