Dristan
A combination of the name elements "drist" meaning steadfast and "an", meaning courage.
Name Census estimates that about 13 living Americans carry the first name Dristan. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Dristan today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Dristan births was 2012 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Dristan. 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 Dristan. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
13
~ 1 in 26,365,718 Americans
Peak year
2012
8 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2018 SSA rank
#12,675
Tracked since 2012
Popularity
Dristan: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Dristan 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 Dristan during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 13 | 0 | 13 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Dristan
The given name Dristan is a relatively uncommon one, with its origins shrouded in mystery. It is believed to have originated in the ancient Germanic tribes, possibly derived from the Proto-Germanic root *dris, meaning "to fall" or "to drop." This could suggest a connection to a particular event or circumstance surrounding the birth or naming of an individual.
Some scholars have speculated that Dristan may have been a variant of the more common Germanic name Tristan, which has been traced back to the 6th century Arthurian legends. However, the exact relationship between these two names remains uncertain.
Historical records of individuals bearing the name Dristan are scarce, but a few notable figures stand out. One of the earliest recorded instances is that of Dristan von Hapsburg, a minor nobleman from the Holy Roman Empire in the 12th century. Little is known about his life, but he is mentioned in a few historical chronicles of the time.
In the 14th century, there was a Dristan Fitzwilliam, a knight from England who fought in the Hundred Years' War against France. He is said to have participated in the Battle of Crécy in 1346, but his ultimate fate remains unknown.
Moving forward in time, the name Dristan appears again in the 17th century with Dristan Malborough, a Dutch merchant and explorer. He is known to have undertaken several voyages to the East Indies and is credited with establishing trade routes and settlements in the region.
In the 19th century, Dristan Beaumont was a French poet and writer who gained recognition for his romantic verse and novels. He was born in 1821 and lived until 1892, leaving behind a significant literary legacy.
Finally, in the early 20th century, Dristan Eriksson was a Swedish architect and engineer who played a crucial role in the design and construction of several notable buildings in Stockholm, including the City Hall and the Royal Opera House. He lived from 1876 to 1948 and is remembered as one of the leading figures in Swedish architecture during that era.
While the name Dristan may not have achieved widespread popularity throughout history, these few examples illustrate its scattered presence across different cultures and time periods, each individual leaving their mark in their respective fields.
People
Dristan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Dristan 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
Dristan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Dristan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 13 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Dristan 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 26,365,718 US residents.
Is Dristan a common name?
We classify Dristan as "Very Rare". It ranks above 33.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 13 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Dristan most popular?
The single biggest year for Dristan was 2012, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Dristan is about 12 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 Dristan in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Dristan a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Dristan 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 Dristan still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Dristan 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 Dristan 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 are named Dristan?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Dristan at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.