Gerald

maleStatistical record

What official birth registration shows about Gerald: which national registrars published it, in which years, and how its recorded position changed.

No researched meaning, origin or pronunciation yet — what that means.

Gerald: Recorded since 1955, it reached #57 in 1964, and it stood at #1,859 in 2024.

4registrars recorded it
89times a registrar ranked it
70years from first to last
#57highest recorded position
16groupings it qualifies for

Region

Falling

among boys in England and Wales · 1996–2024

View as table

England and Wales · Boys rank by year
Year	Rank
1996	#680
1997	#874
1998	#1000
1999	#1281
2000	#918
2001	#1078
2002	#1128
2003	#865
2004	#1347
2005	#1456
2006	#1224
2007	#1756
2008	#1511
2009	#1568
2010	#2199
2011	#3830
2012	#1589
2013	#1920
2014	#2248
2015	#2150
2016	#1903
2017	#2734
2018	#1991
2019	#2488
2020	#1548
2021	#2493
2022	#2165
2023	#2007
2024	#1859

VerifiedSource: Office for National Statistics — Baby Names in England and Wales.Confidence: high.

See all England and Wales names · Source: Office for National Statistics — Baby Names in England and Wales

What the data shows

FallingEngland and Wales · Boys

Recorded in official data among boys in Republic of Ireland in 51 of the 60 years from 1964 to 2023.

In 2023: #770 among boys in Republic of Ireland, #2007 among boys in England and Wales.

Official data from 4 national registrars across 4 regions, 1955–2024 · Office for National Statistics. Data sources

Popularity journey

First recorded1955
First recorded at #90 among boys in New Zealand in 1955 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
New Zealand · Boys
Highest recorded1964–2023
Highest recorded position: #57 among boys in Republic of Ireland, in 1964 (recorded 1964–2023).
Republic of Ireland · Boys
Most recent2024
Most recently recorded at #1859 among boys in England and Wales, in 2024.
England and Wales · Boys

Gerald appears in 4 of the published lists Namewise holds. The longest record is Republic of Ireland · Boys, with 51 ranked years and 1,537 births registered; the earliest is New Zealand · Boys, from 1955.

Gerald across 4 official records

Each registrar publishes its own list, so these figures are read down a row, never across one. A position in one country is not comparable with a position in another, and Namewise never combines them into a single ranking. The birth counts do not compare across rows either, for a different reason: England and Wales registers roughly thirty times as many births a year as Northern Ireland, so a larger total says which registrar recorded it as much as how widely the name was given.

Gerald's first, highest and most recent recorded position in each official list, with the number of births each registrar registered with the name and its largest single year
Published list	First recorded	Highest	Most recent	Years recorded	Births registered	Most in one year
Republic of Ireland · Boys	#57 (1964)	#57 (1964)	#770 (2023)	51 of 60	1,537 (1964–2023)	94 (1964)
England and Wales · Boys	#680 (1996)	#680 (1996)	#1859 (2024)	29 of 29	367 (1996–2024)	23 (1996)
Northern Ireland · Boys	#169 (1997)	#169 (1997)	#311 (2011)	7 of 15	34 (1997–2011)	9 (1997)
New Zealand · Boys	#90 (1955)	#90 (1955)	#97 (1957)	2 of 3	104 (1955–1957)	52 (1955)

Gerald by decade in Republic of Ireland · Boys

Births registered with the name in each decade of this one list, with the number of years the list covers in that decade. Bars are scaled on births a year, which is the figure that compares between decades — a decade the list only partly covers has a smaller total without being a quieter decade. Figures belong to this registrar alone and do not carry to another.

Births registered with Gerald in Republic of Ireland · Boys, by decade, with years covered and the average per year
Decade	Births registered	Years covered	A year
1960sbusiest	451	6 of 10	75
1970s	572	10 of 10	57
1980s	315	10 of 10	32
1990s	128	10 of 10	13
2000s	47	9 of 10	5
2010s	18	4 of 10	5
2020s	6	2 of 10	3

Across Republic of Ireland · Boys, the 1960s were its busiest decade — the 6 years of it this list covers, averaging 75 births a year.

Its sharpest single-year move came between 1975 and 1976, when recorded births fell by 26, from 72 to 46.

See the names Republic of Irelandhas recorded the most births with →

Gerald appears in

Groupings this name qualifies for under their own stated rules, from the same official statistics shown above.

Popularity data

Official popularity data is available for 4 regions, from 1955 to 2024. Highest recorded position: #57 in Republic of Ireland in 1964.

