Harold

Meaning: Army ruler
Origin: Old English

Nicknames: Harry, Hal

Boy's name · #993 in the US (2025) · Vintage

Popularity over time

Harold is an heirloom: its strongest era came around 1915, when it ranked #12. It has thinned since but never left the records — about 552,000 boys since 1880, ranked #993 today. In all that time it has never once missed a year of the national records.

Across the states

See where Harold is more common.

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 26 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Around the world

See how Harold ranks in other countries and regions.

#660 in Belgium (2025) · #755 in Ecuador (2025) · #1,226 in England & Wales (2025) · #1,311 in Canada (2025) · #2,491 in France (2025) · #3,875 in Italy (2023) · #673 in Poland (2017) · #337 in Puerto Rico (2016) · #711 in Ireland (2013) · #648 in Scotland (2011) · #2,199 in Austria (2011) · #244 in New Zealand (1984) and 1 more.

Famous Harolds

Harold Pinter — British playwright (1930–2008)
Harold Macmillan — Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1957 to 1963 (1894–1986)
Harold Wilson — Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1964–1970, 1974–1976) (1916–1995)
Harold Urey — American physical chemist (1893–1981)
Harold Godwinson — King of England in 1066 (c. 1022 or 1026–c. 1066)
Harold Ramis — American actor, comedian, and filmmaker (1944–2014)
Harold Perrineau — American actor (born 1963)
Harold Bloom — American critic, scholar, and writer (1930–2019)
Harold Lloyd — American actor and comedian (1893–1971)
Harold Holt — Prime Minister of Australia from 1966 to 1967 (1908–1967)

In stories & tradition

Harold (Harry Osborn) — Marvel Comics supervillain
Harold (Hal Jordan) — DC Comics superhero

What Harolds become

Among 3,692 notable people named Harold:

Military figures appear 2.23× more often than among typical names — e.g. Harold Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis, British field marshal; Governor General of Canada (1891–1969).

Spellings & nicknames

About 340 boys a year are given Harry as their full name.

Similar names: Stanley · Arnold · Ralph · Howard · Harry · Gerald

Browse more boy names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.

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