Edmund

English

"fortunate protector"

Edmund Origin and Meaning

The name Edmund is a boy's name of English origin meaning "fortunate protector".

The sophisticated Edmund and its nearly-identical French twin Edmond are coming out of mothballs now that Edward, inspired by Twilight, is once again a hot name. In fact, it's already a fairly popular choice on Nameberry and a solid presence on the England and Wales charts, where it's featured in the latter half since the 90s.

Dervied from Old English, Edmund is comprised of the elements ead and mund, meaning "rich, fortune" and "protection" respectively. As such, its meaning can be interpreted as "wealthy or fortunate protector". Regal and strong, Edmund's praises have been sung by Jane Austen ("There is nobleness in the name of Edmund") and John Keats ("Had my name been Edmund, I would have been more fortunate.")

Famous bearers include the English astronomer Edmund Halley, after whom the comet was named, poet Edmund Spenser, great Shakespearean actor Edmund Kean, and New Zealand mountaineer Sir Edmund Hillary. Literary Edmunds appear in King Lear,, Jane Austen's Mansfield Park, Dickens's Little Dorrit, and C.S Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia.

Edmund reached its highest point of popularity in the U.S. in 1914, when it was Number 130 but it hasn't appeared in the charts since 1997, making it an uncommon alternative to the Top 300 Edward. The Edmund spelling was chosen for 175 babies in a recent year, while Edmond was picked for 63.

While Edmund is considerably rarer than other Ed- names then, if popularity does bother you, it is still worth bearing in mind that 1580 boys were called Edward in the US last year, while Edwin, Eduardo and Edgar are all in the Top 500. Edison and Eddie feature in the latter end of the charts and there's the popularity of nicknames Ted, Teddy, and Freddy to consider too, even more so if you happen to be in the UK. Should that put you off? Not necessarily, but it is something to think about if you're seeking rarity.

Eamon is the cheery Irish version.

Edmund Rank in US Top 1000

# 918 in the US

Edmund Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

# 298 on Nameberry

Popularity of the name Edmund

• 298 Nameberry 2025
• 182 Unique 2024
• 729 Future 2028
• 864 England 2024

20 Names Similar to Edmund

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Edmund.

• Benedict
• Edwin
• Rupert
• Ernest
• Edgar
• Leopold
• Francis
• Alfred
• Clarence
• Phineas
• Eugene
• Frederick
• Hector
• Archibald
• Claude
• Albert
• Augustine
• Augustus
• Laurence
• Cecil

Famous People Named Edmund

• Saint Edmund the Martyr King of East Anglia
• Edmund I and II Kings of England
• Edmund Burke Irish statesman, political theorist, philosopher, author, and orator
• Edmund Spenser English poet
• Edmund Henry Garrett American illustrator
• Edmund Sixtus "Ed" Muskie 58th U.S. Secretary of State
• Sir Edmund Percival Hillary New Zealand mountaineer
• Edmund Gustav Albrecht Husserl German philosopher
• Edmund Gerald "Jerry" Brown American politician; 34th and 39th governor of California
• Edmund P. Murray American novelist and journalist
• Edmund Lenihan Irish author and storyteller
• Saint Edmund Rich 13th,century Archbishop of Canterbury
• Edmund Gettier American philosopher
• Edmund John James Reid English police detective and aeronaut
• Edmund Anscombe New Zealand architect
• Edmund Goulding English film director
• Edmund Allenby English soldier and British Imperial Governor
• Saint Edmund Arrowsmith one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales
• Saint Edmund Campion one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales
• Saint Edmund Gennings one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales
• Edmund "Ned" Foley son of actor Dave Foley

The name Edmund in Pop Culture

• Edmund character in Shakespeare's "King Lear"
• Edmund Pevensie character in "The Chronicles of Narnia"
• Edmund Blackadder character on TV's "Blackadder," named after the character in King Lear
• Edmund Bertram character in Jane Austen's "Mansfield Park"
• Edmond Dantes main character in Alexandre Dumas' "The Count of Monte Cristo"
• Edmund Tyrone character in Eugene O'Neill's "Long Day's Journey into Night"
• Edmund Reid character on TV's "Ripper Street"
• Edmund Fitzgerald a ship that sank in the Great Lakes
• "Wreck of the Edmund Fizgerald " song by Gordon Lightfoot
• Edmund character in G. A. Henty's "The Dragon and the Raven"
• Edmund 'Bunny' Corcoran character in Donna Tartt's "The Secret History"
• Edmund "Ned" Chicane beloved character in the second campaign of the podcast "The Adventure Zone"

International Variations of the name Edmund

• Odön Hungarian
• Edmon Russian
• Eamonn Gaelic
• Mundo Portuguese
• Edmundo Portuguese
• Edmond Dutch
• Edmondo Italian
• Eamon Irish
• Edmunds Latvian
• Eumann Scottish Gaelic
• Eames Irish