How popular is the baby name Donn 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 Donn.

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Popularity of the baby name Donn


Posts that mention the name Donn

Don the Beachcomber

The tiki craze of the mid-20th century that I mentioned in yesterday’s post was single-handedly kicked off by Ernest Raymond Beaumont-Gantt, a.k.a., Donn Beach.

Ernest was a bootlegger as a young man in the 1920s. After Prohibition ended in 1933, he opened a bar/restaurant in Hollywood called Don’s Beachcomber. The establishment became very successful, introducing not just a slew of tiki drinks (e.g., the zombie) but also several food items (e.g., the pu pu platter). So Ernest started referring to himself as “Don the Beachcomber.” Eventually, he not only altered the name of the bar (“Don the Beachcomber”), but also legally renamed himself (“Donn Beach“).

Sources: The Bizarre Rise and Fall of the Tiki Bar, Donn Beach – Wikipedia

Where did the baby name Derith come from in 1923?

The character Derith Keogh from the movie "The Strangers' Banquet" (1922)
Derith from “The Strangers’ Banquet“

The curious name Derith first appeared in the U.S. baby name data in 1923:

  • 1925: unlisted
  • 1924: 5 baby girls named Derith
  • 1923: 5 baby girls named Derith [debut]
  • 1922: unlisted
  • 1921: unlisted

Where did it come from?

A silent film called The Strangers’ Banquet, which was released in December of 1922.

One of the film’s main characters was a young woman named Derith Keogh (played by actress Claire Windsor). She’d inherited a shipyard from her late father, but struggled to manage it due to worker unrest.

The movie was based on a 1919 novel of the same name by Irish writer Donn Byrne.

What are your thoughts on the name Derith?

Sources: The Strangers’ Banquet – Wikipedia, Stranger’s Banquet – TV Guide, SSA
Image: “Some of those present.” Picture-Play Magazine Feb. 1923: 79.