Unisex name · since 1912
Donnell
Donnell has 14,279 recorded births since 1912 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1982 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #1,003 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #4,060 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 14,279
- born since 1912
- 1970s
- peak decade
Donnell currently ranks #4060 among unisex names in America, with 14,279 babies recorded since 1912.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Donnell has been recorded 14,279 times among boys since 1912, currently ranked #4060 nationally and more common than 71% of boys, with its heaviest use in the 1970s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1912 to 2025.
- #1,003 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #4,060 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 14,279 born since 1912
- 1970s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Donnell ranks #1,003 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #4,060 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 14,279 born since 1912, peaking in the 1970s.
- #1,003 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #4,060 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 14,279
- born since 1912
- 1970s
- peak decade
Donnell's 14,279 recorded births place it above 97.79% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
27 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by New York.
How Donnell compares
14,279 Top 8% higher than 92% of 13,930 names currently given to boys
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked boys 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
Donnell's all-time total is 39x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Donnell | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 14,279 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 290 | 34 | 22,252 |
Donnell's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Donnell's full recorded timeline at 1969, 64% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 36% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1912, with just 7 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1982 peak of 290 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Donnell popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1912–2025
- Peak year (1982)
- 290
- Annual births at peak, across 114 years of records
Donnell popularity over time - girls
1,026 total births recorded since 1927 (Donnell as girls' name)
Donnell by decade
1970s is the heaviest window (2,502 births, 18% of the file).
1970s was Donnell's strongest decade.
2,502 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 18% of all-time use.
Donnell births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1910s 102
1910s
102 births
- 1920s 244
1920s
244 births
- 1930s 360
1930s
360 births
- 1940s 607
1940s
607 births
- 1950s
1950s
1,736 births
- 1960s
1960s
2,326 births
- 1970s
1970s
2,502 births
- 1980s
1980s
2,429 births
- 1990s
1990s
1,802 births
- 2000s
2000s
1,256 births
- 2010s 737
2010s
737 births
- 2020s 178
2020s
178 births
What this shows Peak: 1970s at 2,502 births (18% of all-time use).
How Donnell compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 boys names closest to Donnell's total volume
Donnell by state
Where Donnell concentrates geographically, total births since 1912
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 1,145 | 8.0% |
| #2 | Illinois | | 949 | 6.6% |
| #3 | California | | 867 | 6.1% |
| #4 | Maryland | | 866 | 6.1% |
| #5 | North Carolina | | 819 | 5.7% |
| #6 | District of Columbia | | 707 | 5.0% |
| #7 | Florida | | 684 | 4.8% |
| #8 | Texas | | 658 | 4.6% |
1,145 of 14,279 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 27 reporting states.
Donnell appears in 27 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Donnell? ▼
Where does Donnell sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Donnell most popular? ▼
Where is Donnell most popular? ▼
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What to do with Donnell's data
- Donnell's decade-level peak was the 1970s (2,502 total births); usage has since declined to 178 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New York records the most Donnells (1,145 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. New York names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Donnell
Nearby Names Like Donnell
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Donnell
Compare Donnell side by side: Donnell vs Donald Donnell vs Don Donnell vs Donovan
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Donnell
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Donnell: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1982)
Similar record span (~113 yrs)
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, 1912–2025 (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 Donnell 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.