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Archibald is a masculine given name, composed of the Germanic elements erchan (with an original meaning of "genuine" or "precious") and bald meaning "bold".

Medieval forms include Old High German Erchambald, Erkanbold, Erkanbald and Anglo-Saxon Eorcenbald. Erkanbald, bishop of Strasbourg (d. 991) was also rendered Archaunbault in Old French. There is also a secondary association of its first element with the Greek prefix archi- meaning "chief, master", to Norman England in the High Middle Ages.

The form Archibald became particularly popular among Scottish nobility in the Late Middle Ages and the early modern period, whence usage as a surname is derived by the 18th century, found especially in Scotland and later Nova Scotia.

Given name

English diminutives or hypocorisms include Arch, Archy, Archie, and Baldie. Variants include French Archambault, Archaimbaud, Archenbaud, Archimbaud, Italian Archimboldo, Arcimbaldo, Arcimboldo, Portuguese Arquibaldo, Arquimbaldo and Spanish Archibaldo, Archivaldo. Archibald is used as the anglicization of the (unrelated) Gaelic given name Gille Easbuig (also anglicized as Gillespie).

The given name Archibald was comparatively popular in the United States in the late 19th century, peaking at rank 290 in 1890, but it rapidly fell out of fashion in the early 20th century, falling below rank 1,000 in popularity during the 1920s.

Variations

• Arikībalili - (Amharic)
• 'Arshibalid (أرشيبالد) - (Arabic)
• Arčybaĺd (Арчыбальд) - (Belarusian)
• Ārcibalḍa (আর্চিবল্ড) - (Bengali)
• Арчибалд - (Bulgarian)
• Āqíbó'ěrdé (阿奇博尔德) - (Simplified Chinese)
• Āqíbó'ěrdé (阿奇博爾德) - (Traditional Chinese)
• Archibaldi (არჩიბალდი) - (Georgian)
• Ārkībalḍa (આર્કીબલ્ડ) - (Gujarati)
• ארציבלד - (Hebrew)
• Ārchībālḍ (आर्चीबाल्ड) - (Hindi)
• Āchiborudo (アーチボルド) - (Japanese)
• Ārcibālḍ (ಆರ್ಚಿಬಾಲ್ಡ್) - (Kannada)
• Arçïbald (Арчибальд) - (Kazakh)
• Achiboldeu (아치볼드) - (Korean)
• Arçibald (Арчибалд) - (Kyrgyz)
• Archibaldus - (Latin)
• Archibaldas - (Lithuanian)
• Arkkibāḷḍ (ആർക്കിബാൾഡ്) - (Malayalam)
• Ārkibālḍa (आर्किबाल्ड) - (Marathi)
• Armibald (Армибалд) - (Mongolian)
• Ārcibilḍa (आर्चिबिल्ड) - (Nepali)
• آرکبالډ - (Pashto)
• آرشیابالد - (Persian)
• Ārakībālaḍa (ਆਰਕੀਬਾਲਡ) - (Punjabi)
• Archibal'd (Арчибальд) - (Russian)
• Arčibald (Арчибалд) - (Serbian)
• آرڪٽيڪال (Sindhi)
• Acikabalḍ (අචිකබල්ඩ්) - (Sinhala)
• Ārccipālṭ (ஆர்ச்சிபால்ட்) - (Tamil)
• Ārcibālḍ (ఆర్చిబాల్డ్) - (Telugu)
• Archybalʹd (Арчибальд) - (Ukrainian)
• آرکبالڈ - (Urdu)

People with given name

Medieval

• Archibald I, Lord of Douglas (ca. 1198–1238)
• Archibald (bishop of Moray) (died 1298)
• Archibald Douglas, 3rd Earl of Douglas (1325–1400), Lord of Galloway
• Sir Archibald Douglas (died 1333), Guardian of Scotland
• Archibald Douglas, 4th Earl of Douglas (1370–1424), also Duke of Touraine
• Archibald Douglas, 5th Earl of Douglas (1390–1439)
• Archibald Douglas, Earl of Moray (1426–1455)
• Archibald Douglas, 5th Earl of Angus (1453–1514), Scottish politician and magnate

Early modern

In the late medieval and early modern period, the given name Archibald became popular among Scottish aristocracy in particular. See Archibald Campbell (disambiguation), Archibald Douglas (disambiguation), Archibald Hamilton (disambiguation), Archibald Montgomerie (disambiguation), Archibald Napier (disambiguation), Archibald Primrose (disambiguation) for lists of individuals with these names.

