Dominant
A strong, powerful name derived from the Latin term dominari, meaning "to rule over".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Dominant. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Dominant today is around 22 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Dominant births was 2004 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Dominant. 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 Dominant. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
2004
5 babies that year
Average age
22
years old
2004 SSA rank
#11,836
Tracked since 2004
Popularity
Dominant: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Dominant 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 Dominant during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Dominant
The given name Dominant is derived from the Latin word "dominans," which means "ruling" or "prevailing." It is believed to have originated in the ancient Roman Empire, where the concept of dominance and power was highly valued.
During the Roman era, the name Dominant may have been used to describe individuals who held positions of authority or displayed qualities of leadership and strength. It was likely a title or descriptor bestowed upon those who had conquered or subjugated others, reflecting their dominant status.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dominant can be found in the writings of the Roman historian Tacitus, who lived from around 56 to 120 AD. In his work "Annals," he mentions a Roman general named Dominant who led a successful military campaign against a rival tribe.
In the Middle Ages, the name Dominant was occasionally used by European nobility and royalty as a means of asserting their dominance over their subjects and neighboring territories. However, it was not a widely popular name during this period.
The Renaissance period saw a resurgence of interest in classical Latin names, and Dominant may have been revived as a given name during this time, particularly among the aristocratic classes who sought to emulate the power and grandeur of ancient Rome.
One notable individual with the name Dominant was a 16th-century Italian philosopher and theologian named Dominant Soto (1494-1560), who was a prominent figure in the Dominican Order and a participant in the Council of Trent.
In the 18th century, a French military officer named Dominant Duhesme (1768-1845) gained fame for his military exploits during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, earning the nickname "The Invincible Dominant."
Another individual with the name Dominant was a 19th-century American businessman and industrialist named Dominant Morse (1819-1892), who played a significant role in the development of the telegraph and the Morse code.
In the 20th century, a Brazilian football (soccer) player named Dominant Ferreira (1927-1957) gained recognition for his dominant performances on the field, earning him the nickname "The Dominant One."
One of the most recent notable figures with the name Dominant was an Italian-American mobster named Dominant Rizzuto (1923-2007), who was a prominent member of the Lucchese crime family and played a dominant role in the organization's illegal activities.
People
Dominant + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Dominant 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
Dominant: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Dominant?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Dominant 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Dominant a common name?
We classify Dominant as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Dominant most popular?
The single biggest year for Dominant was 2004, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Dominant is about 22 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 Dominant in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Dominant a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Dominant 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 Dominant still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Dominant 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 Dominant 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 Dominant?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.