| Dimitri | Basil | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Follower of Demeter | kingly, royal |
| Origin | Greek | greek |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | dih-MEE-tree | BAZ-il |
| Syllables | 3 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1917 | 0 |
| Peak year | 1992 (401) | 1924 (281) |
| In 2025 | 195 | 0 |
| Trend | Steady | Vintage |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Dimitri | Basil |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 1,248 | 444 |
| 2010s | 2,111 | 548 |
| 2000s | 1,985 | 537 |
| 1990s | 2,506 | 661 |
| 1980s | 679 | 572 |
| 1970s | 457 | 577 |
| 1960s | 321 | 873 |
| 1950s | 147 | 1,090 |
| 1940s | 72 | 1,293 |
| 1930s | 38 | 1,705 |
| 1920s | 18 | 2,451 |
| 1910s | 12 | 1,719 |
| 1900s | 0 | 334 |
| 1890s | 0 | 244 |
| 1880s | 0 | 124 |
Dimitri honours Demeter, the Greek goddess of the harvest and earth.
From Greek 'basileios', meaning 'kingly, royal', derived from 'basileus' ('king'). Carried by Saint Basil the Great. The sense is the adjective 'royal/kingly' rather than the noun 'king'. (The herb shares the same root.)
Dimitri is more popular than Basil today: about 195 US babies were given the name Dimitri in 2025, compared with 0 named Basil.
Dimitri means Follower of Demeter (Greek origin), while Basil means kingly, royal (greek origin).
In US records, Dimitri first appears in 1917 and Basil in 0, so Basil has the longer recorded history.