Unisex — 31% girls#331 of boy names
Dakota
Pronounced D AH0 K OW1 T AH0 (ARPABET)
- 3 syllables
- Peaked 1995
- 59 years in use
How popular is Dakota?
Dakota is a name given to both boys and girls, and first appears in 1966. It has been given to 132,430 children — the 331st most common boys' name on record.
It has been slipping, down 36% on the previous decade. Its best single year was 1995, when 6,575 children were given it.
Roughly 31% of children named Dakota are girls, so the split is a real one rather than a rounding error.
Characteristics
- 3 syllables
Phonetic detail
- Pronunciations:
- D AH0 K OW1 T AH0
- Stress pattern:
- 010
- Syllables:
- 3
Stress digits mark unstressed (0), primary (1) and secondary (2) syllables.
Names like Dakota
Same first letter and syllable count, peaking around the same time.
Sibling names for Dakota
Names from the same era with a matching rhythm but a different initial.
Frequently asked questions
- How popular is the name Dakota?
- Dakota ranks 331st among boys' names in US records, with 132,430 births since 1966. Over the past decade it accounts for 9,610.
- Is Dakota a unisex name?
- Yes. About 31% of children given the name are girls, which is a genuine split rather than a rounding error.
- When was Dakota most popular?
- 1995, when 6,575 children were given the name. It has been in use for 59 years and is still recorded as of 2024.