Girls' name · peaked in 1970
Dawn name popularity since 1925
289,701 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Dawn. Half of them were born in 1968 or earlier, so the typical Dawn is about 58 years old in 2026. Dawn peaked in 1970 as the #16 name for girls, and it was outside the top 1,000 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 289,701
- Named Dawn, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- Not top 1,000
- #2,174 for girls in 2025
- Girls / boys
- 99.6% girls
- 288,669 girls · 1,032 boys
- Most popular in
- Delaware
- 2.13× its national share
Peak year is the year Dawn made up the largest share of US girls, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Dawn births per year, 1925–2025
1970 was the biggest year for Dawn both by count and as a share of all babies.
- Fastest rise: Between 1951 and 1956, Dawn became 3× more common, from 1 in 1,170 baby girls to 1 in 392.
- Steepest fall: Between 1982 and 1987, its share of baby girls fell by 64%, from 1 in 548 to 1 in 1,510.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Dawn's share of all US girls five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Dawn.
Decade by decade
Babies named Dawn in each decade, and its rank among girls' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 910 | 20 | – |
| 1930s | 3,732 | 44 | #311 |
| 1940s | 8,631 | 38 | #246 |
| 1950s | 38,899 | 111 | #103 |
| 1960s | 114,293 | 314 | #26 |
| 1970s | 92,446 | 353 | #23 |
| 1980s | 22,406 | 114 | #165 |
| 1990s | 4,302 | 32 | #668 |
| 2000s | 1,577 | 0 | #1,616 |
| 2010s | 923 | 0 | #1,999 |
| 2020–25 | 550 | 6 | #2,174 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 girls that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
56.9% of babies named Dawn from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Gen X years (1965–1980). The full split by generation:
Where Dawn is most popular
The index compares Dawn's share of babies in each state with its share nationwide, 1925–2025 (1.50× = 50% more common). States with at least 300 babies named Dawn.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Delaware | 2.13× | 1,278 |
| Wisconsin | 2.11× | 12,027 |
| South Dakota | 2.08× | 1,917 |
| Rhode Island | 1.98× | 2,026 |
| Michigan | 1.95× | 21,580 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Dawn's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Dawn.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Dawn (1970).
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national and state baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data