Dorothy

#421 for girls in 2025, 743 births · Last seen for boys in 1989 at #6,941
Given to girls 99.7% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1924 · 39,996 births
Debut · girls
112 births
In top 100 · girls
72 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
1,112,231
since 1880

Dorothy over time

girls

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

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201897peak #2, 1924girls
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#421743—
2024#429718—
2023#463664—
2022#486645—
2021#483649—
2020#535565—
2019#561546—
2018#580530—
2017#590507—
2016#644456—
2015#714398—
2014#727385—
2013#806335—
2012#922279—
2011#927279—
2010#1,027243—
2009#1,116227—
2008#1,070244—
2007#1,003263—
2006#976267—
2005#1,025237—
2004#848290—
2003#835292—
2002#867264—
2001#750319—
2000#736314—
1999#678335—
1998#710312—
1997#682316—
1996#640350—
1995#597377—
1994#549443—
1993#515476—
1992#486509—
1991#486497—
1990#426596—
1989#398620#6,9416
1988#396608—
1987#381614—
1986#373629—
1985#332719#6,5235
1984#340681—
1983#305759#5,4846
1982#298829—
1981#307788#6,2625
1980#278896—
1979#272890—
1978#260914—
1977#269933—
1976#240982—
1975#250976#5,4645
1974#2321,098—
1973#2151,175#4,0547
1972#2181,273#3,9637
1971#1911,624—
1970#1801,799#4,7245
1969#1811,776#2,54912
1968#1572,086#2,57611
1967#1482,314#2,35212
1966#1362,664#2,32712
1965#1302,961#2,27013
1964#1183,533#2,40912
1963#1163,796#2,67310
1962#1114,073#2,03516
1961#994,732#2,32213
1960#955,076#1,77221
1959#945,231#2,20014
1958#865,539#1,76620
1957#746,405#1,51127
1956#726,858#1,67622
1955#647,242#1,39630
1954#557,789#1,62822
1953#498,162#1,76519
1952#468,609#1,51725
1951#429,089#1,34430
1950#359,551#1,36428
1949#3210,410#1,40927
1948#2911,324#1,48724
1947#2612,753#1,29732
1946#2312,797#1,06042
1945#2112,323#86452
1944#1913,379#93547
1943#1914,793#80866
1942#1715,037#82162
1941#1414,566#72972
1940#1214,875#65385
1939#915,169#69573
1938#816,358#59099
1937#816,572#70073
1936#617,666#573101
1935#619,406#525121
1934#521,281#549116
1933#422,054#524117
1932#424,974#558112
1931#326,524#478141
1930#330,411#480153
1929#331,476#536118
1928#333,733#552122
1927#235,993#553124
1926#236,618#563119
1925#238,570#63999
1924#239,996#638101
1923#239,043#66892
1922#237,716#84066
1921#239,087#69287
1920#236,643#75476
1919#331,733#79966
1918#332,030#85559
1917#328,852#82260
1916#327,418#69872
1915#325,154#94144
1914#318,782#85540
1913#314,674#69643
1912#312,645#64942
1911#48,869#53331
1910#47,318#58224
1909#56,253#50526
1908#65,703#58519
1907#64,967#51121
1906#64,326#50320
1905#73,937#74111
1904#103,477#53817
1903#113,078#9107
1902#152,707#9337
1901#222,173—
1900#272,491#9688
1899#351,687#7868
1898#431,671—
1897#431,472#9426
1896#461,366—
1895#571,127#1,0795
1894#581,052#8577
1893#68821—
1892#79626—
1891#76566—
1890#93458—
1889#102377—
1888#103373—
1887#111272—
1886#122230—
1885#128196—
1884#137163—
1883#137141—
1882#150115—
1881#144109—
1880#139112—
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Dorothy was already there! It came in at #139, and was given to 112 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1880–1884, when fewer than 170 girls a year got the name.

Where Dorothy is popular in 1897

The SSA only publishes names by state from 1910 on.

