A FIELD REPORT ON THE NAME

Bradford

/ˈbrædfərd/ · boy name · outside the top 1,000 in 2025
buttoned · crested · collegiate

Origin & Meaning

AI-Written
Derived from an Old English place name meaning broad ford. The surname carried early colonial weight in New England through Mayflower passenger William Bradford. Nineteenth-century American parents adopted it as a given name to preserve family lineages and lend an air of regional permanence.
Also answers toBrad, Ford

Fig. 1 — Births per annum, 1880–2025

SSA Data
1880 peak: 779 souls, A.D. 1953 2025
2025: 32 born, falling ↘
Estimated Age
53 yrs
Most Bradfords were born around 1980 — has dialed a rotary phone in earnest.
Peak Reign
1953
№240 that year
Generation
Gen X, 33%
then Boomer 32% · Millennial 23%
Rarity
Top 2000 all-time
≈32K ever born · now falling
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Estimates from SSA birth records and standard survival rates. Immigration and name changes not counted.

Bradford grew up with

SSA Data
MTV·mixtapes·mall arcades

Generation Distribution — Living Bradfords

SSA Data
Silent 2%Boomer 32%Gen X 33%Millennial 23%Gen Z 7%Gen Alpha 3%

Data vs. Humans

What the data says

SSA Data
SSA: Bradford peaked in 1953.
Estimated average age: 53.

What people think

Opinion Ledger
Awaiting human data — cast the first votes.
Bradford sounds like someone born in —

Fig. 2 — Style Coordinates

AI Seed · Votes Override at n=30
Vintage Modern
Formal Casual
Soft Strong
Cast your vote No account · one tap
In your mind, Bradford sounds more like a —
Voting opens when the ledger goes live. No account. 24h cooldown per question.

Public Opinion Ledger

Ledger Opens Soon
The public has not yet weighed in on Bradford. Early ballots carry the most weight.

First Impressions

AI-Written
The name reads as a surname doing first-name duty without apologizing for the extra syllable. It suggests someone who keeps a brass boat cleat on a mahogany desk as a paperweight. Most living Bradfords are in their fifties, having largely bypassed the era of casual workplace attire. It sounds like an endowment that requires two signatures to disburse.

Field Notes

AI-Written
Field Note 01
Peak usage landed in 1953, when 779 boys were given the name.
Field Note 02
Baby Boomers and Generation X account for roughly two-thirds of all living holders.
Field Note 03
The name has retreated sharply toward retirement, recording only 32 births in 2025.

Notable Bradfords

AI-Written
Bradford Dillmanactor, b. 1930
Bradford Washburnmountaineer and cartographer, b. 1910
Bradford Coxmusician, b. 1982

Adjacent Names

Ephemera — If Bradford were a…

AI-Written
City
Concord, New Hampshire
Color
Flannel gray
Job
Trust officer
And what of your name?