Deacon
Deacon was the 561st most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 529 babies. Its best year was 2014, when it ranked 420th with 734 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 108 places. More babies were named Deacon in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning servant, church minister (English surname) · English, Greek
Say it DEE-kun /ˈdikən/
- Rank in 2025
- #561 boys, down 45 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 529boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 2014734 babies
- Total since 1880
- 11,570babies recorded
What does the name Deacon mean?
Deacon is an English surname that has become a boy's name. The surname comes from the church office of deacon, from Old English diacon, Late Latin diaconus, and Greek diakonos, servant or attendant. Wiktionary describes it as an occupational name for someone who worked in a deacon's household. Some English families got the surname as a form of Dicken, and some Irish ones from Ó Deocáin. The modern first name plays on the word.
diakonos (Ancient Greek, “servant, attendant, minister”)diacon (Old English, “deacon”)
How sure is this? Probable. The word's history is clear; the surname has several possible sources, so 'servant/minister' describes the word rather than every family's origin.
Related names: Deakin, Deacan.
See also: English names, names from occupations.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Deacon' (English section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th ed., entry 'deacon' (etymology), HarperCollins / Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
- Wikipedia, 'Deacon (given name)', Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts only)
Deacon popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #561 | 529 |
| 2020 | #516 | 555 |
| 2010 | #693 | 336 |
| 2000 | #1,586 | 74 |
| 1990 | #8,412 | 5 |
| 1980 | #3,904 | 10 |
| 1970 | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Deacon, counting every spelling?
Deacon is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #540 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #561 for Deacon on its own. Together these spellings went to 560 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deacon | 529 | #561 | 2,828 |
| Deakon | 15 | #5,919 | 82 |
| Deaken | 8 | #9,107 | 34 |
| Deacan | 8 | #9,106 | 28 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Deacon?
529 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Deacon (0.15 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Deacon born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 16 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Deacon.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Deacon?
About 11,400 people born in the US named Deacon are alive today, with a median age of 10; half are between 6 and 16. That makes Deacon a young name: most people with it are children.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Deacon by state
How common Deacon was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in West Virginia (3.8×), Tennessee (2.8×), Iowa (2.4×), Nebraska (2.3×), Kentucky (2.3×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in New Jersey, California, Massachusetts.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Deacon: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Deacon, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Deacon · Sibling names for Deacon
Questions about the name Deacon
What does Deacon mean?
Deacon means “servant, church minister (English surname)” (English, Greek origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Deacon?
Deacon was the 561st most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 529 babies. Its best year was 2014, when it ranked 420th with 734 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 108 places. More babies were named Deacon in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Deacon a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Deacon in the US.
Where is Deacon most popular?
In 2021–2025, Deacon was most common in West Virginia (1.26 per 1,000 boys), followed by Tennessee and Iowa.