How to say it
WIL · der
/ˈwaɪl.dər/
Masculine
Wilder
Wild, untamed
What it means
An English surname meaning 'wild' or 'untamed,' and read as the word wilder.
Wilder is an English surname meaning 'wild' or 'untamed,' and modern parents hear in it the plain English word too. It carries a roll call of namesakes as surnames, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Gene Wilder, Billy Wilder, Thornton Wilder, and reads rugged, free, and outdoorsy. It rides the surname-and-word wave with Archer and Wilder's own untamed sense. Wil is the soft short.
Popularity over time
peaked at #367 in 2021, currently #431 in 2025.
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, names given to at least 5 babies in a year, 1880–present. See where the names are moving
Heads-up notes
- Spelling
Reads as both the surname and the word 'wilder'; Wylder is the stylized form.
- Pop culture
Carried by Gene Wilder, Billy Wilder, and Laura Ingalls Wilder (as surnames).
Who's worn it
Historical figures, characters, and public faces who share the name. The cultural surface, for whatever weight you want to give it.
- Gene Wilder actor (Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory) — as a surname
Spelling variants
- Wylder
- Wilde
Names with the same feeling
See Wilder from another angle
By meaning
By style