Dreon
A name possibly derived from the Gaelic word 'draoidh', meaning "sorcerer, druid".
Name Census estimates that about 167 living Americans carry the first name Dreon. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Dreon today is around 22 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Dreon births was 1994 (17 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Dreon. 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
167
~ 1 in 2,052,421 Americans
Peak year
1994
17 babies that year
Average age
22
years old
2024 SSA rank
#11,251
Tracked since 1991
Census
Dreon in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 142 people with the first name Dreon, which placed it at #46,696 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
#46,696
National first-name rank
People counted
142
142 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
90.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dreon
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Dreon is Black at 90.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.1%). 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 Dreon 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 Dreon at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American90.1% · 128
- Two or more races4.2% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.1% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino1.4% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 2
- White0.7% · 1
Popularity
Dreon: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Dreon from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 72 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Dreon 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 Dreon during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Dreon
The given name Dreon has its origins in the ancient Celtic languages, tracing back to the early medieval period in western Europe. It is believed to have derived from the Proto-Celtic root *dru, which meant "oak tree" or "druid." This connection to oak trees and druid culture suggests that the name may have held spiritual significance for the early Celts.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dreon can be found in a 9th-century Welsh manuscript, where it appears as the name of a minor nobleman. In the following centuries, variations of the name, such as Dryion and Dryan, were occasionally documented in medieval records from Wales and Cornwall.
During the Middle Ages, the name Dreon seems to have been relatively obscure, with few notable individuals bearing it. However, in the 16th century, a French scholar named Dreon Montfort (1510-1572) gained some renown for his work on medieval literature and folklore. His writings may have helped to preserve and spread awareness of the name's Celtic roots.
In the 19th century, a French painter named Dreon Delaroche (1797-1856) achieved recognition for his historical paintings, which often depicted scenes from the Napoleonic era. His work helped to keep the name alive in cultural consciousness.
Another notable figure with the name Dreon was an Irish poet and playwright named Dreon O'Malley (1872-1944), who wrote extensively about the struggles and experiences of the Irish people during the early 20th century.
More recently, a Welsh musician named Dreon Rhys (1946-2021) gained popularity in the 1970s for his fusion of traditional Celtic music with rock and folk styles. His efforts helped to revive interest in Celtic culture and language among younger generations.
While not a common name in modern times, Dreon has a rich and intriguing history that connects it to the ancient Celtic world and its spiritual traditions. Its enduring presence, though obscure, serves as a reminder of the cultural heritage and linguistic diversity of western Europe.
People
Dreon + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Dreon 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
Dreon: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Dreon?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 167 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Dreon 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 2,052,421 US residents.
Is Dreon a common name?
We classify Dreon as "Very Rare". It ranks above 71.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 170 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Dreon most popular?
The single biggest year for Dreon was 1994, when 17 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Dreon is about 22 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Dreon in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 142 people with the name Dreon, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #46,696 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 Dreon 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 Dreon?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Dreon leans strongly male. 137 people counted with this name were male (97.9%), compared with 3 female bearers (2.1%). 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 Dreon?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Dreon is Black at 90.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.1%). 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 Dreon most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Dreon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.1% (128 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 Dreon in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Dreon a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Dreon 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 Dreon still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Dreon 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 Dreon 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 Dreon?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.