Dawn
The English word for first light, taken up as a name in the 1920s.
Popularity, 1880–2025
Dawn first shows up in the national records in 1888. It has ranked among the top 100 names for American girls in every year from 1956 to 1982. Its biggest year was 1970, when 15,681 newborn girls received the name, ranking it No. 16 nationally. Its best ranking came in 1971, at No. 14. All told, 290,680 Americans have been given the name since 1880.
Related names
Other spellings on record: Dan (107,130), Dane (33,979), Dayne (4,091), Dawne (2,603), Dann (2,234), Dain (1,997) (total births since 1880)
Explore Dawn interactively →By the decade
| Decade | Births | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 5 | No. 1276 |
| 1890s | 26 | No. 1099 |
| 1900s | 30 | No. 1547 |
| 1910s | 357 | No. 856 |
| 1920s | 1,464 | No. 441 |
| 1930s | 3,732 | No. 268 |
| 1940s | 8,631 | No. 208 |
| 1950s | 38,899 | No. 54 |
| 1960s | 114,293 | No. 21 |
| 1970s | 92,446 | No. 14 |
| 1980s | 22,406 | No. 67 |
| 1990s | 4,302 | No. 360 |
| 2000s | 1,577 | No. 910 |
| 2010s | 923 | No. 1917 |
| 2020s | 550 | No. 1852 |
Births and rank shown for girls, the sex more often given the name. The Social Security Administration omits name–year combinations with fewer than five births.
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Data: U.S. Social Security Administration national baby-name file, 1880–2025.