Adolph is a name of German origin, derived from the Germanic elements "adal" meaning "noble" and "wulf" meaning "wolf". The name was popularized during the Middle Ages by Charlemagne's grandson, Adolf I, who ruled over the Kingdom of Burgundy in the 9th century. Adolph has been used as a given name since that time, but it was not particularly common until the late 19th and early 20th centuries when it became popular among families of German descent living in Europe and North America. Today, Adolph is still considered a traditional German name, but it is relatively rare outside of Germany and countries with significant German-speaking populations.
The name Adolph experienced significant fluctuations in popularity over the years. It started with around 90-100 births per year from 1880 to 1890. However, there was a sharp rise in its usage after 1911, reaching its peak in 1917 with 673 births. This could potentially be attributed to the First World War and naming trends of that era. After World War I, the popularity of the name began to decline steadily, dropping below 100 births per year by the mid-1940s. Since then, it has remained relatively uncommon, with fewer than 25 births per year on average from 1980 onwards. The most recent data shows that in 2023, there were only 5 recorded births with the name Adolph.