Desmin
A given name derived from the word "desmo" meaning "bond" in Greek.
Name Census estimates that about 179 living Americans carry the first name Desmin. It is a predominantly male name (97.3% of registrations). The average person named Desmin today is around 23 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Desmin births was 1997 (12 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Desmin. 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
179
~ 1 in 1,914,829 Americans
Peak year
1997
12 babies that year
Average age
23
years old
2020 SSA rank
#10,936
Tracked since 1989
Census
Desmin in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 225 people with the first name Desmin, which placed it at #35,641 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
#35,641
National first-name rank
People counted
225
225 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
55.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Desmin
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Desmin is Black at 55.1%. The next largest groups are White (19.6%) and Hispanic (16.4%). 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 Desmin 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 Desmin at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American55.1% · 124
- White19.6% · 44
- Hispanic or Latino16.4% · 37
- Two or more races6.2% · 14
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 6
Gender
Gender distribution for Desmin
Desmin leans heavily male at 97.3% of total registrations, but 5 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Desmin as a male name
- Ranked #10,936 in 2020
- 6 male births in 2020
- Peak: 1997 (12 births)
Desmin as a female name
- Ranked #15,703 in 2000
- 5 female births in 2000
- Peak: 2000 (5 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Desmin leans strongly male. 183 people counted with this name were male (81.7%), compared with 41 female bearers (18.3%).
Popularity
Desmin: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Desmin from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 67 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
Desmin 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 Desmin 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 Desmin
The name Desmin is believed to have originated from the Greek language, specifically from the word "desmos," which means "bond" or "chain." The name may have been derived as a reference to strength, resilience, or connection.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Desmin can be found in ancient Greek literature, where it was used as a minor character's name in some plays and stories. However, the name remained relatively obscure and uncommon throughout most of ancient Greek history.
In the Middle Ages, the name Desmin surfaced sporadically in various regions of Europe, particularly in areas influenced by Greek culture or with ties to the Byzantine Empire. It was occasionally used by families of Greek descent or those who admired Greek heritage and language.
The first notable historical figure with the name Desmin was Desmin of Antioch, a 4th-century Christian martyr who was executed during the reign of Emperor Diocletian for refusing to renounce his faith. His story was recorded in various early Christian texts and hagiographies.
Another prominent individual named Desmin was a 9th-century Byzantine scholar and theologian known as Desmin of Constantinople. He was highly regarded for his contributions to the study of Greek philosophy and his works on the reconciliation of Christian theology with classical Greek thought.
In the 16th century, Desmin Malatesta, an Italian painter and architect from the city of Rimini, gained recognition for his contributions to the Renaissance art movement. His works included frescoes and architectural designs in various churches and palaces throughout Italy.
During the 18th century, Desmin Rousseau, a French philosopher and writer, made a name for himself as a vocal critic of the Enlightenment movement and a proponent of a return to more traditional values and societal structures. His writings influenced political and social thought in pre-revolutionary France.
In the 19th century, Desmin Pasternak, a Russian poet and translator, was celebrated for his translations of ancient Greek literature and his efforts to popularize classical Greek works among Russian audiences. His poetic translations were widely read and acclaimed for their accuracy and artistic merit.
While the name Desmin has remained relatively uncommon throughout history, its Greek origins and associations with strength, resilience, and intellectual pursuits have contributed to its enduring presence, albeit in a limited capacity, across various cultures and time periods.
People
Desmin + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Desmin 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
Desmin: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Desmin?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 179 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Desmin 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 1,914,829 US residents.
Is Desmin a common name?
We classify Desmin as "Very Rare". It ranks above 72.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 182 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Desmin most popular?
The single biggest year for Desmin was 1997, when 12 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Desmin is about 23 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Desmin in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 225 people with the name Desmin, or 0.07 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #35,641 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 Desmin 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 Desmin?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Desmin leans strongly male. 183 people counted with this name were male (81.7%), compared with 41 female bearers (18.3%). 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 Desmin?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Desmin is Black at 55.1%. The next largest groups are White (19.6%) and Hispanic (16.4%). 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 Desmin most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Desmin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 55.1% (124 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 Desmin in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Desmin a male name?
Yes, 97.3% of people registered as Desmin 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 Desmin still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Desmin 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 Desmin 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 share the name Desmin?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.