Dove
A feminine name derived from the bird symbolizing peace and love.
Name Census estimates that about 928 living Americans carry the first name Dove. It is a predominantly female name (97.6% of registrations). The average person named Dove today is around 19 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Dove births was 2024 (132 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Dove. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Dove with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
928
~ 1 in 369,347 Americans
Peak year
2024
132 babies that year
Average age
19
years old
2024 SSA rank
#1,625
Tracked since 1880
Census
Dove in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 732 people with the first name Dove, which placed it at #15,649 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
#15,649
National first-name rank
People counted
732
732 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
66.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dove
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Dove is White at 66.3%. The next largest groups are Black (15.8%) and Hispanic (7.7%). 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 Dove 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 Dove at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White66.3% · 485
- Black or African American15.8% · 116
- Hispanic or Latino7.7% · 56
- Two or more races6.7% · 49
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 19
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 7
Gender
Gender distribution for Dove
Dove leans heavily female at 97.6% of total registrations, but 32 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Dove as a male name
- Ranked #12,761 in 2024
- 5 male births in 2024
- Peak: 1919 (7 births)
Dove as a female name
- Ranked #1,625 in 2024
- 127 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2024 (127 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Dove leans strongly female. 589 people counted with this name were female (81.1%), compared with 137 male bearers (18.9%).
Popularity
Dove: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Dove from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 438 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
Dove 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 Dove during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Doves live
The SSA's state-level files cover 12 states and territories. California, Texas, Florida recorded the most babies named Dove, while Washington, Virginia, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 15 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Dove
The name Dove is of English origin, derived from the English word for the bird species of the same name. The dove has been a symbol of peace, purity, and innocence in various cultures throughout history, which has likely influenced the name's adoption as a given name.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Dove can be found in the 17th century, when it was used as a nickname or pet name for individuals with pale complexions or gentle demeanors. It was not until the late 18th and 19th centuries that Dove began to gain popularity as a formal given name, particularly among English and American families.
In literature, the name Dove has been used for characters in various works, such as the character Dove Linkhorn in Charles Dickens' novel "The Old Curiosity Shop" (1841). This literary reference may have contributed to the name's increased usage during the Victorian era.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Dove. One of the earliest recorded examples is Dove Tyne, an English playwright and poet who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. Another notable figure is Dove Bradshaw (1612-1698), an English Quaker writer and preacher.
In the 19th century, Dove Hyndman (1855-1942) was a British suffragette and social reformer who advocated for women's rights. Additionally, Dove Mascall (1872-1923) was an English cricketer who played for both Somerset and Gloucestershire counties.
In the 20th century, Dove Woodward (1894-1977) was an American architect known for her work on several notable buildings in New York City, including the Art Deco-style Wilshire Tower.
These examples showcase the historical use of the name Dove and its association with various fields, including literature, religion, sports, and architecture. While the name's popularity has fluctuated over time, its connection to the symbolic dove and its connotations of peace and gentleness have likely contributed to its enduring appeal.
People
Dove + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Dove 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
Dove: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Dove?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 928 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Dove 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 369,347 US residents.
Is Dove a common name?
We classify Dove as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,322 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Dove most popular?
The single biggest year for Dove was 2024, when 132 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Dove is about 19 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Dove in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 732 people with the name Dove, or 0.24 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #15,649 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 Dove 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 Dove?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Dove leans strongly female. 589 people counted with this name were female (81.1%), compared with 137 male bearers (18.9%). 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 Dove?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Dove is White at 66.3%. The next largest groups are Black (15.8%) and Hispanic (7.7%). 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 Dove most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Dove in the 2020 Census, accounting for 66.3% (485 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 Dove in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Dove a female name?
Yes, 97.6% of people registered as Dove 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 Dove still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Dove 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 Dove 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 have Dove as a first name?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.