Given name & surname
Dorcas
“resembling a gazelle”
Dorcas is used as a given name and a surname. One Greek interpretation is “resembling a gazelle.”
Original GreekΔορκας
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Greek interpretation is “resembling a gazelle.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Greek.
How it developed
The name draws on Greek dorkas, meaning “doe, gazelle”.
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
In the Bible
In the Bible, the name Dorcas appears in Acts 9:36, Acts 9:39.
- Acts 9:36
- Acts 9:39
From biblical name research
Dorcas through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 7,268
- 0 boys · 7,268 girls
- Most popular year
- 1923
- 142 babies
- 2025
- 36
- #4,002 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −9%
- Steady
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 36 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 4,002 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 9.1% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 142 in 1923. In 2025, Iowa had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (5). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 5,425 as a first name in 2020; 261 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.
Dorcas’s family of names
Dorcas has a related form in Dorckas. Dorcas has a related form in Dorkas. In English usage, Dorcas has a conventional equivalent in the Hawaiian form KOLEKA.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 2
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 4
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 Dorcas
- Dorcas Shola-FapsonNigerian actressborn 1991
- Dorcas MuthoniKenyan computer engineer and businesswomanborn 1979
- Dorcas Affo-ToffeyGhanaian entrepreneur, philanthropist and politicianborn 1975
- Dorcas Ajoke Adesokanbadminton playerborn 1998
- Dorcas Makgato-MalesuBotswana politicianborn 1953
- Dorcas Coker-AppiahGhanaian lawyerborn 1946
- Dorcas MatthewsEnglish actress (1890–1969)
- Ariyike OwolagbaActress
- Dorcas Nakhomicha NdasabaKenyan volleyball playerborn 1971
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Dorcas, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Lois
“a superior woman”
>99% girls
Rhoda
“woman from Rhodes” · “resembling a rose; a woman from Rhodes”
>99% girls
Hester
“a starlike woman”
4% boys · 96% girls
Bernice
“one who brings victory”
>99% girls
Reba
“one who is bound to God”
>99% girls
Eudora
“a good gift”
>99% girls
Doris
“dorian woman”
>99% girls
Dora
“gift”
>99% girls