Derek

Last seen for girls in 2011 at #16,764 · #284 for boys in 2025, 1,191 births
Given to boys 99.6% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
1980 · 7,240 births
Debut · boys
6 births
In top 100 · boys
26 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · boys
239,060
since 1924

Derek over time

boys

Rank among boys' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201970peak #50, 1980boys
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025—#2841,191
2024—#2581,357
2023—#2731,240
2022—#2971,156
2021—#3021,095
2020—#3091,063
2019—#3041,115
2018—#2561,409
2017—#2391,546
2016—#2261,716
2015—#2111,885
2014—#2051,881
2013—#2051,875
2012—#1822,116
2011#16,7645#1812,142
2010#14,9596#1702,293
2009—#1682,309
2008—#1592,488
2007—#1422,854
2006—#1592,647
2005#10,12810#1722,420
2004#16,0995#1572,545
2003#12,4087#1492,754
2002—#1392,787
2001#13,5216#1323,007
2000#10,7458#1213,214
1999—#1133,190
1998#8,58410#1103,410
1997#9,0179#1063,672
1996#7,57411#1013,920
1995#6,64113#834,452
1994#5,98415#775,081
1993#7,49811#675,762
1992#5,48417#626,293
1991#5,18118#596,893
1990#5,06018#548,083
1989#2,93137#548,365
1988#2,09355#538,073
1987#1,96257#548,253
1986#2,72435#576,900
1985#2,39841#566,661
1984#2,34041#526,972
1983#1,99351#516,986
1982#2,25044#506,992
1981#2,34242#536,481
1980#1,93655#507,240
1979#3,14726#724,200
1978#3,51221#753,800
1977#3,36622#843,441
1976#3,54019#843,168
1975#4,14115#833,186
1974#3,21221#743,636
1973#3,23320#693,919
1972#3,54317#674,146
1971#2,73626#634,667
1970#3,87215#774,147
1969#4,19812#1092,925
1968#4,00012#1222,460
1967#4,6259#1232,447
1966#5,8096#1412,111
1965#4,8318#1671,801
1964#6,0096#1721,589
1963#4,8968#1771,636
1962#5,2937#1881,600
1961—#2051,405
1960—#2471,047
1959#5,0317#254984
1958—#256917
1957—#283677
1956#5,9525#299614
1955—#330501
1954—#363393
1953—#373338
1952—#364341
1951—#408278
1950—#471202
1949—#641113
1948—#86263
1947—#88961
1946—#98047
1945—#99541
1944—#94946
1943—#71481
1942—#1,22832
1941—#1,63318
1940—#1,20831
1939—#1,39023
1938—#1,52120
1937—#2,4799
1936—#1,20530
1935—#2,24611
1934—#2,39310
1933—#2,21411
1932—#2,19112
1931—#1,84316
1930—#2,17813
1929—#3,5596
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1924—#3,8676
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First appearance
1924

The first year at least five boys were named Derek! It came in at #3,867, and was given to 6 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1925–1928, when fewer than 5 boys a year got the name.

