Given name & surname · also Old English
Bradford
“from the wide ford”
Bradford is used as a given name and a surname. One English interpretation is “from the wide ford.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “from the wide ford.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Old English.
How it developed
It entered given-name use through an existing surname.
The story
Its naming history includes the use of a family name as a given name.
Bradford through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 32,114
- 32,075 boys · 39 girls
- Most popular year
- 1953
- 779 babies
- 2025
- 32
- #3,522 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −29%
- Easing
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 32 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 3,522 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 29.4% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 779 in 1953. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 22,735 as a first name in 2020; 51,912 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.
Bradford’s family of names
In English usage, Bradford has a diminutive in Brad. Bradford has a related form in Bradferd. Bradford has a short form in Brad.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 7
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
People named Bradford
- Brad DourifAmerican actor (born 1950)
- Brad DelsonAmerican guitarist and rock musicianborn 1977
- Bradford DillmanAmerican actor (1930–2018)
- Brad MehldauAmerican jazz pianist, composer, and arrangerborn 1970
- Brad RaffenspergerSecretary of State of Georgia since 2019born 1955
- Brad CooperAustralian swimmerborn 1954
- Bradford YoungAmerican cinematographerborn 1977
- Bradford Jamieson IVAmerican professional soccer playerborn 1996
- Bradford ParkinsonAmerican systems engineer and developer of global positioning systemborn 1935
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Bradford, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Stanford
“from the stony ford”
>99% boys
Stafford
“from the landing ford”
>99% boys
Stanton
“from the stone town”
>99% boys
Artis
“lofty hill; noble” · “rock”
94% boys · 6% girls
Gerard
“one who is mighty with a spear”
>99% boys
Waymond
Waymond is a masculine given name.
>99% boys
Sherman
“one who cuts wool cloth”
>99% boys
Carlton
“from the free man's town”
>99% boys