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Dorothea

The name Dorothea peaked for boys at #3634 in 1956. Dorothea is occasionally used for girls in 2025.

The name Dorothea is a girl's name of Greek origin meaning "gift of God".

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Dorothea is a romantic Victorian-sounding name that blends elegance, gravitas and a hint of clunkiness too. Popular in the early decades of the twentieth century, it has been off the charts since 1970, however it's definitely on the brink of a revival! In fact, it has already been making its way back into the UK Top 1000, and a recent year saw it given to 90 girls in the US — three times the number it was given to a decade prior. 
 
A relative of Dorothy, Theodore, and Theodora, Dorothea is comprised of the same Greek elements, doron and theos, meaning "gift" and "god". It has has a long literary history, including as a clever and beautiful character in Don Quixote and the intelligent and generous heroine of George Eliot's Middlemarch.
 Worthy namesakes include Dorothea Dix, nineteenth century activist for the mentally ill and Civil War nurse, and the influential documentary photographer Dorothea Lange, known for her moving portraits taken during the Great Depression. It is also a saint name, borne by Dorothea of Alexandria, Dorothea of Caesarea (the patron saint of florists), and Dorothea of Montau (saint and visionary). 
 Appealing nickname possibilities include Dorrie, Dolly, Doro, Dodie, Dot, Dottie and Thea, while international variants include the Spanish Dorotea, the Czech and Polish Dorota, and the Hungarian Dorina.
 
In English, the name would likely be pronounced as dawr-uh-THEE-uh, while in German, it is said as do-ro-TEH-a

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The name Dorothea is currently ranked #973 in U.S. births. and peaked for girls at #174 in 1912. It is currently rising in popularity. The name is most popular in DOROTHEA, DOROTHEA, and DOROTHEA. Dorothea is occasionally used for boys in 1956.

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Year	US rank	Births	Per million
2014	—	0	0
2015	—	0	0
2016	—	0	0
2017	—	0	0
2018	—	0	0
2019	—	0	0
2020	—	0	0
2021	—	0	0
2022	—	0	0
2023	—	0	0
2024	—	0	0
2025	—	0	0