Ned

English, diminutive of Edward
"wealthy guardian"

Ned Origin and Meaning

The name Ned is a boy's name of English origin meaning "wealthy guardian".

Ned is a gently old-fashioned Nancy Drew-Bobbsey Twins-era short form for Edward that sounds cooler than Ed and is enjoying a small style renaissance.

Usage of Ned in literature goes back to a Ben Johnson character in 1614, and it is also the name of the protagonist in James Fenimore Cooper's Ned Myers. In Australia, Ned Kelly is famous as a larger-than-life legendary outlaw figure. In this country, Ned Rorem is a respected modern composer.

There was a 1990s sitcom called Ned and Stacey, and other Neds have appeared in The Simpsons (neighbor Flanders), Groundhog Day and School of Rock. Ned Stark is a prominent, and unusually heroic, character in Game of Thrones, giving the name some new cultural cache, though we can't recommend using his proper name, Eddard.

# 951 in the US

Ned Rank in US Top 1000

# 918 on Nameberry

Ned Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Ned Popularity

Famous People Named Ned

  • Ned Rorem
    American composer
  • Ned Payne Austin
    American actor
  • Edward "Ned" Kelly
    Australian bushranger and folk hero
  • Edward Hugh "Ned" Hanlon
    American basebal player
  • Ned Rocknroll (born Abel Smith)
    nephew of Richard Branson, husband of actress Kate Winslet
  • Edgar Frederick "Ned" Yost III
    American baseball player and manager
  • Ned Washington
    American lyricist
  • Ned Thomas Beatty
    American actor
  • Ned Jarrett
    American NASCAR driver
  • Ned Eisenberg
    American actor
  • Ned Fulmer
    American actor and director for Buzzfeed
  • Ned Hepburn
    American writer and blogger
  • Edward Miner "Ned" Lamont
    American businessman and politician
  • Nusyn "Ned" Glass
    Polish,American actor
  • Ned Bellamy
    American actor
  • Edmund "Ned" Foley
    son of actor Dave Foley

Ned in Pop Culture

  • Nedward "Ned" Flanders
    character on TV's "The Simpsons"
  • Eddard "Ned" Stark
    character in the Game of Thrones series
  • Ned Ryerson
    character in movie "Groundhog Day"
  • Ned Dorsey
    main character on TV's "Ned & Stacey"
  • Ned the Pie Maker
    main character on TV's "Pushing Daisies"
  • Ned Bigby
    character on TV's "Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide"
  • Ned Nickerson
    boyfriend in the Nancy Drew series
  • Ned
    character on TV's "The Tribe"
  • Ned Dorneget
    character on TV's "NCIS"
  • Ned Gerblansky
    character in the television series South Park
  • Ned Land
    character in book/film "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea"
  • Ned Nederlander
    one of the "Three Amigos"
  • Ned Plimpton
    character in the film The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
  • Ned Quartermaine
    character on American soap "General Hospital"
  • Ned Ryder
    character in Evelyn Waugh's "Brideshead Revisited"
  • Ned Schneebly
    character in the 2003 film School of Rock
  • Nedwin "Ned
    " character in the book series "Beyonders: A World Without Heroes"
  • Ned Banks
    character on TV's "Ghost Whisperer"
  • Ned Parker
    character on Australian soap "Neighbours"
  • Edward "Ned" Leeds
    character in the movie "Spider,Man: Homecoming"
  • Ned Henry
    main character of Connie Willis's novel "To Say Nothing of the Dog"
  • "Ned's Newt
    " Canadian animated series
  • "The Misfortune of Being Ned
    " animated web series
  • "Waking Ned Devine
    " 1998 Irish film
  • Ned
    Scottish derogatory term for hooligans, louts or criminals