Dennis

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Dennis

Gender: Masculine
Language: English
Etymology:
Dennis is the English form of Denis, the French form of Dionysios. Originally a Greek name, it meant “Honored by Dionysos,” the Greek god of wine.

History:
Dionysios was the name of several popular early saints. One of whom, St. Denis, became the patron saint of France. It crossed to England with the Norman French, when they invaded in 1066. Dennis was a common name from the 15th to 17th centuries, and was revived again at the beginning of the twentieth century.

Please see Dionysius for more information.

Pronunciation: DEN-iss.

Diminutives:
English: Denny, Deon, Dinny, Dion.

Alternates: Dennys.
French: Denis, Denys.

Surnames:
English: Denis, Dennet, Dennett, Dennis, Denniss, Denison, Dennison, Denny, Dyson, Tennyson, Tyson.

Feminine: Denise.

See also: Dwight.

Famous Bearers:
Artists and Authors:
Denys Diderot (1603-1672)
French lute player.
Denis Ivanovich Fonvizin (1744-1792)
Russian playwright.
Dennis Brutus (1924-)
South African poet.
Dennis Potter (1935-1994)
British dramatist.

Educators, Scholars, and Social Workers:
Denis Diderot (1713-1784)
French philosopher.
Sir Dennis Homes Robertson (1890-1963)
British economist.
Denis Winston Healey, Baron of Riddlesden (1917-)
British economist.
Sir Denis Hamilton (1918-1988)
British publisher.

Fictional Characters:
Dennis the Menace
Comic strip character.

Miscellaneous:
Denis Charles Scott Compton (1918-1997)
British cricketer.
Dennis Rodman (1961-)
American basketball player.

Religious Figures:
Saint Denis (?-258)
Patron saint of France.
Denis-Auguste Affre (1793-1848)
Archbihsop of Paris. Accidentally killed trying to stop the 1848 riots.

Scientists and Inventors:
Denis Papin (1647-1712)
French-British physicist.
Dennis Robert Hoagland (1884-1949)
American plant physiologist.
Dennis Gabor (1900-1979)
Hungarian-English engineer. Winner of the 1971 Nobel Prize for Physics.
Denis Parsons Burkitt (1911-1993)
British surgeon.

Singers and Entertainers:
Dennis James (1917-1997)
American game show host.
Dennis Franz (1944-)
Italian actor.
Dennis Wilson (1944-1983)
American singer. Member of the Beach Boys.
Dennis Brown (1957-1999)
Jamaican reggae singer.

Popularity:
Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census:
0.415 % named Dennis
0.058 % named Dwight
0.014 % named Denis
0.014 % named Tyson
0.010 % named Denny
0.010 % named Dion
0.006 % named Deon

Popularity of Dennis:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1800: 55th most popular.
1850: 39th most popular.
1875: 76th most popular.
1900-1910: 227th most popular.
1910-1920: 204th most popular.
1920-1930: 181st most popular.
1930-1940: 74th most popular.
1940-1950: 20th most popular.
1950-1960: 21st most popular.
1960-1970: 40th most popular.
1970-1980: 62nd most popular.
1980-1990: 97th most popular.
1990: 136th most popular.
1991: 141st most popular.
1992: 157th most popular.
1993: 165th most popular.
1994: 178th most popular.
1995: 186th most popular.
1996: 203rd most popular.
1997: 207th most popular.
1998: 240th most popular.
1999: 241st most popular.
2000: 248th most popular.
2001: 271st most popular.
2002: 279th most popular.
2003: 280th most popular.

Popularity of Denis:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1900-1910: 946th most popular.
1910-1920: N/A
1920-1930: 862nd most popular.
1930-1940: 488th most popular.
1940-1950: 357th most popular.
1950-1960: 348th most popular.
1960-1970: 494th most popular.
1970-1980: 658th most popular.
1980-1990: 855th most popular.
1990: 672nd most popular.
1991: 667th most popular.
1992: 725th most popular.
1993: 766th most popular.
1994: 815th most popular.
1995: 799th most popular.
1996: 874th most popular.
1997: 854th most popular.
1998: N/A

In France...
1900: 101st most popular.
1910: 107th most popular.
1920: 71st most popular.
1930: 57th most popular.
1940: 43rd most popular.
1950: 36th most popular.
1960: 27th most popular.
1970: 36th most popular.
1980: 81st most popular.
1990: 132nd most popular.
1995: 184th most popular.
2000: N/A