Destry
One who vanquishes or destry (destroys) enemies.
Name Census estimates that about 1,546 living Americans carry the first name Destry. It is a predominantly male name (91.2% of registrations). The average person named Destry today is around 39 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Destry births was 1964 (154 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Destry. 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
1.5K
~ 1 in 221,704 Americans
Peak year
1964
154 babies that year
Average age
39
years old
2023 SSA rank
#5,114
Tracked since 1955
Census
Destry in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,356 people with the first name Destry, which placed it at #9,993 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
#9,993
National first-name rank
People counted
1.4K
1,356 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.4
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
74.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Destry
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Destry is White at 74.4%. The next largest groups are Black (9.5%) and Two or More Races (6.1%). 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 Destry 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 Destry at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White74.4% · 1,009
- Black or African American9.5% · 129
- Two or more races6.1% · 83
- Hispanic or Latino5.6% · 76
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.1% · 42
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 17
Gender
Gender distribution for Destry
Destry leans heavily male at 91.2% of total registrations, but 145 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Destry as a male name
- Ranked #5,114 in 2023
- 19 male births in 2023
- Peak: 1964 (149 births)
Destry as a female name
- Ranked #17,241 in 2014
- 5 female births in 2014
- Peak: 1992 (11 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Destry leans strongly male. 1,151 people counted with this name were male (84.9%), compared with 204 female bearers (15.1%).
Popularity
Destry: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Destry from the 1950s through to the 2020s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 350 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Destry 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 Destry during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Destrys live
The SSA's state-level files cover 14 states and territories. Texas, California, Louisiana recorded the most babies named Destry, while Maryland, Indiana, Illinois recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 12 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Destry
The given name Destry has its origins in the English language, with roots that can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "destre," which means "right-handed" or "skilled."
During the medieval period, the name Destry was associated with people who possessed exceptional skill or dexterity, particularly in trades or crafts that required precision and expertise. This association likely contributed to the name's widespread use among artisans and skilled workers of the time.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Destry can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive record of land holdings commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The entry mentions a landowner named Destry de Beaumont, who held properties in Normandy, France.
In the 13th century, a notable figure bearing the name Destry was Sir Destry de Montfort, a skilled swordsman and knight who fought alongside Simon de Montfort during the Second Barons' War against King Henry III of England.
During the Renaissance period, the name Destry gained popularity among artists and craftsmen. One such individual was Destry Cellini, an Italian goldsmith and sculptor known for his intricate metalwork and jewelry designs, who lived from 1500 to 1571.
In the realm of literature, the name Destry appeared in the works of renowned English playwright William Shakespeare. In his play "Henry VI, Part 2," a character named Destry is mentioned as a skilled archer in the service of the Duke of York.
Another notable figure bearing the name Destry was Destry Livingstone, a Scottish explorer and missionary who traveled extensively in Africa during the 19th century. He was born in 1813 and is remembered for his contributions to the exploration of the African continent and his efforts to end the slave trade.
In the 20th century, the name Destry gained further recognition through the character of Tom Destry, a skilled gunfighter and lawman portrayed in the 1939 Western film "Destry Rides Again" by actor James Stewart.
People
Destry + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Destry 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
Destry: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Destry?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,546 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Destry 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 221,704 US residents.
Is Destry a common name?
We classify Destry as "Rare". It ranks above 92.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,646 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Destry most popular?
The single biggest year for Destry was 1964, when 154 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Destry is about 39 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Destry in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,356 people with the name Destry, or 0.45 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #9,993 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 Destry 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 Destry?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Destry leans strongly male. 1,151 people counted with this name were male (84.9%), compared with 204 female bearers (15.1%). 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 Destry?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Destry is White at 74.4%. The next largest groups are Black (9.5%) and Two or More Races (6.1%). 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 Destry most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Destry in the 2020 Census, accounting for 74.4% (1,009 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 Destry in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Destry a male name?
Yes, 91.2% of people registered as Destry 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 Destry still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Destry 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 Destry 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 Destry?
Find out how many people have the name Destry on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.