Where Derek is popular in 1970

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: #65 for boys · 11 births · 1 in 289 boysAKMaine: #81 for boys · 21 births · 1 in 378 boysMEVermont: #96 for boys · 7 births · 1 in 505 boysVTNew Hampshire: #38 for boys · 42 births · 1 in 138 boysNHWashington: #64 for boys · 93 births · 1 in 303 boysWAIdaho: #126 for boys · 10 births · 1 in 611 boysIDMontana: #91 for boys · 13 births · 1 in 407 boysMTNorth Dakota: #116 for boys · 8 births · 1 in 640 boysNDMinnesota: #81 for boys · 82 births · 1 in 399 boysMNIllinois: #78 for boys · 205 births · 1 in 472 boysILWisconsin: #95 for boys · 66 births · 1 in 557 boysWIMichigan: #56 for boys · 255 births · 1 in 319 boysMINew York: #84 for boys · 289 births · 1 in 535 boysNYMassachusetts: #31 for boys · 405 births · 1 in 115 boysMARhode Island: #47 for boys · 33 births · 1 in 225 boysRIOregon: #55 for boys · 67 births · 1 in 248 boysORNevada: #80 for boys · 11 births · 1 in 346 boysNVWyoming: #93 for boys · 7 births · 1 in 359 boysWYSouth Dakota: #103 for boys · 10 births · 1 in 508 boysSDIowa: #85 for boys · 56 births · 1 in 413 boysIAIndiana: #76 for boys · 106 births · 1 in 450 boysINOhio: #107 for boys · 139 births · 1 in 697 boysOHPennsylvania: #97 for boys · 147 births · 1 in 639 boysPANew Jersey: #93 for boys · 90 births · 1 in 615 boysNJConnecticut: #82 for boys · 44 births · 1 in 526 boysCTCalifornia: #66 for boys · 481 births · 1 in 371 boysCAUtah: #83 for boys · 34 births · 1 in 363 boysUTColorado: #66 for boys · 63 births · 1 in 314 boysCONebraska: #112 for boys · 19 births · 1 in 631 boysNEMissouri: #79 for boys · 91 births · 1 in 435 boysMOKentucky: #109 for boys · 45 births · 1 in 643 boysKYWest Virginia: #95 for boys · 25 births · 1 in 561 boysWVVirginia: #96 for boys · 73 births · 1 in 524 boysVAMaryland: #81 for boys · 57 births · 1 in 493 boysMDDelaware: #80 for boys · 10 births · 1 in 447 boysDEArizona: #96 for boys · 40 births · 1 in 424 boysAZNew Mexico: #165 for boys · 13 births · 1 in 737 boysNMKansas: #64 for boys · 58 births · 1 in 287 boysKSArkansas: #111 for boys · 30 births · 1 in 535 boysARTennessee: #91 for boys · 77 births · 1 in 459 boysTNNorth Carolina: #96 for boys · 95 births · 1 in 480 boysNCSouth Carolina: #179 for boys · 23 births · 1 in 1,015 boysSCDistrict of Columbia: #75 for boys · 33 births · 1 in 367 boysDCOklahoma: #97 for boys · 45 births · 1 in 449 boysOKLouisiana: #103 for boys · 74 births · 1 in 457 boysLAMississippi: #122 for boys · 33 births · 1 in 643 boysMSAlabama: #111 for boys · 57 births · 1 in 542 boysALGeorgia: #103 for boys · 92 births · 1 in 490 boysGAHawaii: #27 for boys · 56 births · 1 in 119 boysHITexas: #140 for boys · 189 births · 1 in 606 boysTXFlorida: #90 for boys · 117 births · 1 in 459 boysFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · boys
  1. Hawaii#27 · 1 in 119
  2. Massachusetts#31 · 1 in 115
  3. New Hampshire#38 · 1 in 138
  4. Rhode Island#47 · 1 in 225
  5. Oregon#55 · 1 in 248

Best ever in a state: #22 in South Dakota, 1987.

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
Hawaii#27561 in 119
Massachusetts#314051 in 115
New Hampshire#38421 in 138
Rhode Island#47331 in 225
Oregon#55671 in 248
Michigan#562551 in 319
Kansas#64581 in 287
Washington#64931 in 303
Alaska#65111 in 289
California#664811 in 371
Colorado#66631 in 314
District of Columbia#75331 in 367
Indiana#761061 in 450
Illinois#782051 in 472
Missouri#79911 in 435
Delaware#80101 in 447
Nevada#80111 in 346
Maine#81211 in 378
Maryland#81571 in 493
Minnesota#81821 in 399
Connecticut#82441 in 526
Utah#83341 in 363
New York#842891 in 535
Iowa#85561 in 413
Florida#901171 in 459
Montana#91131 in 407
Tennessee#91771 in 459
New Jersey#93901 in 615
Wyoming#9371 in 359
West Virginia#95251 in 561
Wisconsin#95661 in 557
Arizona#96401 in 424
North Carolina#96951 in 480
Vermont#9671 in 505
Virginia#96731 in 524
Oklahoma#97451 in 449
Pennsylvania#971471 in 639
Georgia#103921 in 490
Louisiana#103741 in 457
South Dakota#103101 in 508
Ohio#1071391 in 697
Kentucky#109451 in 643
Alabama#111571 in 542
Arkansas#111301 in 535
Nebraska#112191 in 631
North Dakota#11681 in 640
Mississippi#122331 in 643
Idaho#126101 in 611
Texas#1401891 in 606
New Mexico#165131 in 737
South Carolina#179231 in 1,015

Ranks are within each state; “1 in N” is out of the boys born there that year. The SSA only publishes a name in a state when 5 or more babies of one sex got it.

