Donovan
Donovan is a masculine given name of Irish origin. Notable people with the name include:
- English
Meaning & Origin of Donovan
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Donovan is a masculine given name of Irish origin. Notable people with the name include:
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)
- English
The Story of Donovan
American parents first put Donovan on the record books as a baby boy name in 1900, with 8 registered babies. Its peak popularity came in 2003, when 2,211 Donovans were born — ranking #176 that year. About 31% of every Donovan on record arrived during the 2000s, its defining decade. As of 2026, Donovan ranks #535 for baby boys with 555 births, falling sharply (-33%). All told, over 62K Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1900s to the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Notable people named Donovan
A small selection from Wikipedia. Tap "Read more" below to see the full list on Wikipedia.
- Donovan Alexander (born 1985), Canadian football player
- Donovan Arp (born 1978), American football player
- Donovan Bailey (born 1967), Jamaican-Canadian sprinter
- Donovan Bennett (1964–2005), Jamaican criminal
- Donovan Bixley (born 1971), New Zealand author
- Donovan Blake (born 1961), Jamaican-born American cricketer
- Donovan Boucher (born 1961), Jamaican-Canadian boxer
- Donovan Brown , Canadian actor
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
Names that sound like Donovan
Phonetically similar names — useful when Donovan is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Donovan
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About the name Donovan
Donovan is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1900 and has accumulated 62K births in the dataset. Donovan's peak popularity came in 2003 when it ranked #176. Use the chart and map above to compare Donovan's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 2003 →
- Names of the 2000s →
- Names starting with "D" →
- Browse all boy names →
- Top names of 2026 →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . 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 (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
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.