Head to head · Boys' names
Dennis vs Duke
#707 vs #695 in 2025 · both holding its place on the charts
Duke is a whisker ahead (#695 vs #707 in 2025) and both are holding its place on the charts. 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
The tape is even: Dennis and Duke each lead 2 measures of 6.
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: Dennis #125, Duke #865 — Dennis higher
- 1890s: Dennis #164, Duke #894 — Dennis higher
- 1900s: Dennis #189, Duke #997 — Dennis higher
- 1910s: Dennis #202, Duke #1073 — Dennis higher
- 1920s: Dennis #178, Duke #1213 — Dennis higher
- 1930s: Dennis #90, Duke #1172 — Dennis higher
- 1940s: Dennis #19, Duke #1040 — Dennis higher
- 1950s: Dennis #23, Duke #849 — Dennis higher
- 1960s: Dennis #40, Duke #842 — Dennis higher
- 1970s: Dennis #60, Duke #1190 — Dennis higher
- 1980s: Dennis #99, Duke #1511 — Dennis higher
- 1990s: Dennis #183, Duke #1660 — Dennis higher
- 2000s: Dennis #308, Duke #1767 — Dennis higher
- 2010s: Dennis #483, Duke #775 — Dennis higher
- 2020s: Dennis #675, Duke #674 — Duke higher
Dennis stood higher in 14 of 15 decades; Duke took the 2020s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Dennis | Duke |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #125 | #865 |
| 1890s | #164 | #894 |
| 1900s | #189 | #997 |
| 1910s | #202 | #1073 |
| 1920s | #178 | #1213 |
| 1930s | #90 | #1172 |
| 1940s | #19 | #1040 |
| 1950s | #23 | #849 |
| 1960s | #40 | #842 |
| 1970s | #60 | #1190 |
| 1980s | #99 | #1511 |
| 1990s | #183 | #1660 |
| 2000s | #308 | #1767 |
| 2010s | #483 | #775 |
| 2020s | #675 | #674 |
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
Dennis
of Dionysus
The Greek Dionysios means belonging to Dionysus, and it was an ordinary Greek personal name before any Christian carried it. The god is not incidental to the name; he is its whole content.
Dionysios → Denis → Dennis
How it traveled
Early Christians took Greek names as they found them, and a great many of them were theophoric — built on a god. Dionysios, Apollonios, Hermas, Demetrios and Olympias all came into the church attached to Olympian gods and stayed.
Duke
leader; the noble rank of duke
From Latin dux, 'leader, commander' — the term late Rome used for the military commanders of its frontier provinces — which became duc in Old French and duke in English.
dux (Latin) → duc (Old French) → duk / duke (Middle English) → Duke
How it traveled
The word arrived in English after the Norman Conquest, from Old French duc, and settled in as the highest title in the British peerage below prince. From the title came a surname, and from the title came a nickname handed to men who carried themselves a certain way — which is how it slipped loose and became a first name in its own right.
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
Dennis
DEN-iss
Two syllables with the weight at the front. French says duh-NEE with the final consonant silent, and Russian keeps the s.
- Den — Cut to one syllable; the standard everyday form in Britain.
- Denny — The affectionate form; a standing name of its own in America.
Duke
DOOK
One syllable, rhyming with 'fluke'. Some speakers, more often in Britain, add a glide: DYOOK. Either way, nobody will ask you to spell it.
- Dukie — Informal, mostly a family or early-childhood form; rarely used once school starts.
- D — Informal initial-only address, common among teammates and friends.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Dennis if you want…
- a name fewer children share#707 in 2025 — dennis will almost certainly be the only one in school
- a name with more sound in itDennis runs 2 syllables, Duke 1
- a name that ages quietlyan estimated 12% chance of feeling dated by 2040, against 40% for Duke
Choose Duke if you want…
- a name most people already know#695 in 2025, 390 babies that year
- a name with fewer syllablesDuke is 1 syllable to Dennis's 2
- a name that feels very nowDuke is holding its place on the charts
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
Dennis
Strengths
- Everyone can spell it and say it on first hearing.
- It has a form in French, Italian, Spanish, Russian and Polish.
- It has an unbroken run in American records from the first year they were kept.
To consider
- It is strongly associated with the middle of the twentieth century.
- One long-running comic strip has attached a particular boy to the name.
- Denis with one n is standard in France and will be written for you.
Duke
Strengths
- An ordinary English word, so the spelling needs no explaining and no correcting — ever.
- One syllable, which sits cleanly in front of long or multi-syllable surnames.
- Rare enough in classrooms that it will almost always stand alone, while remaining instantly familiar to everyone who hears it.
To consider
- Duke is one of the most popular dog names in America. Most people won't say so out loud, but the association is there, and it comes up.
- Because it began as a nickname for grown men, some readers will assume it's short for something longer, or a stage name. There's no formal version to fall back on.
- A rank-name carries a certain swagger, and not every child wants to carry it at every age. It's worth saying aloud in a full sentence with the surname before deciding.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Dennis
12%chance Dennis feels dated by 2040
Dennis has held the top-100 across 6 different decades — it has never depended on fashion, and names like that read the same at any age.
Duke
40%chance Duke feels dated by 2040
Duke sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A reading of where each name sits on the long naming cycle — computed, not measured, and explained on the data page.
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 Dennis and Duke 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 Dennis and Duke?
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.
Free to start · no account needed · everyone you invite votes in one tap
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
- Classics hiding in plain sight
- Midcentury modern: tomorrow's comeback bets
- Silent Generation names (born 1928–1945)
- Baby Boomer names (born 1946–1964)
- all guides
Where Dennis and Duke each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Dennis or Duke — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Dennis or Duke?
- Duke, in 2025: Duke ranked #695 with 390 babies; Dennis ranked #707 with 381 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Dennis or Duke?
- Neither is rising. Over the last five years Dennis moved down 60 places; Duke moved down 62 places.
- Which is the older name, Dennis or Duke?
- The US record cannot say: both were already in use when it began in 1880.
- How many people are named Dennis and Duke?
- About 422,000 people named Dennis are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 9,800 people named Duke are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Denniss or Dukes in the classroom?
- Dennis will almost certainly be the only one in school. Duke 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 Dennis, Duke and the rest of your shortlist with your last name in one printable report.
Free to start · no account needed · everyone you invite votes in one tap