Dawn is an English word name that means "daybreak" or "first light", the moment the sun rises; it is the English counterpart of the Latin Aurora. It was especially popular in the United States in the 1960s and early 1970s, when it ranked among the top 20 girls' names. Dawn ranked number 910 in 2000, slipped out of the top 1000 soon after and stands at number 2174 in 2025.