Given name & surname · also English
Shields
“a loyal protector”·“a faithful protector”
Shields is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “a loyal protector” (English) and “a faithful protector”. These may reflect different naming traditions.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Interpretations include “a loyal protector” (English) and “a faithful protector”. These may reflect different naming traditions.
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1915. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Shields through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 88
- 88 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 1915
- 10 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for boys is 5 in 1962. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 10 in 1915. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 153 as a first name in 2020; 49,337 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.
Shields’s family of names
Shields has a related form in Shealds. Shields has a related form in Sheelds. Shields has a related form in Sheylds.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 7
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
People named Shields
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Shields, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Geddes
Geddes is a surname from Scottish Gaelic.
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“one who acquires”
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Moffett
“field, plain”
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Mcclure
“son of the dun lad”
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Kester
“from the Roman army's camp” · “a follower of Christ”
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Forbes
“from the field”
>99% boys
Forbus
Forbus is a surname from Scottish Gaelic.
>99% boys
Dugald
“a dark stranger”
>99% boys