Name meaning & stats
Donovan
Donovan means “dark chief”. 59,901 US babies since 1940, peak 2003.
What it means
“dark chief”
Well documented
In US birth records
Peak year: 2003
59,901 US babies were named Donovan between 1940 and 2025.
Careers
Not enough notable people named Donovan (or its spelling family) to say anything reliable yet. That's a gap in the data, not the name.
Spelling family
The most common spelling: 74% of the family
- Donovan 74%
- Donavan 10%
- Donavon 6%
- Donavin 3%
- Donaven 1%
- Donivan 1%
- Donovin 1%
- Donovon 1%
- Donavyn 1%
- Donnovan 1%
Names that sound the same, grouped by Heyotag. Share of US babies since 1940.
Name twins (peaked around 2003)