Edw
Diminutive of Edward, a masculine name of English origin meaning "wealthy guard".
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Edw. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Edw today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Edw births was 1889 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Edw. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Edw. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1889
6 babies that year
Average age
-
1889 SSA rank
#905
Tracked since 1889
Popularity
Edw: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Edw by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Edw during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 6 | 0 | 6 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Edw
The name Edw is a shortened form of the Germanic name Edward, which was derived from the Old English words "ead" meaning "prosperous" or "rich" and "weard" meaning "guard" or "protector." The name Edward was first recorded in the 9th century AD and became popular in England after the Norman conquest in 1066.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Edw is found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript record of landholders in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name Edw was likely used as an abbreviation or nickname for Edward during this period.
In the 12th century, the name Edw gained prominence with the birth of Edw of Woodstock, also known as the Black Prince (1330-1376). He was the eldest son of King Edward III of England and a renowned military leader during the Hundred Years' War against France.
Another notable figure with the name Edw was Edw of Caernarvon (1284-1327), who became King Edward II of England in 1307. His reign was tumultuous, marked by conflicts with the nobility and his eventual deposition in 1327.
In the literary world, Edw Fairfax (1580-1635) was an English poet and translator, best known for his translation of Tasso's epic poem "Gerusalemme Liberata" (Jerusalem Delivered) into English.
Edw Gibbon (1737-1794) was a celebrated English historian and writer, renowned for his monumental work "The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire," which profoundly influenced Western historiography.
Edw Lear (1812-1888) was an English artist, illustrator, and writer, best known for his literary nonsense in poetry and prose, including the famous nonsense poem "The Owl and the Pussycat" and his delightful limericks.
People
Edw + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Edw as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Edw: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Edw?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Edw going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about - US residents.
Is Edw a common name?
We classify Edw as "Very Rare". It ranks above 2.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 6 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Edw most popular?
The single biggest year for Edw was 1889, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Edw is about 0 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Edw in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Edw a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Edw in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Edw still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Edw in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Edw can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people have Edw as a first name?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.