Desmond Tutu
There are approximately 1 people named Desmond Tutu living in the United States today. That makes this name combination very rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 342,754,338 Americans.
This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Desmond with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Tutu. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and ancestry information.
Expected bearers
1
1 in 342,754,338
Named Desmond
37K
Alive today
Named Tutu
206
Alive today
US population
343M
Denominator
Estimated living: 37K
Rarity: Uncommon
Gender: Male
Peak year: 1992
Average age: 26
Estimated bearers: 206
Rarity: Very Rare
Census rank: #104,602
Per 100K: 0.06
Top ancestry: Black (87.1%)
First name trend
Desmond: popularity over time
Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Desmond. The peak year was 1992 with 1,079 births. The average person named Desmond today is 26 years old.
Babies born per year
Ethnicity
Ancestry of the Tutu surname
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the surname Tutu, from the 2010 US Census Bureau. The largest group is Black at 87.1%.
- Black or African American87.1%
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.8%
- White5.3%
- Unknown or suppressed1.8%
Methodology
How we calculated this
The first name Desmond has a living-bearer frequency of 0.0109% of the US population, based on 37,444 estimated living Americans carrying this first name (from SSA birth records going back to 1880, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables).
The surname Tutu appears at a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents in the 2010 Census Bureau surname file, which translates to a frequency of 0.0001%.
Multiplying these two independent frequencies against the current US population of 342,754,338 gives an expected count of approximately 1 people with the full name Desmond Tutu. This assumes statistical independence between first and last names, which is a simplification but produces reasonable estimates for most combinations.
Related
Other people named Desmond
FAQ
Desmond Tutu: questions and answers
How many people are named Desmond Tutu?
We estimate approximately 1 people in the United States share the full name Desmond Tutu. That works out to about 1 in 342,754,338 Americans. This is calculated by combining the first-name frequency (0.0109%) with the surname frequency (0.06 per 100K) against the current US population.
How rare is the name Desmond Tutu?
We classify Desmond Tutu as "Very Rare". About 1 in 342,754,338 Americans share this exact first and last name combination.
Is Desmond a male or female name?
Desmond is predominantly male. Out of 39,419 total SSA registrations, 99.4% were male and 0.6% were female. See the full Desmond profile for detailed gender data.
Where does this data come from?
First-name data comes from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files (1880 to 2024). Surname data comes from the 2010 US Census Bureau decennial surname tables. Living-bearer estimates use CDC actuarial life tables to adjust for mortality. Read the full methodology.