boys' name ★ peaked 1952

Dennis

Meaning follower of (the wine god) Dionysus Gender Boy Rank 2025 #707 Trend ↓ Falling 13%

From Middle English Denis, from Old French saint's name Denis, brought to England by Normans; from Latin Dionysius, a masculine name literally meaning “follower of (the…

Rank 2025
#707
among boys · ↑2 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
381
named Dennis
How common
1 in 4,483
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1952
24,605 babies
All-time total
623,692
#51 all-time among boys
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Dennis popularity over time

623,692 babies have been named Dennis since 1880, 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
3.757.511.251518801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – 1,107 1,107 111 – #106
1890s – 919 919 92 -17% #139
1900s – 988 988 99 +8% #158
1910s 37 4,166 4,203 420 +325% #189
1920s 96 8,145 8,241 824 +96% #154
1930s 141 26,366 26,507 2,651 +222% #34
1940s 460 162,114 162,574 16,257 +513% #16
1950s 518 204,267 204,785 20,479 +26% #17
1960s 421 94,984 95,405 9,541 -53% #31
1970s 360 50,552 50,912 5,091 -47% #46
1980s 249 30,463 30,712 3,071 -40% #80
1990s 169 18,101 18,270 1,827 -41% #129
2000s 176 10,445 10,621 1,062 -42% #251
2010s 41 5,977 6,018 602 -43% #391
2020s (to 2025) 24 2,406 2,430 405 -33% #644

Where Dennis 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 371 0.22 outside top 500
2027 363 0.21 outside top 500
2028 357 0.21 outside top 500
2029 351 0.21 outside top 500
2030 346 0.20 outside top 500

Where Dennis is most popular

Boys named Dennis per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.231 per 1,000. Strongest in Maryland, Louisiana, and New Jersey.

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 Dennis 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
Maryland 52 0.436 +89%
Louisiana 39 0.381 +65%
New Jersey 72 0.358 +55%
Mississippi 20 0.352 +53%
Virginia 66 0.348 +51%
Massachusetts 43 0.313 +36%
Rhode Island 5 0.307 +33%
Ohio 81 0.306 +33%
Missouri 42 0.303 +31%
Illinois 77 0.301 +31%
Pennsylvania 78 0.294 +27%
Indiana 47 0.293 +27%
Michigan 60 0.293 +27%
Florida 137 0.289 +25%
South Carolina 29 0.281 +22%
North Carolina 70 0.274 +19%
Wisconsin 32 0.270 +17%
Iowa 18 0.261 +13%
Minnesota 32 0.261 +13%
Alabama 28 0.256 +11%
Georgia 63 0.249 +8%
New York 104 0.240 ≈ national
Tennessee 43 0.238 ≈ national
Kentucky 20 0.199 -14%
California 182 0.199 -14%
Connecticut 13 0.192 -17%
Texas 167 0.190 -18%
Washington 30 0.183 -20%
Colorado 20 0.155 -33%
West Virginia 5 0.153 -34%
Kansas 10 0.146 -37%
Arizona 23 0.141 -39%
Nebraska 6 0.138 -40%
Utah 13 0.136 -41%
Oregon 10 0.132 -43%
Oklahoma 11 0.124 -46%
Idaho 5 0.122 -47%
Nevada 6 0.105 -54%
Alaska – – –
Arkansas – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Maine – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
South 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 Dennis

Dennis is uncommon for boys in the United States, ranked #707 in 2025 with 381 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 623,692 American babies have been named Dennis. Its peak came in 1952, when 24,605 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1950s.

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 Dennis stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Dennis?

The median living Dennis is about 67 years old; half are between 55 and 74. An estimated 429 thousand people named Dennis are alive in the United States today.

