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Darius

Meaning, origin and pronunciation, with published usage by place and year.

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Meaning

Hold or possess and good elements, in the Old Persian name tradition.

The exact English entry traces Darius through Greek and Latin to the Old Persian Dārayavaʰuš name. The reviewed Old Persian given-name entry identifies hold or have plus inferred vahuš, good. Possessing good is a summary of those historical elements, not a prediction of a child’s qualities. The inferred element is explicitly qualified.

Origin

Old Persian ancestry through Greek and Latin forms

The entry traces the given name through Latin Darius and Ancient Greek to Old Persian. No literal root interpretation is inferred from untranslated forms.

English pronunciation

/dəˈɹaɪ.əs/

Selected UK and US English reading. The entry also records initial-stress readings; this selected guide is not universal.

Recorded English reading, as published. Accents and preferred pronunciations can differ.

Published name usage

Counts apply only to the exact spelling, place, year and recorded usage shown. Places are separate; these figures are never added into a worldwide total. Missing or suppressed records never mean zero.

Latest published record available for this spelling in each place and recorded usage
PlaceYearRecorded usagePublished birthsRankNotes
Canada2025Boys61 · preliminary4922025 figures are preliminary. Quebec counts below five are randomly imputed by the publisher before national aggregation. Accents are removed in the source; this profile was matched only where the catalog spelling was unambiguous. Unpublished values are unknown, not zero. Rank basis: source published.
France1907Girls5 (rounded to 5)947Counts are rounded to the nearest multiple of five. Ranks use unrounded publisher counts with randomly ordered ties; equally rounded counts can have different ranks. National coverage excludes Mayotte before 2012. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Automated direction labels are withheld for this rounded-count series. Rank basis: source published.
France2025Boys80 (rounded to 5)563Counts are rounded to the nearest multiple of five. Ranks use unrounded publisher counts with randomly ordered ties; equally rounded counts can have different ranks. National coverage excludes Mayotte before 2012. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Automated direction labels are withheld for this rounded-count series. Rank basis: source published.
England & Wales2025Boys81478Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Northern Ireland2025Boys3395Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Scotland2025Boys5560Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Ireland2025Boys12329Names below three occurrences are unpublished. Accent recording changed in 2018; comparisons across that boundary may not describe the same spelling coverage. Counts refer to registrations in the year. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Rank basis: source published.
United States2007Girls615491Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: calculated from published counts.
United States2025Boys322788Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: calculated from published counts.

Canada, Ireland and France coverage includes confidently matched existing profiles only; unmatched spellings are awaiting review. French counts are rounded to five.

Sources & notes

Open an entry for its source, credit, licence and full qualifications. Different name traditions remain separate.

Meaning: Hold or possess and good elements, in the Old Persian name tradition.

Checked against cited source

The exact English entry traces Darius through Greek and Latin to the Old Persian Dārayavaʰuš name. The reviewed Old Persian given-name entry identifies hold or have plus inferred vahuš, good. Possessing good is a summary of those historical elements, not a prediction of a child’s qualities. The inferred element is explicitly qualified.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

View original source

This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

Origin: Old Persian ancestry through Greek and Latin forms

Checked against cited source

The entry traces the given name through Latin Darius and Ancient Greek to Old Persian. No literal root interpretation is inferred from untranslated forms.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

View original source

This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

English pronunciation: /dəˈɹaɪ.əs/

Checked against cited source

Selected UK and US English reading. The entry also records initial-stress readings; this selected guide is not universal.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

View original source

This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

Supporting evidence: Old Persian Dārayavaʰuš: hold/have and good elements

Checked against cited source

Supporting evidence for this specifically qualified name tradition. Adapted from Wiktionary contributors; ancestry, alternatives and uncertainty are kept distinct.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

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This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

country_CA

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country_IE

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Source: NISRA : Website: www.nisra.gov.uk

Attribution: Source: NISRA : Website: www.nisra.gov.uk

License: Open Government Licence v3.0

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(C) Crown copyright. Data supplied by National Records of Scotland.

Attribution: (C) Crown copyright. Data supplied by National Records of Scotland.

License: Open Government Licence v3.0

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Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence

Attribution: Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence

License: Open Government Licence v3.0

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U.S. Social Security Administration

Attribution: U.S. Social Security Administration

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Statistics Canada, Table 17-10-0147-01, 1991–2025, released 23 September 2026.

Credit: Statistics Canada, Table 17-10-0147-01, 1991–2025, released 23 September 2026.

License: Statistics Canada Open Licence

Adaptation: Adapted from Statistics Canada, First names at birth by sex at birth, selected indicators, Table 17-10-0147-01, reference years 1991–2025. This does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada of this product.

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Central Statistics Office, Ireland, VSA50 and VSA60, updated 27 February 2026.

Credit: Central Statistics Office, Ireland, VSA50 and VSA60, updated 27 February 2026.

License: CC BY 4.0

Adaptation: Adapted by Rare Baby Names: joined the published count and rank indicators and matched unambiguous existing spellings. Source values retained.

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Source : Insee, Fichier des prénoms, updated 16 July 2026.

Credit: Source : Insee, Fichier des prénoms, updated 16 July 2026.

License: Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab)

Adaptation: Adapted by Rare Baby Names: column names and sex codes mapped and unique case-only spellings matched to existing profiles. Published rounded counts and ranks retained.

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