Wardell
Wardell was last recorded in 2020, when 5 babies were given it; 4,326 Americans have been recorded with it between 1896 and 2020 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026).
An estimated 2,110 Americans named Wardell and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (49% of everyone recorded); the median is 63 years old and half are between 47 and 73.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Wardell by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Wardell mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Wardell is “a male given name.”
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Wardell?
Unranked in 2025
Its last boys’ rank on record is #13,933, in 2020; SSA lists a name only in years with 5 or more births.
87 babies in 1950, the peak
Wardell peaked in 1950, when 87 boys were given it, #739 among boys’ names. It was not recorded in 2025.
| Year | Births | Rank | Per million boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 5 | #13,933 | 2.9 |
| 2019 | 6 | #12,049 | 3.3 |
| 2016 | 6 | #12,091 | 3.2 |
| 2015 | 6 | #12,008 | 3.1 |
| 2013 | 7 | #10,664 | 3.7 |
| 2012 | 8 | #9,659 | 4.2 |
| 2011 | 5 | #14,229 | 2.6 |
| 2010 | 10 | #8,095 | 5.2 |
| 2009 | 12 | #7,206 | 6.0 |
| 2008 | 6 | #12,465 | 2.9 |
Every recorded year (115)
| Year | Births | Rank | Per million boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 6 | #12,280 | 2.9 |
| 2006 | 14 | #6,072 | 6.8 |
| 2005 | 5 | #13,264 | 2.5 |
| 2004 | 12 | #6,495 | 6.0 |
| 2003 | 8 | #8,593 | 4.0 |
| 2002 | 6 | #10,605 | 3.1 |
| 2001 | 10 | #6,906 | 5.1 |
| 2000 | 10 | #6,803 | 5.1 |
| 1999 | 9 | #7,103 | 4.7 |
| 1998 | 6 | #9,586 | 3.1 |
| 1997 | 14 | #4,653 | 7.4 |
| 1996 | 9 | #6,470 | 4.8 |
| 1995 | 12 | #5,105 | 6.3 |
| 1994 | 16 | #4,080 | 8.3 |
| 1993 | 13 | #4,680 | 6.6 |
| 1992 | 19 | #3,450 | 9.5 |
| 1991 | 14 | #4,211 | 6.9 |
| 1990 | 23 | #2,857 | 11.2 |
| 1989 | 22 | #2,890 | 11.0 |
| 1988 | 30 | #2,135 | 15.7 |
| 1987 | 21 | #2,632 | 11.2 |
| 1986 | 41 | #1,615 | 22.3 |
| 1985 | 23 | #2,353 | 12.4 |
| 1984 | 16 | #2,950 | 8.9 |
| 1983 | 28 | #1,952 | 15.6 |
| 1982 | 28 | #1,996 | 15.4 |
| 1981 | 22 | #2,335 | 12.3 |
| 1980 | 27 | #2,054 | 15.1 |
| 1979 | 28 | #1,941 | 16.3 |
| 1978 | 30 | #1,792 | 18.3 |
| 1977 | 28 | #1,854 | 17.0 |
| 1976 | 36 | #1,537 | 22.9 |
| 1975 | 38 | #1,452 | 24.3 |
| 1974 | 39 | #1,386 | 24.8 |
| 1973 | 35 | #1,462 | 22.5 |
| 1972 | 47 | #1,209 | 29.0 |
| 1971 | 38 | #1,399 | 21.5 |
| 1970 | 36 | #1,414 | 19.4 |
| 1969 | 37 | #1,325 | 20.7 |
| 1968 | 46 | #1,117 | 26.5 |
| 1967 | 34 | #1,310 | 19.5 |
| 1966 | 42 | #1,162 | 23.5 |
| 1965 | 47 | #1,091 | 25.3 |
| 1964 | 48 | #1,112 | 24.1 |
| 1963 | 50 | #1,091 | 24.6 |
| 1962 | 64 | #951 | 30.9 |
| 1961 | 57 | #1,040 | 26.8 |
| 1960 | 71 | #902 | 33.3 |
| 1959 | 79 | #861 | 37.0 |
| 1958 | 80 | #848 | 37.7 |
| 1957 | 67 | #926 | 31.1 |
| 1956 | 86 | #807 | 40.7 |
| 1955 | 82 | #810 | 39.8 |
| 1954 | 71 | #874 | 34.8 |
| 1953 | 68 | #875 | 34.5 |
| 1952 | 84 | #767 | 43.2 |
| 1951 | 75 | #818 | 39.8 |
| 1950 | 87 | #739 | 48.6 |
| 1949 | 84 | #751 | 47.4 |
| 1948 | 80 | #758 | 45.6 |
| 1947 | 66 | #859 | 36.1 |
| 1946 | 63 | #837 | 38.8 |
| 1945 | 66 | #759 | 49.0 |
| 1944 | 61 | #809 | 44.8 |
| 1943 | 65 | #822 | 45.5 |
| 1942 | 66 | #794 | 47.8 |
| 1941 | 64 | #785 | 52.1 |
| 1940 | 61 | #800 | 52.6 |
| 1939 | 51 | #866 | 46.1 |
| 1938 | 41 | #1,007 | 37.0 |
| 1937 | 52 | #857 | 48.8 |
| 1936 | 49 | #881 | 47.2 |
| 1935 | 71 | #730 | 68.2 |
| 1934 | 70 | #732 | 67.8 |
| 1933 | 60 | #798 | 60.5 |
| 1932 | 64 | #801 | 61.3 |
| 1931 | 43 | #1,029 | 41.4 |
| 1930 | 44 | #1,051 | 40.1 |
| 1929 | 60 | #857 | 55.8 |
| 1928 | 59 | #870 | 53.3 |
| 1927 | 62 | #865 | 55.0 |
| 1926 | 54 | #930 | 48.6 |
| 1925 | 55 | #914 | 49.3 |
| 1924 | 56 | #943 | 49.4 |
| 1923 | 48 | #1,023 | 43.8 |
| 1922 | 53 | #973 | 48.7 |
| 1921 | 52 | #980 | 47.2 |
| 1920 | 50 | #984 | 47.0 |
| 1919 | 51 | #948 | 52.0 |
| 1918 | 51 | #941 | 50.3 |
| 1917 | 40 | #1,061 | 43.2 |
| 1916 | 40 | #1,027 | 44.9 |
| 1915 | 33 | #1,138 | 38.9 |
| 1914 | 18 | #1,487 | 27.5 |
| 1913 | 22 | #1,109 | 42.9 |
| 1912 | 20 | #1,055 | 46.5 |
| 1911 | 11 | #1,114 | 48.7 |
