The baby name Douglas is really rather dashing, and completely unexpected.
Thanks to Bridy for suggesting our Baby Name of the Day.
WHAT DOES THE NAME DOUGLAS MEAN?
The baby name Douglas begins on the map.
It’s originally the name of a river derived from the Gaelic dubh – dark and glas – stream. So Douglas means “dark stream.”
The river gave its name to a nearby village, and the village shared its name with a castle. The castle was the stronghold of the Earls of Douglas, once Scotland’s most powerful family, the heads of Clan Douglas.
We do love to borrow an aristocratic surname name.
SCOTTISH HERITAGE CHOICE
Clan Douglas is wrapped up in Scottish history and lore.
Legend has it that the family was founded by an eighth century knight named Sholto Douglas, the hero of a decisive battle.
Family members have used the name since.
The first Douglas on record as a landholder appears in the twelfth century. Early leaders fought against England for Scottish independence, rising to prominence over the years.
Sir James Douglas – also known as the Black Douglas – was the very first noble to join William Wallace’s cause.
Eventually, the family split into two lines – Black Douglases and Red Douglases.
By the 1400s, they were such a big deal that it became rather hazardous to be the top of the family – if you didn’t die in battle, there was a decent chance others would conspire to send you to your death.
The Black Douglas line lost their titles during the fifteenth century; a member of the Red line earned the title back in the 1600s.
As one of the most powerful families in the Kingdom of Scotland, they once had significant land holdings, including Lanarkshire’s Douglas Castle. Only the ruins stand today.
FAMOUS FIGURES
The surname Douglas became a masculine personal name, just like so many aristocratic choices.
As a Scottish surname, it could’ve been used by anyone who lived a dark stream with the name or one of the family’s holdings.
It’s been used as a given name since the 16th century. And here’s a twist – Douglas and Douglass were initially unisex, used for girls and well as boys.
The first female Douglas appears in the history books in the 1540s. English noblewoman Douglas Howard was likely named after her godmother, Margaret Douglas, Countess of Lennox and a member of the powerful Scottish family.
It is impossible to list all of the notable bearers of the name, but a few highlights include:
- Explorer Douglas Mawson reached the South Pole in the Antarctic in 1909.
- Douglas Douglas-Hamilton, the 14th Duke of Hamilton. The well-born double Douglas distinguished himself as a member of the Royal Air Force, taking part in the first flight over Mount Everest and organizing the air defenses of Scotland during World War II.
- Actor Douglas Fairbanks played Zorro and Robin Hood, and with wife Mary Pickford, was part of the original Hollywood super couple. (The name of their legendary Hollywood estate, Pickfair, presages smooshes like Brangelina by nearly a century.) Fairbanks also co-founded United Artists and the Motion Picture Academy. He and wife Mary were the first pair to ever put their handprints in cement at Grauman’s Chinese Theater.
- Also in the Hollywood tradition: Kirk Douglas and Michael Douglas, father and son, both highly successful actors.
- General Douglas MacArthur remains one of the most decorated military leaders in US history.
- Formal NFL quarterback Doug Flutie is one of many athletes by the name.
- Writers like Douglas Adams and Douglas Coupland take the name in a creative direction.
- Hip hop pioneer Doug E. Fresh earned the nickname “the Human Beatbox.”
- Speaking of music, the 2010 hit “Teach Me How to Dougie” is, in fact, named after a guy called Dougie.
DOUGLAS IN FLIGHT
Here’s something that transforms Douglas from an overlooked common name to one that soars.
In 1921, Donald Douglas Jr. founded the Douglas Aircraft Company. Four of their planes were the first aircraft to circumnavigate the world by air in 1924.
Chances are good that you’ve flown in a DC-9 or DC-10. The company merged with McDonnell Douglas and then Boeing, taking the name out of the skies, but a handful of DCs are still flying.
DOUGLAS IN THE FOREST
One more familiar reference: the Douglas fir. Popular as a Christmas tree, the evergreen takes its name from Scottish botanist David Douglas.
They’re native to the west of North America, including California, the Pacific Northwest, and the Rocky Mountains.
POP CULTURE
From an aviation pioneer to a hip hop legend, plenty of Douglases have put the name on the map.
Here are just a few more from recent decades:
- Hollywood A-lister George Clooney rose to prominence as Dr. DougRoss on long-running medical drama E.R.
- Speaking of medical shows on television, a young Neil Patrick Harris starred in Doogie Howser, M.D. The early 90s show featured Harris as a genius teeanger who overcame leukemia and graduated from medical school before he could drive. The character’s full name was Douglas.
