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#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201942peak #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 1942

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: #20 for girls · 7 births · 1 in 58 girlsAKMaine: #20 for girls · 77 births · 1 in 93 girlsMEVermont: #25 for girls · 28 births · 1 in 90 girlsVTNew Hampshire: #17 for girls · 50 births · 1 in 78 girlsNHWashington: #31 for girls · 104 births · 1 in 156 girlsWAIdaho: #23 for girls · 40 births · 1 in 108 girlsIDMontana: #23 for girls · 41 births · 1 in 106 girlsMTNorth Dakota: #26 for girls · 56 births · 1 in 96 girlsNDMinnesota: #33 for girls · 194 births · 1 in 131 girlsMNIllinois: #27 for girls · 609 births · 1 in 116 girlsILWisconsin: #36 for girls · 182 births · 1 in 155 girlsWIMichigan: #30 for girls · 429 births · 1 in 130 girlsMINew York: #21 for girls · 1,067 births · 1 in 106 girlsNYMassachusetts: #16 for girls · 485 births · 1 in 78 girlsMARhode Island: #17 for girls · 82 births · 1 in 71 girlsRIOregon: #29 for girls · 68 births · 1 in 133 girlsORNevada: #21 for girls · 10 births · 1 in 73 girlsNVWyoming: #25 for girls · 23 births · 1 in 76 girlsWYSouth Dakota: #20 for girls · 61 births · 1 in 77 girlsSDIowa: #30 for girls · 172 births · 1 in 123 girlsIAIndiana: #30 for girls · 218 births · 1 in 147 girlsINOhio: #31 for girls · 488 births · 1 in 135 girlsOHPennsylvania: #14 for girls · 1,179 births · 1 in 76 girlsPANew Jersey: #14 for girls · 477 births · 1 in 75 girlsNJConnecticut: #24 for girls · 159 births · 1 in 98 girlsCTCalifornia: #31 for girls · 461 births · 1 in 150 girlsCAUtah: #42 for girls · 35 births · 1 in 172 girlsUTColorado: #24 for girls · 95 births · 1 in 104 girlsCONebraska: #25 for girls · 100 births · 1 in 99 girlsNEMissouri: #18 for girls · 365 births · 1 in 89 girlsMOKentucky: #21 for girls · 307 births · 1 in 96 girlsKYWest Virginia: #27 for girls · 186 births · 1 in 111 girlsWVVirginia: #10 for girls · 481 births · 1 in 61 girlsVAMaryland: #11 for girls · 298 births · 1 in 59 girlsMDDelaware: #14 for girls · 36 births · 1 in 58 girlsDEArizona: #24 for girls · 54 births · 1 in 108 girlsAZNew Mexico: #17 for girls · 57 births · 1 in 102 girlsNMKansas: #25 for girls · 119 births · 1 in 117 girlsKSArkansas: #8 for girls · 334 births · 1 in 61 girlsARTennessee: #10 for girls · 525 births · 1 in 60 girlsTNNorth Carolina: #10 for girls · 689 births · 1 in 61 girlsNCSouth Carolina: #5 for girls · 510 births · 1 in 47 girlsSCDistrict of Columbia: #12 for girls · 152 births · 1 in 57 girlsDCOklahoma: #23 for girls · 191 births · 1 in 107 girlsOKLouisiana: #6 for girls · 479 births · 1 in 55 girlsLAMississippi: #3 for girls · 683 births · 1 in 36 girlsMSAlabama: #4 for girls · 774 births · 1 in 43 girlsALGeorgia: #6 for girls · 665 births · 1 in 53 girlsGAHawaii: #47 for girls · 24 births · 1 in 155 girlsHITexas: #12 for girls · 821 births · 1 in 82 girlsTXFlorida: #9 for girls · 290 births · 1 in 61 girlsFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · girls
  1. Mississippi#3 · 1 in 36
  2. Alabama#4 · 1 in 43
  3. South Carolina#5 · 1 in 47
  4. Georgia#6 · 1 in 53
  5. Louisiana#6 · 1 in 55

Best ever in a state: #1 in Oregon, 1910.