See more about Derek
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
  • 26 spots since 2024 (#258 → #284)
  • 25 spots since 2020 (#309 → #284)
  • 73 spots since 2015 (#211 → #284)
  • Biggest jump: 514 spots in 1943 (#1,228 → #714)
  • Biggest drop: 235 spots in 1944 (#714 → #949)
Rise & fade · boys
56 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1924
  • Peaked 1980 at #50 (7,240 births)
  • Births halved by 1998, 18 yrs later
Top of the charts · boys
Top 100 for 26 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 26 yrs · run 1970–1995
  • Top 1,000: 83 yrs · run 1943–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 226
  • Highest: 1 in 226 boys born in 1987 were named Derek (0.44%)
  • Latest: 1 in 1,434 boys born in 2025 (0.07%)
  • Its best rank, #50 in 1980, was only 1 in 246 (0.41%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · boys
The 1980s
  • 30.5% of all boys named Derek (72,923) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1920s12#3,559 (1929)#3,713
1930s155#1,205 (1936)#1,966
1940s533#641 (1949)#1,010
1950s5,245#254 (1959)#340
1960s19,021#109 (1969)#165
1970s38,310#63 (1971)#75
1980s72,923#50 (1980)#53
1990s50,756#54 (1990)#83
2000s27,025#121 (2000)#150
2010s17,978#170 (2010)#218
2020s7,102#258 (2024)#287

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 boys in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Derek in 1970

girls
#3,872
15 births · 1 in 116,543 girls
boys
#77
4,147 births · 1 in 448 boys

Top girls' names in 1970

  1. #1Jennifer46,150
  2. #2Lisa38,967
  3. #3Kimberly34,130
  4. #4Michelle34,047
  5. #5Amy25,212
  6. #6Angela24,929
  7. #7Melissa23,735
  8. #8Tammy19,587
  9. #9Mary19,204
  10. #10Tracy18,464
  11. #3,872Derek15

Top boys' names in 1970

  1. #1Michael85,266
  2. #2James61,735
  3. #3David61,728
  4. #4John58,491
  5. #5Robert57,177
  6. #6Christopher41,747
  7. #7William38,887
  8. #8Brian31,917
  9. #9Mark31,461
  10. #10Richard30,442
  11. #77Derek4,147
More about 1970

girls

1,748,144 girls got a published name in 1970; 1 in 116,543 of them was named Derek, which outranked 58.6% of the 9,355 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 16.3% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Derek
  1. #3,712Yolander16
  2. #3,712Yolunda16
  3. #3,712Yvonda16
  4. #3,872Derek15
  5. #3,872Adelia15
  6. #3,872Adonica15
  7. #3,872Alex15
  8. #4,038Adelaide14
  9. #4,038Adrien14
  10. #4,038Aishah14

Tied with 165 names at #3,872; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1969
Risers
  1. ↑ 1,541Tanisha#2,515 → #974
  2. ↑ 1,194India#1,955 → #761
  3. ↑ 695Shay#1,648 → #953
  4. ↑ 685Terra#1,303 → #618
  5. ↑ 669Dyan#1,648 → #979
Fallers
  1. ↓ 385Cinnamon#698 → #1,083
  2. ↓ 306Kaye#932 → #1,238
  3. ↓ 303Luanne#990 → #1,293
  4. ↓ 273Laureen#845 → #1,118
  5. ↓ 273Lesia#965 → #1,238

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

1,858,229 boys got a published name in 1970; 1 in 448 of them was named Derek, which outranked 98.6% of the 5,433 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 26.8% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Derek
  1. #74Brent4,269
  2. #75Darren4,197
  3. #76Lance4,160
  4. #77Derek4,147
  5. #78Billy4,121
  6. #79Vincent4,021
  7. #80Wayne4,006
Biggest movers since 1969
Risers
  1. ↑ 3,783Jermaine#4,404 → #621
  2. ↑ 1,000Dax#1,861 → #861
  3. ↑ 842Jeramy#1,810 → #968
  4. ↑ 639Branden#1,570 → #931
  5. ↑ 407Braden#1,396 → #989
Fallers
  1. ↓ 593Jemal#549 → #1,142
  2. ↓ 307Karen#885 → #1,192
  3. ↓ 307Merlin#885 → #1,192
  4. ↓ 302Dennie#920 → #1,222
  5. ↓ 276Luciano#931 → #1,207

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1970 →