Head to head · Girls' names
Demi vs Ivory
#380 vs #378 in 2025
Ivory is a whisker ahead (#378 vs #380 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Ivory is climbing the charts fast, Demi is holding its place on the charts.
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, Ivory leads 4 measures of 6; Demi leads 2.
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: Demi —, Ivory #1108 — Ivory higher
- 1890s: Demi —, Ivory #1034 — Ivory higher
- 1900s: Demi —, Ivory #875 — Ivory higher
- 1910s: Demi —, Ivory #939 — Ivory higher
- 1920s: Demi —, Ivory #1053 — Ivory higher
- 1930s: Demi —, Ivory #1052 — Ivory higher
- 1940s: Demi —, Ivory #1131 — Ivory higher
- 1950s: Demi —, Ivory #1423 — Ivory higher
- 1960s: Demi #7119, Ivory #2093 — Ivory higher
- 1970s: Demi #6558, Ivory #2175 — Ivory higher
- 1980s: Demi #5945, Ivory #1232 — Ivory higher
- 1990s: Demi #762, Ivory #1411 — Demi higher
- 2000s: Demi #1285, Ivory #1553 — Demi higher
- 2010s: Demi #626, Ivory #911 — Demi higher
- 2020s: Demi #389, Ivory #498 — Demi higher
Ivory stood higher in 11 of 15 decades; Demi has held the lead since the 1990s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Demi | Ivory |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | — | #1108 |
| 1890s | — | #1034 |
| 1900s | — | #875 |
| 1910s | — | #939 |
| 1920s | — | #1053 |
| 1930s | — | #1052 |
| 1940s | — | #1131 |
| 1950s | — | #1423 |
| 1960s | #7119 | #2093 |
| 1970s | #6558 | #2175 |
| 1980s | #5945 | #1232 |
| 1990s | #762 | #1411 |
| 2000s | #1285 | #1553 |
| 2010s | #626 | #911 |
| 2020s | #389 | #498 |
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
Demi
Short form of Demetria — 'of Demeter', the Greek harvest goddess; also identical to the French word for 'half'
The main road is Greek: Demetria and Demetrius mean 'belonging to Demeter', goddess of grain and the earth's yield, and Demi is the clipped English form. The second is coincidence turned into association — French 'demi' means 'half', the same element in demitasse and demi-glace. Both readings are genuinely in circulation, and the name is often understood as one or the other depending on who is saying it.
Demeter → Demetrios → Demetria → Demi
How it traveled
Demeter's name stands at the head of this line, and from it Greek made Demetrios and Demetria, names carried steadily through the Byzantine world and into the Orthodox countries, where Dimitri and Dimitra remain everyday names. Latin borrowed Demetria, and English-speaking families shortened it the way they shortened everything — to a single bright syllable plus a vowel.
Ivory
ivory — the hard creamy-white material of elephant tusk, and the pale off-white shade named after it
The English word came through Old French ivoire from Latin ebur. How ebur itself arose is less clear; the Latin is where the secure trail begins.
ebur (Latin) → ivoire (Old French) → ivorie (Middle English) → Ivory
How it traveled
This is a word name, and an old word: ivory has meant tusk in English since the Middle Ages, when it arrived from Old French as one of the many Norman-era borrowings that reshaped the language. As a given name it belongs to the English-speaking habit of naming children after precious and beautiful substances — the same instinct behind Pearl, Opal and Amber.
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
Demi
DEM-ee
Stress on the first syllable, first vowel as in 'them'. Because the French word 'demi' is said duh-MEE, some people reach for that pronunciation on first sight; a single correction usually settles it.
- Demi — Already the short form of Demetria, and now overwhelmingly used as a complete given name on its own.
- Dem — Casual clip heard among friends and siblings; not used on paper.
- Demi-Leigh — A compound extension rather than a shortening, found mainly in British and South African usage; also registered as a full name in its own right.
Ivory
EYE-vuh-ree
Often compressed to two syllables in fast speech, EYE-vree, exactly as the ordinary word is. Both are the same name; no correcting needed.
- Ivy — The usual short form, and a very well-established given name in its own right — worth knowing, since an Ivory may be called Ivy by default.
- Vee — Informal, usually secondhand from Ivy rather than direct from Ivory.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Demi if you want…
- a name holding steadyDemi is holding its place on the charts
- a name with fewer syllablesDemi is 2 syllables to Ivory's 3
Choose Ivory if you want…
- a name on the way upup 223 places on the charts in five years
- a name with more sound in itIvory runs 3 syllables, Demi 2
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
Demi
Strengths
- Four letters, two syllables, and no silent parts — it is spelled the way it sounds and rarely needs repeating.
- Works as a full legal name and as an everyday nickname at once, so no shortening is required.
- Sits at the end of a documented line running from Greek through Latin into English, with living relatives like Dimitra and Dmitri still in daily use abroad.
To consider
- In English, 'demi-' is a prefix meaning half or partial — demigod, demitasse. Most people never think of it, but the association is there for anyone who does.
- People often assume it must be short for something and ask for the longer version. Demetria is the honest answer, whether or not it is on the birth certificate.
- Its record in the US is recent, and living bearers skew young. A child named Demi is unlikely to meet an older one, which cuts both ways: no crowd, but no ready-made familiarity either.
Ivory
Strengths
- Spelling needs no explaining — it is an English word most people can write on first hearing.
- Ivy is ready as a short form, and it is a familiar name itself, so the nickname needs no introduction.
- Not a recent invention: it has been given to American children for generations, so it carries a record rather than a trend.
To consider
- The ivory trade and elephant poaching are the association some adults reach for first. Children rarely make that link, but it is a real one and it comes up in conversation from time to time.
- Ivory is also a shade of off-white, familiar from paint charts, bridal fabric and Ivory soap, sold since the nineteenth century. Some people will hear the color or the brand before the name.
- Expect a certain amount of drift toward Ivy — from teachers, from relatives, from anyone in a hurry. Fine if you like Ivy; something to weigh if you do not.
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 Demi and Ivory in full.
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Decide together
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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
- Hometown favorites: names only one state loves
- Pop star names on birth certificates
- Names ending in -i
- Color names beyond Scarlett
- all guides
Where Demi and Ivory each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Demi or Ivory — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Demi or Ivory?
- Ivory, in 2025: Ivory ranked #378 with 810 babies; Demi ranked #380 with 804 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Demi or Ivory?
- Ivory. Over the last five years Demi moved down 41 places; Ivory moved up 223 places.
- Which is the older name, Demi or Ivory?
- Demi entered the US charts in 1964; Ivory entered the US charts in 1886. On the American record, Ivory is the older name.
- How many people are named Demi and Ivory?
- About 14,500 people named Demi are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 12,500 people named Ivory are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Demis or Ivorys in the classroom?
- Demi will almost certainly be the only one in school. Ivory 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
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