Dakota

#295 for girls in 2025, 1,035 births · #319 for boys in 2025, 1,074 births
Given to boys 69.2% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
1995 · 6,575 births
Debut · boys
5 births
In top 100 · boys
9 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · boys
93,118
since 1966

Dakota over time

girlsboys

Rank within each sex, plotted together. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100#1,000#10,000rank188019001920194019601980200020202019peak #190, 2006peak #56, 1995girlsboys
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025#2951,035#3191,074
2024#2731,160#3261,060
2023#2621,191#3281,017
2022#2591,210#347945
2021#2701,163#339958
2020#2571,175#346920
2019#2591,269#344973
2018#2461,322#349944
2017#2311,362#3401,000
2016#2271,417#376874
2015#2421,334#356943
2014#2831,149#357894
2013#2931,089#350905
2012#3071,039#328961
2011#2941,068#3121,031
2010#2851,142#2921,142
2009#2741,198#2511,387
2008#2661,288#2261,645
2007#2391,486#2021,962
2006#1901,839#1722,367
2005#2251,515#1472,722
2004#2771,180#1372,918
2003#339917#1263,160
2002#323952#1073,487
2001#330943#933,980
2000#2961,086#884,553
1999#2691,167#775,093
1998#2461,242#725,401
1997#2501,175#665,664
1996#2741,055#586,067
1995#2521,125#566,575
1994#305895#695,535
1993#355724#854,411
1992#346752#1033,613
1991#400636#1212,739
1990#596380#1951,551
1989#1,048163#296824
1988#1,40999#363554
1987#1,59178#421430
1986#1,63872#488320
1985#1,80962#866109
1984#3,99019#1,17460
1983#4,68615#1,32749
1982#5,20913#1,48742
1981#4,00519#1,89929
1980#3,31825#1,52440
1979#3,77720#1,67034
1978#4,45915#1,20355
1977#4,65214#2,13122
1976#5,21511#2,60116
1975#4,85412#2,75114
1974#6,2588#3,8378
1973#4,87111#3,4459
1972#7,2926#2,65913
1971#6,0068
1970#3,2829
1969
1968#4,1365
1967
1966#4,8668#3,9485
1965#4,4949
1964#6,0096
1963#6,5925
1962#4,5339
1961#3,60813
1960#3,51213
1959#2,59620
1958#3,74711
1957
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1955
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1949
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1930
1929
1928
1927
1926
1925
1924
1923
1922
1921#4,4646
1920
1919
1918
1917
1916
1915#3,1348
1914
1913
1912
1911
1910
1909
1908
1907
1906
1905
1904
1903
1902
1901
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1880
First appearance
1966

The first year at least five boys were named Dakota! It came in at #3,948, and was given to 5 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1966–1969, when fewer than 6 boys a year got the name.

