Harold

Scandinavian

"army ruler"

Harold Origin and Meaning

The name Harold is a boy's name of Scandinavian origin meaning "army ruler".

The name of the last Anglo-Saxon king of England before the Norman conquest, and a name that's long been associated with a pipe-smoking, bespectacled grandpa or uncle.

After years in style limbo, Harold is slowly making a comeback, possibly boosted by cheerful nicknames like Harry and Hal. Filmmaking couple Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach have a son named Harold.

Harold Rank in US Top 1000

# 926 in the US

Harold Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

# 774 on Nameberry

Popularity of the name Harold

• 926 US 2023
• 774 Nameberry 2025
• 936 Future 2028
• 915 England 2017

20 Names Similar to Harold

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

• Bernard
• Howard
• Arnold
• Herbert
• Ralph
• Gilbert
• Leonard
• Roger
• Fred
• Reginald
• Frank
• Clifford
• Stanley
• Ned
• Norman
• Albert
• Clarence
• Seymour
• Friedrich
• Abraham

Famous People Named Harold

• Harold I aka Harold Harefoot King of England
• Harold II aka Harold Godwinson last Anglo,Saxon King of England
• (James) Harold Wilson Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, British prime minister
• (Maurice) Harold Macmillan 1st Earl of Stockton, British prime minister
• Harold Arlen (born Hyman Arluck) American composer ("Somewhere Over the Rainbow")
• Harold Pinter English playwright
• Harold Clayton Lloyd American actor
• Harold Scott MacDonald "Donald" Coxeter British,Canadian geometer
• Harold Perrineau (born Harold Williams) American actor
• Harold Edward Holt Australian Prime Minister
• Harold Norse American poet
• Harold Allen Ramis American actor and director
• Harold Bloom American literary critic
• Harold Rupert Leofric George Alexander 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis, British field marshal and Governor,General of Canada
• Harold Eugene "Hal" Roach American film producer, director, actor
• Harold John "Hal" Smith American actor and voice actor

The name Harold in Pop Culture

• Harold "Hal" Jordan Green Lantern from DC Universe
• Harold Hill main character in "The Music Man"
• Harold Chasen main character in movie "Harold & Maude"
• Harold "Happy" Hogan character in Marvel Universe
• Harold "Hal" Cooper character in Archie Comics Universe
• "Harold and the Purple Crayon " children's book by Crockett Johnson
• Harold Skimpole character in Dickens's Bleak House
• Harold Abbott character on TV's "Everwood"
• Harold Saxon code name of The Master on TV's "Doctor Who"
• Harold Crenshaw character on TV's "Monk"
• Harold Guppy character in the movie "Intimate Relations"
• Harold Clemens character on TV's "The Client List"
• Harold Berman school bully from animated TV series "Hey Arnold!"
• Harold Waldorf father of Blair Waldorf from CW's "Gossip Girl".
• Harold Travilla Elsie Dinsmore's son in the Elsie Dinsmore series
• Harold Wilson main character in G. A. Henty's "True to the Old Flag"
• Harold Bloor character in Jenny Nimmo's "The Children of the Red King" series
• Harold Finch character on TV's "Person of Interest"
• Harold Goff character in film "Yankee Doodle Dandy"
• "The Harold Song " song by Ke$ha
• Harold Stein character in Hanya Yanagihara’s “A Little Life”
• Harold Anderson character in the 2000 science fiction comedy film "What Planet Are You From?"
• Harold "Harry" T. Stone main character & Judge on the NBC sitcom "Night Court" played by Harry Anderson

International Variations of the name Harold

• Haral Scandinavian
• Hieronim Polish
• Araldo Italian
• Arrigo Italian
• Aroldo Italian
• Haraldas Lithuanian
• Harailt Scottish
• Halward German
• Herahd Russian
• Garold Russian
• Kharald Russian
• Haralds Latvian
• Garald Russian
• Heronim Polish
• Heraldo Portuguese
• Jindra Czech
• Arailt Scottish
• Enric Romanian
• Aralt Irish
• Harald Scandinavian
• Haraldo Portuguese