| 1910 | 11 | #1,039 | 56.6 |
| 1909 | 15 | #753 | 91.5 |
| 1908 | 7 | #1,211 | 45.4 |
| 1907 | 5 | #1,540 | 34.1 |
| 1904 | 9 | #871 | 70.2 |
| 1902 | 9 | #859 | 73.4 |
| 1900 | 6 | #1,295 | 39.9 |
| 1896 | 7 | #976 | 58.5 |
Ranks and shares: boys’ names in each year’s SSA file; share of all boys SSA recorded that year.
Is Wardell a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Wardell has been given almost only to boys: 36 girls in 115 years of records.
Girls and boys named Wardell: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Wardell, and how old are they?
2,110 alive in 2026, estimated
That is 49% of the 4,326 Americans ever recorded as Wardell. The median Wardell alive today is 63 years old; half are between 47 and 73.
The 2020 Census counted 1,758 people named Wardell (29 women and girls, 1,729 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 2,437 born in the U.S. The Census count is 28% below that prediction. Possible reasons: people who give a short form or another name to the Census, and a survival estimate that can run high.
Alive today, by age
Alive today, by generation
| Generation | Born | Alive |
|---|---|---|
| Silent Generation | 1928-1945 | 216 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 889 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 516 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 319 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 139 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 30 |
An estimate, not a count. SSA’s files count people born in the United States who received a Social Security number, so anyone born abroad is not in them; before 1937 most people got a number as adults, and their survival is counted from that age.
Living estimate: SSA births carried forward with the survival rates in SSA’s cohort life tables (2024 Trustees Report) for each birth year and sex. How the estimate is made. Count: Census Bureau, first names in the 2020 Census (released April 14, 2026; names reported 100 or more times, with the Bureau’s disclosure-avoidance adjustment).
Where are babies named Wardell born?
The states with the most babies named Wardell are Mississippi, Louisiana and South Carolina, with 56% of its births recorded by state since 1910; Mississippi and Louisiana and South Carolina are not among the ten states with the most births.
| State | Since 1910 | Rank, boys | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi | 502 | not ranked | 6.9× |
| Louisiana | 232 | not ranked | 2.6× |
| South Carolina | 177 | not ranked | 2.4× |
| Illinois | 173 | not ranked | 0.8× |
| Texas | 92 | not ranked | 0.3× |
| Arkansas | 84 | not ranked | 1.4× |
| North Carolina | 81 | not ranked | 0.6× |
| Virginia | 45 | not ranked | 0.5× |
| Maryland | 38 | not ranked | 0.6× |
| Alabama | 35 | not ranked | 0.4× |
Where Wardell is more common than its national share predicts
Relative to its national share, Wardell is most over-represented in Mississippi: since 1910 it was given 6.9 times as often there as its national share each year would predict.
States: SSA state file, 1910-2025, published May 8, 2026; births count girls and boys together, and the rank is among boys’ names in the state in 2025. The file leaves out any state and year with fewer than 5 babies of the name, so small states are undercounted; each ratio compares the state’s births of Wardell with the births its national share predicts year by year, for states with at least 100 births of the name.
Names that rose and fell in the same decades as Wardell
Names whose births rose and fell across the same decades, measured on each decade’s share of births.
Similar histories: each decade’s share of births, from the SSA national file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
More about Wardell and names like it
- Compare Wardell and ErskineBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 1950sWardell peaked in 1950.
- Mississippi’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Wardell since 1910.
- The top names of 1950The year the most babies were named Wardell.
- The names of the Baby BoomersMost people named Wardell alive today were born 1946-1964.
- Names starting with WMost given first.