Given name & surname
Alden
“an old friend”
Alden is used as a given name and a surname. One English interpretation is “an old friend.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “an old friend.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
How it developed
From Old English Ealdwine, built from Old English eald (“old”) + wine (“friend”).
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Alden through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 19,173
- 18,221 boys · 952 girls
- Most popular year
- 2024
- 519 babies
- 2025
- 498
- #598 for boys · #6,125 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +11%
- Rising
Boys, girls and both
The balance of boys and girls given this name has shifted over time. Recent births are 95% boys.
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 479 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 598 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 10.3% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. It also appeared in 19 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (48). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 13,184 as a first name in 2020; 5,304 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Alden’s family of names
Alden has a related form in Aldin. Alden has a related form in Aldon. In English usage, Alden has a related form in Aldwyn.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 10
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Aldonvariant
- Aldinvariant
- Aldanvariant
- Oldenvariant · English
- Aldynvariant
- Aldennlikely variant
- Alldenlikely variant
- Aldwynvariant · English
Show 2 moreShow fewer
Across languages 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Alden
- Alden EhrenreichAmerican actorborn 1989
- Alden SanbornAmerican rower (1899-1991)
- Alden W. ClausenAmerican businessman, President of the World Bank, 1981-19861923–2013
- Alden RichardsFilipino actor and television personalityborn 1992
- Alden McLaughlinCaymanian politicianborn 1961
- Alden H. MillerU.S. ornithologist (1906–1965)
- Alden B. DowAmerican architect (1904-1983)
- Alden John BellRoman Catholic bishop (1904–1982)
- Alden PartridgeUnited States Army officer1785–1854
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
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