Given name & surname
Delmar
“a man of the sea”
Delmar is used as a given name and a surname. One French interpretation is “a man of the sea.” Its derivation is not certain.
Meaning & origin
What it means
One French interpretation is “a man of the sea.” Its derivation is not certain.
Where it comes from
A possible origin is French, although the derivation remains uncertain.
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
Delmar through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 14,376
- 14,242 boys · 134 girls
- Most popular year
- 1927
- 360 babies
- 2025
- 15
- #5,920 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −10%
- Steady
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 15 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 5,920 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 9.9% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 354 in 1931. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 5,569 as a first name in 2020; 1,254 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.
Delmar’s family of names
Delmar has a feminine form in Delmara. Delmar has a related form in Delmer. Delmar has a related form in Delmore.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 9
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Delmervariant
- Delmorevariant
- Delmorvariant
- Dellmarlikely variant
- Delmoorvariant
- Delmerevariant
- Delmarevariant
- Delmorrvariant
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Across languages 2
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 4
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Delmar
- Daz DillingerAmerican rapper and producerborn 1973
- Dale HawkinsAmerican rock singer, songwriter, and rhythm guitarist (1936-2010)
- Delmar Watsonphotographer, actor (1926-2008)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Delmar, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Delano
“from”
>99% boys
Wilton
“from the town on the river”
>99% boys
Early
“daughter born prematurely” · “one who is punctual”
>99% boys
Frazier
“of the forest men”
>99% boys
Laurent
“a graceful woman”
90% boys · 10% girls
Ervin
“friend of the sea”
>99% boys
Verlin
“from the alder-tree grove”
93% boys · 7% girls
Sylvester
“man from the forest”
>99% boys