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
Mississippi#36831 in 36
Alabama#47741 in 43
South Carolina#55101 in 47
Georgia#66651 in 53
Louisiana#64791 in 55
Arkansas#83341 in 61
Florida#92901 in 61
North Carolina#106891 in 61
Tennessee#105251 in 60
Virginia#104811 in 61
Maryland#112981 in 59
District of Columbia#121521 in 57
Texas#128211 in 82
Delaware#14361 in 58
New Jersey#144771 in 75
Pennsylvania#141,1791 in 76
Massachusetts#164851 in 78
New Hampshire#17501 in 78
New Mexico#17571 in 102
Rhode Island#17821 in 71
Missouri#183651 in 89
Alaska#2071 in 58
Maine#20771 in 93
South Dakota#20611 in 77
Kentucky#213071 in 96
Nevada#21101 in 73
New York#211,0671 in 106
Idaho#23401 in 108
Montana#23411 in 106
Oklahoma#231911 in 107
Arizona#24541 in 108
Colorado#24951 in 104
Connecticut#241591 in 98
Kansas#251191 in 117
Nebraska#251001 in 99
Vermont#25281 in 90
Wyoming#25231 in 76
North Dakota#26561 in 96
Illinois#276091 in 116
West Virginia#271861 in 111
Oregon#29681 in 133
Indiana#302181 in 147
Iowa#301721 in 123
Michigan#304291 in 130
California#314611 in 150
Ohio#314881 in 135
Washington#311041 in 156
Minnesota#331941 in 131
Wisconsin#361821 in 155
Utah#42351 in 172
Hawaii#47241 in 155

Ranks are within each state; “1 in N” is out of the girls 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 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 1942

girls
#17
15,037 births · 1 in 90 girls
boys
#821
62 births · 1 in 22,277 boys

Top girls' names in 1942

  1. #1Mary63,256
  2. #2Barbara44,739
  3. #3Patricia39,465
  4. #4Linda31,613
  5. #5Carol30,272
  6. #6Sandra24,994
  7. #7Judith24,792
  8. #8Nancy23,327
  9. #9Betty21,659
  10. #10Carolyn19,978
  11. #17Dorothy15,037

Top boys' names in 1942

  1. #1James77,182
  2. #2Robert71,845
  3. #3John66,043
  4. #4William54,890
  5. #5Richard43,593
  6. #6David35,905
  7. #7Charles35,854
  8. #8Thomas31,100
  9. #9Ronald27,138
  10. #10Donald23,955
  11. #821Dorothy62
More about 1942

girls

1,350,719 girls got a published name in 1942; 1 in 90 of them was named Dorothy, which outranked 99.7% of the 5,378 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 24.0% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Dorothy
  1. #14Margaret16,549
  2. #15Judy15,667
  3. #16Karen15,387
  4. #17Dorothy15,037
  5. #18Joan14,514
  6. #19Janet13,065
  7. #20Donna12,987
Biggest movers since 1941
Risers
  1. ↑ 3,567Michal#4,420 → #853
  2. ↑ 1,885Merrily#2,397 → #512
  3. ↑ 1,081Merrilee#1,954 → #873
  4. ↑ 783Jerrilyn#1,610 → #827
  5. ↑ 760Candace#1,418 → #658
Fallers
  1. ↓ 354Rebekah#924 → #1,278
  2. ↓ 350Leatha#830 → #1,180
  3. ↓ 307Nella#993 → #1,300
  4. ↓ 272Arla#934 → #1,206
  5. ↓ 262Vivien#735 → #997

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

boys

1,381,161 boys got a published name in 1942; 1 in 22,277 of them was named Dorothy, which outranked 79.7% of the 4,044 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 33.8% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Dorothy
  1. #812Randal63
  2. #812Randell63
  3. #812Sherrill63
  4. #821Dorothy62
  5. #821Cornell62
  6. #821Delano62
  7. #821Delton62
  8. #834Berry61
  9. #834Darell61
  10. #834Glendon61

Tied with 12 names at #821; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1941
Risers
  1. ↑ 2,993Macarthur#3,505 → #512
  2. ↑ 1,546Mcarthur#1,903 → #357
  3. ↑ 655Collin#1,588 → #933
  4. ↑ 514Delmas#1,254 → #740
  5. ↑ 390Colin#713 → #323
Fallers
  1. ↓ 525Otho#971 → #1,496
  2. ↓ 440Florian#918 → #1,358
  3. ↓ 421Martha#960 → #1,381
  4. ↓ 407Watson#951 → #1,358
  5. ↓ 371Gaylen#987 → #1,358

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

See the top 100 for 1942 →