Dakota

Native American tribe and place name; Sioux
"friendly one"

Dakota Origin and Meaning

The name Dakota is a girl's name of Native American origin meaning "friendly one".

A Native American tribe name which is found in the names of two US states, Dakota was one of the first trendy nineties place names, but is now flagging a little in popularity. The cultural question around using a Native American tribe name as a baby name may be partly to blame.

Young actress Dakota Fanning helped give it a feminine spin; Rosie O'Donnell chose it for her newborn daughter. Interestingly, Dakota is one of those rare trulyunisex baby names used for almost exactly equal numbers of girls and boys.

# 262 in the US

Dakota Rank in US Top 1000

# 961 on Nameberry

Dakota Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Dakota Popularity

Famous People Named Dakota

  • (Hannah) Dakota Fanning
    American actress
  • Dakota Johnson
    American actress; daughter of actor Don Johnson
  • Dakota Staton
    American jazz singer
  • Dakota Blue Richards
    British actress
  • Dakota Ulissa Culkin
    sister of actor Macaulay Culkin
  • Dakota O'Donnell
    daughter of Rosie O'Donnell and Michelle Rounds
  • Dakota Runnels
    daughter of pro wrestlers Dustin and Terri Runnels
  • Dakota Woodside (b. 2009)
    daughter of actors D.B. Woodside and Golden Brooks

Dakota in Pop Culture

  • North Dakota
    American state
  • South Dakota
    American state
  • Dakota Whitney
    character from"The X Files: I Want to Believe"
  • Dakota
    song from pop punk band A Rocket to the Moon
  • Dakota Condor
    character from tv show "Sonny with a Chance"