• Archibald Douglas of Kilspindie (1475–1536)
• Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus (1490–1557)
• Archibald Campbell, 2nd Earl of Argyll (died 1513), Lord Chancellor of Scotland
• Archibald Campbell, 4th Earl of Argyll (c. 1507–1558), Scottish nobleman and politician
• Archibald Campbell, 5th Earl of Argyll (1532/7–1573), Scottish politician
• Sir Archibald Napier (1534–1608), Scottish landowner and official, master of the Scottish mint and Laird of Merchiston
• Archibald Douglas, 8th Earl of Angus (1556–1588) (also 5th Earl of Morton)
• Archibald Campbell, 7th Earl of Argyll (c. 1575–1638), Scottish politician and military leader
• Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll (1607–1661)
• Archibald Douglas, 1st Earl of Ormond (1609–1655)
• Archibald Primrose, Lord Carrington (1616–1679), Scottish lawyer, judge, and cavalier
• Lord Archibald Hamilton (1673–1754), Scottish politician
• Archibald Cameron of Lochiel (1707–1753), leader in the Jacobite uprising
• Archibald Montgomerie, 11th Earl of Eglinton (1726–1796), Scottish general, and Member of Parliament (MP)
• Archibald Douglas-Hamilton, 9th Duke of Hamilton (1740–1819), Scottish peer and politician
  • Lord Archibald Hamilton (1769–1827), son of the above, MP for Lanarkshire.
• Archibald McBryde (1766–1816), Scottish born US Congressman
• Archibald Murphey (1777–1832), North Carolina politician

Modern

• Admiral Sir Archibald Dickson, 1st Baronet (died 1803), Royal Navy officer
• Archibald Hamilton (1790–1815), officer in the United States Navy
• Archibald McLean (judge) (1791–1865), Upper Canadian judge
• Archibald W. O. Totten (1809–1867), Justice of the Tennessee Supreme Court
• John Archibald Campbell (1811–1889), American lawyer
• Archibald McLelan (1824–1890), colonial Nova Scotian shipbuilder and politician
• Archibald Loudon Snowden (1835-1912), American diplomat
• Sir Archibald Geikie (1835–1924), Scottish geologist
• Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery (1847–1929), Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during 1894/5
• Archibald Grimké (1849–1930), American intellectual, journalist, and diplomat
• Archibald Gracie IV (1859–1912), American writer and RMS Titanic sinking survivor
• Archibald Keightley (1859–1930), theosophist
• Archibald Lampman (1861–1899), Canadian poet
• Archibald Butt (1865–1912), American journalist, United States Army officer, presidential adviser and Titanic sinking victim
• Archibald Ritchie (British Army officer) (1869–1955), British Army Major-General of World War I
• Archibald Boyd-Carpenter (1873–1937), British politician
• Archibald Wavell, 1st Earl Wavell (1883–1950), commander in the British Army
• Archibald Hill (1886–1977), British physiologist
• Archibald Cecil Chappelow (1886–1976), British fine art consultant
• Archibald Motley (1891–1981), American visual artist
• Archibald MacLeish (1892–1982), American modernist writer
• Archibald Roosevelt (1894–1979), American soldier
• Archibald F. Bennett (1896–1965) LDS genealogist
• Archibald Joseph Cronin (1896–1981), Scottish author
• Archibald Alexander Leach (1904–1986, stage name Cary Grant), American actor
• John Archibald Wheeler (1911–2008), American theoretical physicist
• Archibald Cox (1912–2004), U.S. Solicitor General
• Archibald David Stirling (1915–1990), British Army Major during World War II
• Archibald Hall (1924–2002), Scottish serial killer
• Archibald Wickeramaraja Singham (1932–1991), Sri Lankan Tamil political scientist and historian
• Archibald Boyce Monwabisi Mafeje (1936–2007), commonly known as Archie Mafeje, was a South African anthropologist and activist
• Archibald Gemmill (b. 1947) Scottish Football Player (Hero of Mendoza, Argentina 1978)
• Archie Manning (b. 1949), former National Football League player and father of Peyton Manning and Eli Manning
• Archie Thompson, (b. 1978), Australian footballer
• Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, (b. 2019), British Royal, son of Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex

