Darnell

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Darnell

Gender: Masculine
Language: English
Etymology:
Darnell comes from an English surname, which may derives from the planet darnel, a European grass of the genus Lolium. It is also known as Ryegrass.
-or-
It may be from a place in Yorkshire, Darnall, which may mean “Hidden Nook.”

History:
Darnell, in the 19th century, would have been bestowed upon sons as either a first or a middle name in order to honor the Darnell surname. For example, a woman named Mary Darnell who married a man named John Smith, may name her son John Darnell Smith, or merely Darnell Smith.

Later, in the 1930s, it was adopted by a the wider population. Most likely, it was adopted because of its phonetic similarities to the popular name Darrell.

Pronunciation: dar-nell.

Alternates: Darnall, Darnel, Darnyl.

Popularity:
Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census:
0.020 % named Darnell

0.008 % surnamed Darnell

Popularity of Darnell:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1880-1938: N/A
1939: 978th most popular.
1940: N/A
1941: 952nd most popular.
1942-1943: N/A
1944: 879th most popular.
1945: 850th most popular.
1946: 743rd most popular.
1947: 861st most popular.
1948: 625th most popular.
1949: 626th most popular.
1950: 506th most popular.
1951: 460th most popular.
1952: 420th most popular.
1953: 426th most popular.
1954: 418th most popular.
1955: 396th most popular.
1956: 431st most popular.
1957: 417th most popular.
1958: 396th most popular.
1959: 418th most popular.
1960: 446th most popular.
1961: 423rd most popular.
1962: 424th most popular.
1963: 423rd most popular.
1964: 410th most popular.
1965: 422nd most popular.
1966: 399th most popular.
1967: 382nd most popular.
1968: 395th most popular.
1969: 373rd most popular.
1970: 371st most popular.
1971: 369th most popular.
1972: 359th most popular.
1973: 357th most popular.
1974: 367th most popular.
1975: 364th most popular.
1976: 352nd most popular.
1977: 345th most popular.
1978: 314th most popular.
1979: 353rd most popular.
1980: 349th most popular.
1981: 358th most popular.
1982: 344th most popular.
1983: 306th most popular.
1984: 279th most popular.
1985: 305th most popular.
1986: 296th most popular.
1987: 312th most popular.
1988: 328th most popular.
1989: 348th most popular.
1990: 376th most popular.
1991: 413th most popular.
1992: 432nd most popular.
1993: 492nd most popular.
1994: 477th most popular.
1995: 524th most popular.
1996: 514th most popular.
1997: 554th most popular.
1998: 577th most popular.
1999: 606th most popular.
2000: 655th most popular.
2001: 688th most popular.
2002: 692nd most popular.
2003: 686th most popular.
2004: 706th most popular.

Selected Sources:
A Dictionary of English Surnames, Reaney and Wilson, 1990
American Surnames, Smith, 1994

The Social Security Administration Actuarial Note 139 (www.ssa.gov) - For popularity stats 1880-Present
The 1880 U.S. Census- For popularity stats 1850-1880, and other information (it is available on-line at www.familysearch.org)