ESC Name Rank Total Searching... No names found Try searching for: Emma, Liam, Olivia, Noah... 👦As Boy Name 1963 First Year 2022 Last Year 1984 Peak Year #2437 Peak Rank 362 Total Count 36 Years Active 👧As Girl Name 1943 First Year 1997 Last Year 1969 Peak Year #3773 Peak Rank 249 Total Count 32 Years Active Advertisement 🌍 ## Meaning & Origin of Darnelle What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures. Darnell is a given name and a surname. Variants include Darnelle and Durnell. The surname is of English and French origin. Source: [Wikipedia ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darnell) (CC BY-SA 3.0). [Read more → ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darnell) 📖 ## The Story of Darnelle ### As a girl name American parents first put Darnelle on the record books as a girl name in 1943, with 5 registered babies. Its peak popularity came in 1969, when 14 Darnelles were born — ranking #3,773 that year. About 30% of every Darnelle on record arrived during the 1960s, its defining decade. Darnelle last appeared in the published SSA data in 1997, with 5 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 249 Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1940s to the 2020s. ### As a boy name The earliest SSA record of Darnelle as a boy name dates back to 1963, when 5 babies received it. 1984 was its biggest year on record, with 20 newborns named Darnelle — #2,437 in the national rankings. About 39% of every Darnelle on record arrived during the 1980s, its defining decade. Darnelle last appeared in the published SSA data in 2022, with 5 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 362 Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1960s to the 2020s. ## Popularity Over Time Girls Boys ## Popularity by State 👧 Girls 👦 Boys ME WA MT ND MN WI MI NY VT NH MA OR ID SD IA IL IN OH PA NJ CT RI CA NV WY NE MO KY WV VA MD DE DC UT CO KS AR TN NC SC AK AZ NM OK LA MS AL GA HI TX FL Top 10 11-50 51-100 101-500 500+ No data 🎶 ## Names that sound like Darnelle Phonetically similar names — useful when Darnelle is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name. * [Darnell](/darnell) * [Darnel](/darnel) * Darnall * Diurnal * Doornail * Tarnal * Darning * [Donnell](/donnell) * [Donal](/donal) * [Donell](/donell) * Dharna * [Danelle](/danelle) Source: [Datamuse ](https://www.datamuse.com/api/). Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated. ❓ ## Frequently Asked Questions about Darnelle What does the name Darnelle mean? Darnell is a given name and a surname. Variants include Darnelle and Durnell. The surname is of English and French origin. How popular is Darnelle in 2026? In 2026, Darnelle ranks #12,323 among boys' names in the U.S., with 5 babies given the name that year. When was Darnelle most popular? Darnelle reached its peak popularity in 1984, ranking #2,437 that year with 20 babies given the name. In which U.S. states is Darnelle most popular? Darnelle has historically been most popular in New York. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Darnelle. Is Darnelle a unisex name? Yes — Darnelle is used for both girls and boys in U.S. records, with about 41% of Darnelles assigned female and 59% assigned male historically. What names go well with Darnelle? Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Darnelle include Arcadio, Riddick, Jeston. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data. ## Similar Names ### 👦 Similar Boy Names [👦ArcadioPeak #2437](/arcadio)[👦RiddickPeak #2437](/riddick)[👦JestonPeak #2437](/jeston)[👦MikailPeak #2437](/mikail) ### 👧 Similar Girl Names [👧AthanasiaPeak #3773](/athanasia)[👧MelissePeak #3773](/melisse)[👧TylenePeak #3773](/tylene)[👧DinoraPeak #3773](/dinora) Advertisement ## About the name Darnelle Darnelle is a unisex baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1963 and has accumulated 362 births in the dataset. Darnelle's peak popularity came in 1984 when it ranked #2,437\. Use the chart and map above to compare Darnelle's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices. ### Continue exploring * [ Top names of 1984 → ](/year/1984) * [ Names of the 1980s → ](/decade/1980s) * [ Names starting with "D" → ](/letter/d) * [ Browse all boy names → ](/names/boys) * [ Top names of 2026 → ](/year/2026) * [ Browse unisex names → ](/names/unisex) Data sources * Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. [Social Security Administration ](https://www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/). Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships. * Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — [Behind the Name ](https://www.behindthename.com/) (used under their public API terms). * Meaning prose and editorial summary — [Wikipedia ](https://en.wikipedia.org/) article extracts, licensed under [CC BY-SA 3.0 ](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/). * Predicted nationality distribution — [Nationalize.io ](https://nationalize.io/). * Phonetically similar names — [Datamuse ](https://www.datamuse.com/api/). Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides. Advertisement