Boniface

Meaning & origin●

Attested across 9 languages in the etymology graph.

Languages●

Language is read off each record's context, not declared by the bearer; a share is of all records for this spelling.

Other names spelled this way◐

Boniface is also recorded as 2 other names, grouped separately because the records behind them do not connect to the one described above.

• English given name38K records spelled Boniface13 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in Nigeria, United States, Tanzania, United Kingdom

  Languages: English, German, Dutch

  Also written Bonifaz, Bonìface, Bonifáce

• French given name26K records spelled Boniface8 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in France, Martinique, United States, Guadeloupe

  Languages: French, Spanish, Portuguese

  Also written Bonifacé, Bonifatius

59 further groups record this spelling and are not listed here.

Grouping is the name graph's, not a register's: two spellings join a group when the evidence links them, so a group is a claim about the records rather than about the people.

Other recorded senses●

Boniface is also recorded in 5 other lexicons, as a different name or as an ordinary word. These are senses of the spelling, not of the name above.

• In French, From Latin Bonifatius, from bonus 'good' and fatum 'fate, destiny'.

  as a name·Le grand guide des prénoms (Enfant - Education)

• In English, The proprietor of a hotel or restaurant; an innkeeper.

  as a word·kaikki.org Wiktionary extract (IPA + transliterations)

• In French, a male given name of mainly historical usage

  as a word·kaikki.org Wiktionary extract (IPA + transliterations)

• In French, On appelait autrefois boniface un homme crédule jusqu’à la niaiserie. Aucun dictionnaire étymologique n’explique le rapport avec le prénom.

  as a name·2500 noms propres devenus communs : dictionnaire étymologique (éponymes, antonomases et hypallages)

• In French, Origine latine, signifie « bonne destinée ».

  as a name·Le grand guide des prénoms (Enfant - Education)

Ordered by how much of this spelling's record each language holds, so a sense from a language the name is barely used in sits last rather than first.

Over time●

MQ INSEE — Fichier des prénoms (births by department), dpt 972 (Martinique) — 51 years between 1900–1963. One register's own figures, never a sum across registers: two registers counting the same people would double them.

Notable people with this name●

• Boniface Ib. 370ITpope
• Boniface IIIb. 540ITpope
• Boniface IVb. 550ITpope
• Boniface Vb. 600ITpope
• Saint Bonifaceb. 675GB8th‑century Anglo‑Saxon bishop and missionary, Catholic saint and martyr, known as the ‘Apostle to the Germans’
• Boniface I, Marquess of Montferratb. 1150ITKing of Thessalonica
• Boniface IXb. 1356ITpope of the Catholic Church from 1389 to 1404
• Boniface Alexandreb. 1936HTHaitian politician (1936-2023)
• Boniface IIITpope and bishop of Rome from 530 to 532
• Boniface VIITpope

The ten people covered by the most Wikipedia language editions — a proxy for cross-cultural notability, which favours historical and Western figures over equally prominent contemporary ones — shown by birth year. Source: Wikidata (CC0).

Evidence●

Register rows as of the 2026-09-12 data build · 229 rows in the corpus for this spelling.

Frequently asked questions

How common is the name Boniface?

We estimate roughly 621 people bear Boniface (counting its spellings and scripts) across 5 countries in our records.

In which country does Boniface have the most bearers?

Boniface is most frequently recorded in Kenya, where it is most often spelled boniface.

How common is Boniface compared with other names?

In Kenya, Boniface is the 167th most common given name of 51,773 given names recorded there.

Is Boniface a male or female name?

Boniface is a male name in our records. Opposite-gender entries fall within the cross-gender noise we measure in the source data, so we don't report them as usage.

What does the name Boniface mean?

Recorded meaning: from Latin bonifatius, from bonum ‘good’ and fatum ‘fate’; first attested Bonefacius uinitor 1193 P (Yorkshire)