Donovan

Meaning: Descendant of 'brown-and-black'
Origin: Irish — Irish patronymic

Nicknames: Donnie, Donny

Boy's name · #496 in the US (2025) · 2000s wave

Popularity over time

Donovan's best rank, #176, came in 2003; it has settled back to #496 today. Roughly 62,000 boys have been named Donovan since 1900.

Across the states

See where Donovan is more common.

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 38 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Around the world

See how Donovan ranks in other countries and regions.

#887 in Mexico (2024) · #979 in Ecuador (2025) · #1,073 in England & Wales (2025) · #1,833 in France (2025) · #2,093 in Switzerland (2025) · #578 in Canada (2024).

Famous Donovans

Donovan — Scottish musician (born 1946)
Donovan Bailey — Canadian athlete, Olympic medalist
Donovan Mitchell — American basketball player
Donovan Ricketts — Jamaican association football player (born 1977)
Donovan Dijak — American professional wrestler

In stories & tradition

Donovan Baine — Darkstalkers (video game series)
Donovan Desmond — Spy × Family (manga)
Donovan Bellamy — Wasted (film)

What Donovans become

Among 208 notable people named Donovan:

Sports figures appear 2.96× more often than among typical names — e.g. Donovan Bailey, Canadian athlete, Olympic medalist.

Spellings & nicknames

About 90 boys a year are given Donnie as their full name.

Similar names: Van · Quinn · Dominick · Bryce · Keegan · Brennan

Browse more boy names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.

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