Where Dakota is popular in 2019

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: fewer than 5 boys named Dakota, so not publishedAKMaine: #231 for boys · 5 births · 1 in 793 boysMEVermont: fewer than 5 boys named Dakota, so not publishedVTNew Hampshire: #173 for boys · 7 births · 1 in 616 boysNHWashington: #350 for boys · 21 births · 1 in 1,622 boysWAIdaho: fewer than 5 boys named Dakota, so not publishedIDMontana: fewer than 5 boys named Dakota, so not publishedMTNorth Dakota: fewer than 5 boys named Dakota, so not publishedNDMinnesota: #362 for boys · 16 births · 1 in 1,636 boysMNIllinois: #290 for boys · 42 births · 1 in 1,369 boysILWisconsin: #353 for boys · 16 births · 1 in 1,568 boysWIMichigan: #342 for boys · 26 births · 1 in 1,693 boysMINew York: #523 for boys · 29 births · 1 in 3,226 boysNYMassachusetts: #530 for boys · 8 births · 1 in 3,517 boysMARhode Island: fewer than 5 boys named Dakota, so not publishedRIOregon: #398 for boys · 9 births · 1 in 1,830 boysORNevada: #344 for boys · 9 births · 1 in 1,427 boysNVWyoming: fewer than 5 boys named Dakota, so not publishedWYSouth Dakota: #207 for boys · 6 births · 1 in 626 boysSDIowa: #266 for boys · 14 births · 1 in 1,027 boysIAIndiana: #235 for boys · 33 births · 1 in 1,021 boysINOhio: #232 for boys · 58 births · 1 in 975 boysOHPennsylvania: #271 for boys · 43 births · 1 in 1,299 boysPANew Jersey: #571 for boys · 11 births · 1 in 3,614 boysNJConnecticut: fewer than 5 boys named Dakota, so not publishedCTCalifornia: #577 for boys · 52 births · 1 in 3,907 boysCAUtah: #660 for boys · 5 births · 1 in 3,871 boysUTColorado: #383 for boys · 15 births · 1 in 1,721 boysCONebraska: #430 for boys · 5 births · 1 in 1,805 boysNEMissouri: #246 for boys · 28 births · 1 in 1,063 boysMOKentucky: #271 for boys · 18 births · 1 in 1,138 boysKYWest Virginia: #139 for boys · 16 births · 1 in 458 boysWVVirginia: #342 for boys · 24 births · 1 in 1,646 boysVAMaryland: #352 for boys · 15 births · 1 in 1,737 boysMDDelaware: fewer than 5 boys named Dakota, so not publishedDEArizona: #403 for boys · 17 births · 1 in 1,967 boysAZNew Mexico: #306 for boys · 7 births · 1 in 1,086 boysNMKansas: #403 for boys · 8 births · 1 in 1,767 boysKSArkansas: #229 for boys · 15 births · 1 in 887 boysARTennessee: #321 for boys · 25 births · 1 in 1,408 boysTNNorth Carolina: #247 for boys · 47 births · 1 in 1,067 boysNCSouth Carolina: #328 for boys · 14 births · 1 in 1,473 boysSCDistrict of Columbia: fewer than 5 boys named Dakota, so not publishedDCOklahoma: #266 for boys · 18 births · 1 in 1,025 boysOKLouisiana: #292 for boys · 20 births · 1 in 1,130 boysLAMississippi: #168 for boys · 22 births · 1 in 582 boysMSAlabama: #224 for boys · 26 births · 1 in 871 boysALGeorgia: #229 for boys · 54 births · 1 in 962 boysGAHawaii: fewer than 5 boys named Dakota, so not publishedHITexas: #367 for boys · 93 births · 1 in 1,877 boysTXFlorida: #361 for boys · 50 births · 1 in 1,895 boysFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · boys
  1. West Virginia#139 · 1 in 458
  2. Mississippi#168 · 1 in 582
  3. New Hampshire#173 · 1 in 616
  4. South Dakota#207 · 1 in 626
  5. Alabama#224 · 1 in 871

Best ever in a state: #15 in Oklahoma, 1997.

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
West Virginia#139161 in 458
Mississippi#168221 in 582
New Hampshire#17371 in 616
South Dakota#20761 in 626
Alabama#224261 in 871
Arkansas#229151 in 887
Georgia#229541 in 962
Maine#23151 in 793
Ohio#232581 in 975
Indiana#235331 in 1,021
Missouri#246281 in 1,063
North Carolina#247471 in 1,067
Iowa#266141 in 1,027
Oklahoma#266181 in 1,025
Kentucky#271181 in 1,138
Pennsylvania#271431 in 1,299
Illinois#290421 in 1,369
Louisiana#292201 in 1,130
New Mexico#30671 in 1,086
Tennessee#321251 in 1,408
South Carolina#328141 in 1,473
Michigan#342261 in 1,693
Virginia#342241 in 1,646
Nevada#34491 in 1,427
Washington#350211 in 1,622
Maryland#352151 in 1,737
Wisconsin#353161 in 1,568
Florida#361501 in 1,895
Minnesota#362161 in 1,636
Texas#367931 in 1,877
Colorado#383151 in 1,721
Oregon#39891 in 1,830
Arizona#403171 in 1,967
Kansas#40381 in 1,767
Nebraska#43051 in 1,805
New York#523291 in 3,226
Massachusetts#53081 in 3,517
New Jersey#571111 in 3,614
California#577521 in 3,907
Utah#66051 in 3,871
Alaska
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Hawaii
Idaho
Montana
North Dakota
Rhode Island
Vermont
Wyoming

Ranks are within each state; “1 in N” is out of the boys born there that year. The SSA only publishes a name in a state when 5 or more babies of one sex got it.

