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Boy · Medieval Spanish, uncertain
Diego
Say it: DYEH-goh
Meaning
Uncertain. Often traced to Santiago through a misdivision of Sant Iago; the Latin form Didacus was later linked to Greek didachē 'teaching', which is a learned association rather than the source.
Uncertainseveral explanations, none settled.
Its wave through time
Most used in the 2000s
In the United States
- 112,814 babies given this name since 1887
- At its height in 2006, about 1 in 244 boys
- 2,885 babies in 2020
Through the ages
- The High and Late Middle Ages1100 to 1450
- The Renaissance1400 to 1600
- The Colonial Americas1500 to 1800
- The Modern Age1880 to today
Used by
SpanishPortugueseMexicanCentral AmericanAndeanArgentineCaribbean
The family of the name
| Portuguese | Diogo |
|---|---|
| Catalan | Dídac |
| Latin | Didacus |
Famous bearers
- Diego Velázquez, painter
- Diego Gelmírez, archbishop of Santiago de Compostela
- Diogo Cão, Portuguese navigator
Names worth a look
Where this comes from
- Medieval Spanish and Portuguese chronicles and charters
- National birth statistics of European countries source
- United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.
Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.