See more about Dorothy
Momentum · girls
Rising
  • 8 spots since 2024 (#429 → #421)
  • 114 spots since 2020 (#535 → #421)
  • 293 spots since 2015 (#714 → #421)
  • Biggest jump: 116 spots in 2013 (#922 → #806)
  • Biggest drop: 177 spots in 2005 (#848 → #1,025)
Rise & fade · girls
44 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1924 at #2 (39,996 births)
  • Births halved by 1935, 11 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 10 for 36 yrs
  • Top 10: 36 yrs · run 1904–1939
  • Top 100: 72 yrs · run 1890–1961
  • Top 1,000: 141 yrs · run 1880–2004
Share of babies · girls
1 in 31
  • Highest: 1 in 31 girls born in 1923 were named Dorothy (3.2%)
  • Latest: 1 in 2,163 girls born in 2025 (0.05%)
  • Its best rank, #2 in 1924, was only 1 in 31 (3.2%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · girls
The 1920s
  • 33.2% of all girls named Dorothy (368,875) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s2,088#102 (1889)#127
1890s10,846#35 (1899)#60
1900s39,112#5 (1909)#12
1910s207,475#3 (1918)#3
1920s368,875#2 (1924)#2
1930s210,415#3 (1930)#6
1940s132,257#12 (1940)#21
1950s74,475#35 (1950)#62
1960s33,011#95 (1960)#129
1970s11,664#180 (1970)#233
1980s7,143#278 (1980)#341
1990s4,211#426 (1990)#577
2000s2,717#736 (2000)#923
2010s3,958#561 (2019)#750
2020s3,984#421 (2025)#470

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

Dorothy in 1897

girls
#43
1,472 births · 1 in 159 girls
boys
#942
6 births · 1 in 18,793 boys

Top girls' names in 1897

  1. #1Mary13,413
  2. #2Anna5,429
  3. #3Helen4,519
  4. #4Margaret4,146
  5. #5Ruth3,878
  6. #6Elizabeth3,442
  7. #7Florence3,369
  8. #8Ethel3,182
  9. #9Marie3,078
  10. #10Emma2,698
  11. #43Dorothy1,472

Top boys' names in 1897

  1. #1John7,550
  2. #2William7,198
  3. #3James5,113
  4. #4George4,078
  5. #5Charles3,341
  6. #6Joseph2,827
  7. #7Frank2,726
  8. #8Robert2,701
  9. #9Edward2,121
  10. #10Henry1,994
  11. #942Dorothy6
More about 1897

girls

234,200 girls got a published name in 1897; 1 in 159 of them was named Dorothy, which outranked 97.6% of the 1,799 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 20.1% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Dorothy
  1. #40Agnes1,579
  2. #41Louise1,563
  3. #42Catherine1,511
  4. #43Dorothy1,472
  5. #44Lillie1,401
  6. #45Julia1,380
  7. #46Carrie1,365
Biggest movers since 1896
Risers
  1. ↑ 688Lupe#1,583 → #895
  2. ↑ 652Carl#1,583 → #931
  3. ↑ 652Dortha#1,583 → #931
  4. ↑ 652Judy#1,583 → #931
  5. ↑ 630Dagmar#1,416 → #786
Fallers
  1. ↓ 848Myrta#707 → #1,555
  2. ↓ 848Ouida#707 → #1,555
  3. ↓ 712Jeanie#843 → #1,555
  4. ↓ 652Orrie#903 → #1,555
  5. ↓ 605Louetta#950 → #1,555

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

boys

112,757 boys got a published name in 1897; 1 in 18,793 of them was named Dorothy, which outranked 23.4% of the 1,229 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 35.2% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Dorothy
  1. #852Wilfrid7
  2. #852Willam7
  3. #852Yee7
  4. #942Dorothy6
  5. #942Agnes6
  6. #942Alec6
  7. #942Allison6
  8. #1,057Abbie5
  9. #1,057Abie5
  10. #1,057Acie5

Tied with 114 names at #942; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1896
Risers
  1. ↑ 509Roswell#982 → #473
  2. ↑ 487Theron#982 → #495
  3. ↑ 486Alois#1,101 → #615
  4. ↑ 486Rush#1,101 → #615
  5. ↑ 467Helmer#982 → #515
Fallers
  1. ↓ 480Benton#462 → #942
  2. ↓ 465Louise#592 → #1,057
  3. ↓ 465Bradford#592 → #1,057
  4. ↓ 461Allison#481 → #942
  5. ↓ 424Hilliard#518 → #942

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

See the top 100 for 1897 →