Dowl
Name of unknown origin and meaning, potentially from a defunct language.
Name Census estimates that about 3 living Americans carry the first name Dowl. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Dowl today is around 77 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Dowl births was 1946 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Dowl. 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 Dowl is about 77 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Dowls were born before 1959.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Dowl. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
3
~ 1 in 114,251,446 Americans
Peak year
1946
5 babies that year
Average age
77
years old
1946 SSA rank
#3,655
Tracked since 1946
Popularity
Dowl: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Dowl 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 Dowl during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1940s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Dowl
The given name Dowl is believed to have originated from the Old English word "dol," which means "foolish" or "dull." The name is thought to have first appeared in the Anglo-Saxon period, which lasted from the 5th to the 11th century in what is now England.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dowl can be found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript record of a great survey of much of England and parts of Wales, completed in 1086 by order of King William the Conqueror. The name is listed as a personal name in several entries throughout the document.
During the Middle Ages, the name Dowl was not particularly common, but it did appear in various historical records and documents from that time period. One notable individual who bore the name was Dowl of Cheshire, a 13th-century landowner and minor nobleman who is mentioned in several contemporary chronicles and court records.
In the 16th century, a Dowl Smythe was recorded as being a member of the Worshipful Company of Mercers, one of the oldest surviving trade associations in the City of London. This Dowl Smythe was a successful merchant and is mentioned in the company's records from the mid-1500s.
Another historical figure with the name Dowl was Dowl Cavendish, a 17th-century English writer and traveler. Cavendish is best known for his travelogue "A Journey through the Western Parts of England," published in 1661, which provides a detailed account of his travels through various regions of England during the mid-17th century.
In the 18th century, a man named Dowl Wordsworth lived in the Lake District of England. While not as famous as his nephew, the poet William Wordsworth, Dowl Wordsworth was a respected scholar and educator in his own right. He served as the headmaster of a local grammar school and was known for his dedication to teaching and promoting education in the region.
While the name Dowl has never been particularly widespread, it has persisted throughout history and has been borne by various individuals from different walks of life. Despite its somewhat unusual meaning and connotations, the name has endured as a unique and distinctive personal name, carrying with it a rich historical legacy.
People
Dowl + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Dowl 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
Dowl: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Dowl?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 3 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Dowl 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 114,251,446 US residents.
Is Dowl a common name?
We classify Dowl as "Very Rare". It ranks above 4.9% 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 Dowl most popular?
The single biggest year for Dowl was 1946, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Dowl 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 Dowl in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Dowl a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Dowl 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 Dowl still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Dowl 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 Dowl 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 common is the name Dowl?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.