Darold
Masculine
Darold is an American-made name: the Dar- opening that gave Darrell and Darlene, fitted onto the back half of Harold. It arrived on the charts in the decades when Harold was an ordinary name in every American town, and it still carries the sound of that generation.
How old is the name Darold?
Darold first appears in US birth records in 1912 — 113 years ago. The typical Darold alive today was born around 1947, making them about 78 years old. About 2,100 people named Darold are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Darold most popular?
Darold peaked in 1935, reaching #589 nationally. See the whole 1935 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Haraldr to Darold
The story of Darold
Harold reached English twice, first as the Old English Hereweald and again as the Haraldr the Danes brought with them, and it stayed a common English name for a thousand years. Darold is far newer. It appears in American records early in the twentieth century, in the same years as Darrell, Darrel, Derald and Gerold, and it follows the method American parents were using freely then: take a familiar ending and put a different opening in front of it. No other country has the name, and no older document carries it.
Meaningnot established
Not established
Darold is a blend and carries no inherited meaning of its own. The half it borrows from Harold does: the Old Norse Haraldr, from herr, an army, and valdr, a ruler. The half it borrows from Darrell is a Norman place name.
How the name formed
- Haraldr
- Harold
- Darold
Pronouncing Darold
DARE-uld
Two syllables with the weight at the front, the first said like the word dare. Some families use DAR-uld, with the vowel of car, and both are in ordinary use.
Nicknames for Darold
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1912
- Most boys named
- 193596 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #589reached in 1935
- Change vs 2007
- +16.7%7 in 2021, from 6
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Darolds among us
people named Darold are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Darold sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- It reads as a real name on sight because both halves are familiar, so nobody has to sound it out.
- The rhyme with Harold and Gerald gives it a settled place in English even though it is a made name.
- Short forms come ready: Dar for every day, Darold for the record.
- It will be misheard as Darrell and misspelt as Gerald or Harold by turns.
- It belongs firmly to one American generation and will read that way to anyone who hears it.
- There is no history behind it and no meaning to pass on; the name begins in the twentieth century.
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Darold
Masculine
Frequently asked
- How many Darolds are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 2,100 people named Darold are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Darold in 2025?
- Darold is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 boy names.
- Will my child share the name Darold with classmates?
- Darold will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More D names
The most-given names starting with D, all years combined.
David#35 · Daniel#22 · Donald#690 · Dennis#707 · Douglas#807 · Dylan#41 · Danny#628 · Dale#1409
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Darold? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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