Boy nameCurrently #708 in the USFalling
Dennis
DEN-iss//ˈdɛnɪs//
2 syllablesPeak year: 19526 lettersStarts with D
Meaning & origin
Follower of Dionysus
Dennis comes from the Greek Dionysios, referring to a devotee of Dionysus, the god of wine and revelry. A hugely popular mid-20th-century name, it has a comfortable, familiar retro feel.
Dennis's popularity over time
| Year | Births named Dennis |
|---|---|
| 1880 | 128 |
| 1881 | 99 |
| 1882 | 135 |
| 1883 | 112 |
| 1884 | 113 |
| 1885 | 112 |
| 1886 | 98 |
| 1887 | 93 |
| 1888 | 106 |
| 1889 | 111 |
| 1890 | 102 |
| 1891 | 89 |
| 1892 | 82 |
| 1893 | 83 |
| 1894 | 84 |
| 1895 | 108 |
| 1896 | 90 |
| 1897 | 96 |
| 1898 | 99 |
| 1899 | 86 |
| 1900 | 132 |
| 1901 | 79 |
| 1902 | 85 |
| 1903 | 75 |
| 1904 | 90 |
| 1905 | 106 |
| 1906 | 89 |
| 1907 | 111 |
| 1908 | 101 |
| 1909 | 120 |
| 1910 | 135 |
| 1911 | 166 |
| 1912 | 268 |
| 1913 | 324 |
| 1914 | 390 |
| 1915 | 514 |
| 1916 | 532 |
| 1917 | 591 |
| 1918 | 647 |
| 1919 | 636 |
| 1920 | 632 |
| 1921 | 739 |
| 1922 | 683 |
| 1923 | 782 |
| 1924 | 812 |
| 1925 | 834 |
| 1926 | 850 |
| 1927 | 934 |
| 1928 | 968 |
| 1929 | 1,007 |
| 1930 | 1,190 |
| 1931 | 1,210 |
| 1932 | 1,434 |
| 1933 | 1,698 |
| 1934 | 2,068 |
| 1935 | 2,615 |
| 1936 | 2,637 |
| 1937 | 3,169 |
| 1938 | 4,248 |
| 1939 | 6,238 |
| 1940 | 7,884 |
| 1941 | 9,599 |
| 1942 | 13,313 |
| 1943 | 14,182 |
| 1944 | 13,723 |
| 1945 | 15,027 |
| 1946 | 21,494 |
| 1947 | 23,758 |
| 1948 | 21,807 |
| 1949 | 21,786 |
| 1950 | 22,901 |
| 1951 | 24,312 |
| 1952 | 24,605 |
| 1953 | 23,709 |
| 1954 | 20,803 |
| 1955 | 20,486 |
| 1956 | 18,417 |
| 1957 | 16,974 |
| 1958 | 16,476 |
| 1959 | 16,101 |
| 1960 | 14,356 |
| 1961 | 12,544 |
| 1962 | 10,685 |
| 1963 | 9,861 |
| 1964 | 9,371 |
| 1965 | 8,252 |
| 1966 | 7,820 |
| 1967 | 7,676 |
| 1968 | 7,434 |
| 1969 | 7,405 |
| 1970 | 7,346 |
| 1971 | 6,613 |
| 1972 | 5,647 |
| 1973 | 5,222 |
| 1974 | 4,912 |
| 1975 | 4,759 |
| 1976 | 4,201 |
| 1977 | 4,197 |
| 1978 | 3,892 |
| 1979 | 4,124 |
| 1980 | 3,834 |
| 1981 | 3,657 |
| 1982 | 3,420 |
| 1983 | 3,078 |
| 1984 | 2,978 |
| 1985 | 2,871 |
| 1986 | 2,735 |
| 1987 | 2,779 |
| 1988 | 2,667 |
| 1989 | 2,696 |
| 1990 | 2,511 |
| 1991 | 2,341 |
| 1992 | 2,179 |
| 1993 | 1,975 |
| 1994 | 1,810 |
| 1995 | 1,702 |
| 1996 | 1,558 |
| 1997 | 1,509 |
| 1998 | 1,331 |
| 1999 | 1,353 |
| 2000 | 1,353 |
| 2001 | 1,197 |
| 2002 | 1,104 |
| 2003 | 1,130 |
| 2004 | 1,041 |
| 2005 | 1,054 |
| 2006 | 1,042 |
| 2007 | 989 |
| 2008 | 850 |
| 2009 | 859 |
| 2010 | 734 |
| 2011 | 700 |
| 2012 | 660 |
| 2013 | 625 |
| 2014 | 583 |
| 2015 | 592 |
| 2016 | 594 |
| 2017 | 521 |
| 2018 | 497 |
| 2019 | 510 |
| 2020 | 420 |
| 2021 | 393 |
| 2022 | 427 |
| 2023 | 427 |
| 2024 | 381 |
Dennis through the decades
- Dennis peaked in 1952, when 24,605 babies were named Dennis in the US.
- Over the last 10 years of data (2015–2024), use of Dennis has fallen 41% compared to the 10 years before that.
- Dennis currently ranks #708 in the US and is cooling off.
Nicknames
Denny
Variants & spellings
DenisDionysio