Waldo

Where Waldo comes from

English surname, from the obsolete English given name Waltheof, from Old English weald (“power”) + þēof (“thief”), as in "one who snatched victory from battle." Comparable to, or ultimately Anglicized from, the Old Norse equivalent Valthiófr, from vald + *ᚦᛖᚢᛒᚨᛉ (*þeubaʀ). Compare Walthall, Waldie.
— Wiktionary's entry for Waldo
  • Old English
  • Vowel-ended
Along the way
  1. 1880
    First SSA year
    Already #600 among boys — 10 babies in the first year on record.
  2. 1881
    Peak, #342
    23 babies named Waldo — more than any year before or since.
  3. 1883
    The fade
    The first year with half the peak's births — down to #799.
  4. 1889
    Waldo Frank born
    American novelist, historian, political activist and literary critic
  5. 1982
    Waldo Ponce born
    Chilean footballer
In the dictionary
  • A male given name from Old English, in modern American use transferred back from the surname.
Namesakes
  • Waldo Ponce · Chilean footballer, born 1982
  • Waldo Frank · American novelist, historian, political activist and literary critic, 1889–1967
  • Waldo Salt · American screenwriter, 1914–1987
  • Waldo L. Parra · Chilean lawyer and novelist, born 1965
  • Waldo Rubio Martín · association football player, born 1995

Sources: the origin note and dictionary entry are quoted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); the namesakes come from Wikidata (CC0); the milestones are worked out from the SSA record.