People with the mononym or pseudonym

• Archibald (musician), stage name of Leon Gross (1916–1973), American R&B musician
• Archibald Peck, 2011 ring name of Robert Evans (wrestler) (b. 1983)
• Archibald, a pseudonym of Waldemar Łysiak
• Archibald Joyce, pseudonym of Arthur Joyce (1873–1963), British light music composer

Fictional characters with the given name

• Archie Andrews (comics), the namesake character from Archie Comics
• Archibald Asparagus, a character from the Christian video series, VeggieTales
• Archie Bunker, a character in the sitcom All in the Family
• Archibald Craven, uncle and adoptive father of the protagonist, Mary Lennox, in The Secret Garden.
• Archie Goodwin, a character in Rex Stout's mysteries.
• Archibald Grosvenor, a character in the Gilbert and Sullivan opera Patience
• Captain Haddock, a character in Hergé's The Adventures of Tintin.
• Archibald the Koala, animated children's television series
• Archibald le Magi-chien, animated children's television series
• Archibald "Archie" Mitchell, a character from the television soap opera EastEnders
• Arcimboldo, a DC Comics character
• Archie, a character played by Mark Strong in Guy's Ritchie movie Rock'N'Rolla
• Archie Wong, a character on Waterloo Road played by Christopher Chung.
• Archibald Archibaldovich, pirate and maitre d'hotel Griboyedev, minor comic character in The Master and Margarita
• Archibald Witwicky, the character from Transformers who discovered Megatron in his National Arctic Circle Expedition
• Archibald MacGregor, a supporting character seen in a few mission in the well-known game by Rockstar Games, Red Dead Redemption II.
• Archibald Yronwood, a minor character in George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire fantasy series

Surname

Archibald is a modern Anglo-Saxon surname, derived from the given name.

In Renaissance Italy

Arcimboldo or Arcimboldi was used as a surname in Renaissance Italy--see Arcimboldi

In Nova Scotia, Canada

It becomes frequent in Nova Scotia by the later 18th century. Early bearers of the name associated with Nova Scotia include:

• David Archibald (politician) (1717–1795), represented Truro Township
  • Samuel Archibald (politician, born 1742) (1742–1780), son of David Archibald
    • Samuel George William Archibald (1777–1846), politician, son of Samuel Archibald
      • Charles Dickson Archibald (1802–1868), Truro businessman, son of Samuel George William Archibald
      • Sir Edward Mortimer Archibald (1810–1884), diplomat, son of Samuel George
        • Edith Archibald (1854–1936), suffragist and author, daughter of Sir Edward Mortimer
• Matthew Archibald (1745–1820), politician, son of Samuel
  • Alexander Lackie Archibald (1788–1859), politician son of Matthew Archibald
• Thomas Dickson Archibald (1813–1890), Onslow, Nova Scotia-native, politician
• Adams George Archibald (1814–1892), Truro, Nova Scotia-native, politician
• Cyril Archibald (1837–1914), South Stormont, Ontario-native, politician
• Donald Archibald (1840–1908), Musquodoboit, Nova Scotia-native, politician
• Raymond Clare Archibald (1875–1955), Nova Scotia-native, Canadian-American mathematician and historian of mathematics
• Edgar Archibald (1885–1968), Yarmouth, Nova Scotia-native, agricultural scientist
• George W. Archibald (b. 1946), New Glasgow, Nova Scotia-native, American ornithologist

