Old English Baby Names, Meanings and Origins
“Old English” gets used loosely online to mean almost anything that sounds vintage or traditionally British, which causes real confusion, a point even raised directly by an Old English name-seeker on Reddit correcting a list of suggestions. Genuine Old English names come from Anglo-Saxon word roots used in England before roughly the 12th century, before Norman French reshaped the language. A name can sound old-fashioned in English without actually being Old English, and a few names commonly listed as “Old English” online are actually Greek, Latin, or Norman French in origin. The names below are ones with a real Anglo-Saxon linguistic root, drawn from the same historical record used by sources like Behind the Name’s Anglo-Saxon names archive.
Old English names for boys
- Alfred (from aelf, elf, and raed, counsel, meaning wise counsel)
- Alden (commonly read as meaning old friend or wise protector)
- Baldwin (meaning brave friend)
- Wulfric (from wulf, wolf, and ric, power, meaning wolf power)
- Eadwulf (from ead, wealth or fortune, and wulf, wolf)
- Harold (from here, army, and weald, ruler or power, meaning army ruler)
- Edwin (from ead, wealth or fortune, and wine, friend)
- Oswald (from os, god, and weald, power)
- Godwin (from god and wine, friend)
- Egbert (from ecg, edge or sword, and beorht, bright; the name of the first Anglo-Saxon king to be recognized as ruler of all England)
- Edgar (from ead, wealth or fortune, and gar, spear)
- Edmund (from ead, wealth or fortune, and mund, protection)
- Cuthbert (from cuth, known or famous, and beorht, bright; the name of a widely venerated 7th-century English saint)
- Dunstan (from dunn, dark, and stan, stone; the name of a 10th-century saint and Archbishop of Canterbury)
- Leofric (from leof, dear or beloved, and ric, ruler; historically the name of the 11th-century Earl of Mercia, husband of Lady Godiva)
- Godric (from god and ric, ruler, meaning “god’s ruler”)
- Osric (from os, god, and ric, ruler)
- Osborn (from os, god, and beorn, warrior)
- Wilfred (from willa, will or desire, and frith, peace; the name of a 7th-century English saint)
- Hereward (from here, army, and weard, guard; the name of an 11th-century Anglo-Saxon leader who rebelled against Norman rule)
- Botolph (from bot, improvement, and wulf, wolf; the name of a 7th-century English abbot, likely the source of the place name Boston)
Browse boy names by letter
Namelyra’s general boy-name pages, if a specific letter doesn’t have Old English names covered here:
Old English names for girls
Fewer authentic Old English female names survive in common use than male ones, largely because Anglo-Saxon royal genealogies and church records, the main surviving sources, documented far more men than women. The names below are still genuinely attested, even where a couple are now rare.
- Isolda (commonly read as meaning fair)
- Alison (commonly read through its Old French/Old English path as meaning son of the noble, though it is used as a girl’s name today)
- Blythe (from an Old English word meaning happy or cheerful)
- Ethel (from a root meaning noble, a shortened form of longer names built on the same “aethel” element below)
- Edith (from ead, wealth or fortune, and gyth, war or strife)
- Hilda (from hild, meaning battle)
- Mildred (from milde, gentle, and thryth, strength)
- Godiva (from god and giefu, gift, meaning “gift of god”; the name of the legendary 11th-century English noblewoman)
- Audrey (an evolved English form of Aethelthryth, noble plus strength)
- Frideswide (from fridu, peace, and swith, strong; the name of an English saint)
- Edburga (from ead, wealth or fortune, and burg, fortress)
- Milburga (from milde, gentle, and burg, fortress; the name of a 7th-century English saint)
- Cynethryth (from cyne, royal, and thryth, strength; the name of an 8th-century queen of Mercia)
Browse girl names by letter
Namelyra’s general girl-name pages, if a specific letter doesn’t have Old English names covered here:
The “Aethel” naming pattern
A large number of genuine Old English names, especially among Anglo-Saxon royalty, are built on “aethel” (also written “ethel”), meaning noble. This is why names like Aethelred, Aethelstan, and Aethelwulf all start the same way but mean different things depending on the second root.
- Aethelred (noble + raed, counsel, meaning “noble counsel”; historically the name of an English king)
- Aethelstan (noble + stan, stone)
- Aethelwulf (noble + wulf, wolf)
- Aethelthryth (noble + thryth, strength; this name evolved over time into the modern name Audrey)
Old English surnames
Many Old English surnames started as descriptions rather than family names in the modern sense, often tied to a place, an occupation, or a physical trait, and were only fixed into inherited family names later.
- Calder (from words meaning river of stones or rocky stream)
- Caldwell (from cold and spring, describing a cold water source)
- Burt (commonly linked to a word for bright or fortress-like)
Quick facts
| Naming pattern | Usually two Anglo-Saxon word roots joined together |
| Common meaning themes | Nobility, wisdom, wolf and animal strength, happiness |
| Time period | Roughly before the 12th century, before Norman French influence reshaped English |
| Note | Many Old English names, like Alfred and Wulfric, were originally royal or aristocratic names before broader use |
Frequently asked questions
What makes a name “Old English” specifically?
It refers to names built from Anglo-Saxon word roots used in England before roughly the 12th century, distinct from later Norman French influenced names and distinct from names that simply sound old-fashioned in modern English.
Why do so many Old English names start with “Aethel”?
“Aethel” means noble, and it was a common building block in Anglo-Saxon royal and aristocratic names. Combined with a second root, like counsel, stone, or wolf, it produced distinct names that all shared the same noble opening.
Is Alison really an Old English name?
Its path is mixed, moving through Old French before settling into English use, so it is often grouped with Old English names loosely rather than being a pure Anglo-Saxon root.
Are names like Brandon or Harley Old English?
Not in the strict sense. Both started as English place-names and later surnames, Brandon from a hill associated with broom shrubs and Harley from a clearing associated with hares, rather than as personal given names used in the Anglo-Saxon period.
Are Old English names still commonly given today?
A few, like Alfred, have had a real revival in recent years, while others, like Wulfric, remain rare and are chosen specifically for their historical character.