Hulda
Feminine
Hulda is two names that met in nineteenth-century America: a Hebrew prophetess named in the Book of Kings, and a Norse word for something hidden. Scandinavian emigration and Protestant Bible reading brought them to the same page.
How old is the name Hulda?
Hulda was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Hulda alive today was born around 1903, making them about 122 years old. About 200 people named Hulda are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Hulda most popular?
Hulda peaked in 1885, reaching #171 nationally. See the whole 1885 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Huldah to Hulda
The story of Hulda
Huldah appears in the Book of Kings as a prophetess consulted by the king's officials about a newly found scroll — one of the very few women in the Hebrew Bible given prophetic authority, and one of the gates of the Temple Mount was named for her. Separately, Hulda is an ordinary Scandinavian name. Nineteenth-century American records carry both streams at once, and the name peaked around 1880.
Meaningscholars disagree
Not established
The Hebrew Huldah is usually read as 'weasel' or 'mole', from a word for a burrowing animal, though that reading has always sat awkwardly with the figure who carries it. The Old Norse Hulda comes from a root meaning hidden or secret, and in Scandinavian folklore Huldra is a being of the forest. The two are unrelated and both fed the American name.
How the name formed
- Huldah
- Hulda
Related forms: Hulda · Hulda · Hulda · Huldah
Pronouncing Hulda
HULL-duh
Two syllables, stress on the first. Swedish and Icelandic say it the same way with a purer first vowel.
Nicknames for Hulda
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
- 1880
- Most girls named
- 1895167 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #171reached in 1885
- Change vs 1965
- −16.7%5 in 1980, 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.
Hulda in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Hulda in Swedish — same name
- Hulda in Icelandic — same name
- Hulda in German — same name
- Huldah in Hebrew — spelling variant
Huldas among us
people named Hulda 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
Hulda has already lived its whole cycle: it rose, had its era, and has stepped off the charts. The fashion question is behind it — what lies ahead is the waiting room where revivals begin, once a name's first generation has grown distant enough for it to sound fresh again.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- Two genuinely deep traditions stand behind it, one Hebrew and one Norse.
- The biblical Huldah is a documented figure with real authority in her own story.
- It is a living name in Sweden, Iceland and Germany, so it travels.
- The Hebrew meaning usually given is 'weasel', which some families will want to weigh.
- The two origins are unrelated, so the name cannot promise a single meaning.
- It is strongly period-coded to the nineteenth century in American records.
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Hulda
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Huldas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 200 people named Hulda are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Hulda in 2025?
- Hulda is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Hulda with classmates?
- Hulda will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More H names
The most-given names starting with H, all years combined.
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Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Hulda? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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