In other places

The surname becomes more widespread in the English-speaking world in general during the 19th century:

Canada

• Edward Archibald (athlete) (1884–1965), Canadian pole vaulter
• Frank C. Archibald (Newfoundland politician) (1887–1972), Harbour Grace, Newfoundland native, politician
• Harry Archibald (1910–1965), Wynot, Saskatchewan native, politician
• Nancy Archibald (1911–1996), Montreal native, fencer
• Joan Archibald (1913–2002), Montreal native, fencer
• Josh Archibald (b. 1992), Regina, Saskatchewan native, ice hockey player
• Jim Archibald (b. 1961), Craik, Saskatchewan native, ice hockey player
• Dave Archibald (b. 1969), Chilliwack, British Columbia native, ice hockey player

United States

• Ben Archibald (b. 1978), American player of gridiron football
• George D. Archibald (1820– ?), Washington County, Pennsylvania-native, theologian
• James Archibald (1912–2006), Houlton, Maine native, judge
• Joey Archibald (1914–1998), Providence, Rhode Island-native, boxer
• Lynn Archibald (1944–1997), American college basketball head coach
• Nate Archibald (b. 1948), South Bronx native, basketball player
• Nolan D. Archibald (b.1943), CEO of Black and Decker
• Robin Tenney Archibald (born 1958), American tennis player

Australia

• Frank Archibald (died 1975), Aboriginal Australian elder in whose honour the Frank Archibald Memorial Lecture Series was named
• Jules François Archibald (1856–1919), Australian journalist and publisher
• William Archibald (politician) (1850–1926), South Australian politician

New Zealand

• Anna Archibald (b. 1959), alpine skier and Olympian
• Jeff Archibald (b. 1952), Auckland native, field hockey player

United Kingdom

In the UK, Archibald is mostly found as a Scottish surname.

• Adam Archibald (1879–1957), Leith native, Victoria Cross recipient
• Adrian Archibald (b. 1969), Ballymoney native, motorcycle racer
• Alan Archibald (b. 1977), Glasgow native, football player
• Bobby Archibald (1894–1966), Strathaven, South Lanarkshire native, association footballer
• George Archibald, 1st Baron Archibald (1898–1975), British politician
• George Christopher Archibald (1926–1996), British economist, son of Baron Archibald
• Jimmy Archibald (1892–1975), Falkirk native, association footballer
• Jordan Archibald (1897–1946), Glasgow native, British Wrestling Champion 2012-2013
• Joseph Archibald (died 2014), Saint Kittitian-born British Virgin Islands lawyer and judge
• Liliana Leah Archibald (1928–2014), English insurance broker
• Marion Archibald (1936–2016), Scottish numismatist
• Nicholas Archibald (b. 1975), Scottish cricketer
• Phyllis Archibald (1880–1947), English sculptor
• Robert Archibald (1980–2020), Paisley, Renfrewshire native, basketball player
• Sandy Archibald (1897–1946), Aberdour native, association footballer
• Steve Archibald (b. 1956), Glasgow native, association footballer and manager

Fictional characters with the surname

• Nate Archibald (Gossip Girl), a main character on the TV series Gossip Girl
• Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald, a character in Fate/Zero

See also

• All pages with titles beginning with Archibald

References

1. cf. Old English eorcnan-stan "precious stone, gem". Pokorny (1959) tentatively grouped the word with PIE *arǵ- "glittering, shining", whence Latin argentum "silver"), but Gothic ark- may also represent an early loan from Greek ἀρχι- ("arch-", cf. Ulfilian Gothic arkaggilus for archangelus), i.e. precisely the element with which the first element in this name was again associated by popular etymology in the medieval period. Formerly (Diefenbach 1851) also compared to Sanskrit arh- "to be worthy".
2. US statistics cited after behindthename.com

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