Daedalus
A masculine name of Greek mythology meaning "skillfully wrought" or "cunningly made".
Name Census estimates that about 15 living Americans carry the first name Daedalus. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Daedalus today is around 9 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Daedalus births was 2018 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Daedalus. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Daedalus. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
15
~ 1 in 22,850,289 Americans
Peak year
2018
8 babies that year
Average age
9
years old
2018 SSA rank
#8,996
Tracked since 2015
Popularity
Daedalus: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Daedalus by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Daedalus during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 15 | 0 | 15 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Daedalus
The name Daedalus has its origins in ancient Greek mythology and literature. It is derived from the Greek word "daidallein", which means "to work artfully" or "to construct skillfully". This name was borne by a legendary figure in Greek mythology, known as Daedalus, who was a skilled craftsman, architect, and inventor.
Daedalus was a celebrated figure in Greek mythology, best known for his ingenious creations and his role in the myth of the Labyrinth on the island of Crete. According to the ancient Greek writer Ovid, Daedalus was an Athenian craftsman who created the intricate Labyrinth for King Minos of Crete to imprison the Minotaur, a mythical creature that was half-man and half-bull.
The name Daedalus is first mentioned in Homer's Iliad, one of the earliest and most influential works of ancient Greek literature, dating back to the 8th century BCE. Daedalus is also a prominent character in other ancient Greek literary works, such as Ovid's Metamorphoses and Virgil's Aeneid.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Daedalus. One of the earliest recorded examples is Daedalus of Sicyon, a Greek sculptor who lived in the 6th century BCE and was renowned for his wooden statues. Another prominent figure was Daedalus of Tralles, a Greek architect and engineer who lived in the 5th century BCE and is credited with the design of the famous Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
In the Renaissance period, the name Daedalus was revived and associated with artistic genius and ingenuity. One notable figure was the Italian architect and engineer Daedalus Bartoli (1615-1700), who designed several notable buildings in Rome and was known for his innovative architectural techniques.
Moving forward in history, the name Daedalus was also borne by Daedalus Müller (1787-1859), a German philologist and scholar who made significant contributions to the study of ancient Greek literature and mythology. Another notable figure was Daedalus Kindt (1831-1915), a Belgian architect and urban planner who played a key role in the development of modern Brussels.
These are just a few examples of individuals who have borne the name Daedalus throughout history, reflecting its association with artistic skill, ingenuity, and innovation, as well as its deep roots in ancient Greek mythology and literature.
People
Daedalus + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Daedalus as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with D
Other first names starting with D with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Daedalus: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Daedalus?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 15 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Daedalus going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 22,850,289 US residents.
Is Daedalus a common name?
We classify Daedalus as "Very Rare". It ranks above 35.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 15 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Daedalus most popular?
The single biggest year for Daedalus was 2018, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Daedalus is about 9 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Daedalus in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Daedalus a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Daedalus in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Daedalus still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Daedalus in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Daedalus can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many Americans are named Daedalus?
Find out how many people share the name Daedalus on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.