Darby
Darby is given to both girls and boys: 68 girls and 13 boys were given it in 2025 (#2,564 among girls’ names and #6,536 among boys’, #4,087 among all names counting both); 11,278 Americans have been recorded with it since 1913 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026). Girls have outnumbered boys among babies named Darby every year since 1981.
An estimated 10,500 Americans named Darby and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (93% of everyone recorded); the median is 29 years old and half are between 20 and 45.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Darby by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Darby mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Darby is “a female given name transferred from the surname, of modern usage.” Its etymology gives the senses “deer” (djúr) and “settlement” (býr).
Also “a male given name transferred from the surname.”
From the English place name Derby, from Old Norse djúr (“deer”) + býr (“settlement”).
/ˈdɑːbi/
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Darby?
#2,564 among girls’ names, 2025
Darby fell from #1,863 in 2015 to #2,564 in 2025 among girls’ names; its share of girls born fell from 61.6 to 42.3 per million.
539 babies in 1995, the peak
Darby peaked in 1995, when 539 babies were given it (491 girls, #499 among girls’ names). The 81 births of 2025 (girls and boys) are 15% of that peak.
Births by sex.
| Year | Girls | Girls’ rank | Boys | Boys’ rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 68 | #2,564 | 13 | #6,536 |
| 2024 | 51 | #3,131 | 10 | #7,887 |
| 2023 | 74 | #2,425 | 20 | #4,912 |
| 2022 | 68 | #2,584 | 13 | #6,566 |
| 2021 | 95 | #2,029 | 22 | #4,517 |
| 2020 | 82 | #2,200 | 18 | #5,073 |
| 2019 | 89 | #2,113 | 20 | #4,833 |
| 2018 | 89 | #2,135 | 31 | #3,548 |
| 2017 | 123 | #1,724 | 22 | #4,495 |
| 2016 | 120 | #1,736 | 17 | #5,361 |
Every recorded year (104)
| Year | Girls | Girls’ rank | Boys | Boys’ rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 110 | #1,863 | 27 | #3,900 |
| 2014 | 106 | #1,897 | 29 | #3,627 |
| 2013 | 119 | #1,739 | 32 | #3,349 |
| 2012 | 118 | #1,746 | 40 | #2,913 |
| 2011 | 136 | #1,592 | 37 | #3,064 |
| 2010 | 152 | #1,483 | 46 | #2,644 |
| 2009 | 136 | #1,643 | 23 | #4,309 |
| 2008 | 161 | #1,463 | 37 | #3,115 |
| 2007 | 189 | #1,294 | 42 | #2,826 |
| 2006 | 156 | #1,441 | 37 | #2,991 |
| 2005 | 197 | #1,169 | 25 | #3,735 |
| 2004 | 188 | #1,191 | 25 | #3,654 |
| 2003 | 215 | #1,053 | 46 | #2,315 |
| 2002 | 235 | #951 | 35 | #2,699 |
| 2001 | 217 | #988 | 36 | #2,627 |
| 2000 | 254 | #865 | 40 | #2,385 |
| 1999 | 298 | #750 | 36 | #2,472 |
| 1998 | 330 | #686 | 39 | #2,283 |
| 1997 | 401 | #578 | 36 | #2,317 |
| 1996 | 431 | #542 | 33 | #2,385 |
| 1995 | 491 | #499 | 48 | #1,803 |
| 1994 | 321 | #666 | 35 | #2,258 |
| 1993 | 126 | #1,325 | 32 | #2,352 |
| 1992 | 74 | #1,893 | 42 | #1,921 |
| 1991 | 59 | #2,213 | 32 | #2,237 |
| 1990 | 68 | #1,989 | 33 | #2,178 |
| 1989 | 72 | #1,836 | 35 | #2,034 |
| 1988 | 69 | #1,801 | 31 | #2,041 |
| 1987 | 51 | #2,136 | 28 | #2,124 |
| 1986 | 50 | #2,125 | 26 | #2,173 |
| 1985 | 84 | #1,475 | 27 | #2,084 |
| 1984 | 64 | #1,707 | 26 | #2,050 |
| 1983 | 67 | #1,650 | 30 | #1,832 |
| 1982 | 65 | #1,726 | 25 | #2,125 |
| 1981 | 95 | #1,321 | 33 | #1,733 |
| 1980 | 49 | #2,104 | 20 | #2,459 |
| 1979 | 55 | #1,903 | 36 | #1,602 |
| 1978 | 55 | #1,831 | 57 | #1,178 |
| 1977 | 50 | #1,957 | 44 | #1,375 |
| 1976 | 54 | #1,752 | 56 | #1,145 |
| 1975 | 43 | #2,028 | 50 | #1,196 |
| 1974 | 71 | #1,430 | 73 | #955 |
| 1973 | 46 | #1,837 | 77 | #916 |
| 1972 | 71 | #1,397 | 88 | #858 |
| 1971 | 88 | #1,255 | 96 | #824 |
| 1970 | 83 | #1,295 | 130 | #721 |
| 1969 | 53 | #1,650 | 102 | #770 |
| 1968 | 49 | #1,652 | 61 | #933 |
| 1967 | 52 | #1,565 | 31 | #1,369 |
| 1966 | 36 | #1,928 | 34 | #1,306 |
| 1965 | 32 | #2,072 | 16 | #1,999 |
| 1964 | 38 | #1,925 | 26 | #1,550 |
| 1963 | 36 | #1,956 | 30 | #1,431 |
| 1962 | 44 | #1,708 | 36 | #1,298 |
| 1961 | 53 | #1,554 | 35 | #1,353 |
| 1960 | 51 | #1,565 | 37 | #1,302 |
| 1959 | 34 | #1,922 | 47 | #1,129 |
| 1958 | 34 | #1,879 | 36 | #1,280 |
| 1957 | 27 | #2,127 | 24 | #1,641 |
| 1956 | 33 | #1,875 | 15 | #2,107 |
| 1955 | 51 | #1,406 | 20 | #1,738 |
| 1954 | 26 | #2,087 | 21 | #1,672 |
| 1953 | 17 | #2,609 | 18 | #1,846 |
| 1952 | 20 | #2,341 | 13 | #2,171 |
| 1951 | 16 | #2,601 | 18 | #1,786 |
| 1950 | 18 | #2,361 | 10 | #2,468 |
| 1949 | 27 | #1,849 | 11 | #2,367 |
| 1948 | 30 | #1,713 | 10 | #2,483 |
| 1947 | 22 | #2,095 | 15 | #2,006 |
| 1946 | 16 | #2,404 | 12 | #2,176 |
| 1945 | 10 | #2,952 | 6 | #3,064 |
| 1944 | 19 | #1,975 | under 5 | |
