Holding steady.
Popularity of Dorathea since 1883
Babies named Dorathea per year in U.S. Social Security records. Raw births topped out in 1917, but relative to how few babies were recorded back then, Dorathea's real moment was 1883.
Data table (by decade)
| Decade | Girls |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 12 |
| 1890s | 43 |
| 1900s | 64 |
| 1910s | 185 |
| 1920s | 169 |
| 1930s | 83 |
| 1940s | 53 |
| 1950s | 30 |
| 1960s | 6 |
| 1970s | 0 |
| 1980s | 0 |
| 1990s | 0 |
| 2000s | 0 |
| 2010s | 0 |
| 2020s | 0 |
Meaning & origin
Dorathea is an extremely rare variant of the classic Dorothea, itself a Greek name meaning 'gift of God'. While the standard form Dorothy was a top-10 name in the U.S. for decades, the Dorathea spelling has never appeared in the Social Security Administration's ranked lists. Its first recorded year in the data is 1883, which also marks its peak year of usage, however slight. The trajectory shows a stable, minimal presence with no significant revival. The name remains a distinctive choice, more likely to be encountered in historical records than in contemporary nurseries.
Dorathea is a variant of Dorothy/Dorothea, from Greek Δωροθέα (Dōrothea), combining δῶρον (dōron, 'gift') and θεός (theos, 'god'). The name was borne by several early Christian saints, including a 4th-century martyr, and has been used in English-speaking countries since the 16th century, though the Dorathea spelling has been much rarer than the standard Dorothea.
Nicknames & variants
Nicknames: Dora, Dotty, Thea, Dorrie
Sibling names for Dorathea
Names that share Dorathea's style, for a brother or sister.
