Dorthie
A feminine given name of Greek origin meaning "gift of God".
Name Census estimates that about 35 living Americans carry the first name Dorthie. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Dorthie today is around 85 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Dorthie births was 1923 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Dorthie. 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 Dorthie is about 85 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Dorthies were born before 1951.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Dorthie. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
35
~ 1 in 9,792,981 Americans
Peak year
1923
16 babies that year
Average age
85
years old
1951 SSA rank
#4,992
Tracked since 1915
Popularity
Dorthie: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Dorthie from the 1910s through to the 1950s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 95 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
Dorthie 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 Dorthie during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Dorthies live
Origin
Meaning and history of Dorthie
The name Dorthie is a feminine given name derived from the Germanic name Dorothy, which itself originated from the Greek name Dorothea. The name Dorothea is composed of the Greek elements "doron" meaning gift and "theos" meaning God, thus translating to "gift of God."
Dorthie is an English variation of the name Dorothy, which became popular during the Middle Ages. It is believed that the name was brought to England by the Normans after the Norman Conquest in 1066. The name gained widespread popularity in the 12th and 13th centuries, particularly among the nobility.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dorthie can be found in the 13th-century English text "The Proverbs of Hendyng," where it is spelled as "Dorthe." The name also appears in various medieval records and manuscripts, although the spelling variations were numerous, including Dorethe, Dorothee, and Dorothie.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Dorthie. One of the earliest was Dorthie Bury, an English noblewoman who lived in the 14th century. Another notable Dorthie was Dorthie Gascoigne, an English writer and translator who lived in the 16th century (c. 1540-1591).
In the 17th century, Dorthie Dummer (1633-1672) was a notable English Puritan and diarist, known for her writings on religious matters. A century later, Dorthie Richardson (1766-1846) was a British writer and editor who co-founded the periodical "The Novelist's Magazine" in 1788.
In the 19th century, Dorthie Purcell (1800-1869) was an Irish actress and playwright who was renowned for her performances in Dublin theatres. She was considered one of the leading actresses of her time in Ireland.
While the name Dorthie has fallen out of widespread use in modern times, it remains a fascinating name with a rich history and cultural significance, particularly in the English-speaking world.
People
Dorthie + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Dorthie 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
Dorthie: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Dorthie?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 35 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Dorthie 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 9,792,981 US residents.
Is Dorthie a common name?
We classify Dorthie as "Very Rare". It ranks above 48.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 239 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Dorthie most popular?
The single biggest year for Dorthie was 1923, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Dorthie is about 85 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Dorthie in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Dorthie a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Dorthie 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 Dorthie still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Dorthie 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 Dorthie 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are called Dorthie?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Dorthie on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.