boy's name
Bertrand
bair-TRAHN
- Origin French
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 2
- Letters 8
- Popularity Rare
- Births on record 71,464
Bertrand means bright raven, and the raven is deliberate — Germanic naming treated it as the bird of the battlefield and of Odin, so the compound is martial rather than ornithological. It peaked in 1970, and holds 71,432 lifetime births.
- Bertrand is a name of French origin.
- Peaked in France in 1970, when 2,055 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade in France.
- Today about 1 in 117,911 babies in France is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1900.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Bertrand over time
Births per decade in France, 1900s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1900s | 960 |
| 1910s | 850 |
| 1920s | 1,240 |
| 1930s | 1,730 |
| 1940s | 3,605 |
| 1950s | 10,425 |
| 1960s | 18,210 |
| 1970s | 17,685 |
| 1980s | 9,515 |
| 1990s | 2,635 |
| 2000s | 415 |
| 2010s | 90 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 15 |
What Bertrand means
Bertrand means bright raven. The Germanic joins a word meaning bright to one for a raven, and the bird carried associations with battle and with Odin.
Where Bertrand comes from
Bertrand is the French form of the Germanic Berhtram — beraht, bright, joined to hramn, a raven. Ravens follow armies, which is why they belong to Odin as Huginn and Muninn and why the element recurs in Germanic naming. Bertrand du Guesclin was Constable of France and the most effective French commander of the Hundred Years War's middle phase. Bertrand Russell carried it into modern English recognition.
Bertrand in use
Bertrand peaked in France in 1970, when 2,055 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It charts in two of the seven markets we track — 6210th in France on 5 births and 6261st in England and Wales — across 71,464 lifetime births. The two positions sit fifty-one places apart, which is unusually close for markets this far down.
How popular is Bertrand?
In 2025, Bertrand was given to 5 babies in France. It is a rare choice.
Where Bertrand is used
French counts are rounded to the nearest five and nothing below five is published, so these figures show the shape of the name's use rather than an exact tally. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Bertrand
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Bertrand also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Bertrand over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Bertrand
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Bertrand in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Bertrand
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Bertrand — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Bertrand
What does the name Bertrand mean?
Bright raven — the Germanic beraht, bright, joined to hramn, a raven.
Why a raven?
Ravens follow armies, which is why they belong to Odin and recur in Germanic war-naming.
Is Bertram the same name?
Yes — the English form of the same compound.
How popular is Bertrand?
6210th in France, down from a 1970 peak of 2,055 births.
Is Bertrand a girl's or a boy's name?
Bertrand is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Bertrand?
Bertrand has 2 syllables.
What are the nicknames for Bertrand?
Bertrand is usually shortened to Bert.
Is Bertrand a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Bertrand currently ranks #6,210 in France. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.