Head to head · Boys' names
Dalton vs Yusuf
#448 vs #449 in 2025
Dalton is a whisker ahead (#448 vs #449 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Dalton is holding its place on the charts, Yusuf is climbing the charts fast. On momentum, Yusuf has the edge.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, Dalton leads 5 measures of 6; Yusuf leads 1.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Dalton #823, Yusuf — — Dalton higher
- 1890s: Dalton #834, Yusuf — — Dalton higher
- 1900s: Dalton #741, Yusuf — — Dalton higher
- 1910s: Dalton #580, Yusuf — — Dalton higher
- 1920s: Dalton #504, Yusuf — — Dalton higher
- 1930s: Dalton #480, Yusuf — — Dalton higher
- 1940s: Dalton #565, Yusuf #3690 — Dalton higher
- 1950s: Dalton #721, Yusuf — — Dalton higher
- 1960s: Dalton #834, Yusuf #3387 — Dalton higher
- 1970s: Dalton #1029, Yusuf #1480 — Dalton higher
- 1980s: Dalton #789, Yusuf #1519 — Dalton higher
- 1990s: Dalton #109, Yusuf #1413 — Dalton higher
- 2000s: Dalton #167, Yusuf #931 — Dalton higher
- 2010s: Dalton #331, Yusuf #610 — Dalton higher
- 2020s: Dalton #482, Yusuf #519 — Dalton higher
Dalton stood higher in every recorded decade — 15 of 15.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Dalton | Yusuf |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #823 | — |
| 1890s | #834 | — |
| 1900s | #741 | — |
| 1910s | #580 | — |
| 1920s | #504 | — |
| 1930s | #480 | — |
| 1940s | #565 | #3690 |
| 1950s | #721 | — |
| 1960s | #834 | #3387 |
| 1970s | #1029 | #1480 |
| 1980s | #789 | #1519 |
| 1990s | #109 | #1413 |
| 2000s | #167 | #931 |
| 2010s | #331 | #610 |
| 2020s | #482 | #519 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
Around the world
Dalton
Not charting outside the US.
Yusuf
- England & Wales#67
National statistics offices, latest published year.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Dalton
valley settlement or valley farmstead
From Old English dæl, "valley, dale," and tūn, "enclosure, farmstead, settlement" — the same tūn that ends hundreds of English town and surname forms.
Old English dæl + tūn → Dalton (English place name) → Dalton (surname) → Dalton (given name)
How it traveled
There is no single Dalton in England; there are many, in Yorkshire, Lancashire, Cumbria and Durham, all named the same practical way for a farm or hamlet sitting in a dale. Medieval families who came from such a place were known by it, and Dalton became one of the well-established English surnames, carried to North America with the migrations of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
Yusuf
God will add, or he shall add
From Hebrew Yosef, tied in Genesis to Rachel's wish for another son. The Arabic Yusuf carries the same sense through.
Yosef → Iōsēph → Yusuf
How it traveled
The name begins as Hebrew Yosef, borne by the son of Jacob whose story of the coat, the pit and the Egyptian court runs through the book of Genesis. Greek translators of the Hebrew Bible wrote it Iōsēph, which became Latin Ioseph and English Joseph; Arabic kept closer to the original consonants and produced Yusuf.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Dalton
DAWL-tuhn
Two syllables, stress on the first, with the l fully sounded. Some American speakers say DAHL-tuhn; both are accepted and no one will correct you.
- Dalt — The most common clipped form, informal and used mainly by family and friends; not established as a standalone given name.
- Dal — Shorter still, informal, and easy to confuse in speech with Dale, which is a separate name from the same Old English root.
- D — Initial-only nickname, common in American schools and on sports teams.
Yusuf
YOO-suf
Arabic and Turkish speakers often put more weight on the second syllable, closer to yoo-SOOF, and lengthen it. Both are correct; families usually pick one and stay with it.
- Yus — The most common informal clip among English-speaking friends and siblings.
- Yusi — An affectionate family form, used mostly with young children.
- Joe — Used by some bearers as an English-facing equivalent through Joseph; others prefer the full name and say so.
- Yuşa — Turkish-language pet form, heard in Turkish-speaking families rather than in general American use.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Dalton if you want…
- a name holding steadyDalton is holding its place on the charts
- a name with fewer syllablesDalton is 2 syllables to Yusuf's 3
Choose Yusuf if you want…
- a name on the way upup 123 places on the charts in five years
- a name with more sound in itYusuf runs 3 syllables, Dalton 2
- a name that charts abroad tooYusuf is on the national lists of England & Wales
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Dalton
Strengths
- Spelled the way it sounds and read correctly on first sight by nearly everyone in the English-speaking world.
- A documented English place name and surname going back to the medieval period, with an unbroken written record.
- Works on a form, a diploma or a name tag without explanation — it reads as a surname-style name, a style long naturalized in American naming.
To consider
- Daulton and Delton exist as separate spellings, so expect an occasional query about which one you mean — though Dalton is the form people default to.
- Because it rose to prominence with a particular wave of surname names, many Daltons are now young adults rather than children, which gives the name a generational tint for some listeners.
- The Dalton Gang, brothers who robbed banks and trains in the American West in the 1890s, still shows up in Old West histories and place names. It is a footnote rather than a shadow, but you may hear it mentioned.
Yusuf
Strengths
- Recognized on sight across the Arabic-speaking world, Turkey, the Balkans, South Asia, East Africa and Southeast Asia — one of the most widely traveled names there is.
- Yusuf is the standard transliteration and the one most English speakers have encountered, so it is easier to hold than Youssef or Yousuf.
- Two syllables, no silent letters, no consonant clusters — it survives being said quickly by a substitute teacher.
To consider
- The spellings Youssef, Yousef, Yusef and Yousuf all belong to the same name, and people who know one will default to it. Expect a lifetime of spelling it out, in a friendly way, at the pharmacy counter.
- Stress is the real variable, not the letters: relatives may say yoo-SOOF while classmates say YOO-suf. Worth deciding early which one you correct people toward.
- Some acquaintances will reach for Joe as a shortcut. That suits some families and not others, and it is easier to head off than to undo.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Dalton and Yusuf in full.
Weighing the whole shortlist? Run the full comparison — up to eight names with your last name, initials, classroom projections and a printable report.
Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
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More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists these names appear on
- Names that belong entirely to the 1990s
- British invasion: UK favorites still rare in the US
- Arabic names in American use
- Turkish and Armenian names in American use
- all guides
Where Dalton and Yusuf each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Dalton or Yusuf — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Dalton or Yusuf?
- Dalton, in 2025: Dalton ranked #448 with 699 babies; Yusuf ranked #449 with 698 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Dalton or Yusuf?
- Yusuf. Over the last five years Dalton moved up 15 places; Yusuf moved up 123 places.
- Which is the older name, Dalton or Yusuf?
- Dalton entered the US charts in 1881; Yusuf entered the US charts in 1949. On the American record, Dalton is the older name.
- How many people are named Dalton and Yusuf?
- About 79,500 people named Dalton are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 11,500 people named Yusuf are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Daltons or Yusufs in the classroom?
- Dalton will almost certainly be the only one in school. Yusuf will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025; international figures from national statistics agencies. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
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