# Arnold (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/arnold/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | boys |
| Origin | not recorded |
| Meaning | “eagle”, “power” |
| Pronunciation | /ˈɑɹnəld/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | Arnie, Arn, Arny |
| Variant spellings | Ahnold |
| US babies named this | 104,396 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 103,846 / 550 (1% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 789, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

From a French version of a Germanic name, from Proto-West Germanic *Arnuwald, from Proto-Germanic *arô (“eagle”) + *waldą (“power”). For the first part of the word doublet of erne, ornis, and ornitho-. Compare the Latin male given name and cognomen Aquila, and female given name Aquilīna (whence Russian Акули́на (Akulína)), related to aquila (whence eagle).

## What it means

Arnold is grouped under eagle and strong.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1953 | 8 | 4,250 |
| 1954 | 10 | 3,734 |
| 1955 | 7 | 4,767 |
| 1956 | 11 | 3,711 |
| 1959 | 8 | 4,654 |
| 1960 | 9 | 4,458 |
| 1961 | 10 | 4,262 |
| 1963 | 8 | 4,908 |
| 1964 | 7 | 5,505 |
| 1965 | 5 | 6,599 |
| 1966 | 7 | 5,297 |
| 1969 | 5 | 7,549 |
| 1970 | 5 | 8,064 |
| 1973 | 7 | 6,713 |
| 1977 | 6 | 8,512 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 113 | 1,449 |
| 2012 | 88 | 1,713 |
| 2013 | 97 | 1,589 |
| 2014 | 81 | 1,828 |
| 2015 | 95 | 1,657 |
| 2016 | 98 | 1,629 |
| 2017 | 120 | 1,433 |
| 2018 | 103 | 1,593 |
| 2019 | 115 | 1,487 |
| 2020 | 88 | 1,744 |
| 2021 | 112 | 1,556 |
| 2022 | 118 | 1,524 |
| 2023 | 105 | 1,640 |
| 2024 | 99 | 1,687 |
| 2025 | 120 | 1,477 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 17 | 1,398 |
| 2012 | 8 | 2,458 |
| 2013 | 17 | 1,404 |
| 2014 | 23 | 1,144 |
| 2015 | 33 | 903 |
| 2016 | 32 | 928 |
| 2017 | 50 | 701 |
| 2018 | 40 | 801 |
| 2019 | 52 | 663 |
| 2020 | 43 | 745 |
| 2021 | 49 | 704 |
| 2022 | 56 | 632 |
| 2023 | 49 | 704 |
| 2024 | 50 | 711 |
| 2025 | 59 | 627 |

## In other languages

- Armenian: Առնոլդ
- Catalan: Arnau
- Chinese: 阿諾德 /阿诺德, 阿諾爾德 /阿诺尔德, 愛諾德 /爱诺德
- Danish: Arnold
- Dutch: Arnoud
- Esperanto: Arnoldo
- Estonian: Arnold
- French: Arnaud
- German: Arnold
- Greek: Άρνολδος, Άρνολντ, Πούλιος
- Italian: Arnaldo
- Latin: Arnoldus
- Latvian: Arnolds
- Lithuanian: Arnoldas, Arnas
- Norwegian: Arnold
- Portuguese: Arnaldo
- Russian: Арно́льд
- Spanish: Arnaldo, Arnoldo
- Swedish: Arnold

## People named Arnold

- Arnold Schwarzenegger, Austrian and American actor, bodybuilder, and politician (born 1947)
- Arnold Schoenberg, Austrian-Jewish American composer (1874-1951)
- Arnold J. Toynbee, British historian (1889–1975)
- Arnold Rüütel, Estonian politician, former President of Estonia (1928–2024)
- Arnold Bennett, English writer (1867–1931)
- Arnold Palmer, American golfer (1929–2016)
- Arnold Wesker, British dramatist (1932-2016)
- Arnold van Gennep, French ethnographer and folklorist (1873–1957)
- Arnold Bax, English composer, poet, and author (1883–1953)
- Arnold of Brescia, Canon regular and revolutionary
- Arnold Gehlen, German academic (1904-1976)
- Arnold Toynbee, British economic historian (1852–1883)

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.