Darena
A Persian name meaning "bearer of good news".
Name Census estimates that about 15 living Americans carry the first name Darena. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Darena today is around 57 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Darena births was 1961 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Darena. 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 Darena. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
15
~ 1 in 22,850,289 Americans
Peak year
1961
7 babies that year
Average age
57
years old
1983 SSA rank
#10,643
Tracked since 1961
Popularity
Darena: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Darena from the 1960s through to the 1980s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 7 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1960s peak, Darena remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Darena 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 Darena during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Darena
The name Darena is believed to have originated in the ancient Persian language, derived from the word "darya," which means "sea" or "ocean." It was likely used as a name during the reign of the Achaemenid Empire, which ruled over much of the ancient Middle East and Central Asia from the 6th to 4th centuries BCE.
The earliest recorded use of the name Darena can be found in ancient Persian texts and inscriptions from this period. One notable example is a reference to a woman named Darena in the Behistun Inscription, a monumental rock relief carved during the reign of King Darius the Great (550-486 BCE).
In addition to its Persian roots, the name Darena has also been associated with various ancient cultures and religions. In Zoroastrianism, one of the oldest religious traditions of Persia (modern-day Iran), the name Darena was sometimes used to symbolize the concept of "purity" or "cleanliness," which were highly valued in this faith.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Darena. One of the earliest recorded was Darena of Tyre (c. 125 BCE - 55 BCE), a prominent female philosopher and mathematician from the ancient city of Tyre (located in modern-day Lebanon). She is credited with making significant contributions to the field of geometry and is believed to have been a teacher of the famous Greek philosopher and mathematician, Euclid.
Another notable figure was Darena the Scribe (c. 200 CE - 270 CE), a renowned calligrapher and scholar who lived during the Sassanid Empire in ancient Persia. Her intricate and beautiful calligraphic works were highly prized and are still celebrated today as examples of the rich artistic traditions of this period.
In the 9th century CE, Darena al-Hakim (c. 810 - 880) was a highly respected female physician and scholar from the city of Baghdad (located in modern-day Iraq). She was known for her expertise in the field of medicine and is believed to have made significant contributions to the development of early Islamic medical practices.
During the 16th century, Darena Khanum (c. 1515 - 1585) was a prominent Persian poet and artist who was renowned for her beautiful and evocative works. She was a member of the court of Shah Tahmasp I, the ruler of the Safavid Dynasty, and her poetry and artwork were highly valued by the cultural elite of the time.
Finally, in the 19th century, Darena Galindo (1822 - 1897) was a pioneering female educator and activist from Mexico. She was a strong advocate for women's rights and fought tirelessly for the advancement of education for girls and women in her country. She founded several schools and educational institutions, leaving a lasting legacy in the field of education and social reform.
People
Darena + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Darena 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
Darena: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Darena?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 15 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Darena 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 Darena a common name?
We classify Darena 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, 18 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Darena most popular?
The single biggest year for Darena was 1961, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Darena is about 57 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 Darena in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Darena a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Darena in the SSA data are female. 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 Darena still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Darena 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 Darena 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 common is the name Darena?
See how many people have the name Darena on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.