Etymology & Historical Origin of the Baby Name Dawn

 Dawn is a female personal name derived from an English vocabulary word defining the early morning or daybreak; in other words, the period between darkness and sunrise. Dawn is the modern form of the Olde English “dagung” meaning “to become day” or “to grow light,” ultimately from the root dæg (“day”). As a female given name, Dawn was brought into general circulation in the 1920s, no doubt due to the freshness and brightness of the name’s undertones. Dawn could also be considered an English equivalent of the Latin Aurora, Roman goddess of the dawn (whose name also means “dawn”). Each morning, Aurora renewed herself and flew across the sky, bringing light to announce the arrival of her brother, the sun.  

All About the Baby Name – Dawn

Personality

OF THE GIRL NAME DAWN

Romance is the hallmark of the Six personality. They exude nurturing, loving, and caring energy. Sixes are in love with the idea of love in its idealized form - and with their magnetic personalities, they easily draw people toward them. Like the number Two personality, they seek balance and harmony in their life and the world at large. They are conscientious and service-oriented, and a champion for the underdog. These personalities naturally attract money and are usually surrounded by lovely material objects - but their human relationships are always primary. They thrive in giving back to others rather than being motivated by their own desires. This is when they achieve great things. Sixes are natural teachers, ministers and counselors.

Popularity

OF THE GIRL NAME DAWN

 Dawn first appeared on America’s Top 1000 list of baby girl names in 1915 and pretty quickly started to rise in popularity. The name achieved Top 100 status in 1956, and the 1960s and 70s mark her most successful decades of usage. In fact, Dawn got as high as #14 on the charts (1971) – her best year ever. Then in 1983, she fell off the Top 100 list and dropped in popularity faster than she once rose (Dawn fell off America’s Top 1000 list in the year 2000). So far the 21st century has not welcomed her back – though Aurora is currently a Top 150. Indeed, the “dawn” of Dawn’s success has come and gone. Only 77 baby girls were named Dawn in 2013 (compared to almost 16,000 in 1970).  Still, Dawn remains a lovely name to consider. With her one syllable, she’s more minimalistic than Aurora (as if she’s not trying as hard). We suspect she will one day rise again.  

Quick Facts

ON DAWN

GENDER:

Girl

ORIGIN:

English

NUMBER OF SYLLABLES:

1

RANKING POPULARITY:

N/A

PRONUNCIATION:

DAWN

SIMPLE MEANING:

Become day, to grow light

Characteristics

OF DAWN

Humanitarian

Community-minded

Family-oriented

Loving

Affectionate

Compassionate

Sensitive

Cultural References to the Baby Name – Dawn

Literary Characters

OF THE BABY NAME DAWN

We cannot find any significant literary characters by the name of Dawn

Childrens Books

ON THE BABY NAME DAWN

We cannot find any childrens books with the first name Dawn


Popular Songs

ON DAWN

Piper at the Gates of Dawn
a song by Van Morrison

Famous People

NAMED DAWN

Dawn French (English actress)
Dawn Upshaw (American soprano)
Dawn Fraser (swimmer)

Children of Famous People

NAMED DAWN

We cannot find any children of famous people with the first name Dawn

Historic Figures

WITH THE NAME DAWN

We cannot find any historically significant people with the first name Dawn