How Many People Are Named Donnell?
An estimated 13,011 people in the United States have the first name Donnell. It is predominantly male (93.3%). The average bearer is 46 years old, and Donnell peaked in popularity in 1970 with 307 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Donnell as a first name in the United States, including gender data, a year-by-year popularity timeline going back to 1880, a decade breakdown, and state-by-state birth registrations. You can also check how many people share the full name Donnell paired with any surname.
Estimated Living Americans
13,011
About 1 in 26,343 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Uncommon
Predicted Gender
Male
93.3% confidence
Average Age
46
years old
Peak Year
1970
307 births
Total Registered
15,279
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Donnell
Donnell is predominantly male (93.3%), though 1,026 female births have been registered. It functions as a unisex name for a small percentage of bearers.
Donnell as a male name
Ranked #4,586 in 2024
22 male births in 2024
Peak: 1982 (290 births)
Donnell as a female name
Ranked #17,899 in 2006
5 female births in 2006
Peak: 1969 (49 births)
Donnell: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Donnell span from the 1910s to the 2020s, covering 12 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1970s, when 2,750 babies were registered. Donnell has declined significantly from its peak in the 1970s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Donnell by Decade
How has Donnell tracked across different eras? The table below groups all SSA birth registrations into 10-year periods, with separate male and female counts. The colored bar shows each decade's share relative to the peak.
Donnell by State
Birth registrations for Donnell span all 27 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in New York, Illinois, California. The lowest are in Wisconsin, Kansas, Connecticut. On average, about 405 Donnells were registered per state.
Donnell + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Donnell as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Donnell
Other first names starting with D with a similar number of bearers.
Donnell: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Donnell?
We estimate approximately 13,011 people named Donnell are alive in the United States today. This is based on SSA birth records from 1880 to 2024, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables. About 1 in 26,343 Americans share this first name.
Is Donnell a common name?
Donnell is classified as "Uncommon" and is more popular than 98.1% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 15,279 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Donnell most popular?
Donnell reached peak popularity in 1970, when 307 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Donnell is approximately 46 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Donnell a male name?
Donnell is predominantly male. 93.3% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Donnell Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Donnell Smith, Donnell Johnson, Donnell Williams. You can also search any combination on our homepage.
Where does this data come from?
Our estimates use Social Security Administration birth records (1880 to 2024), adjusted for survival using CDC 2023 life tables broken down by sex. The U.S. population figure (342,754,338) is from the Census Bureau's July 2025 estimate. Full methodology.
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