How popular is the name Dale?

Dale ranks 140th among boys' names in US records, with 303,824 births since 1881. Over the past decade it accounts for 1,398.

Is Dale a unisex name?

No. Dale is recorded almost entirely as a boys' name; births to the other gender are too few to register as a share.

1958, when 8,542 children were given the name. It has been in use for 144 years and is still recorded as of 2024.

Dayle, Dail. All of these sound the same and are counted together in the totals on this page.

Boy name#140 of boy names

Pronounced D EY1 L (ARPABET)

Dale is a boys' name, and first appears in 1881. It has been given to 303,824 children — the 140th most common boys' name on record.

It has been slipping, down 37% on the previous decade. Its best single year was 1958, when 8,542 children were given it.

Two other spellings are counted in that total — Dayle and Dail — because they are pronounced identically.

1958Boys: 8,542Girls: 648

These spellings sound identical to Dale and are counted together with it, which is why the totals here are higher than a single-spelling count.

Phonetic detail

Stress digits mark unstressed (0), primary (1) and secondary (2) syllables.

Same first letter and syllable count, peaking around the same time.

Names from the same era with a matching rhythm but a different initial.

How popular is the name Dale?: Dale ranks 140th among boys' names in US records, with 303,824 births since 1881. Over the past decade it accounts for 1,398.
Is Dale a unisex name?: No. Dale is recorded almost entirely as a boys' name; births to the other gender are too few to register as a share.
When was Dale most popular?: 1958, when 8,542 children were given the name. It has been in use for 144 years and is still recorded as of 2024.
How else is Dale spelled?: Dayle, Dail. All of these sound the same and are counted together in the totals on this page.