# Gandalf (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/gandalf/  
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 | “elf familiar” |
| Pronunciation | /ˈɡændɑlf/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | Gundulf, Gundulph |
| US babies named this | 5 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 5 / 0 (0% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | not in the ONS data |

## Etymology

From Old Norse mythology Gandalfr (“elf familiar”). It may be reinforced by various similar names in Medieval Latin, like a few saints and clergymen.

## 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, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 5 | 4,974 |

## In other languages

- Armenian: Գենդալֆ
- Bulgarian: Гандалф
- Chinese: 甘道夫
- Hebrew: גנדאלף, גאנדלף, גנדלף, גאנדאלף
- Japanese: ガンダルフ
- Russian: Гэ́ндальф

## 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.