Alfred

Meaning of Alfred

Alfred is an Old English stalwart, forged from the elements ælf (“elf”) and ræd (“counsel”), so its literal sense is “wise counsellor” or, if one prefers a touch of folklore, “advice of the elves.” In everyday English it is voiced AL-frid, while German speakers favor AHL-fret, each variant sounding suitably level-headed. History supplies an enviable résumé: King Alfred the Great safeguarded Anglo-Saxon England, Poet Laureate Alfred Tennyson lent it literary gravitas, Alfred Hitchcock ushered suspense into the cinema, and Gotham’s unflappable butler keeps the name in pop-culture rotation. In the United States the name crested in the 1920s, grazing the Top 50, and has since chosen a quieter path; recent records show around 250–300 newborn Alfeds annually, a rank orbiting the mid-600s—proof that it has no aspiration to dethrone Liam but refuses to retire gracefully, either. For parents seeking a dignified choice that is familiar yet comfortably off the beaten track, Alfred remains a dependable, if understated, companion.