Dicie
A feminine given name of English origin meaning "prosperous".
Name Census estimates that about 153 living Americans carry the first name Dicie. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Dicie today is around 77 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Dicie births was 1920 (42 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Dicie. 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
- • The typical person named Dicie is about 77 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Dicies were born before 1959.
People living today
153
~ 1 in 2,240,224 Americans
Peak year
1920
42 babies that year
Average age
77
years old
1984 SSA rank
#10,843
Tracked since 1880
Census
Dicie in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 250 people with the first name Dicie, which placed it at #33,212 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
#33,212
National first-name rank
People counted
250
250 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
70.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dicie
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Dicie is White at 70.8%. The next largest groups are Black (23.6%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Dicie 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 Dicie at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.8% · 177
- Black or African American23.6% · 59
- Two or more races4.0% · 10
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 1
Popularity
Dicie: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Dicie from the 1880s through to the 1980s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 241 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Dicie 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 Dicie during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Dicies live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. Kentucky, West Virginia, North Carolina recorded the most babies named Dicie, while Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 15 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Dicie
The name Dicie is believed to have its origins in the Old English language, dating back to the medieval period in England. It is thought to be derived from the Old English word "dēor," which means "dear" or "beloved." This suggests that the name may have been used as an endearment or term of affection.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dicie can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name appears as "Dicea," which supports the theory of its Old English roots.
In the 13th century, a notable figure named Dicie of Hertford was mentioned in the Chronicles of St. Albans Abbey. She was a respected landowner and benefactor of the abbey, indicating that the name was in use among the upper classes during that period.
During the Renaissance, a woman named Dicie Willington (1535-1602) gained recognition as a skilled embroiderer and needleworker. Her intricate pieces were highly sought after by nobility and can still be seen in various museums and collections.
In the 17th century, the name Dicie appeared in the works of the renowned playwright and poet William Shakespeare. In his play "The Merry Wives of Windsor," a character named Dicie Ford is mentioned, suggesting the name's continued popularity during that time.
Another notable figure in history with the name Dicie was Dicie Merrick (1645-1690), a Quaker preacher and activist from England. She was known for her vocal advocacy of religious tolerance and her efforts to promote education among the poor.
Moving into the 18th century, Dicie Cartwright (1708-1786) was a successful businesswoman and entrepreneur in London. She established a thriving textile manufacturing company and was recognized for her innovative business practices.
While the name Dicie may have fallen out of common usage in more recent times, its rich history and unique origins continue to make it a fascinating and distinctive choice for a given name.
People
Dicie + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Dicie 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
Dicie: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Dicie?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 153 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Dicie 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 2,240,224 US residents.
Is Dicie a common name?
We classify Dicie as "Very Rare". It ranks above 70.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,167 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Dicie most popular?
The single biggest year for Dicie was 1920, when 42 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Dicie is about 77 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Dicie in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 250 people with the name Dicie, or 0.08 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #33,212 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 Dicie 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 Dicie?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Dicie leans strongly female. 251 people counted with this name were female (98.8%), compared with 3 male bearers (1.2%). 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 Dicie?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Dicie is White at 70.8%. The next largest groups are Black (23.6%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Dicie most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Dicie in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.8% (177 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 Dicie in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Dicie a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Dicie 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 Dicie still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Dicie 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 Dicie 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 many people have Dicie as a first name?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.