Derez
A masculine name of Persian origin meaning "a farmer or cultivator."
Name Census estimates that about 75 living Americans carry the first name Derez. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Derez today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Derez births was 2018 (21 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Derez. 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 Derez. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
75
~ 1 in 4,570,058 Americans
Peak year
2018
21 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#12,725
Tracked since 1990
Popularity
Derez: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Derez from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 34 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Derez 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 Derez 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 Derez
The name Derez is believed to have its roots in the ancient Persian language, originating from the word "dar," which means "gate" or "door." It is thought to have emerged during the time of the Achaemenid Empire, which ruled over a vast territory spanning from modern-day Pakistan to Libya between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Derez can be found in the writings of the Greek historian Herodotus, who lived in the 5th century BCE. In his work "The Histories," he mentions a Persian nobleman named Derez who served as a military commander under King Darius I.
During the medieval period, the name Derez was associated with several notable figures in the Islamic world. Derez al-Khwarizmi, a renowned mathematician and astronomer who lived in the 9th century CE, is credited with pioneering the concept of algorithms and introducing the decimal numeral system to the Western world.
Another prominent individual with the name Derez was Derez ibn Rahwayh, a respected Islamic scholar and hadith collector who lived in the 9th century CE. His vast collection of hadith, or sayings attributed to the Prophet Muhammad, became a significant reference work in Islamic jurisprudence.
In the literary realm, Derez al-Attar, a 12th-century Persian poet and mystic, gained recognition for his masterpiece "The Conference of the Birds," a symbolic allegorical work that explores the spiritual journey of the soul.
During the Renaissance period, the name Derez resurfaced in Europe, particularly in Italy. One notable figure was Derez Palladio, a 16th-century Italian architect whose work had a profound influence on Western architecture and contributed to the development of the Palladian style.
While the name Derez has been relatively uncommon in recent times, it continues to carry a rich historical legacy that spans various cultures and eras, from the ancient Persian Empire to the Islamic Golden Age and the European Renaissance.
People
Derez + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Derez 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
Derez: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Derez?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 75 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Derez 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 4,570,058 US residents.
Is Derez a common name?
We classify Derez as "Very Rare". It ranks above 60.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 76 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Derez most popular?
The single biggest year for Derez was 2018, when 21 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Derez is about 11 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 Derez in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Derez a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Derez 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 Derez still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Derez 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 Derez 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 people have the name Derez?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.