Unisex name · since 1882

Dana

193,555 babies named Dana in U.S. Social Security records since 1882, with the highest year being 1971. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

#203 of 72,339
all-time among girls
#1,027 of 17,297
2025 SSA year
193,555
born since 1882
1970s
peak decade

193,555 babies have been named Dana since 1882, making it today's #1027 unisex name.

Social Security Administration records show Dana recorded 193,555 times among girls since 1882, holding rank #1027 nationally today, ahead of 94% of girls, peaking in the 1970s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1882 to 2025.

  • #203 of 72,339 all-time among girls
  • #1,027 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
  • 193,555 born since 1882
  • 1970s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Dana ranks #203 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,027 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 193,555 born since 1882, peaking in the 1970s.

#203 of 72,339
all-time among girls
#1,027 of 17,297
2025 SSA year
193,555
born since 1882
1970s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%94%
Dana vs. every other girls name in current SSA rankings
Upper archive tier
All-time archive position

Dana's 193,555 recorded births place it above 99.71% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.

51 jurisdictions
State-record footprint

51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.

How Dana compares

193,555 Top 2% higher than 98% of 17,297 names currently given to girls

Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.

Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data

How the numbers stack up

Dana's all-time total is 515x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Dana Median girls name (Kyann) #1 girls name (Olivia)
All-time total births 193,555 376 567,345
Peak-year births 6,934 21 19,840

Dana's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Divide Dana's SSA record in two at 1955 and the more recent half accounts for 93% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 7%, consistent with a name still gaining ground rather than fading. Its calmest year was 1882, with only 6 births recorded -- set against the 1971 peak of 6,934, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.

Dana popularity over time - girls

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1882–2025

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1971)
6,934
Annual births at peak, across 144 years of records
02,0004,0006,0008,000 188219021920193819561974199220102025 244

Dana popularity over time - boys

53,287 total births recorded since 1880 (Dana as boys' name)

Unisex variant - 53,287 births
05001,0001,5002,000 188018991918193719561975199420132025 25

Dana by decade

1970s is the heaviest window (51,358 births, 27% of the file).

1970s was Dana's strongest decade.

51,358 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 27% of all-time use.

Dana births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 1970s at 51,358 births (27% of all-time use).

Source U.S. Social Security Administration · Baby Names As of August 2026

How Dana compares to similarly-sized names

Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Dana's total volume

Dana vs 15 similarly-sized girls names Scatter plot of 16 data points. 0%2%4%6%8%10%12% 80100120140160 New & already peakedOld name, single-era peakNew & still diversifyingLong history, steady all along Years in SSA records % of total births in the single peak year -146, 3.3%-146, 3.1%-146, 2.4%-146, 3.7%-146, 2.7%-146, 4.3%-144, 2.2%-146, 3.2%-92, 3.4%-146, 2.4%-146, 10.4%-146, 2%-145, 5.2%-137, 3.2%-146, 4.1%Dana-144, 3.6%Dana
Dana vs 15 similarly-sized girls names

Dana by state

Where Dana concentrates geographically, total births since 1882

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Dana
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 California
19,455 10.1%
#2 New York
13,748 7.1%
#3 Texas
13,475 7.0%
#4 Pennsylvania
11,940 6.2%
#5 Illinois
9,716 5.0%
#6 New Jersey
8,431 4.4%
#7 Ohio
7,319 3.8%
#8 Michigan
7,240 3.7%
California share of Dana's total US births 10.1%
Even split

19,455 of 193,555 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.

Dana appears in 51 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Dana? ▼
193,555 babies have been named Dana since 1882. All-time, it sits at #203 of 72,339 girls' names by recorded births. In 2025, it ranks #1,027 of 17,297 among girls. The peak year was 1971 with 6,934 births.
Where does Dana sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Dana ranks #203 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,027 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. All-time ordinal matches browse popularity (total births DESC); the current ordinal uses the 2025 SSA file. See /methodology#corpus-placement.
When was Dana most popular? ▼
Dana was most popular in the 1970s decade with 51,358 total births. The single peak year was 1971.
Where is Dana most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Dana are California (19,455 births), New York (13,748 births), Texas (13,475 births).
Is Dana a unisex name? ▼
Yes, Dana is used for both boys and girls. As a girl's name it has 193,555 births, and as a boy's name it has 53,287 births.
How long has the name Dana been used? ▼
The SSA has tracked Dana since 1882 -- 144 years through the most recent 2025 data.
What names are similar to Dana? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Danielle, Daniela, Daniella, Danna, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.

What to do with Dana's data

  • Dana's decade-level peak was the 1970s (51,358 total births); usage has since declined to 1,456 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
  • California records the most Danas (19,455 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names

Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.

Keep exploring Dana

Nearby Names Like Dana

Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Dana

Danielle Girl
#550 371,803 births
Daniela Girl
#303 68,514 births
Daniella Girl
#468 33,889 births
Danna Girl
#394 25,106 births
Danica Girl
#1634 16,522 births

Compare Dana side by side: Dana vs Danielle Dana vs Daniela Dana vs Daniella

Or pick any two names to compare →

Related Names

Names with a similar popularity rank to Dana

Yamileth #1026
6,643 births · Peak 2014
Waverly #1028
4,563 births · Peak 2022
Cadence #1025
22,430 births · Peak 2007
Alexa #1029
131,551 births · Peak 2006
Maylee #1024
4,596 births · Peak 2016
Jolie #1030
14,099 births · Peak 2008
Spencer #1023
5,707 births · Peak 2017
Ripley #1031
2,555 births · Peak 2025

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Dana: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.

Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.

Data Sources

Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1882–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).

Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Dana draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.