Gerda
About Gerda
Gerda is one of two things: a modern, Latinized form of the Old Norse name Gerd or a feminine form of the masculine German name, also Gerd. Not currently in style, it has a strong, ancient sounding feeling.
From its Scandinavian and Norse roots, Gerda, meaning "fenced in, enclosure", is associated with the mythological Gerðr, the wife of the god Freyr, and sometimes considered a fertility and earth goddess herself. In this context, the name would be pronounced YA-da, YER-da or GEH-da, depending on location.
From its German and Dutch roots, Gerda is derived from the short form of Gerhard, a variation of the name Gerard, meaning "brave, hardy spear". In this instance, it would be pronounced GEHR-da, which is how English speakers are likely to read it too.
The name has not appeared in the US stats since the 1970s, having peaked back in 1915 when nearly 50 girls were given the name.
Pronounced GER-duh.
As of October 2026, Gerda ranked #6782 in US births in 1972 SSA, peaked at #892 in 1899.
Editor's take: The name Gerda is a girl's name of German, Scandinavian, Norse origin meaning "enclosure, stronghold; brave, hardy spear".
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | — | 0 | 0 |
Similar names
These 20 names were selected by our users looking for other names like Gerda.
- François
- Germaine
- Paulette
- Laurence
- Josepha
- Philippe
- Yehudit
- Sonja
- Roderic
- Ormond
- Jeanne
- Manfred
- Gilda
- Benjamina
- Valma
- Ester
- Radcliffe
- Eugénie
- Karlotta
- Gertrud
Gerda on lists
Famous Gerdas
- Gerda Gottlieb Wegener
Danish artist
- Gerda Weissensteiner
Italian Olympic luger
- Gerda Hedwig Lerner
American academic, founder of the field of women's history
- Gerda Taro
German war photographer
- Gerritje "Gerda" Verburg
Dutch diplomat and politician
Gerda in pop culture
- Gerda
character in Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen"
- Gerda Solent (née Torp)
wife of the eponymous history teacher Wolf Solent in J. C. Powys's 1929 novel "Wolf Solent"
- Gerda Mannheim
German refugee in "The World in the Evening" (1954) by Christopher Isherwood
- Gerda
character on Dutch TV's "Sesamstraat"
- Queen Gerda
character in the tv show Once Upon a Time
Variations & nicknames
- GerdeGerman