Darwin

Meaning & origin●

Languages●

Language is read off each record's context, not declared by the bearer; a share is of all records for this spelling.

Other names spelled this way◐

Darwin is also recorded as 7 other names, grouped separately because the records behind them do not connect to the one described above.

• English given name393K records spelled Darwin25 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in United States, Venezuela, Ecuador, Philippines

  Languages: English, Danish, Western Frisian

  Also written Därwin, Dárwín, Ďârwīň, Dārwīn, Darwïn

• Indonesian given name31K records spelled Darwin5 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in Philippines, Indonesia, United States, Peru

  Languages: Indonesian, Malay

  Also written Dåřwįň, Dârwîn, Därwin

• French given name4.4K records spelled Darwin4 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in France, United States, Spain, Philippines

  Languages: French, Catalan

  Also written Dårwïñ, Dârwïn

• German given name3.6K records spelled Darwin3 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in United States, Germany, Austria, Philippines

  Also written Ďaŕwin, Dầrwin

• Thai given name3.6K records spelled Darwin19 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in Laos, Philippines, Thailand, United States

  Languages: Thai, Lao

  Also written Dawin, ดาร์วิน, ดารวัน, ดารวิน, ดารุวัน

• Polish given name1.3K records spelled Darwin7 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in Poland, United States, Czechia, Slovakia

  Languages: Polish, Czech, Slovak

  Also written Dárwíń, Ďäřwîň, Ďäřwîn, Däřŵïñ

• Russian surname927 records spelled Darwin25 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in Russia, United States, Ukraine, Peru

  Languages: Russian, Ukrainian, Croatian

  Also written Дарвин, Дарвін, Darvin, Dárwìń, Даруин

64 further groups record this spelling and are not listed here.

Grouping is the name graph's, not a register's: two spellings join a group when the evidence links them, so a group is a claim about the records rather than about the people.

Other recorded senses●

Darwin is also recorded in 5 other lexicons, as a different name or as an ordinary word. These are senses of the spelling, not of the name above.

• In English, from the OE personal name Dēorwine ‘dear-friend’; first attested Derwen 1170 P (Ess)

  as a name·A Dictionary of English Surnames

• Transferred use of the surname, which in turn probably derives from the Old English personal name Déorwine, composed of the elements déor ‘dear’, 61 DEBORAH

  as a name·A concise dictionary of first names

• In English, A surname, especially referring to Charles Darwin (1809–1882), British naturalist and founder of the theory of evolution by natural selection.

  as a word·kaikki.org Wiktionary extract (IPA + transliterations)

• In English, Charles, Brit, scientist; pi. name;

  as a name·Pronouncing Dictionary of Proper Names

• In English, college, Cambridge Univ.

  as a name·Pronouncing Dictionary of Proper Names

Ordered by how much of this spelling's record each language holds, so a sense from a language the name is barely used in sits last rather than first.

Over time●

US SSA — National Baby Names (1880–present) — 131 years between 1881–2025. One register's own figures, never a sum across registers: two registers counting the same people would double them.

Notable people with this name●

• Darwin Jostonb. 1937USAmerican actor (1937-1998)
• Darwin Cookb. 1958USAmerican basketball player and coach (born 1958)
• Darwin Barneyb. 1985USAmerican baseball player
• Darwin Quinterob. 1987COColombian footballer
• Darwin Atapumab. 1988CORoad racing cyclist
• Darwin Cerenb. 1989MXSalvadoran footballer
• Darwin Andradeb. 1991COColombian footballer
• Darwin Machísb. 1993VEVenezuelan association football player
• Darwin Núñezb. 1999UYUruguayan association football player
• Darwin Shawb. 2000GBBritish actor

The ten people covered by the most Wikipedia language editions — a proxy for cross-cultural notability, which favours historical and Western figures over equally prominent contemporary ones — shown by birth year. Source: Wikidata (CC0).

Evidence●

Register rows as of the 2026-09-12 data build · 792 rows in the corpus for this spelling.

Frequently asked questions

How common is the name Darwin?

We estimate roughly 81 thousand people bear Darwin (counting its spellings and scripts) across 9 countries in our records.

In which country does Darwin have the most bearers?

Darwin is most frequently recorded in Venezuela, where it is most often spelled darwin.

Where is Darwin most common?

Measured as a share of residents rather than as a count, Darwin is densest in Ecuador — about 1 in 296 people — even though Venezuela holds more of our records for it.

How common is Darwin compared with other names?

In Venezuela, Darwin is the 168th most common given name of 213,120 given names recorded there.

Is Darwin a male or female name?

Darwin is a male name in our records. Opposite-gender entries fall within the cross-gender noise we measure in the source data, so we don't report them as usage.

What does the name Darwin mean?

Recorded meaning: person from Darwen, Lancashire, or from the Old English personal name Deorwine ‘dear friend’