Name
Alfred
Meaning
Alfred is a masculine name of Old English origin meaning “elf counsel”.
Alfred joins the Old English aelf, elf, with raed, counsel, an ancient idiom for wisdom beyond the human, and Alfred the Great, the scholar-king who saved Wessex, remains the only English monarch called Great. Batman's butler, Hitchcock, and Nobel founder Alfred Nobel keep the name in cultural circulation while Freddie does the daily work.
A top-20 name in England in the Victorian era; now rising again there as Alfie.
Popularity in the United States
Boys
Ranked #840 in 2025 · peak #255 in 1980
Data: US Social Security Administration, top-1000 ranks.
At a glance
- Origin
- Old English
- Gender
- Masculine
- Pronounced
- /AL-fred/
- Themes
- Wisdom
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Questions
Alfred is a masculine name of Old English origin meaning “elf counsel”. Alfred joins the Old English aelf, elf, with raed, counsel, an ancient idiom for wisdom beyond the human, and Alfred the Great, the scholar-king who saved Wessex, remains the only English monarch called Great.
Alfred is traditionally a masculine (boy) name. It is a top-20 name in England in the Victorian era; now rising again there as Alfie.
The name Alfred comes from Old English. Alfred joins the Old English aelf, elf, with raed, counsel, an ancient idiom for wisdom beyond the human, and Alfred the Great, the scholar-king who saved Wessex, remains the only English monarch called Great. Batman's butler, Hitchcock, and Nobel founder Alfred Nobel keep the name in cultural circulation while Freddie does the daily work.
Alfred is pronounced AL-fred.
More names that mean wisdom
Names that share this meaning.