Donald
Scottish Gaelic Domhnall, “world ruler.”
Popularity, 1880–2025
Borne by early Scottish kings and clan chiefs, it peaked in the 1930s, undented by a certain cartoon duck.
Donald 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 1895 to 1990. It spent 20 years inside the top 10. Its biggest year was 1934, when 30,408 newborn boys received the name, ranking it No. 6 nationally. In 2025 it ranked No. 690 for boys. All told, 1,420,387 Americans have been given the name since 1880.
Related names
Other spellings on record: Donold (828) (total births since 1880)
Other names that share a story: Don
Explore Donald interactively →By the decade
| Decade | Births | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 548 | No. 180 |
| 1890s | 1,786 | No. 74 |
| 1900s | 4,632 | No. 42 |
| 1910s | 57,001 | No. 17 |
| 1920s | 191,816 | No. 7 |
| 1930s | 283,718 | No. 6 |
| 1940s | 247,834 | No. 9 |
| 1950s | 273,574 | No. 13 |
| 1960s | 172,628 | No. 19 |
| 1970s | 82,435 | No. 30 |
| 1980s | 50,843 | No. 53 |
| 1990s | 26,756 | No. 87 |
| 2000s | 12,005 | No. 217 |
| 2010s | 6,709 | No. 377 |
| 2020s | 2,539 | No. 596 |
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.