Davelyn
Of Anglo-Saxon origin, meaning "beloved and dear friend".
Name Census estimates that about 70 living Americans carry the first name Davelyn. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Davelyn today is around 60 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Davelyn births was 1965 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Davelyn. 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 Davelyn. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
70
~ 1 in 4,896,491 Americans
Peak year
1965
8 babies that year
Average age
60
years old
1977 SSA rank
#7,020
Tracked since 1949
Census
Davelyn in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 184 people with the first name Davelyn, which placed it at #40,443 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
#40,443
National first-name rank
People counted
184
184 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
34.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Davelyn
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Davelyn is White at 34.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (23.9%) and Black (16.3%). 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 Davelyn 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 Davelyn at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White34.2% · 63
- Asian and Pacific Islander23.9% · 44
- Black or African American16.3% · 30
- Hispanic or Latino13.0% · 24
- Two or more races12.5% · 23
Popularity
Davelyn: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Davelyn from the 1940s through to the 1970s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 40 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Davelyn 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 Davelyn during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Davelyns live
Origin
Meaning and history of Davelyn
The given name Davelyn has its origins deeply rooted in the ancient Celtic cultures of the British Isles. It is derived from the Old Welsh word "dafelen," which means "little wave" or "ripple." This name's association with the natural elements of water and the rhythmic ebb and flow of the tides has imbued it with a sense of fluidity and grace.
One of the earliest recorded instances of this name can be traced back to the 6th century CE, where it was mentioned in an ancient Welsh manuscript known as the "Book of Taliesin." This text, which contained a collection of poems and mythological tales, featured a character named Davelyn, who was revered for her beauty and wisdom.
In the 12th century, the name gained further prominence when it was bestowed upon a prominent figure in the court of King Henry II of England. Lady Davelyn de Montfort, born in 1145, was a celebrated noblewoman and a patron of the arts, known for her patronage of poets and troubadours.
Fast forward to the 16th century, and we encounter Davelyn Gwyndwr, born in 1523, a fierce Welsh patriot and leader of the rebellion against the English rule. Her unwavering determination and courage in the face of adversity earned her a place in the annals of Welsh history.
Moving into the realm of literature, the name Davelyn found its way into the works of the renowned British poet and playwright, William Shakespeare. In his play "The Tempest," written around 1610, one of the characters is named Davelyn, a nod to the name's Celtic roots and its association with the sea.
Another notable figure bearing this name was Davelyn Forsyth, born in 1785, a pioneering female botanist and explorer. Her contributions to the field of plant taxonomy and her daring expeditions to remote regions of the world earned her widespread recognition and respect among her contemporaries.
Throughout history, the name Davelyn has carried with it a sense of strength, resilience, and a connection to the natural world. Its melodic cadence and Celtic origins have given it a timeless quality, making it a name that continues to resonate across generations.
People
Davelyn + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Davelyn 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
Davelyn: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Davelyn?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 70 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Davelyn 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 4,896,491 US residents.
Is Davelyn a common name?
We classify Davelyn as "Very Rare". It ranks above 59.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 87 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Davelyn most popular?
The single biggest year for Davelyn was 1965, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Davelyn is about 60 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Davelyn in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 184 people with the name Davelyn, or 0.06 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #40,443 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 Davelyn 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 Davelyn?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Davelyn leans strongly female. 183 people counted with this name were female (98.4%), compared with 3 male bearers (1.6%). 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 Davelyn?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Davelyn is White at 34.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (23.9%) and Black (16.3%). 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 Davelyn most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Davelyn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 34.2% (63 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 Davelyn in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Davelyn a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Davelyn in the SSA data are female. 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 Davelyn still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Davelyn 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 Davelyn 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 Davelyn?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Davelyn at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.