Desmond

Desmond is an Irish name for boys meaning "from South Munster." It originates from the Gaelic word "Deas Mhumhain," meaning "south Munster." (Munster was one of ancient Ireland’s five regions. Desmond was also a county in Ireland until the 17th century.) The name has been used in Ireland since medieval times and was popularized by Saint Desmond, who was a bishop in the 7th century. It has since become a popular name in English-speaking countries, and it has been used as both a surname and a given name; diminutives include Des, Dez, Desi, and Dezi.

In the Unites States, Desmond is a popular baby name choice but not one that’s overused; while it just cracked the Social Security Administration’s Top 1000 baby names list way back in 1904, when it ranked 900, it’s had something of a renaissance in more recent years and has been sitting comfortably in the 300-range every year since 2009. It was most popular in 1992, when it ranked number 265.

Perhaps the most famous Desmond is South African Anglican archbishop and Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu. The name (and its variations) also appears in pop culture — Des Clarke is a character on the popular Australian soap opera ‘Neighbours’; Desmond Hume was a character on the hit TV series ‘Lost,’ and Desmond Miles is a character in the ‘Assassin’s Creed’ video game series. Of course, the name Desmond also features prominently in the Beatles hit song ‘Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da.’