UK name, mostly girls
Dana
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "great judge".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Dana is mostly registered for girls in the UK records. People looking for Dana popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #934, with 38 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 1997, with 201 births.
This profile covers 1,786 England and Wales registrations across 29 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland and NISRA Northern Ireland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.
The latest count is about 19% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 2,308 living people in the UK are called Dana. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Dana ranked #934 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 38 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 1997, when 201 girls were registered as Dana.
- • Dana ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #444 in 2011.
- • About 2,308 living people in the UK are estimated to have Dana as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
- • Across the England and Wales records shown here, 97.9% of Dana registrations are for girls.
Latest rank (E&W)
#934
2024
Births in 2024
38
Latest year
Peak year
1997
201 births
Estimated living
2,308
2026
Gender
Boy and girl registrations for Dana
In England and Wales birth records, Dana has been registered for both boys and girls. Across the years shown here, 2.1% of registrations are for boys and 97.9% are for girls.
These figures use the sex categories in the published baby-name files. They are useful for spotting how the name is used at registration, but they are not a live measure of gender identity or everyone living with the name today.
Dana registered for boys
- Ranked #4,107 in 2023
- 4 boys registered in 2023
- Peak: 2012 (6 births)
Dana registered for girls
- Ranked #934 in 2024
- 38 girls registered in 2024
- Peak: 1997 (201 births)
Meaning
What does Dana mean?
The name Dana is derived from the Danish and Norwegian word "dann" which means "from the Danes". It originated as a male name in Scandinavia during the Middle Ages, around the 12th century.
Dana has origins as a feminine name as well, stemming from the Hebrew name "Dina" which means "judged" or "vindicated". This version of the name can be traced back to the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible, where Dina was the daughter of Jacob and Leah.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Dana was in 1586, when Sir Philip Sidney wrote the poetry collection "Arcadia" which featured a character named Dana. In the 17th century, the name was popularized in England by the Puritan movement, who favored biblical names.
Notable historical figures named Dana include Dana Scully, the fictional FBI agent in the TV series "The X-Files" played by Gillian Anderson. In literature, there was Dana Randolph, a character in the novel "The Ambassadors" by Henry James, published in 1903.
Dana Carvey, the American actor and comedian known for his work on "Saturday Night Live", was born in 1955. Another famous Dana is Dana Andrews, the American actor who starred in films such as "The Best Years of Our Lives" (1946) and "The Ox-Bow Incident" (1943). He was born in 1909 and died in 1992.
In ancient history, there was Dana, a king of the Parthian Empire who ruled from 77 to 88 AD. Additionally, Dana was the name of a Hindu goddess of fertility and abundance, associated with the moon and water.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Dana over time
The chart below compares boys and girls registered as Dana in England and Wales, from 1996 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.
For Dana, the clearest high point is 1997. The latest England and Wales figure is 38 births in 2024, compared with 201 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Dana by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Dana was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.
| Decade | Average rank | Total births | Years covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | #1009 | 171 | 5 |
| 2010s | #860 | 437 | 10 |
| 2000s | #612 | 535 | 10 |
| 1990s | #249 | 643 | 4 |
Geography
Where Dana is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Dana. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.
Dana ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #444 in 2011.
Across the UK
Dana in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#749 in 2023
45 years of NRS records, 526 total registered
Northern Ireland (NISRA)
#444 in 2011
4 years of NISRA records, 13 total registered
Notable bearers
Famous people named Dana
-
Dana Whabira
architect; curator; visual art education; artist
Zimbabwean architect
1976-
-
Dana Arnold
art historian; historian
Middlessex uni prof
1961-
-
Dana Rosemary Scallon
politician; singer
Northern Irish singer and politician
1951-
-
Dana Wynter
actor; stage actor; television actor; film actor
German-British actress (1931–2011)
1931-2011
Related
Names similar to Dana
- Daisy 49,435
- Danielle 13,507
- Darcie 11,010
- Darcy 10,516
- Darcey 9,708
- Delilah 9,098
- Demi 9,052
- Daniella 4,324
- Destiny 3,732
- Diana 3,258
- Dorothy 3,104
- Dolly 2,246
FAQ
Dana: questions and answers
How popular is the name Dana in the UK right now?
In 2024, Dana was ranked #934 for girls in England and Wales, with 38 births registered.
When was Dana most popular?
The peak year on record was 1997, with 201 babies registered as Dana in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Dana?
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "great judge".
How many people are called Dana in the UK?
A total of 1,786 babies have been registered as Dana across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 526 more in Scotland and 13 in Northern Ireland.
Where is Dana most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Dana ranks best in Northern Ireland, where it placed #444 in 2011. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.
Which records is this page based on?
The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.