boys' name ★ peaked 1998

Dante

Meaning Borrowed from Italian Dànte, a reduced form of Durànte Gender Boy · 1% girls Rank 2025 #308 Trend → Stable

Borrowed from Italian Dànte, a reduced form of Durànte.

Rank 2025
#308
among boys · ↑14 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
1,104
named Dante · +3% vs 2024
How common
1 in 1,547
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1998
1,694 babies
All-time total
52,053
#503 all-time among boys
First recorded
1908
in Social Security records

Dante popularity over time

52,053 babies have been named Dante since 1908, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.250.50.75118801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
BoysGirls

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – 16 16 2 – #1,037
1910s – 496 496 50 +3000% #629
1920s – 833 833 83 +68% #562
1930s – 334 334 33 -60% #903
1940s – 334 334 33 0% #1,008
1950s – 534 534 53 +60% #903
1960s 21 1,241 1,262 126 +136% #591
1970s 104 2,871 2,975 298 +136% #401
1980s 114 4,378 4,492 449 +51% #389
1990s 137 10,008 10,145 1,015 +126% #200
2000s 55 12,474 12,529 1,253 +23% #248
2010s 35 11,558 11,593 1,159 -7% #255
2020s (to 2025) – 6,510 6,510 1,085 -6% #301

Where Dante is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 boys (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 boys Implied rank
2026 1,111 0.65 #307
2027 1,116 0.65 #306
2028 1,121 0.66 #305
2029 1,125 0.66 #303
2030 1,129 0.66 #301

Where Dante is most popular

Boys named Dante per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.625 per 1,000. Strongest in New Mexico, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are boys named Dante born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Boys 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
New Mexico 60 1.82 +191%
Rhode Island 28 1.72 +175%
Connecticut 83 1.23 +96%
New Jersey 233 1.16 +85%
Massachusetts 144 1.05 +67%
Arizona 171 1.05 +67%
Nevada 59 1.03 +66%
Texas 897 1.02 +63%
Colorado 126 0.976 +56%
New Hampshire 21 0.946 +51%
California 806 0.882 +41%
Florida 397 0.838 +34%
Idaho 32 0.782 +25%
Utah 72 0.754 +21%
Pennsylvania 199 0.749 +20%
New York 303 0.700 +12%
Nebraska 29 0.667 +7%
Oklahoma 58 0.656 +5%
Oregon 49 0.646 ≈ national
Washington 100 0.611 ≈ national
Illinois 152 0.595 -5%
Arkansas 37 0.585 -6%
South Carolina 55 0.532 -15%
West Virginia 17 0.521 -17%
Louisiana 51 0.499 -20%
Georgia 126 0.497 -20%
Virginia 92 0.485 -22%
Kentucky 48 0.478 -23%
Maryland 57 0.478 -24%
North Carolina 121 0.474 -24%
Missouri 65 0.469 -25%
Kansas 31 0.452 -28%
Wisconsin 53 0.447 -28%
Ohio 118 0.445 -29%
Indiana 70 0.437 -30%
Michigan 89 0.435 -30%
Minnesota 53 0.432 -31%
Alabama 47 0.430 -31%
Tennessee 73 0.404 -35%
Iowa 27 0.392 -37%
Montana 5 0.284 -55%
South Dakota 5 0.269 -57%
Maine 5 0.258 -59%
Mississippi 7 0.123 -80%
Alaska – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
North Dakota – – –
Vermont – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Dante

Dante is moderately common for boys in the United States, ranked #308 in 2025 with 1,104 babies given the name. It is currently holding steady compared with a decade ago.

Since 1908, 52,053 American babies have been named Dante. Its peak came in 1998, when 1,694 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1990s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Dante stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Dante?

The median living Dante is about 21 years old; half are between 11 and 30. An estimated 49 thousand people named Dante are alive in the United States today.

median 21 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Dante year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 – – 1,104 #308
2024 – – 1,069 #322
2023 – – 1,062 #313
2022 – – 1,084 #310
2021 – – 1,081 #310
2020 – – 1,110 #301
2019 – – 1,099 #308
2018 – – 1,074 #315
2017 5 #16,474 1,081 #317
2016 6 #14,773 1,011 #344
2015 – – 1,077 #322
2014 – – 1,110 #314
2013 – – 1,208 #287
2012 5 #17,518 1,251 #279
2011 12 #9,296 1,305 #266
2010 7 #13,820 1,342 #255
2009 – – 1,139 #290
2008 – – 1,146 #292
2007 7 #14,274 1,270 #269
2006 – – 1,184 #290
2005 8 #12,102 1,241 #266
2004 – – 1,209 #271
2003 12 #8,644 1,310 #252
2002 9 #10,431 1,268 #257
2001 11 #8,909 1,355 #248
2000 8 #10,979 1,352 #248
1995 15 #6,034 819 #321
1990 10 #8,019 639 #365
1985 11 #6,120 398 #429
1980 11 #5,997 387 #418
1975 11 #5,223 311 #451
1970 6 #7,251 222 #545
1965 – – 113 #700
1960 – – 76 #871
1955 – – 59 #978
1950 – – 39 #1,145
1945 – – 33 #1,139
1940 – – 21 #1,481
1935 – – 31 #1,203
1930 – – 53 #918
1925 – – 88 #684
1920 – – 66 #827
1915 – – 85 #629
1910 – – 13 #880
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Dante

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri Italian writer and philosopher (1265–1321) Medieval
  2. 2 Dante Basco Dante Basco American actor (born 1975) Contemporary
  3. 3 Dante Gabriel Rossetti Dante Gabriel Rossetti English poet and artist (1828–1882) 19th century
  4. 4 Dante Dante Brazilian footballer (born 1983) Contemporary
  5. 5 Dante Spinotti Dante Spinotti Italian cinematographer b. 1943 · Contemporary
  6. 6 Dante Cunningham Dante Cunningham American basketball player (born 1987) Contemporary
  7. 7 Dante Exum Dante Exum Australian basketball player (born 1995) Contemporary
  8. 8 Dante Ferretti Dante Ferretti Italian production designer b. 1943 · Contemporary
  9. 9 Dante Amaral Dante Amaral Brazilian volleyball player b. 1980 · Contemporary
  10. 10 Dante López Paraguayan footballer (born 1983) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Dante, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Dante?

The median living Dante is about 21 years old. Half of all living Dantes are between 11 and 30 years old.

How many people named Dante are alive today?

An estimated 49 thousand people named Dante are alive in the United States, based on 52,053 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Dante mean?

Borrowed from Italian Dànte, a reduced form of Durànte.

How popular is the name Dante in 2025?

Dante ranked #308 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 1,104 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Dante?

52,053 babies have been named Dante in the United States since 1908, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Dante most popular?

Dante peaked in 1998, when 1,694 newborns received the name.

Is Dante a boy or girl name?

Dante is overwhelmingly a boy's name: 99% of babies with the name.

Is the name Dante rising or falling?

Dante has been roughly stable over the past decade.

Will Dante become more popular?

Dante looks stable. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 1,129 boys named Dante in 2030, ranking around #301. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Dante?

Well-known people named Dante include Dante Alighieri (writer), Dante Basco (actor), Dante Gabriel Rossetti (writer).

Names like Dante

Names that sound and feel close to Dante: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Dante with similar names → More names starting with D →