Jerald
Jerald was the 4081st most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 26 babies. Its best year was 1942, when it ranked 223rd with 647 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 756 places. More babies were named Jerald in the 1940s than in any other decade.
Meaning variant of Gerald; "spear rule" · Germanic, English
Say it JAIR-uld /ˈdʒɛrəld/
- Rank in 2025
- #4,081 boys, down 845 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 26boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 1942647 babies
- Total since 1880
- 26,293babies recorded
What does the name Jerald mean?
Jerald is a spelling of Gerald, a Germanic name made of gēr, "spear", and walt, "power, rule". DMNES lists several medieval saints named Gerald and notes that it was often confused with Gerard. The Normans brought it to England; Jerald is a mainly American spelling, most common in the 1940s and 1950s.
gēr (Old High German, “spear”)walt (Old High German, “power, rule”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Gerald, Jerold, Jerry, Gerard.
See also: Germanic names, names that mean king or queen, names that mean warrior.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Jerald', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Gerald', DMNES (Durham University)
- Wikipedia, 'Jerald', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation)
Nicknames for Jerald
The usual nicknames for Jerald are Jerry. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 boys named Jerald in the last five years, 1172 were named Jerry, against 1542 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Boys, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jerry · also for Jeremias, Jeremiah, Jeremy | Traditional | #907 | 1,523 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are boys given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Jeralds go by each one.
Jerald popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 102 since 1932.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #4,081 | 26 |
| 2020 | #3,236 | 35 |
| 2010 | #2,759 | 44 |
| 2000 | #1,594 | 74 |
| 1990 | #811 | 158 |
| 1980 | #630 | 193 |
| 1970 | #388 | 430 |
| 1960 | #391 | 406 |
| 1950 | #300 | 509 |
| 1940 | #240 | 502 |
| 1930 | #427 | 191 |
| 1920 | #899 | 59 |
| 1910 | #1,161 | 9 |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Jerald, counting every spelling?
Jerald is the most common spelling of a name family that had 26 boys in 2025 across its spellings. Together these spellings went to 26 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jerald | 26 | #4,081 | 130 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Jerald?
26 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Jerald (0.01 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Jerald born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 323 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Jerald.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Jerald?
About 15,700 people born in the US named Jerald are alive today, with a median age of 62; half are between 47 and 73. That makes Jerald a name most people associate with older generations.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Jerald by state
How common Jerald was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. In 50 states fewer than five boys a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Jerald: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Jerald, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Jerald · Sibling names for Jerald
Questions about the name Jerald
What does Jerald mean?
Jerald means “variant of Gerald; "spear rule"” (Germanic, English origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Jerald?
Jerald was the 4081st most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 26 babies. Its best year was 1942, when it ranked 223rd with 647 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 756 places. More babies were named Jerald in the 1940s than in any other decade.
Is Jerald a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Jerald in the US.
Where is Jerald most popular?
In 2021–2025, Jerald was most common in Texas (0.01 per 1,000 boys).