Devontay
Masculine · “of the Dumnonii”
Devon is named after the people the Romans found there. The Dumnonii held the south-western peninsula, and their name outlasted the Roman province, the Saxon conquest and everything since — one of only a handful of English counties still carrying a British tribe's name.
How old is the name Devontay?
Devontay first appears in US birth records in 1988 — 37 years ago. The typical Devontay alive today was born around 1999, making them about 26 years old. About 900 people named Devontay are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Devontay most popular?
Devontay peaked in 1992, reaching #1228 nationally. Today it ranks #12008, 10,780 places below that high. See the whole 1992 chart.
Where it comes from
From Dumnonii to Devontay
The story of Devontay
The Dumnonii had something the ancient world wanted. Bronze needs tin, tin is rare, and the largest accessible source in western Europe was Cornwall and Devon — which is why Mediterranean traders were coming to the peninsula in the Bronze Age and why classical writers knew of the Cassiterides, the tin islands, before they knew much else about Britain. The trade ran for two thousand years and the last Cornish tin mine closed in 1998. The tribe's name is likely to be about depth, which fits either the mines or a river valley. The county kept it, the county gave a surname, the surname became an American given name, and the ending was added here.
Meaningscholars disagree
of the Dumnonii
Devon is from the Dumnonii, a British people whose own name is usually read as the deep ones, possibly a reference to mining. The Da- and De- openings and the -tay ending in this spelling are American additions and carry no meaning.
How the name formed
- Dumnonii
- Devon
- Devontay
Pronouncing Devontay
deh-VON-tay
Three syllables, stress in the middle with a clear final beat. The -tay ending is fully sounded, which is what it is there for; it is not a silent French ending.
Nicknames for Devontay
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
- 1988
- Most boys named
- 199284 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1228reached in 1992
- Change vs 2024
- −28.6%5 in 2025, from 7
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.
Devontays among us
people named Devontay are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 341,615 born in 2025 was named Devontay
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Rodman test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Devontay's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Rodman climbed just as high around 1928, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Rodman's path sketches the road Devontay is walking now.
Devontay 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 scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Devontay beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Devontay in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Three short forms, all of which are names in their own right.
- A documented English county and a named British people behind it.
- Three syllables with a regular stress that strangers place correctly.
- Devontae, Devante and Davonte are all in use, so the spelling will be given.
- Only the front has a meaning; the ending carries none.
- It belongs to a narrow band of years and dates the bearer to them.
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What they receive
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Devontay
Masculine · #12008 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Devontays are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 900 people named Devontay are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Devontay in 2025?
- Devontay ranks #12008 among US boy names in 2025, with 5 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Devontay?
- About 1 in every 341,615 US boys born in 2025 was named Devontay — 5 in all.
- Will my child share the name Devontay with classmates?
- Devontay will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Devontay
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Garfield#12008 · Chas#12008 · Lew#12008 · Barney#12008 · Dewitt#12008 · Granville#12008 · Cicero#12008 · Willam#12008
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Devontay? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Devontay and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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