Discover and Shortlist Your Perfect Baby Names!

Du as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Du

Add to my Name List

The baby name Du is a Unisex name , 1 syllables long and is pronounced {'general_english': '/duː/ ("doo")', 'mandarin': 'pinyin Dù — approx. /tu/ with a falling tone ("doo" with falling tone)', 'vietnamese': 'Northern /zu/; Southern /ju/ (approx. "zoo" or "yoo") depending on dialect', 'korean': '/du/ (두, "doo")', 'gaelic': 'varies; from dubh often realized /duː/ or /dʊ/ depending on dialect'}.

Du is Chinese, Gaelic, Korean, Vietnamese in Origin.

Gender: Unisex
Syllables: 1.0
Pronunciation: {'general_english': '/duː/ ("doo")', 'mandarin': 'pinyin Dù — approx. /tu/ with a falling tone ("doo" with falling tone)', 'vietnamese': 'Northern /zu/; Southern /ju/ (approx. "zoo" or "yoo") depending on dialect', 'korean': '/du/ (두, "doo")', 'gaelic': 'varies; from dubh often realized /duː/ or /dʊ/ depending on dialect'}

What is the meaning of the name Du ?

The baby name Du is a Unisex name , 1 syllables long and is pronounced {'general_english': '/duː/ ("doo")', 'mandarin': 'pinyin Dù — approx. /tu/ with a falling tone ("doo" with falling tone)', 'vietnamese': 'Northern /zu/; Southern /ju/ (approx. "zoo" or "yoo") depending on dialect', 'korean': '/du/ (두, "doo")', 'gaelic': 'varies; from dubh often realized /duː/ or /dʊ/ depending on dialect'}.

Du is Chinese, Gaelic, Korean, Vietnamese in Origin.

Du is a compact East Asian name. In Mandarin pinyin it most commonly renders the Chinese surname 杜 (Dù), which means “to stop, restrain” and also names a tree; as a given name its sense depends on the chosen character. In Vietnamese, Du functions as a given name from various Sino-Vietnamese graphs such as 遊 (“to wander”), 由 (“origin”), or 攸 (“distant”). In Korean, Du (두) appears as a given‑name element from hanja like 斗 (“dipper; measure”).

As a surname, Du is long established in China - most famously borne by the Tang poet Du Fu - and the name is familiar in Vietnam through the writer Nguyễn Du. Variants and cognates include Tu (Wade–Giles), To/Tou (Cantonese), Do (Korean for 杜), and Đỗ (the Vietnamese cognate surname). Du is unisex; in Chinese it seldom stands alone as a given name, but across Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean it frequently forms part of compound names.

Du has the following similar or variant Names

Du – Popularity by country

Based on birth registration data from national statistics agencies.

