A male name. (Latin Edwardus, French Édouard, German Eduard, Italian Eduardo, Port Duarte); Old English Eadweard, compound of ead ‘rich’, ‘happy', and weard ‘ward’, ‘guardian’. It was the name of one of the greatest of the West Saxon kings of England, Edward the Elder, s. of Alfred the Great, who reigned from 901 to 924; of a saint and martyr, the s. of Edgar, who reigned from 975 to 978; and of Edward the Confessor, the last English king of the line of Alfred. These associations were sufficient to ensure the popularity of the name in the Old English period and its survival after the Norman Conquest. It occurs in Domesday Book and is found in 12th-C records. But the reason why Edward, unlike most Old English names, continued in general use after the end of the 12th C was undoubtedly the fact that Henry III’s devotion to SS Edmund and Edward led him to give their names to two of his ss. From the accession of Edward I in 1272 there was an Edward on the throne of England for over a century (until 1377). From that time it has been in regular use as a christian name and has shown very little fluctuation of fashion. It is one of the very few names of English origin which have been generally adopted on the Continent. The surnames Edward, Edwards, Edwardes were formed from it, but Edwardson is surprisingly rare. The nicknames Ned and Ted have been used since the 14th C; Eddie is modern.

Eaduuard, Æduuard, Eduuard, Eduard Domesday Book 1086. Edwardus Curia Regis Rolls 1187-1219.