Variant of Wilbur, from Old English or Germanic elements meaning 'wild boar' or 'bright will.'
Wilber — sometimes spelled Wilbur — descends from Old English and Old French roots, most likely from the elements wil (will or desire) and beorht (bright), or possibly from a Germanic given name that was later reinforced by Norman French. It arrived in England as a surname through the usual mechanisms of occupation, location, and lineage, and by the nineteenth century had made the full journey from family name to given name in the American tradition of repurposing surnames as first names. The name's most famous bearer in history is Wilbur Wright, who alongside his brother Orville achieved the first powered flight at Kitty Hawk in 1903 — making the name permanently associated with one of the defining technological moments of the twentieth century.
B. White named his fictional pig Wilbur in Charlotte's Web, one of the most beloved children's novels ever written. A pig who is sensitive, loyal, terrified of death, and saved by friendship: Wilbur became a symbol of gentle vulnerability, which is a curious second life for a name.
Wilber and Wilbur both declined sharply after the mid-twentieth century, falling into the category of names that feel unmistakably of an era. But that very period specificity has become an asset as vintage names cycle back into fashion. The name carries warmth and a certain earnest Midwestern solidity that feels increasingly appealing against a backdrop of invented names and respelled classics.