boy's name
Diego
dee-AY-go
- Origin Hebrew
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 3
- Letters 5
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 154,608
the United States
#158
2025 births
Diego is a boy's name of Hebrew origin, the Spanish form of James. Its route there is genuinely odd: Santiago, Saint James, was misheard as San Diego, and the second half became a name in its own right.
- Diego is a name of Hebrew origin.
- Peaked in 2006, when 8,423 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 1,407 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1887.
- 3 syllables, with the stress on syllable 2.
Diego over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1880s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 5 |
| 1900s | 5 |
| 1910s | 112 |
| 1920s | 197 |
| 1930s | 188 |
| 1940s | 224 |
| 1950s | 350 |
| 1960s | 633 |
| 1970s | 1,244 |
| 1980s | 3,912 |
| 1990s | 13,522 |
| 2000s | 56,156 |
| 2010s | 33,432 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 16,425 |
What Diego means
Diego inherits the meaning of Jacob and James — usually given as supplanter or heel-grabber, from the Hebrew aqev, heel, though many scholars read the name instead as a shortened may God protect.
Where Diego comes from
Diego descends from the Latin Didacus, but the more interesting route is through Santiago. Saint James, Sant Iago in Old Spanish, was the patron of the Reconquista, and his name was so often run together that Sant-Iago split at the wrong point, leaving San Diego. The two names are therefore the same person: Diego and Jaime are both James in Spanish. James itself comes from the Hebrew Ya'aqov by way of the Latin Iacobus, whose variant Iacomus produced the m in James.
Diego in use
Our data shows Diego falling, peaking in 2006, and it first appears in our records in 1887. It is the clearest example on this site of a name created by a mishearing — a category that also includes Imogen, from a printer's error, and Malachi, from a title read as a name.
How popular is Diego?
In 2025, Diego was given to 2,356 babies in the United States, ranking #158 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Diego is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
How Diego is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Diégo | Diégo is Diego written with an acute accent, used in France, where it ranks #1,020. | 1,135 |
| Diègo | Diègo is a rare spelling of Diego, written with a grave accent and recorded about 60 times, mostly in France. | 60 |
| Diëgo | Diëgo is a rare spelling of Diego, written with a diaeresis and recorded about 15 times, mostly in France. | 15 |
Names that peaked alongside Diego
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Diego also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Diego over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Diego in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Diego
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Diego — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Diego
What does the name Diego mean?
It inherits James's meaning, usually given as "supplanter" — though the derivation is disputed.
Are Diego and James the same name?
Yes. Santiago, Saint James, was split at the wrong point into San Diego, and Diego became a name of its own.
Why is San Diego called that?
From Sant Iago, Saint James, run together and re-divided. The city is named for the saint, not for a separate Diego.
How popular is the name Diego?
In 2025, Diego was given to 2,356 babies in the United States, ranking #158 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Is Diego a girl's or a boy's name?
Diego is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Diego?
Diego has 3 syllables.
When was Diego most popular?
Diego peaked in 2006, when 8,423 babies were given the name. It has been falling over the past decade.
Is Diego a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Diego currently ranks #133 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.