Wilbert
Wilbert was the 5031st most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 20 babies. Its best year was 1920, when it ranked 160th; the most babies were born in 1922 (902). Over the last ten years it has moved down 1,353 places. More babies were named Wilbert in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Meaning "bright will" · Germanic, English
Say it WIL-bert /ˈwɪlbərt/
- Rank in 2025
- #5,031 boys, down 1,118 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 20boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 1922902 babies
- Total since 1880
- 40,193babies recorded
What does the name Wilbert mean?
Wilbert is a Germanic name made of willo, "will, desire", and berht, "bright, famous". DMNES records it in medieval France, giving Old English and Old German forms of the elements. In English it survived as a surname and was revived as a first name, especially in the US, where it was most common in the 1910s and 1920s.
willo (Old German, “will”)beohrt / berhta (Old English / Old German, “bright”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Wilbur, Will, Bert, Gilbert.
See also: Germanic names, names that mean light.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Wilbert', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Wilbert', DMNES (Durham University)
Nicknames for Wilbert
The usual nicknames for Wilbert are Will and Bert. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 boys named Wilbert in the last five years, 895 were named Will, against 708 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Boys, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Will · also for William, Willard, Wilbur | Traditional | #1,195 | 886 |
| Bert · also for Robert, Albert, Herbert | Traditional | #10,866 | 42 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are boys given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Wilberts go by each one.
Wilbert popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 178 since 1915.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #5,031 | 20 |
| 2020 | #3,913 | 27 |
| 2010 | #2,871 | 42 |
| 2000 | #1,711 | 67 |
| 1990 | #948 | 120 |
| 1980 | #647 | 181 |
| 1970 | #503 | 259 |
| 1960 | #366 | 465 |
| 1950 | #274 | 578 |
| 1940 | #221 | 566 |
| 1930 | #192 | 720 |
| 1920 | #160 | 867 |
| 1910 | #186 | 146 |
| 1900 | #258 | 63 |
| 1890 | #334 | 28 |
| 1880 | #319 | 29 |
How popular is Wilbert, counting every spelling?
Wilbert has no other common spelling that sounds the same.
How many kids will share the name Wilbert?
20 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Wilbert (0.01 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Wilbert 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 423 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Wilbert.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Wilbert?
About 13,800 people born in the US named Wilbert are alive today, with a median age of 66; half are between 49 and 76. That makes Wilbert 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.
Wilbert by state
How common Wilbert was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. In 49 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 Wilbert: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Wilbert, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Wilbert · Sibling names for Wilbert
Questions about the name Wilbert
What does Wilbert mean?
Wilbert means “"bright will"” (Germanic, English origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Wilbert?
Wilbert was the 5031st most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 20 babies. Its best year was 1920, when it ranked 160th; the most babies were born in 1922 (902). Over the last ten years it has moved down 1,353 places. More babies were named Wilbert in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Is Wilbert a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Wilbert in the US.
Where is Wilbert most popular?
In 2021–2025, Wilbert was most common in Texas (0.01 per 1,000 boys), followed by California and California.