Arnold
Arnold is a masculine German, Dutch and English given name. It is composed of the Germanic elements arn "eagle" and wald "power, brightness". The name was first recorded in Francia from about the 7th century, at first often conflated with the name Arnulf, as in the name of bishop Arnulf of Metz, also recorded as Arnoald.
Meaning & Origin of Arnold
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Arnold is a masculine German, Dutch and English given name. It is composed of the Germanic elements arn "eagle" and wald "power, brightness". The name was first recorded in Francia from about the 7th century, at first often conflated with the name Arnulf, as in the name of bishop Arnulf of Metz, also recorded as Arnoald.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
The Story of Arnold
Arnold first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby boy name in 1880, with 37 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1924, when 2,014 Arnolds were born — ranking #95 that year. As of 2026, Arnold ranks #1,618 for baby boys with 106 births, holding steady (-1%). In total, more than 104K Arnolds have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1880s through the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Names that sound like Arnold
Phonetically similar names — useful when Arnold is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Arnold
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About the name Arnold
Arnold is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1880 and has accumulated 104K births in the dataset. Arnold's peak popularity came in 1924 when it ranked #89. Use the chart and map above to compare Arnold's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 1924 →
- Names of the 1920s →
- Names starting with "A" →
- Browse all boy names →
- Top names of 2026 →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.