| 1943 | 18 | #2,090 | 8 | #2,779 |
| 1942 | 18 | #2,061 | 9 | #2,561 |
| 1941 | 7 | #3,640 | 7 | #2,928 |
| 1940 | 9 | #3,006 | 10 | #2,360 |
| 1939 | 8 | #3,198 | 6 | #3,185 |
| 1938 | under 5 | 9 | #2,516 | |
| 1937 | under 5 | 7 | #2,967 | |
| 1936 | 5 | #4,322 | 7 | #2,937 |
| 1935 | under 5 | 5 | #3,778 | |
| 1934 | under 5 | 10 | #2,432 | |
| 1932 | under 5 | 5 | #3,890 | |
| 1931 | under 5 | 7 | #3,161 | |
| 1928 | under 5 | 10 | #2,696 | |
| 1926 | under 5 | 8 | #3,194 | |
| 1925 | under 5 | 11 | #2,626 | |
| 1923 | under 5 | 6 | #3,918 | |
| 1922 | under 5 | 5 | #4,447 | |
| 1920 | under 5 | 7 | #3,561 | |
| 1919 | under 5 | 6 | #3,830 | |
| 1916 | under 5 | 5 | #4,043 | |
| 1915 | under 5 | 5 | #3,953 | |
| 1913 | under 5 | 6 | #2,562 |
Ranks: girls’ names and boys’ names ranked separately in each year’s SSA file; “under 5” is a year SSA did not list the name for that sex.
Is Darby a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Of the 11,278 Americans recorded as Darby, 74% are girls and 26% boys.
Years with fewer than 20 babies given the name are left blank.
Girls and boys named Darby: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Darby, and how old are they?
10,500 alive in 2026, estimated
That is 93% of the 11,278 Americans ever recorded as Darby. The median Darby alive today is 29 years old; half are between 20 and 45.
The 2020 Census counted 9,906 people named Darby (7,534 women and girls, 2,372 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 10,204 born in the U.S. The Census count is 3% below that prediction.
Alive today, by age
Alive today, by generation
| Generation | Born | Alive |
|---|---|---|
| Silent Generation | 1928-1945 | 68 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 773 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 1,680 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 2,630 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 3,910 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 1,460 |
An estimate, not a count. SSA’s files count people born in the United States who received a Social Security number, so anyone born abroad is not in them; before 1937 most people got a number as adults, and their survival is counted from that age.
Living estimate: SSA births carried forward with the survival rates in SSA’s cohort life tables (2024 Trustees Report) for each birth year and sex. How the estimate is made. Count: Census Bureau, first names in the 2020 Census (released April 14, 2026; names reported 100 or more times, with the Bureau’s disclosure-avoidance adjustment).
Where are babies named Darby born?
The states with the most babies named Darby are Texas, California and Ohio, with 100% of its births recorded by state in 2025.
| State | Births 2025 | Rank, girls | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 7 | #2,697 | 0.7× |
| California | 5 | #3,210 | 0.5× |
| Ohio | 5 | #1,512 | 0.5× |
States: SSA state file, 1910-2025, published May 8, 2026; births count girls and boys together, and the rank is among girls’ names in the state in 2025. The file leaves out any state and year with fewer than 5 babies of the name, so small states are undercounted; each ratio compares the state’s births of Darby with the births its national share predicts year by year, for states with at least 100 births of the name.
Names spelled alike
Of these 3 names spelled alike, given to 12,343 babies since 1880, Darby is the most given (91% of them). In 2025 it was given to 81 of their 81 babies (100%), again the most given.
Spelled alike: names in the SSA national file with the same pattern of letters and sounds and at most two letters apart, and Wiktionary’s listed forms; births since 1880 and in 2025, and each name’s peak year, from the SSA national file, published May 8, 2026. Some are separate names, not spellings of one.
Names that rose and fell in the same decades as Darby
Names whose births rose and fell across the same decades, measured on each decade’s share of births.
Similar histories: each decade’s share of births, from the SSA national file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
More about Darby and names like it
- Compare Darby and DarbiBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 1990sDarby peaked in 1995.
- California’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Darby since 1910.
- From surnamesWiktionary’s origin for Darby: every such name, by how often it is given.
- The top names of 1995The year the most babies were named Darby.
- The names of Generation ZMost people named Darby alive today were born 1997-2012.
- Names starting with DMost given first.