Given name & surname · also English, Old Norse
Dustin
“from the dusty area”·“a courageous warrior”
Dustin is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “from the dusty area” and “a courageous warrior”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Original Old NorseÞorsteinn
Meaning & origin
What it means
Interpretations include “from the dusty area” and “a courageous warrior”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Where it comes from
A possible origin is Old Norse, although the derivation remains uncertain.
How it developed
It entered given-name use through an existing surname.
The story
Its naming history includes the use of a family name as a given name.
Dustin through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 209,721
- 208,341 boys · 1,380 girls
- Most popular year
- 1985
- 10,520 babies
- 2025
- 365
- #729 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −20%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 365 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 729 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 19.7% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 10,439 in 1985. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (35). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 171,388 as a first name in 2020; 2,586 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.
Dustin’s family of names
In English usage, Dustin has a diminutive in Dusty. In English usage, Dustin developed from the Old Norse form Þorsteinn. Dustin has a related form in Dustyn.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 15
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Dustin
- Dustin HoffmanAmerican actor (born 1937)
- Dustin MoskovitzAmerican computer/Internet entrepreneurborn 1984
- Dustin RhodesAmerican professional wrestlerborn 1969
- Dustin PoirierAmerican mixed martial artistborn 1989
- Dustin Lance BlackAmerican screenwriter, director and producerborn 1974
- Dustin MilliganCanadian actorborn 1985
- Dustin NguyenVietnamese-American actor and filmmakerborn 1962
- Dustin ClareAustralian actorborn 1982
- Dustin BrownGerman-Jamaican tennis player (born 1984)
Characters named Dustin: Dustin Henderson (Netflix series Stranger Things).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love Dustin, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Delaware
“from the state of Delaware”
79% boys · 21% girls
Houston
“from the city in Texas” · “from Hugh's town”
96% boys · 4% girls
Memphis
“from the city in Tennessee”
79% boys · 21% girls
Austin
“one who is venerable; majestic” · “venerable; majestic”
97% boys · 3% girls
Wendell
“one who travels; a wanderer”
99% boys · 1% girls
Jordan
“flowing down”
85% boys · 15% girls
Maverick
“one who is wild and free” · “an independent man; a nonconformist”
99% boys · 1% girls
Texas
“a beloved friend” · “from the state of Texas”
86% boys · 14% girls