Dean
From an English surname with two sources: Old English denu, 'valley', for someone living in one, and the church title dean, from Latin decanus.
Dean in 2025
Dean was given to 2,882 babies in the United States in 2025, making it the 220th most popular name of the year. That is roughly one in every 1,150 babies born.
The history of Dean
Dean reached its highest point in 1961, when 4,967 babies were given the name, ranking 181st that year. Its best-ever ranking was 166th, in 1967.
Across the 146 years of records since 1880, 195,844 babies have been named Dean. Half of them were born before 1963, which places the name's centre of gravity with the Baby Boomers.
Dean by decade
| Decade | Babies named Dean | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 148 | 815 |
| 1890s | 299 | 732 |
| 1900s | 481 | 694 |
| 1910s | 4,080 | 401 |
| 1920s | 11,721 | 282 |
| 1930s | 14,189 | 254 |
| 1940s | 16,802 | 275 |
| 1950s | 34,892 | 199 |
| 1960s | 42,811 | 166 |
| 1970s | 14,045 | 240 |
| 1980s | 8,139 | 557 |
| 1990s | 8,138 | 594 |
| 2000s | 8,048 | 618 |
| 2010s | 17,525 | 311 |
| 2020s | 14,526 | 220 |
Where Dean is heading
Dean has risen 48% over the past decade, from 1,950 babies in 2015 to 2,882 in 2025.
Names like Dean
Names that rose and fell at the same time as Dean.