Boy name · Old Norse
Harald
Name meaning, origin and popularity
: army rulerHarald is a boy's name that comes from Old Norse and means "army ruler". It is used in Scandinavian and German.
- Meaning
- Army ruler
- Origin
- Old Norse
- Gender
- Boy
- US rank
- #5953 in 2025
Meaning and origin of Harald
As a boy's name, Harald comes from Old Norse and means "army ruler". It is used in Scandinavian and German.
Its meaning puts Harald on our names that mean warrior list.
Meanings come from published name dictionaries, led by Behind the Name. How we research names
Harald on Nomezo lists
What our editors wrote about Harald on 3 lists.
“Army ruler; Old Norse. Borne by many kings of Norway and Denmark”
From Names that mean warrior, viking warrior names
“Army ruler; Old Norse, the Norse twin of Harold, borne by Viking kings of Norway”
From Strong boy names, strong Norse boy names
“Army ruler; borne by Fairhair, Bluetooth and Hardrada”
From Viking names, names of famous Vikings
How popular is Harald?
- US rank in 2025
- #5,953
- 15 babies, 9 per million boys
- Best rank
- #1,551 in 1925
- 24 babies that year
- Babies since 1913
- At least 811
- Years with under 5 are not listed
| 1880s | 0 per million |
|---|---|
| 1890s | 0 per million |
| 1900s | 0 per million |
| 1910s | 12 per million |
| 1920s | 15 per million |
| 1930s | 12 per million |
| 1940s | 6 per million |
| 1950s | 5 per million |
| 1960s | 7 per million |
| 1970s | 1 per million |
| 1980s | 1 per million |
| 1990s | 0 per million |
| 2000s | 0 per million |
| 2010s | 1 per million |
| 2020s | 4 per million |
| Year | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #11,211 | #10,083 | #10,043 | – | – | – | #8,552 | #9,214 | #6,593 | #5,953 |
Source: US Social Security Administration baby-name data, 1880 to 2025, as published in 2026. Each spelling is counted separately, a name given to fewer than 5 babies of one sex in a year is left out, and few people born before 1937 have records, which is why the chart shows babies per million rather than raw counts.
Names spelled like Harald
One or two letters apart, but from a different root: they look alike without sharing a meaning.
- HaroldArmy ruler (Old English, boy)
- HarelMountain of God (Hebrew, boy)
Names with a similar meaning
- ErikEternal ruler (Old Norse, boy)
- RicardaBrave ruler (Germanic, girl)
- AlaricRuler of all (Germanic, boy)
- ArmandoArmy man (Germanic, boy)
- HenryHome ruler (Germanic, boy)
- HermanArmy man, soldier (Germanic, boy)
- RichardBrave ruler (Germanic, boy)
- ArlethVariant of Arlette, from Herleva, possibly army and legacy (Germanic, girl)
- AubreyElf ruler (Germanic, unisex)
- DerekRuler of the people (Germanic, boy)
Middle names for Harald
Picked from our middle-name lists with a different first letter and a shorter length, so the full name flows.
More boy names from Old Norse
- SvenBoy, young man (Old Norse, boy)
- BjörnA bear (Old Norse, boy)
- HolgerIsland spear (Old Norse, boy)
- IngolfIng's wolf (Old Norse, boy)
- IvorYew warrior (Old Norse, boy)
- OdinFrenzy, inspiration (Old Norse, boy)
- RaghnallCounsel ruler (Old Norse, boy)
- RonaldCounsel ruler (Old Norse, boy)
- SigmundVictory protection (Old Norse, boy)
- SweynBoy, young man (Old Norse, boy)
Harald: common questions
What does the name Harald mean?
Harald comes from Old Norse and means "army ruler".
Is Harald a boy or girl name?
Harald is mainly a boy's name.
Where does the name Harald come from?
Harald comes from Old Norse and means "army ruler". Today it is used in Scandinavian and German.
How popular is the name Harald?
Harald ranked #5,953 in the US in 2025, with 15 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.
What names are similar to Harald?
Names spelled like Harald include Harold and Harel.
What middle names go with Harald?
Middle names that flow well with Harald include Ethan, Jonah, Jude, Lamar and Lane. A different first letter and a contrasting length usually sound best.