Darnelle
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- dar-NEL
- Origin
- English
- US rank, 2025
- #12,003 for boys
Darnelle is a boys' name of English origin, meaning “hidden nook”. In 2025 it ranked 12,003rd for boys in the US (5 babies).
What does Darnelle mean?
English: variant of Darnell, an English surname probably from Old English derne 'hidden' + halh 'nook'
“hidden nook”
A variant of Darnell, an English surname probably from Old English derne, hidden, and halh, nook.
Is Darnelle a girl's or a boy's name?
Darnelle is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 5 boys in the US. Too few girls were given it to be listed.
How popular is Darnelle in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- 12,003rd among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 5 about 1 in 340,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Too rare to call too few babies to tell
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 5 boys in the US were named Darnelle, making it the 12,003rd most popular name for boys. Its busiest year was 1984, with 20 boys. It first appears in the records in 1963.
Half of all the boys named Darnelle in the US since 1880 were born between 1983 and 1996, the years shaded on the chart below.
Darnelle in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 5 | #12,003 |
| 2024 | 0 | – |
| 2023 | 0 | – |
| 2022 | 5 | #12,322 |
| 2021 | 0 | – |
| 2020 | 0 | – |
| 2019 | 0 | – |
| 2018 | 0 | – |
| 2017 | 0 | – |
| 2016 | 7 | #9,659 |
| 2015 | 0 | – |
| 2014 | 0 | – |
| 2013 | 0 | – |
| 2012 | 0 | – |
| 2011 | 0 | – |
| 2010 | 0 | – |
| 2009 | 0 | – |
| 2008 | 6 | #11,030 |
| 2007 | 7 | #9,782 |
| 2006 | 8 | #8,726 |
| 2005 | 0 | – |
| 2004 | 5 | #11,348 |
| 2003 | 7 | #8,636 |
| 2002 | 9 | #7,048 |
| 2001 | 6 | #9,236 |
| 2000 | 7 | #8,202 |
| 1999 | 6 | #8,697 |
| 1998 | 0 | – |
| 1997 | 6 | #8,104 |
| 1996 | 13 | #4,606 |
| 1995 | 16 | #3,848 |
| 1994 | 14 | #4,284 |
| 1993 | 6 | #7,631 |
| 1992 | 12 | #4,556 |
| 1991 | 11 | #4,752 |
| 1990 | 19 | #3,160 |
| 1989 | 16 | #3,440 |
| 1988 | 14 | #3,518 |
| 1987 | 12 | #3,726 |
| 1986 | 20 | #2,598 |
| 1985 | 8 | #4,693 |
| 1984 | 20 | #2,436 |
| 1983 | 16 | #2,786 |
| 1982 | 9 | #4,232 |
| 1981 | 13 | #3,219 |
| 1980 | 14 | #3,097 |
| 1979 | 7 | #4,840 |
| 1978 | 9 | #3,855 |
| 1977 | 9 | #3,834 |
| 1976 | 0 | – |
| 1975 | 0 | – |
| 1974 | 6 | #4,632 |
| 1973 | 8 | #3,692 |
| 1972 | 0 | – |
| 1971 | 0 | – |
| 1970 | 0 | – |
| 1969 | 6 | #3,934 |
| 1968 | 0 | – |
| 1967 | 0 | – |
| 1966 | 0 | – |
| 1965 | 0 | – |
| 1964 | 0 | – |
| 1963 | 5 | #4,047 |
Names like Darnelle
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Jesse, Chase, Taylor, Chance, Cole, Brandon, Dane, Donte, Tyler, Dylan, Blake, Jake
Names related to Darnelle
More English names
Lily, Evelyn, Hudson, Ivy, Harper, Grace, Violet, Willow, Daisy, Poppy, Riley, Oakley, Mason, Cooper, Ruby, Hallie
Sources
Figures from Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Darnelle: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/darnelle, updated 20 October 2026.