boys' name ★ peaked 1992

Desmond

Meaning A male given name transferred from the surname Gender Boy · 1% girls Rank 2025 #376 Trend → Stable

A male given name transferred from the surname; popular in Britain in the first half of the twentieth century.

Rank 2025
#376
among boys · ↓8 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
839
named Desmond · -6% vs 2024
How common
1 in 2,036
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1992
1,080 babies
All-time total
40,264
#574 all-time among boys
First recorded
1904
in Social Security records

Desmond popularity over time

40,264 babies have been named Desmond since 1904, 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
0.190.380.560.7518801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – 14 14 1 – #900
1910s – 164 164 16 +1071% #1,216
1920s – 380 380 38 +132% #842
1930s – 238 238 24 -37% #1,176
1940s – 247 247 25 +4% #1,218
1950s – 492 492 49 +99% #923
1960s – 1,180 1,180 118 +140% #615
1970s 33 3,066 3,099 310 +163% #332
1980s 68 5,400 5,468 547 +76% #301
1990s 106 7,858 7,964 796 +46% #264
2000s 21 6,316 6,337 634 -20% #375
2010s 5 9,460 9,465 947 +49% #324
2020s (to 2025) – 5,216 5,216 869 -8% #354

Where Desmond 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 832 0.49 #381
2027 826 0.48 #384
2028 820 0.48 #387
2029 816 0.48 #390
2030 812 0.48 #391

Where Desmond is most popular

Boys named Desmond per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.504 per 1,000. Strongest in Vermont, Maine, and Alaska.

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 Desmond 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
Vermont 12 1.91 +279%
Maine 35 1.80 +258%
Alaska 17 1.43 +183%
Oregon 106 1.40 +177%
Washington 198 1.21 +140%
Massachusetts 150 1.09 +116%
District of Columbia 16 1.08 +115%
Connecticut 62 0.916 +82%
Utah 84 0.880 +75%
Wyoming 5 0.864 +71%
Maryland 96 0.805 +60%
Minnesota 95 0.774 +54%
Michigan 157 0.767 +52%
New Hampshire 17 0.766 +52%
Idaho 31 0.757 +50%
Colorado 95 0.736 +46%
Kansas 47 0.685 +36%
Wisconsin 79 0.667 +32%
Pennsylvania 173 0.652 +29%
Illinois 166 0.650 +29%
Tennessee 117 0.648 +29%
Arkansas 40 0.632 +25%
Virginia 119 0.627 +24%
Kentucky 62 0.618 +23%
Ohio 163 0.615 +22%
Rhode Island 10 0.613 +22%
New Mexico 19 0.577 +14%
Oklahoma 50 0.565 +12%
Nevada 32 0.561 +11%
New York 243 0.561 +11%
California 493 0.539 +7%
Indiana 86 0.536 +6%
Arizona 86 0.526 ≈ national
Missouri 72 0.519 ≈ national
New Jersey 102 0.507 ≈ national
South Carolina 49 0.474 -6%
Louisiana 48 0.469 -7%
Georgia 115 0.454 -10%
Nebraska 19 0.437 -13%
North Carolina 109 0.427 -15%
Iowa 29 0.421 -17%
Alabama 42 0.384 -24%
West Virginia 12 0.368 -27%
Florida 164 0.346 -31%
Texas 258 0.293 -42%
South Dakota 5 0.269 -47%
Mississippi 15 0.264 -48%
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –

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 Desmond

Desmond is moderately common for boys in the United States, ranked #376 in 2025 with 839 babies given the name. It is currently holding steady compared with a decade ago.

Since 1904, 40,264 American babies have been named Desmond. Its peak came in 1992, when 1,080 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 Desmond stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Desmond?

The median living Desmond is about 23 years old; half are between 10 and 36. An estimated 38 thousand people named Desmond are alive in the United States today.

median 23 020406080100

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

Desmond 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 – – 839 #376
2024 – – 891 #368
2023 – – 797 #399
2022 – – 907 #363
2021 – – 920 #354
2020 – – 862 #361
2019 – – 863 #369
2018 – – 1,030 #324
2017 – – 1,047 #327
2016 – – 894 #371
2015 – – 962 #351
2014 – – 1,035 #330
2013 5 #17,246 984 #329
2012 – – 924 #339
2011 – – 843 #355
2010 – – 878 #349
2009 – – 789 #383
2008 – – 720 #412
2007 5 #18,380 676 #425
2006 – – 583 #463
2005 – – 530 #472
2004 – – 543 #466
2003 6 #14,357 556 #454
2002 5 #16,128 584 #422
2001 – – 636 #397
2000 5 #15,704 699 #375
1995 9 #8,963 667 #361
1990 6 #11,783 871 #287
1985 5 #11,090 677 #301
1980 11 #6,016 528 #347
1975 5 #9,437 240 #519
1970 – – 165 #630
1965 – – 124 #666
1960 – – 85 #827
1955 – – 62 #952
1950 – – 37 #1,190
1945 – – 23 #1,388
1940 – – 15 #1,822
1935 – – 24 #1,396
1930 – – 29 #1,342
1925 – – 33 #1,259
1920 – – 20 #1,771
1915 – – 19 #1,617
1910 – – 8 #1,228
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Desmond

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

  1. 1 Desmond Doss Desmond Doss US soldier and Medal of Honor recipient (1919–2006) Contemporary
  2. 2 Desmond Harrington Desmond Harrington American actor (born 1976) Contemporary
  3. 3 Desmond Tutu Desmond Tutu South African bishop and anti-apartheid activist (1931–2021) Contemporary
  4. 4 Desmond Llewelyn Desmond Llewelyn Welsh actor (1914–1999) Contemporary
  5. 5 Desmond Child Desmond Child American songwriter and producer (born 1953) Contemporary
  6. 6 Desmond Morris Desmond Morris English zoologist, ethologist and artist (1928–2026) Contemporary
  7. 7 Desmond Dekker Desmond Dekker Jamaican musician (1941–2006) Contemporary
  8. 8 Desmond Mason Desmond Mason American basketball player (born 1977) Contemporary
  9. 9 Desmond Armstrong American soccer player b. 1964 · Contemporary
  10. 10 Desmond Hoyte Desmond Hoyte President of Guyana, politician, lawyer (1929–2002) Contemporary
  11. 11 Desmond Connell Desmond Connell Irish cardinal in the Roman Catholic Church 1926–2017 · Contemporary
  12. 12 Desmond N'Ze Footballer (born 1989) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Desmond?

The median living Desmond is about 23 years old. Half of all living Desmonds are between 10 and 36 years old.

How many people named Desmond are alive today?

An estimated 38 thousand people named Desmond are alive in the United States, based on 40,264 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Desmond mean?

A male given name transferred from the surname; popular in Britain in the first half of the twentieth century.

How popular is the name Desmond in 2025?

Desmond ranked #376 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 839 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Desmond?

40,264 babies have been named Desmond in the United States since 1904, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Desmond most popular?

Desmond peaked in 1992, when 1,080 newborns received the name.

Is Desmond a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Desmond rising or falling?

Desmond has been roughly stable over the past decade.

Will Desmond become more popular?

Desmond looks stable. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 812 boys named Desmond in 2030, ranking around #391. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Desmond?

Well-known people named Desmond include Desmond Doss (military personnel), Desmond Harrington (actor), Desmond Tutu (religious figure).

Names like Desmond

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

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