How popular is the baby name Dana in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name Dana.

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Popularity of the baby name Dana


Posts that mention the name Dana

Why aren’t Turkish babies named Natasha?

American writer Meg Nesterov is chronicling her experience of being pregnant in Turkey over at travel blog Gadling. Her latest post has to do with choosing a baby name:

“Whatever you do, if it’s a girl, don’t call her Natasha,” was the first bit of advice a Turkish friend gave me about having a baby in Istanbul. While a common and inoffensive name in the US and Russia, in Turkey and many other European countries, Natasha doesn’t have the best connotation. It tends to be slang for, well, a certain kind of professional woman from Eastern Europe, or just a gold-digger; not things with which you want your baby to be associated.

She also mentioned several English names that don’t sound quite right in Turkey, such as Erik (which means “plum” in Turkish) and Dana (which means “veal” or “calf”).

So go check out Meg’s “knocked up abroad” series. (And leave her a comment with your favorite Russian girl names while you’re there.)

Baby name story: Fifa

This recent (& very short) news article seemed to me like a mash-up of older news:

A Qatari couple have shown their approval at their country being awarded the 2022 World Cup, by naming their baby ‘Fifa’.

Nayef Al Shimmari and his wife were planning to call their daughter Dana, until the decision last week.

“We saw that Qataris were truly overjoyed with the historic award and we wanted to contribute to the celebrations in our own way”, the mother told Arab newspaper Al Raya.

We saw babies named Fifa in South Africa (and elsewhere) during the 2010 World Cup, and babies named in anticipation of an upcoming sporting event in China in when babies were named Aoyun (short for Olympic Games) long before the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

Source: Couple from Qatar name newborn daughter ‘Fifa’

Baby girl gets 139 names: Tracy Mariclaire Lisa…

John and Margaret Nelson of Chesterfield, England, welcomed a baby girl at the very end of 1985. They named their daughter Tracy, but that’s not all they named her. This is Tracy’s full name:

Tracy Mariclaire Lisa Tammy Samantha Christine Alexandra Candy Bonnie Ursala Zoe Nichola Patricia Lynda Kate Jean Sandra Karren Julie Jane Elizabeth Felicity Gabriella Jackie Corina Constance Arabella Clara Honor Geraldine Fiona Erika Fillippa Anabel Elsie Amanda Cheryl Alanna Louisa Angie Beth Crystal Dawn Debbie Eileen Grace Susan Rebecca Valerie Kay Lena Margaret Anna Amy Carol Bella Avril Ava Audry Andrea Daphne Donna Cynthia Cassie Christabel Vivien Wendy Moira Jennifer Abbie Adelaide Carrissa Carla Anne Astrid Barbara Charissa Catalina Bonny Dee Hazel Iris Anthea Clarinda Bernadette Cara Alison Carrie Angela Beryl Caroline Emma Dana Vanessa Zara Violet Lynn Maggie Pamela Rosemary Ruth Cathlene Alexandrina Annette Hilary Diana Angelina Carrinna Victoria Sara Mandy Annabella Beverly Bridget Cecilia Catherine Brenda Jessica Isbella Delilah Camila Candace Helen Connie Charmaine Dorothy Melinda Nancy Mariam Vicki Selina Miriam Norma Pauline Toni Penny Shari Zsa-zsa Queenie Nelson

That’s 139 given names and 1 surname.

Why did John and Margaret do this to their daughter? According to John, “We just wanted to give her something for when she grows up.”

A reason that makes complete sense, of course.

Speaking of things that make sense, let’s pick out some of the needless repetition:

  • Alexandra (#7) and Alexandrina (#103)
  • Amanda (#36) and Mandy (#111)
  • Angela (#89), Angie (#40) and Angelina (#107)
  • Anna (#33), Anne (#74) and Annette (#104)
  • Bella (#56), Annabella (#112), Arabella (#27) and Isbella (#119)
  • Bonnie (#9) and Bonny (#79)
  • Candace (#122) and Candy (#8)
  • Carrissa (#72) and Charissa (#77)
  • Clara (#28) and Clarinda (#84)
  • Constance (#26) and Connie (#124)
  • Corina (#25) and Carrinna (#108)
  • Elizabeth (#21) and Beth (#41)
  • Margaret (#52) and Maggie (#98)
  • Mariam (#129) and Miriam (#131)
  • Victoria (#109) and Vicki (#130)
  • Zara (#95) and Sara (#110)

If you could go back in time and rename this baby, which two names (out of the 139) would you choose as her first and middle names?

Source: “Tracy for short.” Reading Eagle 24 Jan 1986: 1.

Baby name needed: Girl name for Anna’s twin sister

A reader named Dana writes:

We are expecting twin girls and know we want to use Anna as one of our choices. Do you have any suggestions for our second baby girl? We already have two boys who are named Ivan and Ben, so you can see we like short, simple, traditional names…and nothing that rhymes! (Also Emma is not an option!)

Here are some names that I think Dana might like:

Cleo
Cora
Dara
Elsa
Eve/Eva
Gina
Gwen		Jane
Jill
Joan
Judy
Kate
Leah
Lucy		Mary
Mina
Nora
Olga
Rhea
Roma
Ruth		Sara
Sue
Tara
Tess
Thea
Vera
Zoe

Like Ben, many of these originated as nicknames but are now used as independent names.

Which do you like best with Anna, Ivan and Ben? What other short, simple, traditional girl names would you suggest to Dana?