Darren
Feminine · “not settled”
Darren is given to boys far more often — 103,937 boys against 569 girls since 1880. See Darren as a boy name
Darren is a two-syllable name with a rolled middle and a soft end, one of the best-known boys' names of its generation in America. Its source has never been pinned down, and one of the men who made it familiar chose it for himself.
How old is the name Darren?
Darren first appears in US birth records in 1956 — 69 years ago. The typical Darren alive today was born around 1971, making them about 54 years old. About 500 people named Darren are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Darren most popular?
Darren peaked in 1966, reaching #1916 nationally. See the whole 1966 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Dáire (possibly) to Darren
The story of Darren
The Irish name Dáire is old and grand: in the Táin, Dáire mac Fiachna owned the Brown Bull of Cooley, and his refusal to lend it to Queen Medb set off the most famous cattle raid in Irish legend. Whether Darren descends from it is not recorded. What is clear is that the name was taken up in mid-century America, and one of its best-known carriers chose it: the actor Darren McGavin was born William Richardson, and later played the father in A Christmas Story who wins a lamp shaped like a leg and calls it a major award. The name is recorded for a few girls, but it is overwhelmingly a boy's.
Meaningscholars disagree
not settled; sometimes linked to the Irish Dáire
Darren has no documented ancestor. It is sometimes connected to the old Irish name Dáire, often explained as fruitful, and sometimes to an English surname, but no record shows either line clearly.
How the name formed
- Dáirepossibly
- Darren
Related forms: Dáire · Darin · Darrin
Pronouncing Darren
DAIR-in
Stress on the first syllable. In most American speech it rhymes with Karen; in some regions the first vowel is closer to the a of cat.
Nicknames for Darren
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1956
- Most girls named
- 196636 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1916reached in 1966
- Change vs 1998
- +40.0%7 in 2017, from 5
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Darren in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Dáire in Irish — related form
- Darin in English — spelling variant
- Darrin in English — spelling variant
Darrens among us
people named Darren are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Darren sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- It is familiar, easy to say and easy to spell.
- It sounds friendly and has no awkward meanings.
- It is no longer common among new babies, so a young Darren stands out a little.
- Many people will associate it with a particular generation of men.
- There is no settled meaning to give when someone asks.
- A very few girls have been given it; for them it will read as a boy's name everywhere.
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What they receive
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Darren
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Darrens are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 500 people named Darren are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Darren in 2025?
- Darren is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Darren with classmates?
- Darren will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More D names
The most-given names starting with D, all years combined.
Dorothy#421 · Donna#1962 · Deborah#862 · Debra#4460 · Diane#2607 · Doris#2895 · Denise#1673 · Danielle#549
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Darren? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Darren and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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