Given name & surname
Dow
“a dark-haired man”
Dow is used as a given name and a surname. One Irish interpretation is “a dark-haired man.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Irish interpretation is “a dark-haired man.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Irish.
How it developed
In English use, Dow has a related form in David. The shared background comes through David: One explanation connects David with a Hebrew nursery word meaning “darling.” This remains a proposed derivation rather than an established breakdown into separate elements.
Explained through its name family
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. In English use, Dow has a related form in David. The history of David gives this family its wider story. The biblical David is remembered as the young challenger of Goliath and later king of Israel. In Britain, the patron saint of Wales and two medieval Scottish kings gave the name further local associations.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Dow through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,091
- 1,091 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 1962
- 26 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 5 in 2015. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 26 in 1962. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 610 as a first name in 2020; 15,891 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.
Dow’s family of names
In English usage, Dow has a related form in David. In English usage, Dow has a related form in Daw. Dow has a related form in Dowan.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 15
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.
People named Dow
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Dow, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Dave
“Beloved” · “darling”
>99% boys
Dawkin
“a spirited man” · “Beloved”
—
Davo
“Beloved” · “darling”
>99% boys
Davydd
“Beloved” · “darling”
>99% boys
Daveun
“the beloved one”
>99% boys
Davidde
“Beloved” · “darling”
>99% boys
Davide
“Beloved” · “darling”
>99% boys
Duffy
“descendant of Dubhthach” · “son of Duibhshíth”
98% boys · 2% girls