Balfour as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Balfour

What is the meaning of the name Balfour ?

The baby name Balfour is a Male name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced /ˈbæl.fɔːr/ (UK), /ˈbæl.fɚ/ (US) — approx. 'BAL-for' or 'BAL-fawr'.

Balfour is Scottish in Origin.

Rooted in Scotland, Balfour is a surname-turned-given name taken from several places called Balfour in Fife, Orkney, and elsewhere. The toponym combines Gaelic baile “farm, settlement” with a second element often explained as foghar/fobhar “harvest, pasture,” yielding the sense “farm by the pasture/harvest-lands”; some scholars link it instead to fuar “cold,” i.e., “the cold farm,” reflecting local landscape terms.

As a family name it is ancient in Scottish records, associated with the Balfours of Balbirnie and of Whittingehame. Its profile as a first name rose in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, influenced by statesman Arthur James Balfour and the 1917 Balfour Declaration; it saw occasional use across Britain, the Commonwealth, and among some Jewish families. The name remains rare today. Variants and spellings include Balfor and Balfur (especially in Hebrew or Slavic contexts), with Bal used informally; there is no established feminine form.

⚙ Balfour is an uncommon pick. Our records hold just 37 recorded uses, spread over 10 countries.