ninan.org

Dorothy

Girls' name · Early 20th-century perennial

Living in the US
~272,700 survival-weighted estimate
2025 rank
#421 among girls
Births in 2025
743 1,115,908 since 1880
Typical age
77 years, median

Dorothy popularity over time

Dorothy rank by birth year, 1880–2025Dorothy ranked #139 in 1880 and #421 in 2025. Its best rank in the period was #2, in 1920.#10#100#1,000#421best #2 in 192018901920195019802010
Rank among US baby names by birth year, 1880–2025. Lower is more popular; the scale is logarithmic so the top of the chart is not compressed.

Dorothy was used most in 1924, when 40,097 babies were given the name. It appears in the very first year SSA covers, 1880. Across the record, 72 years put Dorothy in the top 100.

As of 2025 the name sits at #421, with 743 births that year. The ten-year change is +87%.

Babies named Dorothy per yearPeaks at 40,097 births in 1924.40,097 in 1924018901920195019802010
Recorded US births by year. The peak is labelled; the axis starts at zero.

How many people are named Dorothy?

About 272,700 people named Dorothy are alive in the United States today. SSA has recorded 1,115,908 births under the name since 1880.

This is a survival-weighted estimate, not a headcount: every recorded birth year is multiplied by the chance someone born that year is still alive, using the SSA period life table. How the estimate works.

How old is the average Dorothy?

The typical living Dorothy is 77 years old. The 1940s produced the largest surviving cohort. By the site’s era rules that makes Dorothy a early 20th-century perennial name.

Your Dorothy

Ages of living people named DorothyHalf of living Dorothys are older than 77 and half younger.median 77020406080100
Estimated living bearers by age today. Each bar is a birth year, weighted by the chance someone born then is still alive.

Where Dorothy is most common

Dorothy is 2.4× as common in New Hampshire as it is nationally. Wisconsin, Utah and Oregon follow.

Where Dorothy is used more than average5 states use the name Dorothy more than the national average.Alaska: not over-representedAKMaine: not over-representedMEVermont: not over-representedVTNew Hampshire: 2.4× the national rateNHWashington: not over-representedWAIdaho: not over-representedIDMontana: not over-representedMTNorth Dakota: not over-representedNDMinnesota: not over-representedMNIllinois: not over-representedILWisconsin: 2.2× the national rateWIMichigan: not over-representedMINew York: not over-representedNYOregon: 2.0× the national rateORNevada: not over-representedNVWyoming: not over-representedWYSouth Dakota: not over-representedSDIowa: 2.0× the national rateIAIndiana: not over-representedINOhio: not over-representedOHPennsylvania: not over-representedPANew Jersey: not over-representedNJConnecticut: not over-representedCTRhode Island: not over-representedRICalifornia: not over-representedCAUtah: 2.1× the national rateUTColorado: not over-representedCONebraska: not over-representedNEMissouri: not over-representedMOKentucky: not over-representedKYWest Virginia: not over-representedWVVirginia: not over-representedVAMaryland: not over-representedMDDelaware: not over-representedDEMassachusetts: not over-representedMAArizona: not over-representedAZNew Mexico: not over-representedNMKansas: not over-representedKSArkansas: not over-representedARTennessee: not over-representedTNNorth Carolina: not over-representedNCSouth Carolina: not over-representedSCDistrict of Columbia: not over-representedDCOklahoma: not over-representedOKLouisiana: not over-representedLAMississippi: not over-representedMSAlabama: not over-representedALGeorgia: not over-representedGAHawaii: not over-representedHITexas: not over-representedTXFlorida: not over-representedFL
Same as national3× or more
Location quotient, 2016–2025. Shaded states use the name more than the country does, relative to their own births. Exact figures are in the table below.
States where Dorothy is over-represented, 2016–2025. The location quotient compares the state's share of the name with the national share.
StateBirthsvs national rate
New Hampshire 33 2.4×
Wisconsin 174 2.2×
Utah 132 2.1×
Oregon 104 2.0×
Iowa 91 2.0×

Dorothy in England and Wales

ONS recorded 253 births named Dorothy in 2025, ranking it #199.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Counts below three are suppressed by ONS.

Where the name Dorothy comes from

English Wiktionary: given name from Ancient Greek.

Notable people named Dorothy

Ordered by how many Wikipedia language editions have an article about them — a measure of reach, not of importance.
NameKnown forYearsEditions
Dorothy Hodgkin British chemist 1910–1994 104
Dorothy Parker American poet, short story writer, critic and satirist 1893–1967 71
Dorothy L. Sayers English crime writer, playwright, essayist and Christian writer 1893–1957 55
Dorothy Malone American actress 1924–2018 55
Dorothy Day American journalist, social activist, and Catholic convert 1897–1980 52
Dorothy Dandridge American actress and singer 1922–1965 46
Dorothy Lamour American actress and singer 1914–1996 41
Dorothy McGuire American actress 1916–2001 40
Photo credits (8)

People and dates from Wikidata (CC0), limited to those with an English Wikipedia article who are known by this name as their first name.

Related pages

Get this data

Every number on this page is available as JSON: /api/name/dorothy.json. Free to use with attribution (CC BY 4.0).