Given name & surname · also Irish
Derry
“from the oak grove”·“from the grove of oak trees”
Derry is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “from the oak grove” (Irish) and “from the grove of oak trees”. These may reflect different naming traditions.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Interpretations include “from the oak grove” (Irish) and “from the grove of oak trees”. These may reflect different naming traditions.
Where it comes from
A possible origin is Irish, although the derivation remains uncertain.
How it developed
From Irish Doire, from Old Irish daire (“oak forest”), from Proto-Celtic *daru.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1914. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Derry through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,678
- 1,541 boys · 137 girls
- Most popular year
- 1957
- 55 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for boys is 6 in 2016. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 50 in 1957. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,184 as a first name in 2020; 3,741 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.
Derry’s family of names
Derry has a related form in Derri. Derry has a related form in Derrie. Derry has a related form in Derrea.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 7
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
See also 2
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Derry
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Derry, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Duff
“a swarthy man”
>99% boys
Dermot
“a free man”
>99% boys
Cary
“from the river” · “from the fort on the hill”
95% boys · 5% girls
Kerry
“having black hair”
71% boys · 29% girls
Dirk
“the ruler of the tribe”
>99% boys
Baird
“a minstrel; a poet”
>99% boys
Duane
“a dark or swarthy man”
>99% boys
Rafer
“a wealthy man”
>99% boys