Dolphus
A masculine Greek name referring to a dolphin.
Name Census estimates that about 345 living Americans carry the first name Dolphus. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Dolphus today is around 74 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Dolphus births was 1930 (37 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Dolphus. 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
- • The typical person named Dolphus is about 74 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Dolphus' were born before 1962.
People living today
345
~ 1 in 993,491 Americans
Peak year
1930
37 babies that year
Average age
74
years old
1978 SSA rank
#5,247
Tracked since 1880
Census
Dolphus in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 350 people with the first name Dolphus, which placed it at #26,543 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
#26,543
National first-name rank
People counted
350
350 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
51.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dolphus
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Dolphus is White at 51.7%. The next largest groups are Black (41.7%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Dolphus 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 Dolphus at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White51.7% · 181
- Black or African American41.7% · 146
- Two or more races2.9% · 10
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 2
Popularity
Dolphus: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Dolphus from the 1880s through to the 1970s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 251 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Dolphus 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 Dolphus during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Dolphus' live
The SSA's state-level files cover 6 states and territories. Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina recorded the most babies named Dolphus, while Texas, Mississippi, Florida recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 17 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Dolphus
The given name Dolphus has its origins in the ancient Greek language. It is derived from the Greek word "delphinos," which means "dolphin." The name likely arose during the classical period of ancient Greece, when dolphins were revered as intelligent and friendly creatures in Greek mythology.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dolphus can be found in the writings of the ancient Greek historian Herodotus, who lived in the 5th century BCE. He mentions a figure named Dolphus who was a prominent citizen of the city-state of Miletus.
In the Middle Ages, the name Dolphus was occasionally used in various parts of Europe, particularly in regions with strong ties to Greek culture and language. It appears in several medieval manuscripts and records, although it was not as common as some other Greek-derived names.
One notable bearer of the name Dolphus was Dolphus of Constantinople, a Byzantine scholar and theologian who lived in the 12th century CE. He was known for his contributions to the study of Greek philosophy and his writings on the works of Aristotle.
During the Renaissance period, the name Dolphus experienced a modest resurgence in popularity, particularly among humanist scholars and intellectuals who were interested in reviving classical Greek culture and literature. This was likely due to the name's connection to the dolphin, which was a symbol of wisdom and intelligence in Renaissance art and literature.
Another notable figure named Dolphus was Dolphus Catesby, an English naturalist and artist who lived in the 18th century (1680-1749). He is best known for his work documenting the flora and fauna of the American colonies, which he published in a influential book titled "The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands."
In the 19th century, the name Dolphus was occasionally used in various English-speaking countries, although it remained relatively uncommon. One notable bearer of the name was Dolphus Weary, an American soldier and politician who served as a brigadier general in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War (1825-1890).
Overall, while not a widely popular name throughout history, Dolphus has a rich cultural heritage rooted in ancient Greek mythology and language. Its connection to the dolphin, a revered creature in many cultures, has likely contributed to its enduring use over the centuries, albeit in a limited capacity.
People
Dolphus + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Dolphus 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
Dolphus: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Dolphus?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 345 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Dolphus 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 993,491 US residents.
Is Dolphus a common name?
We classify Dolphus as "Very Rare". It ranks above 80.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,245 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Dolphus most popular?
The single biggest year for Dolphus was 1930, when 37 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Dolphus is about 74 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Dolphus in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 350 people with the name Dolphus, or 0.12 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #26,543 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 Dolphus 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 Dolphus?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Dolphus appears almost entirely male. Of the 343 people counted with this name, 99.1% were male and only a very small share were female. 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 Dolphus?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Dolphus is White at 51.7%. The next largest groups are Black (41.7%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Dolphus most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Dolphus in the 2020 Census, accounting for 51.7% (181 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 Dolphus in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Dolphus a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Dolphus 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 Dolphus still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Dolphus 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 Dolphus 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 Americans are named Dolphus?
See how many people share the name Dolphus on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.