girl's name
Mildred
MIL-dred
- Origin English
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 2
- Letters 7
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 453,522
Ireland
#360
1972 births
Mildred is a girl's name from Old English elements meaning gentle strength, and it is among the least fashionable names of the twentieth century — yet our data marks it reviving, ninety years after its 1920 peak.
- Mildred is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 1920, when 18,099 babies were given the name.
- After peaking in the 1920s it fell out of use, and is now climbing again — a classic revival.
- Today about 1 in 33,831 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Mildred over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1880s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 2,924 |
| 1890s | 13,839 |
| 1900s | 36,325 |
| 1910s | 124,347 |
| 1920s | 147,624 |
| 1930s | 62,089 |
| 1940s | 33,212 |
| 1950s | 17,623 |
| 1960s | 7,707 |
| 1970s | 2,865 |
| 1980s | 1,378 |
| 1990s | 874 |
| 2000s | 807 |
| 2010s | 779 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 605 |
What Mildred means
Mildred means gentle strength, or mild power. The Old English joins a word meaning mild or gentle to one meaning strength or power, so the name holds two opposed ideas together deliberately.
Where Mildred comes from
Mildred is the Old English Mildþryð — milde, gentle or mild, joined to þryð, strength or power. Saint Mildthryth was a seventh-century abbess of Minster-in-Thanet, one of a family of royal Kentish women who founded and ran monasteries, and her cult kept the name alive through the medieval period before it faded. It was revived in the nineteenth century with the general Victorian interest in Anglo-Saxon names, peaked quickly in America, and then became a byword for old-fashioned. That our data now marks it reviving is a genuine surprise, though the numbers are small.
Mildred in use
Mildred peaked in the United States in 1920, when 18,099 babies were registered, and our data marks it reviving. It now ranks 1963rd in the United States on 98 births and 4420th in England and Wales on 5, across 453,522 lifetime births in two markets. The revival is from a very low base and the absolute numbers remain small, but the direction is the same as Walter, Frances, Joan and Maurice — all of which peaked between 1918 and 1932.
How popular is Mildred?
In 2025, Mildred was given to 98 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Mildred is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Mildred
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Mildred also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Mildred over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Mildred
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.
Mildred 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 Mildred
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Mildred — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Mildred
What does the name Mildred mean?
Gentle strength — the Old English milde, mild, joined to þryð, power.
Is Mildred coming back?
Our data marks it reviving, though from a very low base — 98 American births in the latest year.
Is Millie short for Mildred?
It can be, though Millie is more often a form of Millicent or Amelia now.
How popular is Mildred?
1963rd in the United States, down from a 1920 peak of 18,099 births.
Is Mildred a girl's or a boy's name?
Mildred is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Mildred?
Mildred has 2 syllables.
What are the nicknames for Mildred?
Mildred is usually shortened to Millie.
Is Mildred a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Mildred currently ranks #1,963 in the United States. After peaking in the 1920s it fell out of use, and is now climbing again — a classic revival. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.