median 67 020406080100

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

Dennis 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 – – 381 #707
2024 5 #15,891 376 #709
2023 – – 427 #644
2022 5 #15,921 423 #652
2021 8 #11,383 385 #690
2020 6 #13,871 414 #647
2019 – – 510 #553
2018 – – 497 #556
2017 5 #16,505 516 #545
2016 7 #13,276 587 #510
2015 – – 592 #494
2014 6 #15,074 578 #486
2013 – – 625 #454
2012 – – 661 #424
2011 15 #7,898 685 #413
2010 8 #12,596 726 #391
2009 14 #8,563 845 #362
2008 17 #7,499 833 #368
2007 21 #6,389 968 #330
2006 13 #8,862 1,029 #313
2005 15 #7,606 1,040 #316
2004 25 #5,102 1,017 #308
2003 21 #5,644 1,109 #282
2002 23 #5,131 1,081 #280
2001 17 #6,403 1,180 #270
2000 10 #9,340 1,343 #251
1995 13 #6,744 1,689 #185
1990 17 #5,351 2,494 #129
1985 26 #3,345 2,845 #103
1980 28 #3,083 3,804 #80
1975 28 #2,697 4,730 #59
1970 33 #2,320 7,312 #46
1965 37 #1,892 8,215 #44
1960 54 #1,507 14,303 #31
1955 52 #1,388 20,436 #23
1950 39 #1,478 22,862 #17
1945 37 #1,315 14,990 #19
1940 39 #1,174 7,845 #24
1935 18 #1,861 2,597 #72
1930 17 #2,040 1,173 #145
1925 8 #3,758 826 #177
1920 8 #3,697 624 #207
1915 – – 514 #209
1910 – – 135 #196
1905 – – 106 #179
1900 – – 132 #158
1895 – – 108 #142
1890 – – 102 #139
1885 – – 112 #122
1880 – – 128 #106

Famous people named Dennis

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

  1. 1 Dennis Rader Dennis Rader American serial killer (born 1945) Contemporary
  2. 2 Dennis Quaid Dennis Quaid American actor (born 1954) Contemporary
  3. 3 Dennis Rodman Dennis Rodman American basketball player (born 1961) Contemporary
  4. 4 Dennis Hopper Dennis Hopper American actor and filmmaker (1936–2010) Contemporary
  5. 5 Dennis Nilsen Dennis Nilsen Scottish serial killer (1945–2018) Contemporary
  6. 6 Dennis Wilson Dennis Wilson American musician (1944–1983) Contemporary
  7. 7 Dennis Haysbert Dennis Haysbert American actor b. 1954 · Contemporary
  8. 8 Dennis Farina Dennis Farina American actor (1944–2013) Contemporary
  9. 9 Dennis Bergkamp Dennis Bergkamp Dutch football coach and player (born 1969) Contemporary
  10. 10 Dennis Weaver Dennis Weaver American actor (1924–2006) Contemporary
  11. 11 Dennis Franz Dennis Franz American actor (born 1944) Contemporary
  12. 12 Dennis Hastert Dennis Hastert American politician and criminal (born 1942) Contemporary
  13. 13 Dennis Dugan American actor and film director (born 1946) Contemporary
  14. 14 Dennis Ritchie Dennis Ritchie American computer scientist known for Unix (1941–2011) Contemporary
  15. 15 Dennis Lehane Dennis Lehane American novelist (born 1965) Contemporary
  16. 16 Dennis Christopher Dennis Christopher American actor (born 1950) b. 1955 · Contemporary
  17. 17 Dennis Kucinich Dennis Kucinich American politician (born 1946) Contemporary
  18. 18 Dennis Johnson Dennis Johnson American basketball player (1954–2007) Contemporary
  19. 19 Dennis Taylor Dennis Taylor Northern Irish former snooker player (born 1949) Contemporary
  20. 20 Dennis Chambers Dennis Chambers American drummer (born 1959) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Dennis?

The median living Dennis is about 67 years old. Half of all living Denniss are between 55 and 74 years old.

How many people named Dennis are alive today?

An estimated 429 thousand people named Dennis are alive in the United States, based on 623,692 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Dennis mean?

From Middle English Denis, from Old French saint's name Denis, brought to England by Normans; from Latin Dionysius, a masculine name literally meaning “follower of (the wine god) Dionysus”.

How popular is the name Dennis in 2025?

Dennis ranked #707 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 381 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Dennis?

623,692 babies have been named Dennis in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Dennis most popular?

Dennis peaked in 1952, when 24,605 newborns received the name.

Is Dennis a boy or girl name?

Dennis is overwhelmingly a boy's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Dennis rising or falling?

Dennis is declining, less popular now than a decade ago.

Will Dennis become more popular?

Dennis is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 346 boys named Dennis in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Dennis?

Well-known people named Dennis include Dennis Rader (extremist), Dennis Quaid (actor), Dennis Rodman (basketball player).

Names like Dennis

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

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