How popular is the name David? A century of Daves in numbers

David is one of the most popular boys' names in American history. About 3.7 million boys named David have been born in the US since records began in 1880. The name peaked in the 1950s, briefly took the top spot in 1960, and is still in the top 40 today.

1. 1910s44,000 '10
2. 1920s89,000 '20
3. 1930s165,000 '30
4. 1940s426,000 '40
5. 1950s770,000 Peak Dave '50
6. 1960s734,000 '60
7. 1970s446,000 '70
8. 1980s384,000 '80
9. 1990s254,000 '90
10. 2000s180,000 '00
11. 2010s117,000 '10

See the numbers

Decade	Davids born (approx.)
1910s	44,000
1920s	89,000
1930s	165,000
1940s	426,000
1950s	770,000
1960s	734,000
1970s	446,000
1980s	384,000
1990s	254,000
2000s	180,000
2010s	117,000

Source: U.S. Social Security Administration baby name data, summed by decade via Name Almanac, rounded to the nearest thousand.

When was David most popular?

The 1950s were peak Dave. About 770,000 Davids were born in the US that decade, and the 1960s were barely behind with about 734,000. The single busiest year was 1955, with about 86,000 baby Davids.

That means if you went to school in the 1960s or 70s, there was a good chance of more than one David in your class. This is where Article 5 of the bylaws, the "Other Dave" rule, comes from.

Was David ever the number one name?

Yes. In 1960, David was the most popular name for baby boys in the United States, with 85,929 births, according to the Social Security Administration's baby name data. It narrowly beat Michael, which held the top spot for almost every year from the mid-1950s to the late 1990s. For one year, the Daves won.

How popular is David now?

David is less dominant than it was, but it's far from rare. In 2024 it ranked 31st among US boys' names, with about 7,300 births. That's roughly a twelfth of its 1955 peak, but it's still more Davids every year than most names manage in a decade. You can look up the year-by-year figures on Name Almanac.

Which means there are a lot of Davids born in the 1950s and 60s with a birthday coming up. Our gift guide for Daves can help, and so can a Society gift membership.

Why did David become less popular?

David didn't fall out of favour so much as the field got bigger. American parents now choose from a much wider range of names than they did in the 1950s, so even the top names have a smaller share of babies than they used to. David has held up better than many names from its era, and it has stayed in the top 50 for decades.

How many Daves are there?

Nobody counts Daves directly; there is no national Dave register. The Society is working on it. What we do know is that about 3.7 million American boys have been named David since 1880, and the name has been common in the UK, Ireland, Israel, much of Europe and beyond for centuries. Add the Davids, Dafydds, Davides and Dawids of the world (see David in other languages) and the total is very large.