Denee
An invented name, possibly an elaborated form of Dennie or Denny.
Name Census estimates that about 835 living Americans carry the first name Denee. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Denee today is around 44 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Denee births was 1981 (35 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Denee. 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
835
~ 1 in 410,484 Americans
Peak year
1981
35 babies that year
Average age
44
years old
2010 SSA rank
#15,470
Tracked since 1955
Popularity
Denee: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Denee from the 1950s through to the 2010s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 275 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Denee 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 Denee during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Denees live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. California, New York, Texas recorded the most babies named Denee, while Texas, New York, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 29 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Denee
The name Denee is derived from the French word "deneier," which means "to deny" or "to refuse." Its origins can be traced back to the Middle Ages, around the 12th century, when it was commonly used as a surname in parts of northern France.
In the early 13th century, the name Denee appeared in several historical records and texts from the Normandy region of France. One notable mention was in the chronicles of a local abbey, where a nobleman named Denee de Rouen was documented as a benefactor.
The earliest recorded use of Denee as a given name dates back to the late 15th century, when it was occasionally bestowed upon children, particularly daughters, in parts of northern France and the Low Countries. It was sometimes spelled as "Denaye" or "Deneye" during this period.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name Denee was a French noblewoman named Denee de Montmorency, who lived in the early 16th century and was known for her charitable works and patronage of the arts.
Throughout the subsequent centuries, the name Denee remained relatively uncommon but was occasionally found among French and Belgian families of various social ranks. Notable individuals with the name included Denee Lefebvre (1655-1732), a French sculptor and woodcarver known for her intricate religious artwork, and Denee Duval (1789-1862), a Belgian poet and writer whose works celebrated the natural beauty of her homeland.
In the 19th century, the name Denee gained some popularity among French communities in North America, particularly in parts of Quebec and Louisiana. One notable bearer was Denee LeBlanc (1825-1892), a Cajun storyteller and folklorist from Louisiana who helped preserve many traditional tales and legends of the region.
Another noteworthy individual was Denee Mercier (1867-1949), a French-Canadian author and educator who wrote extensively on the history and culture of Quebec, and was instrumental in promoting the use of the French language in schools and public institutions.
While the name Denee has remained relatively uncommon throughout history, its rich heritage and cultural significance have endured, particularly among French-speaking communities and those with ancestral ties to the regions where the name first emerged.
People
Denee + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Denee 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
Denee: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Denee?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 835 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Denee 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 410,484 US residents.
Is Denee a common name?
We classify Denee as "Very Rare". It ranks above 88.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 911 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Denee most popular?
The single biggest year for Denee was 1981, when 35 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Denee is about 44 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Denee a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Denee 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.
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.