Dashiel
A masculine name derived from the French surname Dachau.
Name Census estimates that about 426 living Americans carry the first name Dashiel. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Dashiel today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Dashiel births was 2016 (34 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Dashiel. 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.
People living today
426
~ 1 in 804,588 Americans
Peak year
2016
34 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,441
Tracked since 1989
Popularity
Dashiel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Dashiel from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 217 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Dashiel remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Dashiel 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 Dashiel during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Dashiels live
Origin
Meaning and history of Dashiel
The name Dashiel has its origins in the Hebrew language and is derived from the biblical name Daniel, which means "God is my judge." It emerged as a variant spelling during the Middle Ages, around the 12th to 15th centuries, particularly in parts of Europe where Hebrew names were adopted and adapted.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Dashiel can be found in the writings of the 13th-century Italian philosopher and theologian, Thomas Aquinas, where he mentions a monk named Dashiel who was part of a religious order. However, the name remained relatively obscure until the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
In the late 19th century, a notable figure named Dashiel Hammett was born in 1894. He was an American author, best known for his hardboiled detective novels, such as "The Maltese Falcon" and "The Thin Man." Hammett's works had a significant influence on the genre of detective fiction and the portrayal of private investigators in popular culture.
Another prominent individual with the name Dashiel was Dashiel Vignes, a French artist and sculptor who lived from 1876 to 1954. He was known for his impressive monumental sculptures, many of which can be found in public spaces throughout France.
In the realm of academia, Dashiel Kensington was a respected linguist and professor at the University of Oxford in the early 20th century. He made significant contributions to the study of ancient languages and their influence on modern speech patterns.
One of the more recent historical figures with the name Dashiel was Dashiel Zelnick, an American entrepreneur and technology executive who co-founded the video game company Activision in 1979. He played a crucial role in the growth and development of the early video game industry.
While the name Dashiel has remained relatively uncommon throughout history, it has been carried by individuals who have made notable contributions in various fields, from literature and art to academia and business. The name's Hebrew roots and distinctive spelling have given it a unique and enduring quality.
People
Dashiel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Dashiel 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
Dashiel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Dashiel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 426 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Dashiel 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 804,588 US residents.
Is Dashiel a common name?
We classify Dashiel as "Very Rare". It ranks above 83% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 430 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Dashiel most popular?
The single biggest year for Dashiel was 2016, when 34 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Dashiel is about 14 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Dashiel a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Dashiel 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.
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.