- Actor Dougray Scott answers to a rare Doug name. While Scott is, indeed, Scottish, it’s possible that Dougray started out as a French surname.
HOW POPULAR IS THE NAME DOUGLAS?
The baby name Douglas has never left the US Top 1000.
It reached peak popularity in 1942, almost certainly due to the fame of World War II commander Douglas MacArthur. That’s the same year he received the Medal of Honor.
The name ranked in the US Top 100 from 1929 through 1989.
As of 2023, the baby name Douglas ranks a relatively frosty #743.
Plenty of us have an Uncle Doug, but it’s seldom heard on a newborn.
ENDURING CLASSIC
The secret to reviving Douglas might be as simple as avoiding dated nickname Doug.
After all, boys today answer to Sebastian and Oliver without nickname. If William doesn’t have to be Billy, then Douglas can use his name in full, too.
Given our love of boys’ names ending with S, Douglas fits in nicely with Atticus and Miles.
If you’re after an underused, enduring classic, possibly one with a hint of Scottish heritage, the baby name Douglas might just be the perfect name.
What do you think of the baby name Douglas?
First published on July 23, 2011, this post was revised on March 25, 2025.
Have been meaning to come back to this site and comment again, Douglas Fox Baney was born September of 2011 and is now running around exploring life, we stuck with our favourite name and nobody could imagine him being called anything else, I often get lovely comments on the name, no negative ones so far. All manner of nicknames are used by everyone, my favourite being ‘Dougalicious’. I find the name to be popular, uncommon for the age group and very versatile and fun with plays on words like ‘Snug as a Doug in a rug’! I’m sure the usages of the name will change a bit once Douglas is older, for now I’m having fun with the cutsie uses :).
Congrats on your lovely son! And Douglas Fox is just dashing … great name. 🙂
My parents named me Orrin Douglas Jennings (after mom’s grandfather and uncle respectively) but always would call me “Dougie” or, later, “Doug”. I was born in 1960 and knew at least a couple of other guys named Doug all throughout grade school and high school. But, as the above article points out, it seems like I never hear of the name being used anymore. So I’m glad to read that it still has some positive sentiment behind it. My nephews and nieces on my wife’s side call me “Uncle Douglas” which I think is cool. Using the long form of the name for today’s generation is a good idea.
I’m still loving this name, especially since I came across a baby named Douglas on a blog or forum ( cant remember now) and the mother wrote that she tended to use the shortened ‘Dougs’ rather than Doug or Dougie. Thinking of Dougs and Douglas I’m now pretty committed to this being the top of the list now (with the middle name Fox).
Thanks for discusing my favourite name, I greatly appreciate it. 🙂
Bridy
My brother’s name is Douglas–my father chose it after Douglas MacArthur. He was born toward the end of Douglas’s run in the top 100, and he hated his name growing up (the teasing options are endless: Dung, Bug, Lassie…). I think he’s made peace with it and almost enjoys being the only 20-something Doug he knows. I’m betting it would work much better for a little guy now, with the ends-in-s names gaining popularity and the overall acceptance of a wider variety of names.
Since I’m from the Northwest originally, my first thought with Douglas is always the botanist David Douglas. Douglas Fir trees are very prevalent there and easy to identify because of their distinctive pine cones. There’s also a very large high school in Portland named David Douglas.
According to my book of Scottish forenames, Dougal has a different origin than Douglas. They’re both from Gaelic, Dougal from ‘dubh-gall’ (dark stranger), Douglas from ‘dubh-glas’ (dark water). ‘Dubh-gall’ was probably first given to the Danes by the natives of the Hebrides. “Dubhgall, son of Somerled of the Isles and his wife Raghnaid, daughter of Olaf of Man, was given the lordship of Lorne and was ancestor of the MacDugals or MacDougals. Dugal, or variant spellings such as Dugald and Dougald, became popular in the Highlands and Islands. Doug is a pet name [for Dougal].”
Maybe not much to be gained by using Dougal instead of Douglas, as Doug might still be the short form used by others. I much prefer Douglas; for me, it’s a much stronger sounding and much more familiar name.
I know a baby Douglas! His name got very favorable reviews when it was announced. I love Douglas, but Doug will definitely always be a Nickelodeon cartoon to me. I just don’t know if there is anyway to avoid the shortened version. There is always Dougal which is lovely as well.
Congrats on your baby, Bridy! Verity, you asked yesterday on Facebook if there are names that the full name is appealing, but a nickname is not. This is one of those names for me. Love Douglas! However Doug makes me think of King of Queens, which is not really a reference I’d be looking for with my child. I can hear Keri in her nasally voice saying, “Dougie!”