National Devon Day – December 5, 2024

History of National Devon Day

National Devon Day takes place on December 5 to show appreciation for the people named Devon all over the world. In 1960, the male name Devon first appeared on the U.S. popularity charts. Between the years 1977 and 2005, Devon has also been used as a girl’s name and appeared on the female naming charts. The name Devon is therefore considered unisex, even though it is most popular with males, no longer appearing on the female naming charts. In the 1990s, the name almost made the top 100 list of most favored boy names.

Some people consider Devon to be an altered spelling of the Irish-Gaelic personal name Devin, but it is actually not. The name Devon is derived from an English surname. The surname originated in a place called Devon County in southwest England, derived from the name of a Celtic tribe, the ‘Dumnonii.’ They inhabited this area of Britain at the time of the Roman invasion, around 50 A.D. These people were the ‘Brythonic’ group of Celts. The word ‘Devnent,’ meaning ‘deep valley dwellers,’ came from their language. The surname Devon is also related to the French word ‘Devin,’ meaning ‘divine person.’ The first recorded spelling of the name was ‘Le Devin,’ in the 12th century. In 1840, there were only four Devon families recorded to be living in New York, while most Devon families were found in the U.K. in 1891.