BabyNamesMap

Baby names › Girls

Dorothy

Meaning not yet sourced

Editor’s note Up from #714 in 2015 to #421 in 2025 in the US

CommonRare
Rank 2015: #714, 2016: #644, 2017: #590, 2018: #580, 2019: #561, 2020: #535, 2021: #483, 2022: #486, 2023: #463, 2024: #429, 2025: #4211 in 2,163 girls in the US, 2025#421 · rising · was #714 in 2015
CommonRare
Rank 2015: #343, 2016: #274, 2017: #250, 2018: #246, 2019: #187, 2020: #175, 2021: #177, 2022: #187, 2023: #199, 2024: #193, 2025: #1991 in 1,001 girls in E&W, 2025#199 · rising · was #343 in 2015

Girl’s name · Greek · /ˈdɒɹ.ə.θi/

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What Dorothy means

Meaning not yet sourced. Wiktionary has no word-by-word meaning for Dorothy yet, and we don’t write our own.

Editor’s note Up from #714 in 2015 to #421 in 2025 in the US Worked out from the official US and England & Wales counts, not a meaning.

How popular is Dorothy?

US 2025
#421
743 babies
▲ 8 vs 2024
England & Wales 2025
#199
253 babies
▼ 6 vs 2024
Scotland 2025
#539
5 babies

US: Rising: up from #714 in 2015. England & Wales: Rising: up from #343 in 2015.

01020304018801920196020002025
US, 1880–2025England & Wales, 1996–2025Babies per 1,000 girls born. Dot: biggest US share (1923)

Biggest US share so far: 1923, when 39,043 girls got the name (#2 that year). First in the US records in 1880.

How common

  • About 1 in 2,163 baby girls in the US in 2025
  • About 1 in 1,001 baby girls in England and Wales in 2025
  • About 1 in 3,578 baby girls in Scotland in 2025

“1 in N” divides by all listed births for that sex. The US list leaves out names given to fewer than 5 babies, and the UK lists leave out names given to 2 or fewer, so the real figure is a little rarer than shown.

Where in the US

Most popular in AK (3.63 per 1,000 girls), MT (2.48 per 1,000 girls), NH (2.37 per 1,000 girls) in 2025.

AK
ME
WI
VT
NH
WA
ID
MT
ND
MN
IL
MI
NY
MA
OR
NV
WY
SD
IA
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
RI
CA
UT
CO
NE
MO
KY
WV
VA
MD
DE
AZ
NM
KS
AR
TN
NC
SC
DC
OK
LA
MS
AL
GA
HI
TX
FL
FewerMore · grey: under 5 babies, not listed

SSA state data, 2025. Share of all listed girls born in each state.

US vs UK

Dorothy is #421 in the US and #199 in England & Wales (2025).

Rank 2025BabiesHow commonRank 2015
US#4217431 in 2,163#714
England & Wales#1992531 in 1,001#343
Scotland#53951 in 3,578–

Same sex as this page (girls). SSA (US), ONS (England and Wales), NRS (Scotland).

Boy or girl?

In 2025, 99.9+% of US babies named Dorothy were girls.

GirlsBoys
US 20257430
England & Wales 20252530
US all years since 18801,112,2313,677
England & Wales since 19963,3570

Counts below the publishing threshold (US 5, UK 3) are not included.

How to say it

UK/ˈdɒɹ.ə.θi/
US/ˈdɔɹ.ə.θi/, /ˈdɔɹ.θi/
/ˈdɑɹ.ə.θi/

IPA from Wiktionary.

Nicknames

Listed on Wiktionary under “pet forms”.

If you like Dorothy

Girls

  • Elaine#304Editor’s note Peaked in the US in 1947, with 7,059 babies; 1,007 in 2025
  • Theodora#725“God s Gift”
  • Georgina#689Feminine form of George, meaning “farmer, earth worker”
  • Selene#621“light”
  • Cleo#577Editor’s note Climbing fast in the US: #1,743 in 2015, #577 in 2025
  • Thea#353“goddess”

For a brother

  • Leon#138“lion”
  • Theodore#4Editor’s note Climbing fast in the US: #99 in 2015, #4 in 2025
  • Evander#698“good man”
  • Thaddeus#797Editor’s note Down from #703 in 2015 to #797 in 2025 in the US
  • Ambrose#735“immortal, divine”
  • Niko#325Editor’s note First shows up in US records in 1962, with 5 babies

Picked from the US top 1,000 in 2025: names Wiktionary also files under Greek, whose US popularity since 1990 rose and fell most like Dorothy’s. Rank is US 2025.

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