The Wilder surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 31,018 people carried this name — #1,131 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 9,510 people counted. That is up 3% from 30,023 in 2000.

See Wilder on the map Look up another surname

Share

What the name means

The meaning of the Wilder surname

As a surname in the United Kingdom

Harrison classes it as an English name: ‘Mighty Army’.

From the Anglo-Saxon personal name Wealdhere.

From Henry Harrison, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary, vol. II (London: The Morland Press, 1918), p. 289 · public domain.

In Argentina’s national register

At least 97 people named Wilder live in Argentina.

RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in City of Buenos Aires.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

City of Buenos Aires 54
Tierra del Fuego 22
Buenos Aires Province 21

RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.

In France’s civil register

France’s register of deaths holds 23 people named Wilder.

Most of them — 18 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 5 départements, most often Moselle.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they were born

Born outside France 18
Moselle 1
Pas-de-Calais 1
Rhône 1
Paris 1
New Caledonia 1

Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.

In the Nordic population registers

22 people named Wilder is counted in Sweden.

Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published.

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 22

Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown).

Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s

Wilder was found among the farmers of Berkshire: 12 in every 10,000.

Guppy counted the farmers listed in each county’s directory and recorded a name only where it reached about 7 in every 10,000; where it does not appear, it was rarer than that, not absent.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Per 10,000 farmers, by county

Berkshire 12

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), alphabetical list of English and Welsh names — public domain · farmers in Kelly’s Post Office Directories of the 1880s, per 10,000 farmers in each county.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

180 families named Wilder, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 1,085 people lived in those households, 6 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 9 other spellings. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

Massachusetts 90
Vermont 25
North Carolina 15
Virginia 14
New Hampshire 12
Connecticut 5
New York 4
Pennsylvania 4
South Carolina 4
Maine 3
Maryland 3
Rhode Island 1

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 268 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Wilder in American newspapers,
1887–1914.

Newspaper page from Sedalia Weekly Conservator carrying the name Wilder
Sedalia Weekly Conservator 1908-08-03
Newspaper page from Fort Worth Daily Gazette carrying the name Wilder
Fort Worth Daily Gazette 1887-10-18
Newspaper page from The Birmingham Age-herald carrying the name Wilder
The Birmingham Age-herald 1914-02-04

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 11,320 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Wilder in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1990s.

7,034 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Wilder. The most, 1,147, date from the 1870s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in Queensland, at 1.6 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 2,766
Queensland 1,983
Victoria 1,281
South Australia 493
Western Australia 303
Tasmania 121
ACT (Canberra) 64

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Wilder.

Who carried it

People named Wilder,
with a public archive behind them.

  • David Wilder
    David Wilder d. 1910
  • Peter Wilder d. 1816 · physician
  • Sylvia Wilder d. 1939
  • J. W. Wilder d. 1934
  • Augusta Mary Johnstone Clogstoun d. 1894
  • Cicely Helen Wrey d. 1947

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Wilder,
in the records of 8 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States2,271 records

2,271 records of the Wilder name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 1,019
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 407
  • Other U.S. records 845
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Charlie Larry Wilder

    Born 1948; from Fairburn, Georgia. U.S. Army, aircraft powerplant repairer; killed in action 1969 in Bien Hoa, South Vietnam. Buried at Fairburn City Cemetery, Georgia.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record William H. Wilder

    Born 1912 in Virginia. Enlisted 1943 at New York City; waiter from New York County, New York. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1991, buried at Calverton National Cemetery, New York.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Ettel Wilder

    Arrived at New York in 1904 aboard the Graf Waldersee from Boulogne, aged 19; tailor. From Austria.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)

Showing 3 of 2,271 records for Wilder in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · City of Asheville (public domain, PDDL) · New York State, Open NY (police and firefighter memorial rolls) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Australia93 records

93 records of the Wilder name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 51
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 18
  • Other Australian records 24
  1. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record William Wilder

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Mayda, sailing from Woolwich in 1845. Native of Berkshire.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record George Wilder

    Arrived in Victoria in 1858 aboard the Sussex, aged 33; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Francis John Wilder

    Retired piano tuner of Middle Brighton, Victoria; died 1961.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 93 records for Wilder in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (CC BY 4.0) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

Netherlands75 records

75 records of the Wilder name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch population registers 33
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 28
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 14
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Pieter Wilder

    Married in 1814 in Leeuwarden. Died 1855 in Ooststellingwerf, aged 65.

    Open Archives, AlleFriezen (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Lucia Sophia Jacoba Wilder

    Born 1861 in Rotterdam. Married in 1899 in Rotterdam.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Rotterdam (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Moses Wilder

    Died 1942 in Auschwitz; born 1914 in Sassow onder Wojewodsxap Tarnopolin.

    Open Archives, Groninger Archieven (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 75 records for Wilder in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Canada31 records

31 records of the Wilder name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 15
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 5
  • Other Canadian records 11
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Sarah A. Wilder

    Buried in 1900 at Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, aged 57.

    Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Linda Diane Wilder

    Buried in 1979 at St. Mary's Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 34.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Robert George Wilder

    Died 1955 in Dartmouth, Halifax, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.

Showing 3 of 31 records for Wilder in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Germany10 records

10 records of the Wilder name in Germany Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Jakob Wilder

    From Segeberg. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 22 December 1915 (Reserve Infantry Regiment No. 73).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  2. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Nikolaus Wilder

    From Vadersdorf, Altenburg. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 8 July 1915 (Field Artillery Regiment No. 45).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  3. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Karl Wilder

    From Beuthen O. S. Reported dead in the Prussian casualty list of 18 February 1919 (Field Artillery Regiment No. 405).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)

Showing 3 of 10 records for Wilder in Germany.

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0).

France6 records

6 records of the Wilder name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Ruby Wilder

    Born 1908 in the United States; died 1999 in Vitré (Ille-et-Vilaine).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Isidore Wilder

    Born 1925 in Metz (Moselle); died 2000 in Lyon (Rhône).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  3. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Nadia Ginny Louise Wilder

    Born 1957 in Nouméa; died 1990 in Australia.

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 3 of 6 records for Wilder in France.

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

New Zealand5 records

5 records of the Wilder name in New Zealand Christchurch City cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Edward Arthur Wilder

    Died 1894, aged 59; buried at Linwood Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Albert Henry Wilder

    Died 1953, aged 73; buried at Bromley Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Arthur Clarence Wilder

    Died 1967; buried at Waimairi Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 5 records for Wilder in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

United Kingdom5 records

5 records of the Wilder name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 4
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Mary Wilder

    Buried in 1798 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 40.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record H. Wilder

    Royal Field Artillery. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)
  3. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record H. E. Wilder

    London Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Showing 3 of 5 records for Wilder in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Wilder.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Wilder is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

See the Wilder volume
Scroll to Top