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Home › Baby Names Directory › Tilford

Tilford

♂ Boy

How to Pronounce Tilford

Pronounced TIL-furd /ˈtɪl.fərd/High

Meaning: Tilford is an English place-name and surname adopted as a first name, from Old English elements meaning a 'ford' (a river crossing) by cultivated or 'tilled' ground - or, by some accounts, a ford belonging to a man named Tila. Like many surnames, it became an occasional given name in the nineteenth century.Medium

In 30 seconds: Tilford is an English surname-name meaning a 'ford by tilled land'. It was a rare early-nineteen-hundreds boys' choice (said 'TIL-furd').
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Origin MediumEnglish
MeaningTilford is an English place-name and surname adopted as a first name, from Old English elements meaning a 'ford' (a river crossing) by cultivated or 'tilled' ground - or, by some accounts, a ford belonging to a man named Tila. Like many surnames, it became an occasional given name in the nineteenth century.
U.S. rank (1988)#8394 ↘ Falling
1988 U.S. births5 boys (0.00% of U.S. boys)
Peak year1922
Total births (all-time)≈ 640

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

peak 192218831988

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Tilford began as an English place name and surname, built from Old English roots for a 'ford by tilled land' (or Tila's ford). In the American fashion for surname first names, families occasionally bestowed it on sons in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, alongside names like Clifford and Milford.

Tilford was always uncommon in the United States, appearing faintly in the early twentieth century before dying out by the late nineteen-hundreds. A boy named Tilford then would be of a great-grandfather's generation now; the name reads as rural and firmly antique.

Did you know? Tilford names a real English spot - a river crossing beside tilled fields - the kind of place name that first became a surname, then, briefly, a first name.
Overall data confidence 55%
References - Tilford — English place/surname; Old English 'ford by tilled land'

Variations

TillfordTelfordTilfordeTildfordTilfird

Nicknames

TilFord

Famous Bearers

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If you like Tilford…

Clifford— a same-era -ford surname-name of similar sound
Wilford— another vintage -ford boys' name
Milford— shares the English place-name-to-first-name path
Radford— a fellow -ford surname used as a given name

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Frequently Asked

What does the name Tilford mean?

Tilford is an English surname and place name, from Old English for a 'ford by tilled land', used as a given name.

How do you pronounce Tilford?

It's said TIL-furd /ˈtɪl.fərd/ - two syllables, stress on the first.

Is Tilford a boy or girl name?

Tilford is used as a boy's name.

How popular is Tilford?

Tilford has always been uncommon, a vintage surname-name now very rarely given.

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