Dexter

Boy name

Dexter has been given to 36,800 babies in the U.S. since 1880. It peaked in 2012 and currently ranks #693 for boys (2025).

Meaning & origin /ˈdɛkstɚ/

Variant of Dyster.

Origin: surnames

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Hover or tap the chart to read any year.

Total babies

36,800

Peak year

2012 (842 babies)

Rank in 2025

#693 for boys

First recorded

1880

10-year trend

▼ -48%

Gender split

1% girls / 99% boys

Dexter Gordon

American jazz saxophonist (1923–1990)

Dexter Fletcher

English actor and director

Notability data from Wikidata (CC0).

Same primary gender, peaked around the same years, and roughly as common as Dexter.

36,875 babies since 1918

36,977 babies since 1881

37,890 babies since 1880

35,654 babies since 1886

35,646 babies since 1880

38,080 babies since 1880

35,487 babies since 1916

35,380 babies since 1918

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