Dacso

Name of a tragic mythological hero, used as a surname in the works of James Joyce; heavy but ponderous for an American boy, though pulled off very well by single-name musician Daedalus and writer and artist Daedalus Howell.

Daedalus

Relaxed, laid-back cowboy name with broad appeal and more staying power than you might guess: Dallas has ranked among the Top 1000 boy names in the US since records began in 1880.

Today, Dallas is increasingly a gender-neutral option, still given to three times as many baby boys as girls though the gap is narrowing. Still, Dallas's star as a boys' name continues to rise, up more than 100 places since the turn of the century.

For boys, Dallas might be considered one of those golden names that's trending but not trendy.

Dallas

Dalton is a name with multi-faceted appeal. Many are attracted to the name's resemblance to other two-syllable n-ending favorites: Colton, Holden, and cousins. Others see it as a trendy Western name, recalling the legendary Dalton Brothers gang. It also has something of an upscale, preppy feel connected to the exclusive New York private school. 
 The most well known bearer of the name is blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, but there have been a number of high-profile fictional Daltons as well. Dalton Rumba was an adult character on Glee, Clive Owen played a Dalton in Inside Man, there was a scholarly Dalton on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Patrick Swayze opened the film Roadhouse by stating "My name is Dalton Russell."

Dalton

Damian has sidestepped its demonic horror movie overtones, leaving a basically friendly and charming Irish image. A well-used upper-class name in England, it is growing in popularity here.
 There are several saints by this name, including an early one who was a renowned healer.
 Damian Lewis is a British actor, the star of Homeland and now Billions, Damian Marley, youngest son of Bob Marley, is a Grammy-winning reggae artist in his own right.
 The French spelling Damien is another option.

Damian

Baby girl Danas outnumber baby boys with the name nearly ten to one. But Dana is an attractive, sleek name that can certain work for babies of either gender.

Dana

Though closely associated with the great medieval Florentine poet Dante Alighieri -- who's so famous most people skip the last name -- it's not as much of a one-man name as you might think. Heck, it's not even a one-poet name, thanks to British pre-Rapahaelite Dante Gabriel Rosetti. Though especially well used in the Italian-American community, it would make a striking name for any little boy.

Dante

Beach boy name of the 1960s, Darrell is still a presence on the charts and may graduate into a stately surname name.

Darrell

Darren and wife Sharon shop for fifties memorabilia on eBay. The Connecticut place-name Darien might offer an update. 

Darren

Enough parents have found naturalist Charles Darwin, the father of the theory of evolution, a worthy hero to keep Darwin relatively consistently in the Top 1000 (it dropped off in 2021 but is back in 2022)—though some might just like its trendy two-syllable sound. It has a lovely meaning too—"dear friend."

Darwin

The appealingly energetic Dax, with its trendy X-ending, re-entered the Top 1000 in 2007. Its somewhat sci-fi vibe emanates from his appearance as a fictional being in the Star Trek universe, seen on the TV show "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine." The Power Rangers character Dax Lo was the Blue Ranger.
 In real life, actor Dax Shepard hosts the popular podcast Armchair Expert and played the TV character of Crosby Braverman on "Parenthood." His parents named him for the protagonist of the best-selling Harold Robbins novel, The Adventurers-- Dax Xenos.
 Dax is also a French community famous as a spa.
 Dax is unlikely to become popular in Australia, sounding too much like the word dacks, which means boys' underwear.

Daxter feels like a blend between Dexter and Baxter. If you like it better than either of those, then go for it.

Daxter

Dean may sound to some like a retro surfer boy name, but it is once again climbing up the popularity chart in the USA. For decades it was associated with Dean (born Dino) Martin; more recent representatives include Dean Cain, Dean McDermott and Dean Koontz -- not to mention Jared Padalecki's dreamy Dean Forester in Gilmore Girls.

Dean

Declan is the Anglicized form of the Irish name Deaglán. St. Declan was one of the first missionaries to bring Christianity to Ireland, preceding St. Patrick. Originally from Wales, he founded the monastery of Ardmore in Ireland.
 
Declan, the amiable and appealing name of an Irish saint (and the real first name of singer Elvis Costello), is very popular in the Emerald Isle and beginning its certain climb to popularity here, after debuting on the American list in 1998. Like Aidan and Liam, Declan is shaping up to be an American hit.
 
Declan Porter is a current character on Revenge. 
 Cyndi Lauper spelled her son's name Declyn.

Declan

Before there was Aspen, Denver was the Colorado city name of choice, and it reentered the US Top 1000 in 2015 after a 14 year absence as a stylish two-syllable <a href="https://nameberry.com/boys-names">boys’ name</a> with its trendy -er ending. Its decade of greatest use was the 1920s, when it reached as high as Number 422.
 The one noted Denver was actor Denver Pyle, who played Uncle Jesse in The Dukes of Hazzard. The state capital was named for politician James W. Denver, and others who bore the surname were singer John (born John Deutschendorf), and actor Bob, the face of Gilligan's Island.

