Given name & surname
Dale
“from the small valley”·“from the valley”
Dale is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “from the small valley” (English) and “from the valley” (English). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Interpretations include “from the small valley” (English) and “from the valley” (English). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
How it developed
It entered given-name use through an existing surname.
The story
Its naming history includes the use of a family name as a given name.
Dale through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 300,043
- 278,156 boys · 21,887 girls
- Most popular year
- 1958
- 9,087 babies
- 2025
- 134
- #1,410 for boys · #15,450 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −6%
- Steady
Boys, girls and both
The balance of boys and girls given this name has shifted over time. Recent births are 97% boys.
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 129 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 1,410 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 6.6% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 8,502 in 1958. It also appeared in 5 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, Michigan had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (11). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 188,893 as a first name in 2020; 28,382 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Dale’s family of names
In English usage, Dale as a surname shares an earlier linguistic root with Dahl. In English usage, Dale has a related form in Dayle. Dale has a related form in Dayle.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 15
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 5
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 3
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Dale
- Dale CarnegieAmerican writer and lecturer (1888-1955)
- Dale T. MortensenAmerican economist (1939–2014)
- Dale RobertsonAmerican actor (1923-2013)
- Dale EarnhardtAmerican racing driver (1951-2001)
- Dale GardnerAmerican astronaut (1948–2014)
- Dale EvansAmerican actress, singer and writer (1912–2001)
- Dale ChihulyAmerican glass sculptor (born 1941)
- Dale CroverAmerican drummerborn 1967
- Dale BumpersAmerican politician (1925–2016)
Characters named Dale: Dale Cooper (the television series Twin Peaks), Dale Horvath ("The Walking Dead"), Dale Arden (fictional character appearing in Flash Gordon).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Dale, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Lee
“from the meadow”
94% boys · 6% girls
Kelvin
“a friend of ships; a man of the river”
>99% boys
Wade
“to cross the river ford”
>99% boys
Dynell
“a man of the sea”
91% boys · 9% girls
Dorset
“of the people who live near the sea”
73% boys · 27% girls
Caindale
“from the valley with the clear river”
>99% boys
Ashbourne
“ash-tree”
88% boys · 12% girls
Mannley
“from the hero's meadow; from the man's meadow”
>99% boys