Country Gender Year Rank Born of
KR Boys 0 #27 1 897
GE 0 #44 1 997
AO 0 #77 1 2,729
MV Boys 0 #79 1 3,375
CN 0 #80 7 3,857
SI 0 #80 1 1,612
TW 0 #101 3 4,523
GE Boys 0 #105 6 2,055
PH 0 #109 2 5,607
BN Girls 0 #114 1 5,459
KW 0 #119 3 5,216
OM 0 #121 1 6,215
IQ 0 #130 4 3,533
AZ Boys 0 #131 1 1,400
ID Boys 0 #135 1 4,130
BN Boys 0 #139 1 6,332
LT Boys 0 #148 4 2,166
BW Girls 0 #151 1 4,216
BW Boys 0 #152 3 4,685
CR 0 #165 1 5,526
CZ 0 #185 2 3,154
LU Girls 0 #186 5 4,850
AE 0 #187 1 10,220
RU 0 #193 2 3,641
SI Boys 0 #208 4 3,402
AO Girls 0 #209 9 4,575
LU Boys 0 #219 2 4,970
HU Girls 0 #225 1 3,308
MO Boys 0 #226 9 5,842
AL Girls 0 #227 1 4,141
TW Boys 0 #229 13 7,111
IR 0 #231 1 4,221
MO Girls 0 #233 19 7,056
BD 0 #241 1 5,992
AO Boys 0 #245 5 5,568
HR Boys 0 #247 12 3,997
JP Girls 0 #250 2 6,592
NA Boys 0 #250 4 6,830
PT 0 #250 1 4,161
CN Boys 0 #256 66 9,639
SG 0 #257 13 11,010
CN Girls 0 #272 78 8,829
AF Boys 0 #274 1 3,535
TW Girls 0 #284 6 8,139
JM Boys 0 #290 4 6,876
HR Girls 0 #291 4 3,687
CZ Boys 0 #293 12 6,530
KZ Boys 0 #294 3 6,578
AL Boys 0 #298 6 5,122
JP Boys 0 #299 5 7,909
SA 0 #311 2 10,560
PT Boys 0 #327 41 7,951
DK Girls 0 #328 2 7,429
PE 0 #328 2 6,350
DK Boys 0 #331 2 7,401
KZ Girls 0 #332 1 5,862
PL Boys 0 #334 7 6,459
BR 0 #336 10 5,969
GT 0 #337 2 5,948
JO Girls 0 #339 1 7,570
QA Girls 0 #342 2 15,378
MY 0 #346 9 12,352
CZ Girls 0 #350 2 5,378
SD Girls 0 #353 6 7,678
HK 0 #354 4 8,483
PL Girls 0 #357 8 5,096
GH Boys 0 #359 3 8,138
MU Girls 0 #361 2 8,539
MU Boys 0 #364 6 8,477
EG 0 #389 12 6,387
JO Boys 0 #389 1 7,057
YE 0 #397 2 8,639
BD Girls 0 #402 5 8,413
PH Boys 0 #402 7 11,440
UY Boys 0 #413 1 5,922
IQ Girls 0 #419 86 11,303
OM Girls 0 #422 3 15,987
PH Girls 0 #426 4 13,098
Austria Boys 0 #432 11 2,180
CL 0 #433 2 6,867
ZA 0 #433 15 14,421
PT Girls 0 #441 11 7,952
MX 0 #442 4 8,339
SD Boys 0 #462 5 10,523
AR Boys 0 #482 2 7,628
HK Boys 0 #503 25 12,905
PA Boys 0 #504 2 9,305
CR Boys 0 #507 4 10,188
SG Girls 0 #514 73 18,916
RU Girls 0 #517 7 11,913
PA Girls 0 #518 1 9,861
RU Boys 0 #519 8 12,621
AE Girls 0 #531 23 20,968
UY Girls 0 #536 1 6,731
IR Boys 0 #540 13 10,162
PS Girls 0 #545 3 10,981
BR Boys 0 #550 209 12,213
LY 0 #551 9 12,703
KW Girls 0 #555 7 19,177
PS Boys 0 #556 6 10,655
CM Girls 0 #560 1 11,671
CR Girls 0 #565 9 11,342
BD Boys 0 #567 10 10,045
CM Boys 0 #571 5 12,054
HK Girls 0 #573 43 16,104
BH 0 #586 2 17,937
IL Boys 0 #618 8 10,983
IQ Boys 0 #618 50 13,071
BO Boys 0 #619 4 9,244
SG Boys 0 #624 74 17,960
AR Girls 0 #630 1 8,289
IL Girls 0 #643 3 11,648
BO Girls 0 #647 5 9,488
IN Girls 0 #652 3 13,121
LB 0 #688 3 13,263
CL Boys 0 #693 8 13,390
QA Boys 0 #698 10 18,093
IT 0 #705 10 4,183
SY 0 #718 11 11,684
Germany Girls 0 #795 44 4,949
KW Boys 0 #799 8 18,755
TN 0 #808 22 13,765
EG Girls 0 #816 144 14,742
NG Girls 0 #821 6 15,093
EG Boys 0 #861 26 15,035
PE Boys 0 #863 16 14,506
BR Girls 0 #872 70 12,708
Germany Boys 0 #877 76 5,697
CO Boys 0 #886 35 15,656
SA Girls 0 #894 42 25,931
OM Boys 0 #910 9 17,948
CL Girls 0 #913 3 14,098
Spain Boys 0 #915 16 5,610
MA 0 #923 206 20,986
NL Boys 0 #935 17 5,873
NL Girls 0 #943 13 5,933
MY Girls 0 #962 33 24,821
Spain Girls 0 #972 12 5,561
MX Boys 0 #973 10 16,355
IN Boys 0 #990 12 16,750
NG Boys 0 #996 6 16,906
MY Boys 0 #998 114 25,439
PE Girls 0 #1,006 5 14,861
AE Boys 0 #1,025 68 22,615
ZA Girls 0 #1,084 58 25,928
ZA Boys 0 #1,119 60 25,619
DZ 0 #1,139 38 20,130
CO Girls 0 #1,146 7 16,140
MX Girls 0 #1,167 17 17,781
TR 0 #1,182 30 19,440
IT Boys 0 #1,407 65 10,046
IT Girls 0 #1,408 39 9,415
SA Boys 0 #1,530 85 28,008

Du is popular in 75 countries — most recent births per country:

AE
AF
AL
AO
AR

Did we miss something about this name? Let us know!

People also ask about Du

Du is a unisex name, given to both boys and girls.
Du is a one syllable name, pronounced {'general_english': '/duː/ ("doo")', 'mandarin': 'pinyin Dù — approx. /tu/ with a falling tone ("doo" with falling tone)', 'vietnamese': 'Northern /zu/; Southern /ju/ (approx. "zoo" or "yoo") depending on dialect', 'korean': '/du/ (두, "doo")', 'gaelic': 'varies; from dubh often realized /duː/ or /dʊ/ depending on dialect'}.
Common nicknames and spelling variations include Dù (Mandarin with tone), Dụ, Dư, Dự (Vietnamese diacritics/variants), 두 (Du — Korean hangul) and Dubh (older Gaelic form).
Across languages, Du has these equivalents: {'dark_black': ["Blake (English, 'black'), 'Duff (Gaelic, from dubh), "Donn (Irish, 'brown/dark'), 'travel_wander': ["Peregrine (Latin/French-rooted, 'traveler'), 'Walker (English occupational), and 1 more.
Du is a name of Chinese origin, traditionally used in China. It doesn't appear in the major international birth registries we track, but it is an established name within China and its diaspora communities.