Devin
Small-statured or diminutive one, of Celtic or Gaelic origin.
Name Census estimates that about 168,546 living Americans carry the first name Devin. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 89.9% of registrations being male. The average person named Devin today is around 28 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Devin births was 1995 (6,937 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Devin. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Devin with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
169K
~ 1 in 2,034 Americans
Peak year
1995
6,937 babies that year
Average age
28
years old
2024 SSA rank
#515
Tracked since 1947
Census
Devin in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 144,817 people with the first name Devin, which placed it at #386 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#386
National first-name rank
People counted
145K
144,817 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
47.9
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
60.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Devin
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Devin is White at 60.5%. The next largest groups are Black (18.1%) and Hispanic (10.6%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Devin described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Devin at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White60.5% · 87,546
- Black or African American18.1% · 26,179
- Hispanic or Latino10.6% · 15,318
- Two or more races7.3% · 10,504
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 3,841
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 1,429
Gender
Gender distribution for Devin
Devin leans heavily male at 89.9% of total registrations, but 17,471 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Devin as a male name
- Ranked #515 in 2024
- 593 male births in 2024
- Peak: 1998 (6,218 births)
Devin as a female name
- Ranked #2,026 in 2024
- 96 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1991 (1,162 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Devin leans strongly male. 129,482 people counted with this name were male (89.4%), compared with 15,345 female bearers (10.6%).
Popularity
Devin: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Devin from the 1940s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 62,848 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Devin 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 Devin during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Devins live
The SSA's state-level files cover 51 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Devin, while Wyoming, Delaware, Vermont recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 3,316 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Devin
The name Devin is thought to have originated from the Celtic language, specifically the Irish Gaelic term "dubh fhionn," which translates to "dark complexion" or "dark-haired." This name gained prominence during the medieval period in Ireland and Scotland.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Devin can be traced back to the 6th century, when it appeared in ancient Irish annals and manuscripts. During this time, it was commonly used as a given name for men in Ireland and Scotland.
In the 9th century, the name Devin was mentioned in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history. This historical record documented various events and individuals bearing this name, indicating its widespread use among the Irish and Scottish populations.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Devin. One of the earliest was Devin of Cahir, an Irish king who ruled over the Kingdom of Munster in the 10th century. Another prominent figure was Devin of Killaloe, a 12th-century Irish bishop and ecclesiastical writer.
In the 13th century, Devin of Burren was a renowned Irish scholar and poet who composed works in the Irish language. During the same period, Devin of Inishowen was a prominent chieftain and military leader in Ulster, known for his bravery and tactical skills.
Moving forward to the 16th century, Devin of Leinster was a celebrated Irish harper and composer, renowned for his contributions to traditional Irish music. His works were widely celebrated and have been preserved through oral tradition and written records.
While the name Devin has its roots in Celtic culture, it has since been adopted and used in various parts of the world, particularly in English-speaking countries. However, its historical significance and cultural associations remain deeply rooted in the Irish and Scottish heritage.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Devin
People
Devin + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Devin 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
Devin: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Devin?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 168,546 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Devin 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 2,034 US residents.
Is Devin a common name?
We classify Devin as "Common". It ranks above 99.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 173,156 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Devin most popular?
The single biggest year for Devin was 1995, when 6,937 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Devin is about 28 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Devin in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 144,817 people with the name Devin, or 47.95 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #386 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Devin in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Devin?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Devin leans strongly male. 129,482 people counted with this name were male (89.4%), compared with 15,345 female bearers (10.6%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Devin?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Devin is White at 60.5%. The next largest groups are Black (18.1%) and Hispanic (10.6%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Devin most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Devin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 60.5% (87,546 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
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 Devin in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Devin a male name?
Yes, 89.9% of people registered as Devin 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 Devin still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Devin 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 Devin 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.
How common is the name Devin?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.