Doris

Did you know?

A few things about Doris you might not know, from US birth records and Wikipedia. Handy for convincing a partner, or a grandparent.

⭐ Famous Doris

Doris Lessing

British novelist, poet, playwright, librettist, biographer, and short story writer (1919–2013)

Choose Doris and your child shares a first name with Doris Lessing, a British novelist, poet, playwright, librettist, biographer, and short story writer. A ready-made answer when someone asks “Doris, like who?” Doris Lessing's Wikipedia article is available in 134 languages, a good sign of just how widely known they are.

Read about Doris Lessing on Wikipedia ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Photo: Oskars Vizbulis, Public domain (opens in a new tab), via Wikimedia Commons

• 👶How commonAbout 1 in every 27,701 baby girls born in the US in 2025 was named Doris, 58 babies in all. In a typical school of 500 kids, your Doris would very likely be the only one.
• 📜HistoryDoris has been in use since at least 1880, the first year US birth records were kept. That's 145 years of Doriss, and counting.
• 🏆Best yearIt was far more popular in 1929, when it ranked #6. Today it's #2,895, so it could be due a comeback.
• 🍂TrendDoris has slipped 519 places over the last five years and now sits at #2,895. Good news if you want a familiar name that fewer kids will share.
• 💬MeaningIn Greek, Doris means “Dorian woman”.

About the name Doris

Doris is a girl name meaning “Dorian woman”. It has 5 letters and 2 syllables, starting with D and ending in “-ris”. US birth records list Doris for girls from 1880 to 2025, in 146 of those 146 years. Its best year was 1929, when it ranked #6 among girl names. In 2025 it ranked #2,895, with 58 babies.