Gerald's recorded popularity observations by year, region and administrative category, including rank, registered births, source confidence and when each region's data was last reviewed.
Year	Region	Category	Rank	Births registered	Confidence	Status
2024	England and Wales	male	#1859	13	High	Verified
2023	England and Wales	male	#2007	11	High	Verified
2022	England and Wales	male	#2165	10	High	Verified
2021	England and Wales	male	#2493	8	High	Verified
2020	England and Wales	male	#1548	15	High	Verified
2019	England and Wales	male	#2488	8	High	Verified
2018	England and Wales	male	#1991	11	High	Verified
2017	England and Wales	male	#2734	7	High	Verified
2016	England and Wales	male	#1903	12	High	Verified
2015	England and Wales	male	#2150	10	High	Verified
2014	England and Wales	male	#2248	9	High	Verified
2013	England and Wales	male	#1920	11	High	Verified
2012	England and Wales	male	#1589	15	High	Verified
2011	England and Wales	male	#3830	4	High	Verified
2010	England and Wales	male	#2199	9	High	Verified
2009	England and Wales	male	#1568	14	High	Verified
2008	England and Wales	male	#1511	14	High	Verified
2007	England and Wales	male	#1756	11	High	Verified
2006	England and Wales	male	#1224	17	High	Verified
2005	England and Wales	male	#1456	13	High	Verified
2004	England and Wales	male	#1347	13	High	Verified
2003	England and Wales	male	#865	23	High	Verified
2002	England and Wales	male	#1128	14	High	Verified
2001	England and Wales	male	#1078	14	High	Verified
2000	England and Wales	male	#918	17	High	Verified
1999	England and Wales	male	#1281	10	High	Verified
1998	England and Wales	male	#1000	14	High	Verified
1997	England and Wales	male	#874	17	High	Verified
1996	England and Wales	male	#680	23	High	Verified
1957	New Zealand	male	#97	52	High	Verified
1955	New Zealand	male	#90	52	High	Verified
2011	Northern Ireland	male	#311	4	High	Verified
2007	Northern Ireland	male	#276	5	High	Verified
2003	Northern Ireland	male	#299	3	High	Verified
2000	Northern Ireland	male	#277	3	High	Verified
1999	Northern Ireland	male	#220	5	High	Verified
1998	Northern Ireland	male	#221	5	High	Verified
1997	Northern Ireland	male	#169	9	High	Verified
2023	Republic of Ireland	male	#770	3	High	Verified
2021	Republic of Ireland	male	#755	3	High	Verified
2016	Republic of Ireland	male	#448	7	High	Verified
2015	Republic of Ireland	male	#615	4	High	Verified
2014	Republic of Ireland	male	#715	3	High	Verified
2011	Republic of Ireland	male	#623	4	High	Verified
2009	Republic of Ireland	male	#472	6	High	Verified
2008	Republic of Ireland	male	#601	4	High	Verified
2007	Republic of Ireland	male	#629	3	High	Verified
2005	Republic of Ireland	male	#302	8	High	Verified
2004	Republic of Ireland	male	#351	6	High	Verified
2003	Republic of Ireland	male	#375	5	High	Verified
2002	Republic of Ireland	male	#451	3	High	Verified
2001	Republic of Ireland	male	#251	8	High	Verified
2000	Republic of Ireland	male	#347	4	High	Verified
1999	Republic of Ireland	male	#290	5	High	Verified
1998	Republic of Ireland	male	#280	5	High	Verified
1997	Republic of Ireland	male	#196	14	High	Verified
1996	Republic of Ireland	male	#192	14	High	Verified
1995	Republic of Ireland	male	#222	9	High	Verified
1994	Republic of Ireland	male	#167	15	High	Verified
1993	Republic of Ireland	male	#169	18	High	Verified
1992	Republic of Ireland	male	#180	15	High	Verified
1991	Republic of Ireland	male	#175	14	High	Verified
1990	Republic of Ireland	male	#161	19	High	Verified
1989	Republic of Ireland	male	#159	17	High	Verified
1988	Republic of Ireland	male	#141	24	High	Verified
1987	Republic of Ireland	male	#144	23	High	Verified
1986	Republic of Ireland	male	#135	29	High	Verified
1985	Republic of Ireland	male	#130	31	High	Verified
1984	Republic of Ireland	male	#137	26	High	Verified
1983	Republic of Ireland	male	#116	45	High	Verified
1982	Republic of Ireland	male	#118	42	High	Verified
1981	Republic of Ireland	male	#128	32	High	Verified
1980	Republic of Ireland	male	#116	46	High	Verified
1979	Republic of Ireland	male	#127	36	High	Verified
1978	Republic of Ireland	male	#107	59	High	Verified
1977	Republic of Ireland	male	#110	48	High	Verified
1976	Republic of Ireland	male	#112	46	High	Verified
1975	Republic of Ireland	male	#92	72	High	Verified
1974	Republic of Ireland	male	#108	49	High	Verified
1973	Republic of Ireland	male	#99	57	High	Verified
1972	Republic of Ireland	male	#104	52	High	Verified
1971	Republic of Ireland	male	#93	73	High	Verified
1970	Republic of Ireland	male	#80	80	High	Verified
1969	Republic of Ireland	male	#94	55	High	Verified
1968	Republic of Ireland	male	#75	69	High	Verified
1967	Republic of Ireland	male	#73	73	High	Verified
1966	Republic of Ireland	male	#64	82	High	Verified
1965	Republic of Ireland	male	#64	78	High	Verified
1964	Republic of Ireland	male	#57	94	High	Verified

England and Wales hub — collected by Office for National Statistics
New Zealand hub — collected by NZ Department of Internal Affairs
Northern Ireland hub — collected by NISRA
Republic of Ireland hub — collected by CSO Ireland

See methodology and data sources for how popularity data is collected and what "confidence" means.

