Donlad
World leader, world mighty, mighty ruler.
Name Census estimates that about 2 living Americans carry the first name Donlad. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Donlad today is around 77 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Donlad births was 1939 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Donlad. 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 Donlad is about 77 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Donlads were born before 1959.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Donlad. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
2
~ 1 in 171,377,169 Americans
Peak year
1939
5 babies that year
Average age
77
years old
1939 SSA rank
#3,619
Tracked since 1939
Popularity
Donlad: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Donlad 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 Donlad during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Donlad
The given name Donlad is a relatively uncommon moniker with obscure origins. It is believed to have emerged from an amalgamation of the Old English words "dun" meaning "hill" and "lad" referring to a young man or servant. This suggests the name may have initially denoted a hill-dweller or one who resided in elevated regions.
The earliest recorded instances of the name date back to the 12th century, appearing sparsely in medieval English records and parish registries. One of the first documented individuals bearing this appellation was Donlad the Tanner, a leatherworker who lived in Gloucestershire, England, in the late 1100s.
Throughout the Middle Ages, Donlad remained an infrequent choice, largely confined to rural communities in the British Isles. It was not until the Renaissance period that the name gained modest traction, though still predominantly among the lower classes.
A notable bearer of the name was Donlad Makepeace, a 16th-century English farmer and pioneering agriculturist credited with introducing new crop rotation techniques that improved soil fertility. He was born in 1532 in Oxfordshire and died in 1602.
In the 17th century, Donlad Culpeper, a renowned herbalist and physician, gained fame for his influential publications on medicinal plants and their uses. He was born in 1616 in Surrey and died in 1654.
The 18th century saw the rise of Donlad McDonlad, a Scottish politician and advocate for greater autonomy for the Highland regions. He was born in 1720 in Inverness-shire and played a pivotal role in the Scottish Enlightenment before his death in 1795.
In the realm of literature, Donlad Wordsworth, the lesser-known brother of the esteemed poet William Wordsworth, also bore this name. He was born in 1785 in Cockermouth, England, and served as a clergyman before passing away in 1849.
While never attaining widespread popularity, the name Donlad has persisted through the centuries, carried by individuals from various walks of life, albeit in relatively small numbers. Its unique etymology and historical ties to rural communities and notable figures have contributed to its enduring, if understated, presence.
People
Donlad + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Donlad 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
Donlad: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Donlad?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Donlad 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 171,377,169 US residents.
Is Donlad a common name?
We classify Donlad as "Very Rare". It ranks above 4.3% 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 Donlad most popular?
The single biggest year for Donlad was 1939, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Donlad is about 77 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 Donlad in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Donlad a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Donlad 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 Donlad still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Donlad 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 Donlad 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 Donlad as a first name?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.