Fun Facts About the Name Damiano
- 550 babies named Damiano: U.S. records list 550 babies given the name Damiano from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Damiano Mean?
Damiano is the Italian form of Damian. It goes back to the Latin Damianus, which was taken from the Greek personal name Damianos (Δαμιανός). The Greek name is based on damazō (δαμάζω), meaning 'to tame' or 'to subdue.' Its literal sense is 'tamer' or 'subduer.'
In Italian, the Latin ending -us regularly became -o, giving Damiano. The related English form is Damian; both descend from the same Latin and Greek name. Later Christian writers sometimes treated the name as a symbol of overcoming evil, but that is a symbolic interpretation, not the name's etymology.
Damiano Name History & Origins
The name entered Christian use through early martyrs. Saints Cosmas and Damian were brothers and physicians who were martyred in Cilicia, traditionally during the persecution under Diocletian at the beginning of the fourth century. Their cult spread in the Greek-speaking East and the Latin West, and Damianus became a baptismal name in Christian communities.
In Italy, Latin Damianus developed into Damiano. The church of San Damiano near Assisi, dedicated to Saint Damian, is associated with Francis of Assisi; traditional accounts say he heard a voice from the crucifix there. The 11th-century churchman Peter Damian, known in Italian as Pietro Damiani, is another example of the name in medieval Italy, though Damiani appears there as a byname or family name rather than as his given name.
Damiano is used as a given name in Italy and in Italian-speaking communities elsewhere. English speakers generally use Damian for the same name.
How Popular is the Name Damiano?
Damiano has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2025. Its best rank was #2,182 in 1985.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #4,156 | 25 | 0.0015% |
| 2024 | #4,720 | 21 | 0.0012% |
| 2023 | #5,712 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2022 | #5,925 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 2021 | #5,604 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2020 | #5,505 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2019 | #5,617 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2018 | #6,788 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2017 | #6,390 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2016 | #8,287 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2015 | #5,560 | 16 | 0.0008% |
| 2014 | #11,025 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2013 | #7,643 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2012 | #11,095 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2011 | #7,617 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2010 | #7,182 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2009 | #7,817 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2008 | #7,809 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2007 | #5,704 | 15 | 0.0007% |
| 2006 | #6,177 | 13 | 0.0006% |
| 2005 | #5,633 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 2004 | #6,212 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 2003 | #6,343 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2002 | #7,798 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2001 | #8,496 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2000 | #9,327 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1999 | #8,035 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1998 | #6,992 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1997 | #5,015 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 1996 | #8,157 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1995 | #8,001 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1994 | #4,846 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 1993 | #9,001 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1992 | #6,237 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1991 | #8,451 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1989 | #4,890 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1988 | #5,292 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1987 | #5,616 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1986 | #6,098 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1985 | #2,182 | 25 | 0.0014% |
| 1984 | #2,723 | 17 | 0.0009% |
| 1983 | #4,593 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1982 | #3,142 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 1981 | #6,479 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1980 | #6,440 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1978 | #5,992 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1976 | #5,777 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1973 | #4,614 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1971 | #4,054 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1970 | #4,847 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1967 | #4,078 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1928 | #3,807 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1921 | #4,493 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1916 | #2,976 | 8 | 0.0009% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
