Given name & surname
Damon
“one who tames or subdues others”
Damon has a related form in Damian. One Greek interpretation is “one who tames or subdues others.”
Original Ancient GreekΔάμων
Meaning & origin
What it means
Damon has a related form in Damian. One Greek interpretation is “one who tames or subdues others.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Damon has a related form in Damian. An origin associated with Damian is Greek.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
From Ancient Greek Δάμων; its root is Proto-Indo-European *demh₂-.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Damon through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 69,157
- 68,841 boys · 316 girls
- Most popular year
- 1976
- 2,478 babies
- 2025
- 604
- #501 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +1%
- Steady
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 604 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 501 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 1.1% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 2,453 in 1976. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (78). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 50,023 as a first name in 2020; 6,971 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.
Damon’s family of names
Damon has a related form in Damian. In English usage, Damon was borrowed from the Ancient Greek form Δάμων.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 3
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 2
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 2
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Damon
- Damon HillBritish racing driverborn 1960
- Damon AlbarnBritish musician (born 1968)
- Damon WayansAmerican comedian, writer, and actor (born 1960)
- Damon GalgutSouth African writer (1963-)
- Damon LindelofAmerican screenwriter and producer (born 1973)
- Damon Wayans Jr.American actor and comedianborn 1982
- Damon KnightAmerican science fiction writer, editor and critic (1922–2002)
- Damon HerrimanAustralian actorborn 1970
- Damon StoudamireAmerican basketball player-coachborn 1973
Characters named Damon: Damon Salvatore (The Vampire Diaries television series).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
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