US Name Trends

Dean

Two surnames merged: one for a dweller in a valley, one for a church dean.

1961peak year
No. 78best rank (1967)
195,844babies since 1880
No. 125rank in 2025

Popularity, 1880–2025

Babies named Dean per year — peak 4,933▬ girls ▬ boys18801900192019401960198020002020

Dean appears in the national records from the very first year, 1880. It has ranked among the top 100 names for American boys in every year from 1956 to 1969. Its biggest year was 1961, when 4,933 newborn boys received the name, ranking it No. 84 nationally. Its best ranking came in 1967, at No. 78. In 2025 it ranked No. 125 for boys. All told, 195,844 Americans have been given the name since 1880.

Related names

Other spellings on record: Dewayne (26,598), Deon (16,988), Deanne (14,856), Deann (10,185), Deion (6,166), Deane (4,062) (total births since 1880)

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By the decade

DecadeBirthsBest rank
1880s132No. 388
1890s247No. 285
1900s381No. 302
1910s3,812No. 181
1920s11,155No. 133
1930s13,629No. 118
1940s16,356No. 129
1950s34,584No. 93
1960s42,527No. 78
1970s13,898No. 112
1980s8,059No. 263
1990s8,122No. 286
2000s8,035No. 304
2010s17,497No. 172
2020s14,496No. 125

Births and rank shown for boys, 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.