Head to head · Boys' names
Damien vs Hendrix
#352 vs #354 in 2025 · both stepping back from its peak
Damien is a whisker ahead (#352 vs #354 in 2025) and both are stepping back from its peak. The records will not split these two — sound, story and your own last name will.
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, Damien leads 4 measures of 6; Hendrix 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: Damien —, Hendrix #936 — Hendrix higher
- 1910s: Damien —, Hendrix #2926 — Hendrix higher
- 1920s: Damien —, Hendrix #4089 — Hendrix higher
- 1930s: Damien #3161, Hendrix — — Damien higher
- 1940s: Damien #2558, Hendrix — — Damien higher
- 1950s: Damien #1854, Hendrix — — Damien higher
- 1960s: Damien #1129, Hendrix — — Damien higher
- 1970s: Damien #379, Hendrix #4851 — Damien higher
- 1980s: Damien #279, Hendrix #5955 — Damien higher
- 1990s: Damien #301, Hendrix #6766 — Damien higher
- 2000s: Damien #206, Hendrix #3570 — Damien higher
- 2010s: Damien #243, Hendrix #596 — Damien higher
- 2020s: Damien #315, Hendrix #298 — Hendrix higher
Damien stood higher in 9 of 13 decades; Hendrix took the 2020s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Damien | Hendrix |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | — | #936 |
| 1910s | — | #2926 |
| 1920s | — | #4089 |
| 1930s | #3161 | — |
| 1940s | #2558 | — |
| 1950s | #1854 | — |
| 1960s | #1129 | — |
| 1970s | #379 | #4851 |
| 1980s | #279 | #5955 |
| 1990s | #301 | #6766 |
| 2000s | #206 | #3570 |
| 2010s | #243 | #596 |
| 2020s | #315 | #298 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Damien
to tame, to subdue
From Greek Damianos, formed on damazein, 'to tame'. The same root stands behind the Greek name Damon.
Damianos → Damianus → Damiano → Damien
How it traveled
The name begins as Greek Damianos and passes into Latin as Damianus, which is how it traveled through the medieval West. Its early carrier was Damian, one of the pair of physician brothers honored with Cosmas in the early Christian church and long taken as patrons of doctors and pharmacists; churches bearing their joint dedication spread the name across Italy, Spain, Poland and Greece.
Hendrix
son of Hendrik — from Germanic "home" plus "ruler"
Hendrik is the Dutch form of Germanic Heimirich, built from heim "home" and ric "ruler, power". The -x ending is a Dutch and Flemish way of writing the patronymic -ks, so Hendrix is literally "Hendrik's son".
Heimirich → Heinrich → Hendrik → Hendriks → Hendrix
How it traveled
The Germanic name Heimirich — "home ruler" — spread through medieval Europe as Heinrich in German lands and Hendrik in the Low Countries, and became Henry in English. Dutch and Flemish families then formed surnames from it, writing the patronymic -ks as -x, which gives Hendriks and Hendrix.
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
Damien
DAY-mee-uhn
Two pronunciations circulate in the US: DAY-mee-uhn and DAM-ee-uhn, with a closer-to-French dam-YEN heard in some families. All are accepted, so it is worth deciding early which one you will correct people toward.
- Dame — The most common casual clip in American use, family and friends rather than paperwork.
- Dami — Informal, usually within the family; also heard in Spanish-speaking households alongside Damián.
- Damo — An Irish and Australian style of shortening; heard less in the US, but understood.
- Dee — A general initial-based nickname shared with many D names, so rarely tied to Damien alone.
Hendrix
HEN-driks
Stress on the first syllable. English speakers read it correctly on sight, and the x is pronounced exactly as it looks.
- Hen — The most natural clipping in English speech; informal, family use.
- Rix — Takes the tail rather than the head; informal, and rare enough that it usually needs introducing.
- Hendy — Surname-style, the way sports teams shorten last names; used among friends more than at home.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Damien if you want…
- a name with more sound in itDamien runs 3 syllables, Hendrix 2
Choose Hendrix if you want…
- a name with fewer syllablesHendrix is 2 syllables to Damien's 3
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
Damien
Strengths
- Recognizable across Spanish, Italian, Polish, Portuguese and Greek in forms close enough that no one has to relearn it.
- A documented record stretching from the early Christian church to the present, with no long gap in use.
- Steadily present in American records for generations without ever crowding a classroom.
To consider
- The 1976 film The Omen gave the name to its child antagonist, and some adults still make the connection instantly. It has faded a good deal with time, but it has not disappeared.
- Damien and Damian are both in wide use, so expect a lifetime of confirming which spelling. The same goes for the DAY- versus DAM- first syllable.
- It is stepping back from where it once stood in American use, which means a child is unlikely to share it with a classmate — pleasant for some families, less so if you want a name people hear daily.
Hendrix
Strengths
- Spelled the way it sounds for English speakers, with no realistic pronunciation dispute.
- The -x spelling is already widely recognized, so it rarely needs to be defended as an invented form.
- Belongs to the Henry family, one of the longest continuously used name lines in Europe.
To consider
- The link to Jimi Hendrix is direct and permanent. Many people will hear it as a tribute and say so, which is charming to some families and tiresome to others.
- Hendricks is a common surname spelling, so expect the -cks version to be written by mistake fairly often.
- Short forms are thin on the ground — none of them is standard, so the full name is likely to be what he is called day to day.
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 Damien and Hendrix 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
Still torn between Damien and Hendrix?
Put both to the vote.
One link to your partner, your parents, your sister. Each of them gets the two names, a one-tap answer and room to say why — and every reply lands in one place.
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More than two in the running? Settle it with a bracket or run the full comparison with your last name.
More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists these names appear on
- Names with only one spelling
- Gothic names with candlelit edges
- Halloween names for an October baby
- Names with an X in them
- all guides
Where Damien and Hendrix each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Damien or Hendrix — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Damien or Hendrix?
- Damien, in 2025: Damien ranked #352 with 935 babies; Hendrix ranked #354 with 933 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Damien or Hendrix?
- Neither is rising. Over the last five years Damien moved down 75 places; Hendrix moved down 71 places.
- Which is the older name, Damien or Hendrix?
- Damien entered the US charts in 1936; Hendrix entered the US charts in 1885. On the American record, Hendrix is the older name.
- How many people are named Damien and Hendrix?
- About 63,000 people named Damien are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 13,500 people named Hendrix are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Damiens or Hendrixs in the classroom?
- Damien will almost certainly be the only one in school. Hendrix will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
Sixty more head-to-heads are dealt in the arena every day — or line up Damien, Hendrix and the rest of your shortlist with your last name in one printable report.
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