See more about Dakota
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
  • 7 spots since 2024 (#326#319)
  • 27 spots since 2020 (#346#319)
  • 37 spots since 2015 (#356#319)
  • Biggest jump: 378 spots in 1986 (#866#488)
  • Biggest drop: 41 spots in 2010 (#251#292)
Rise & fade · boys
29 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1966
  • Peaked 1995 at #56 (6,575 births)
  • Births halved by 2003, 8 yrs later
Top of the charts · boys
Top 100 for 9 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 9 yrs · run 1993–2001
  • Top 1,000: 41 yrs · run 1985–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 290
  • Highest: 1 in 290 boys born in 1995 were named Dakota (0.35%)
  • Latest: 1 in 1,590 boys born in 2025 (0.06%)
Era · boys
The 1990s
  • 50.1% of all boys named Dakota (46,649) were born in this decade
Girls or boys?
Flipped in 2025
  • Mostly girls until 2024, mostly boys since
all girlsall boys
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1960s10#3,948 (1966)#4,042
1970s180#1,203 (1978)#2,620
1980s2,457#296 (1989)#985
1990s46,649#56 (1995)#90
2000s28,181#88 (2000)#155
2010s9,667#292 (2010)#340
2020s5,974#319 (2025)#334

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 boys in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Dakota in 2019

girls
#259
1,269 births · 1 in 1,323 girls
boys
#344
973 births · 1 in 1,844 boys

Top girls' names in 2019

  1. #1Olivia18,577
  2. #2Emma17,226
  3. #3Ava14,549
  4. #4Sophia13,821
  5. #5Isabella13,407
  6. #6Charlotte13,239
  7. #7Amelia12,944
  8. #8Mia12,508
  9. #9Harper10,497
  10. #10Evelyn10,443
  11. #259Dakota1,269

Top boys' names in 2019

  1. #1Liam20,631
  2. #2Noah19,178
  3. #3Oliver13,967
  4. #4William13,658
  5. #5Elijah13,436
  6. #6James13,198
  7. #7Benjamin13,044
  8. #8Lucas12,483
  9. #9Mason11,484
  10. #10Alexander11,327
  11. #344Dakota973
More about 2019

girls

1,678,366 girls got a published name in 2019; 1 in 1,323 of them was named Dakota, which outranked 98.6% of the 18,024 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 8.2% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Dakota
  1. #256Nyla1,275
  2. #257Angela1,272
  3. #258Camille1,270
  4. #259Dakota1,269
  5. #260Tessa1,268
  6. #261Makayla1,265
  7. #262Malia1,264
Biggest movers since 2018
Risers
  1. 1,081Amoura#2,059#978
  2. 553Theodora#1,406#853
  3. 456Navy#1,269#813
  4. 415Emani#1,371#956
  5. 403Yaritza#1,216#813
Fallers
  1. 451Emmarie#990#1,441
  2. 368Saniyah#934#1,302
  3. 252Tatiana#692#944
  4. 229Zhavia#879#1,108
  5. 219Jayden#979#1,198

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

1,794,216 boys got a published name in 2019; 1 in 1,844 of them was named Dakota, which outranked 97.6% of the 14,133 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 7.9% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Dakota
  1. #341Hector985
  2. #342Cairo976
  3. #342Ellis976
  4. #344Dakota973
  5. #344Garrett973
  6. #346Leonel972
  7. #346Romeo972
  8. #348Edwin962

Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 2018
Risers
  1. 5,830Sekani#6,703#873
  2. 5,230Ermias#5,770#540
  3. 654Amias#1,478#824
  4. 623Kyro#1,343#720
  5. 512Aziel#1,465#953
Fallers
  1. 376Jaxtyn#776#1,152
  2. 252Brysen#860#1,112
  3. 220Coen#814#1,034
  4. 219Chad#899#1,118
  5. 219Imran#933#1,152

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 2019