Donis
A feminine variant of Dennis or Dennis, from the Greek name Dionysios (Latinized as Dionysius).
Name Census estimates that about 261 living Americans carry the first name Donis. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 78.4% of registrations being female. The average person named Donis today is around 62 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Donis births was 1935 (29 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Donis. 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
261
~ 1 in 1,313,235 Americans
Peak year
1935
29 babies that year
Average age
62
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,521
Tracked since 1913
Census
Donis in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 705 people with the first name Donis, which placed it at #16,105 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
#16,105
National first-name rank
People counted
705
705 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
46.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Donis
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Donis is White at 46.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (38.0%) and Black (12.2%). 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 Donis 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 Donis at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White46.8% · 330
- Hispanic or Latino38.0% · 268
- Black or African American12.2% · 86
- Two or more races1.6% · 11
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 5
Gender
Gender distribution for Donis
Donis is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 721 total registrations, 156 (21.6%) were male and 565 (78.4%) were female.
Donis as a male name
- Ranked #8,464 in 2024
- 9 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2019 (11 births)
Donis as a female name
- Ranked #6,521 in 1970
- 7 female births in 1970
- Peak: 1935 (24 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Donis on both sides of the split. Of the 705 people counted with this name, 403 were male (57.2%) and 302 were female (42.8%).
Popularity
Donis: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Donis from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1930s, with 173 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1930s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Donis 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 Donis during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Donis' live
Origin
Meaning and history of Donis
The given name Donis has its origins in the Greek language and culture, with the earliest known references dating back to ancient times. It is believed to be derived from the Greek word "donēsis," which means "a shaking or swinging motion." This suggests that the name may have been associated with activities involving movement or physical exertion.
One of the earliest documented instances of the name Donis can be found in the works of the ancient Greek historian Herodotus, who lived in the 5th century BCE. In his writings, he mentions a Persian nobleman named Donis who served as a loyal advisor to King Xerxes I during the Greco-Persian Wars.
The name Donis also appears in various ancient Greek texts and records, including the works of the philosopher Plato and the playwright Aristophanes. However, these references are often brief and provide little context about the individuals bearing the name or its precise meaning and significance at the time.
In the Middle Ages, the name Donis gained some prominence in certain regions of Europe, particularly in the Byzantine Empire and parts of the Mediterranean. One notable figure was Donis Palaeologus, a Byzantine nobleman and military commander who lived in the 14th century and played a crucial role in defending Constantinople against the Ottoman Turks.
As the Renaissance period unfolded, the name Donis became less common, but a few notable individuals carried it forward. One such person was Donis Milius, an Italian humanist scholar and poet who lived in the 15th century and was known for his contributions to classical literature and philosophy.
In more recent times, the name Donis has been relatively rare, but a few individuals have borne it throughout history. For example, Donis Borg was a Maltese artist and sculptor active in the early 20th century, known for his works depicting religious themes and local culture. Donis Valjonen was a Finnish athlete who competed in track and field events in the 1960s and won multiple medals at international competitions.
It's important to note that while the name Donis has its roots in ancient Greek culture, its use and popularity have varied across different regions and time periods. Additionally, the specific meanings and associations attached to the name may have evolved or been interpreted differently by different cultures and individuals over time.
People
Donis + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Donis 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
Donis: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Donis?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 261 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Donis 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 1,313,235 US residents.
Is Donis a common name?
We classify Donis as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 721 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Donis most popular?
The single biggest year for Donis was 1935, when 29 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Donis is about 62 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Donis in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 705 people with the name Donis, or 0.23 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #16,105 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 Donis 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 Donis?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Donis on both sides of the split. Of the 705 people counted with this name, 403 were male (57.2%) and 302 were female (42.8%). 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 Donis?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Donis is White at 46.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (38.0%) and Black (12.2%). 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 Donis most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Donis in the 2020 Census, accounting for 46.8% (330 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 Donis in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Donis a female name?
Yes, 78.4% of people registered as Donis 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 Donis still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Donis 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 Donis 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 are named Donis?
Find out how many Americans are named Donis on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.