Fun Facts About the Name Dove
- More than 1 thousand babies named Dove: U.S. records list 1,466 babies given the name Dove from 1880 through 2025. Even 32 boys received the name Dove - about 1 boy for every 45 girls.
What Does the Name Dove Mean?
Dove is an English name taken directly from the bird, from Old English dūfe. The same word appears throughout the Germanic languages: Old Norse dúfa, Middle Dutch dūve (modern Dutch duif), and Old High German tūba (modern German Taube) all point to a reconstructed Proto-Germanic *dūbǭ. The origin of that Germanic word is uncertain; one proposal connects it to an old root meaning "dark," referring to the bird's coloring, but the question is not settled.
Because the English name is simply the bird's name, it matches the meaning of Hebrew Yonah (יוֹנָה), "dove," the name of the biblical prophet Jonah, and of the Yiddish female name Toybe. Names in other languages carry the same sense - Latin Columba, Spanish Paloma, Italian Colomba - but these are separate names with their own histories, not the source of the English Dove.
Dove Name History & Origins
Dove is far more common as an English surname than as a given name. The surname could come from a nickname or term of endearment, since dove has long been used in English for a gentle or beloved person; from a house or shop sign bearing a dove in a medieval town; or from a place name formed with the word. The American poet Rita Dove is a modern bearer of the surname.
As a first name, Dove is a word name drawn from nature, and it can also stand as an English equivalent of Hebrew Yonah. The bird has strong associations in Christian tradition that may have supported the name's occasional use: in Genesis, a dove brings Noah an olive leaf after the flood; the Song of Songs calls the beloved "my dove"; and in the Gospels the Holy Spirit descends on Jesus at his baptism in the form of a dove. The dove with an olive branch became a widely recognized emblem of peace, and in the twentieth century "dove" gained the political sense of a person who opposes war. The name remains uncommon; the American actress Dove Cameron is a present-day bearer.
How Popular is the Name Dove?
Dove recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 2025. Its best rank was #639 in 1880.
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 | #1,487 | 144 | 0.0090% |
| 2024 | #1,625 | 127 | 0.0079% |
| 2023 | #2,143 | 89 | 0.0056% |
| 2022 | #2,196 | 86 | 0.0052% |
| 2021 | #2,393 | 75 | 0.0046% |
| 2020 | #3,103 | 51 | 0.0032% |
| 2019 | #4,574 | 30 | 0.0018% |
| 2018 | #5,047 | 26 | 0.0015% |
| 2017 | #4,958 | 27 | 0.0016% |
| 2016 | #6,237 | 20 | 0.0011% |
| 2015 | #7,064 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 2014 | #6,262 | 20 | 0.0011% |
| 2013 | #7,493 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2012 | #11,534 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2011 | #12,488 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2009 | #18,072 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2008 | #18,296 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2007 | #13,022 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2006 | #9,464 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 2005 | #17,229 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2003 | #11,607 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2001 | #16,036 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2000 | #12,159 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1999 | #13,145 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1998 | #8,784 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1997 | #7,917 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1996 | #10,900 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1995 | #14,075 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1994 | #12,220 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1992 | #7,673 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1991 | #13,776 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1990 | #8,684 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1989 | #11,229 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1987 | #11,818 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1986 | #11,433 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1985 | #8,590 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1983 | #7,488 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1981 | #8,357 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1980 | #9,400 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1979 | #5,174 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 1978 | #6,536 | 9 | 0.0006% |
| 1976 | #7,506 | 7 | 0.0005% |
| 1975 | #8,271 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1974 | #6,399 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1973 | #6,852 | 7 | 0.0005% |
| 1972 | #5,200 | 10 | 0.0007% |
| 1971 | #5,648 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1970 | #5,502 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1969 | #6,129 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1968 | #7,302 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1967 | #5,621 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1966 | #6,846 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1965 | #5,993 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1964 | #5,131 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1963 | #5,468 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1962 | #3,327 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 1961 | #4,079 | 11 | 0.0005% |
| 1960 | #6,617 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1959 | #4,740 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1958 | #5,595 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1941 | #4,586 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1934 | #4,444 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1932 | #4,026 | 6 | 0.0006% |
| 1929 | #4,204 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1927 | #3,627 | 8 | 0.0007% |
| 1926 | #5,036 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1924 | #3,467 | 9 | 0.0007% |
| 1923 | #2,973 | 11 | 0.0009% |
| 1922 | #3,452 | 9 | 0.0007% |
| 1921 | #3,479 | 9 | 0.0007% |
| 1918 | #3,978 | 7 | 0.0006% |
| 1917 | #3,430 | 8 | 0.0007% |
| 1916 | #4,050 | 6 | 0.0006% |
| 1915 | #2,747 | 10 | 0.0010% |
| 1914 | #3,292 | 6 | 0.0008% |
| 1913 | #2,066 | 10 | 0.0016% |
| 1912 | #2,724 | 6 | 0.0011% |
| 1911 | #2,019 | 7 | 0.0017% |
| 1909 | #2,025 | 6 | 0.0017% |
| 1907 | #1,680 | 7 | 0.0022% |
| 1905 | #1,332 | 9 | 0.0031% |
| 1904 | #1,290 | 9 | 0.0033% |
| 1903 | #1,864 | 5 | 0.0019% |
| 1902 | #1,652 | 6 | 0.0023% |
| 1901 | #1,026 | 11 | 0.0046% |
| 1900 | #1,126 | 12 | 0.0040% |
| 1899 | #1,453 | 6 | 0.0026% |
| 1898 | #1,020 | 12 | 0.0046% |
| 1897 | #940 | 12 | 0.0051% |
| 1896 | #1,325 | 7 | 0.0029% |
| 1895 | #1,005 | 11 | 0.0047% |
| 1894 | #1,081 | 9 | 0.0040% |
| 1893 | #915 | 11 | 0.0052% |
| 1892 | #766 | 15 | 0.0071% |
| 1891 | #1,241 | 6 | 0.0032% |
| 1890 | #1,124 | 7 | 0.0037% |
| 1889 | #1,173 | 6 | 0.0034% |
| 1888 | #976 | 8 | 0.0045% |
| 1887 | #879 | 8 | 0.0055% |
| 1886 | #920 | 7 | 0.0048% |
| 1884 | #752 | 9 | 0.0070% |
| 1882 | #944 | 5 | 0.0046% |
| 1881 | #698 | 7 | 0.0076% |
| 1880 | #639 | 8 | 0.0088% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | #12,761 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2023 | #12,710 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1962 | #4,214 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1943 | #3,678 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1922 | #4,475 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1919 | #3,498 | 7 | 0.0007% |
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.
Famous People Named Dove