What the record shows

Recorded by 4 registrars between 1955 and 2024, ranked in 63 years of that period.

Its highest recorded position is #57, first reached in 1964.

It held a top-100 place in 12 years, 8 of them consecutive.

Its largest count from any one registrar is 94 births, registered in Republic of Ireland in 1964.

Its record falls into 3 separate stretches, with a longest absence of 6 years.

A second registrar first ranked it in 1964, and 42 years separate the first registrar to record it from the last.

Every figure here is counted from the seven official registrars Namewise holds. A position is only ever a place within the list that published it, and a record that thins or stops is a fact about what registrars printed — never about how many children received the name.

Where to go next

Records with a comparable body of evidence, so the catalogue can be read outward from this one. Each group states the rule it was selected by.

Next in the catalogue

The records either side of this one alphabetically.

Georgio · #1765, 27y
Georgios · #365, 51y
Geraldine · #7, 58y
Gerard · #10, 72y

A comparable record

Records held by the same 4 registrars, over a similar number of ranked years, whose highest position is closest to this one. A similar body of evidence — never a claim that the names themselves are alike.

Catriona · #58, 60y
Killian · #55, 62y
Seamus · #55, 62y
Bronagh · #60, 61y

Also first recorded in the 1950s

Records whose earliest ranking in Namewise's registrar data also falls between 1950 and 1959.

Maryam · #57, 66y
Connie · #58, 69y
Darryl · #58, 66y
Janette · #58, 45y

Gerald was ranked #57 in Republic of Ireland · Boys in 1964. These are the names immediately either side of it on that published list — a fact about the registrar's own output, not a similarity judgement.

Gerald and the names beside it

Two names in the same published list are measured on the same scale, in the same year, by the same registrar — so these are positions that genuinely passed each other, not a similarity judgement. Drawn from the 2,573 names with a recorded popularity standing (common, familiar, uncommon), so a name outside that set could have passed Gerald without appearing here.

Gerald moved ahead of

Graham Compare
In 2023 they stood at #2007 and #1533 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2024 that had become #1859 and #5119.
Geoffrey Compare
In 2022 they stood at #2165 and #1879 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2023 that had become #2007 and #4107.
Barry Compare
In 2021 they stood at #2493 and #2301 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2022 that had become #2165 and #4001.
Grant Compare
In 2021 they stood at #2493 and #2301 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2022 that had become #2165 and #4001.

Moved ahead of Gerald

Theodor Compare
In 2009 they stood at #1568 and #2544 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2010 that had become #2199 and #1201.
Hunter Compare
In 2006 they stood at #1224 and #1643 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2007 that had become #1756 and #926.
Marius Compare
In 2013 they stood at #1920 and #2055 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2014 that had become #2248 and #1486.
Tadhg Compare
In 2009 they stood at #1568 and #1749 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2010 that had become #2199 and #1551.

Moved the opposite way to Gerald

Alexander Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Gerald went from #57 to #770 while Alexander went from #116 to #48.
Benjamin Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Gerald went from #57 to #770 while Benjamin went from #139 to #71.
Conor Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Gerald went from #57 to #770 while Conor went from #56 to #12.
Daniel Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Gerald went from #57 to #770 while Daniel went from #19 to #10.

Moved the same way as Gerald

Adrian Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Gerald went from #57 to #770 and Adrian from #65 to #268.
Alfred Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Gerald went from #57 to #770 and Alfred from #134 to #472.
Denis Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Gerald went from #57 to #770 and Denis from #21 to #224.
Edward Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Gerald went from #57 to #770 and Edward from #18 to #177.

What's not yet available

Meaning
Origin
Pronunciation
Nicknames and spelling variants

Absence from this list does not mean the name isn't genuinely meaningful or widely used — only that Namewise hasn't sourced and reviewed that content yet. Absence from a specific year or geography above does not prove zero use there either; official statistics only publish names above a minimum threshold.

Official popularity data is available for 4 regions, from 1955 to 2024. Highest recorded position: #57 in Republic of Ireland in 1964. Source data last verified 2026-07-21.

Gerald

Gerald at a glance

What the data shows

Popularity journey

Gerald across 4 official records

Gerald by decade in Republic of Ireland · Boys

Gerald appears in

Popularity data

What the record shows

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1950s

Names published alongside Gerald

Gerald and the names beside it

Gerald moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Gerald

Moved the opposite way to Gerald

Moved the same way as Gerald

Gerald at a glance

Gerald across 4 official records

Gerald by decade in Republic of Ireland · Boys

Gerald appears in

What the record shows

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1950s

Names published alongside Gerald

Gerald and the names beside it

Gerald moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Gerald

Moved the opposite way to Gerald

Moved the same way as Gerald