Denver

Desiderio was the full name of the Cuban bandleader who famously Loved Lucy.  There was also a Saint Desiderio.  Major attraction: the great nickname Desi.

Desiderio

Swashbuckling name worthy of a hero in a romance novel. Deveraux or Devereaux is drawn from the River Eure in France. Mick Jagger has a son named Deveraux.

Deveraux

Devlin is an Irish name that's fresher and even more devilish than Devin. 
The earliest written record of this surname occurs in the thirteenth century, when an O'Devlin was appointed Bishop of Kells in 1211.
 In the contemporary world, Devlin Agamand is a character in the video game "War of Witchcraft" and there is a British rapper who goes by the single name Devlin. Bernadette Devlin was the youngest woman ever elected to the British Parliament.

Devlin

Devon, spelled like the lovely seaside county in Britain that inspired the name, has crashed since its heyday around the Top 100 in the 1990s. Despite its use as a female name, for example for Devon on the TV show The 4400, Devon continues to be far more popular for boys than for girls.

Devon

An imposing meaning, an appealing sound. 

Devraj

The jazzy, ultra-cool Dexter, like most names with an "x," has a lot of energy and dynamism. Over the years, it's been attached to a number of diverse real and fictional personalities—C. K. Dexter Haven, the witty Cary Grant character in The Philadelphia Story; Dexter Green, the protagonist of the F. Scott Fitzgerald story "Winter Dreams"; great jazz tenor saxophonist Dexter Gordon; the boy-genius protagonist of cartoon Dexter's Laboratory; and the most recent TV series Dexter based on the books by Jeff Lindsay, whose lead happens to be a genial but sociopathic serial killer.
 Dexter was chosen by hip musical couple Diana Krall and Elvis Costello for one of their twin boys, and by singer Charlotte Church.
 Dex is an equally appealing nickname, now sometimes used on its own.

Dexter

Diago is sure to be confused with the more common Diego, the Spanish form of James.

Diago

Perfect example of a surname that would work well as a first. 

Diaz

A relatively common surname, Dixon would be an inventive way to honor an ancestral Richard or Dick, the X form a lot livelier than the Dickson spelling, just as Dix is a more modern short form than Dick; it would be right at home alongside Dax and Jax.
 But you don't need us to point out the considerable downside of this name. Besides being a sexual slang term, dick is also the most common epithet describing someone who's a jerk or a meanie (trying to avoid other unsavory words here). And Dix sounds exactly like dicks, which makes it not the least bit easier a name to carry these days than Dick.

Dixon

Doctor is an honorific used as a name, somewhat like names such as Bishop, King, and Princess.  Banned in New Zealand, Doctor can lead to the kind of confusion you may feel would be only positive for your child -- a bona fide Doctor before he even gets to kindergarten.

At its zenith in 1884, Doctor was used for 12 boys, but last year it didn't even clear the five-baby minimum to make it onto the Social Security extended list.

Doctor

This old short form is more than a little dodgy now. In a recent film, Steve Carell's character is named Dodge, seen by one critic as symbolizing his risk-averse personality.

Dodge

All Adolph variations are best avoided, though this takes some of the onus off. 

Dolph

Swaggering, cutting-edge choice equally appropriate for both genders.  It's also very rare, given in the US in 2015 to only seven baby girls....and no recorded baby boys.  Do you want to be the first?

Domino

Donar

The name of the great Italian Renaissance sculptor known as Donatello (but born DONATO), is one that could easily emigrate to modern America, just like sister DONATELLA.

Donatello

For as long as we all shall live, Harry Potter's sneering nemesis. 

Draco

Inspired by Brandon Lee's character in The Crow and Cuba Gooding Jr.'s in In the Shadows, this name, with its Wiccan feel, was used by a member of Linkin Park. It has ranked in the US Top 1000 since 1995.

Draven

Dune is a name of several layers. It's a modern nature name, like Ocean, Bay and Reef, although rarer, conjuring up images of breezy sand dunes on summer beach days.
 
It's also assocated with Frank Herbert's Dune iconic series of sci-fi novels. The name increased in popularity in 2021, when the most recent movie adaptation was released.

Dune

A two-syllable surname feel puts this name of an important English saint in the running -- though it could sound like a confused cross between Duncan and Dustin. 

Dunstan

The iconic rock group Duran Duran named themselves after the villain of the classic sci-fi movie "Barbarella," Dr. Durand Durand.  One bit of free advice: if your last name is Duran, don't name your son Duran.

Duran

The name of cities in Mexico and Colorado, Durango is a pleasant, fresh option from the atlas.

Durango

ScarlettRobin's list "Dashing D Names [boys]" of 36 great name ideas: Dacso - Durango!