Dean
Meaning of Dean
Dean comes from an English surname with two sources: Old English denu, meaning valley, used for someone who lived in one, and dean, the title of a church official, which goes back to Latin decanus, chief of ten. The title is still used for senior posts in churches and universities. Dean is pronounced deen, to rhyme with seen.
Well-known bearers include Dean Martin, the American singer, actor and comedian nicknamed the King of Cool, and Dean Koontz, the bestselling author of suspense novels.
In the United States, Dean reached its highest rank, 78th, in 1967 and 1968. It then declined for decades, falling to 384th in 2006, before climbing back to 125th in 2025, when 2,876 boys were given the name.
Pronunciation
British English
- Pronunced as deen (/diːn/)
American English
- Pronunced as deen (/din/)
U.S. Popularity Chart
States Popularity Chart
Notable People Named Dean
| Dean Martin was an American singer, actor, and comedian, nicknamed the King of Cool, who rose to fame with Jerry Lewis as Martin and Lewis in 1946 and became one of the most popular entertainers of the 20th century. |
| Dean Smith was a legendary University of North Carolina basketball coach from 1961 to 1997 who won two national titles and reached 11 Final Fours, retiring with a then NCAA record 879 wins. |
| Dean Smith is an English football manager and former player who is head coach of MLS club Charlotte FC. |
| Dean Henderson is an English goalkeeper for Crystal Palace and the England national team. |
| Robert Dean Stockwell was an American actor with a career spanning seven decades, from MGM child star to acclaimed roles in Compulsion and Long Day's Journey into Night, earning Best Actor at Cannes and a Golden Globe nomination for Sons and Lovers. |
| Dean Laurence Kiely is a former goalkeeper born in England who won 11 caps for the Republic of Ireland and now serves as goalkeeping coach for Crystal Palace and the Republic of Ireland, having previously coached at West Bromwich Albion and Norwich City. |
| Dean Koontz is a prolific American suspense novelist whose genre-blending books exceed 105 titles, have sold over 450 million copies with many reaching No. 1 on the New York Times list, and who early in his career wrote under several pen names. |
| Dean George Cain is an American actor and football player best known for playing Superman on the 1990s series Lois and Clark, and he also hosted Ripleys Believe It or Not and appeared in Hit the Floor. |
| Dean Carroll Jones was an American actor and Grammy winning singer and songwriter, the leading man for Disney in the 1970s known for That Darn Cat and the Herbie films, a Golden Globe nominee for The Million Dollar Duck, and later a Disney Legend. |
| Dean Ivor Richards was an English defender who began at Bradford City, then played for Wolves, Southampton, and Tottenham Hotspur, and made four appearances for England Under 21s. |
| Dean Martin Gaffney is an English actor best known for playing Robbie Jackson in EastEnders and for finishing fifth on Im a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here in 2006. |
| Dean Joseph Norris is an American actor best known as Hank Schrader on Breaking Bad, with notable roles in Under the Dome, Claws, and Law and Order Organized Crime, and over 150 credits including many law enforcement roles. |
| Dean Paul Martin Jr, son of entertainer Dean Martin, was an American pop singer and film and TV actor who served in the California Air National Guard and died in a training flight crash. |
