girls' name ★ peaked 1953

Gwendolyn

Gender Girl Rank 2025 #360 Trend → Stable
Rank 2025
#360
among girls · ↑33 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
848
named Gwendolyn · +5% vs 2024
How common
1 in 1,895
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1953
3,531 babies
All-time total
124,718
#319 all-time among girls
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Gwendolyn popularity over time

124,718 babies have been named Gwendolyn since 1880, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.511.5218801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s 45 – 45 5 – #773
1890s 205 – 205 21 +356% #562
1900s 775 – 775 78 +278% #314
1910s 4,331 – 4,331 433 +459% #246
1920s 8,658 19 8,677 868 +100% #203
1930s 10,108 71 10,179 1,018 +17% #168
1940s 18,344 63 18,407 1,841 +81% #114
1950s 31,945 104 32,049 3,205 +74% #112
1960s 18,635 57 18,692 1,869 -42% #161
1970s 7,914 19 7,933 793 -58% #254
1980s 3,838 – 3,838 384 -52% #441
1990s 2,983 – 2,983 298 -22% #661
2000s 4,548 – 4,548 455 +52% #564
2010s 7,174 – 7,174 717 +58% #370
2020s (to 2025) 4,882 – 4,882 814 +13% #360

Where Gwendolyn is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 851 0.53 #355
2027 853 0.53 #355
2028 855 0.53 #355
2029 857 0.53 #355
2030 858 0.53 #355

Where Gwendolyn is most popular

Girls named Gwendolyn per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.501 per 1,000. Strongest in Maine, Idaho, and New Hampshire.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Gwendolyn born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Maine 28 1.81 +262%
Idaho 54 1.61 +222%
New Hampshire 28 1.52 +203%
Oregon 93 1.43 +185%
Utah 100 1.20 +140%
North Dakota 15 1.14 +128%
Nebraska 39 1.08 +117%
Ohio 256 1.08 +116%
Missouri 130 1.08 +115%
Indiana 146 1.04 +108%
West Virginia 25 0.954 +91%
Wisconsin 98 0.951 +90%
Kentucky 81 0.947 +89%
Montana 12 0.886 +77%
Iowa 51 0.873 +74%
Michigan 156 0.856 +71%
Illinois 195 0.852 +70%
Colorado 93 0.833 +66%
Kansas 48 0.832 +66%
Minnesota 85 0.788 +57%
Virginia 131 0.769 +54%
Pennsylvania 179 0.757 +51%
Washington 103 0.713 +42%
South Dakota 10 0.700 +40%
Arkansas 34 0.643 +28%
Massachusetts 74 0.612 +22%
Connecticut 35 0.602 +20%
Alaska 5 0.581 +16%
Arizona 80 0.570 +14%
Maryland 60 0.566 +13%
Tennessee 88 0.555 +11%
Oklahoma 40 0.544 +9%
North Carolina 118 0.518 ≈ national
South Carolina 45 0.501 ≈ national
New Jersey 81 0.449 -10%
New York 170 0.429 -14%
Texas 318 0.395 -21%
California 317 0.377 -25%
Georgia 84 0.370 -26%
Alabama 33 0.351 -30%
Nevada 15 0.323 -36%
Florida 136 0.318 -37%
New Mexico 5 0.206 -59%
Louisiana 15 0.171 -66%
Mississippi 6 0.128 -74%
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Rhode Island – – –
Vermont – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Gwendolyn

Gwendolyn is moderately common for girls in the United States, ranked #360 in 2025 with 848 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 124,718 American babies have been named Gwendolyn. Its peak came in 1953, when 3,531 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1950s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Gwendolyn stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Gwendolyn?

The median living Gwendolyn is about 64 years old; half are between 44 and 73. An estimated 89 thousand people named Gwendolyn are alive in the United States today.

median 64 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Gwendolyn year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 848 #360 – –
2024 804 #393 – –
2023 814 #379 – –
2022 802 #389 – –
2021 794 #397 – –
2020 820 #378 – –
2019 852 #370 – –
2018 845 #371 – –
2017 822 #377 – –
2016 826 #402 – –
2015 791 #406 – –
2014 764 #422 – –
2013 651 #471 – –
2012 592 #514 – –
2011 513 #566 – –
2010 518 #561 – –
2009 522 #582 – –
2008 527 #590 – –
2007 455 #651 – –
2006 458 #629 – –
2005 508 #564 – –
2004 476 #590 – –
2003 458 #597 – –
2002 453 #578 – –
2001 374 #672 – –
2000 317 #732 – –
1995 228 #856 – –
1990 314 #681 – –
1985 410 #494 – –
1980 486 #441 – –
1975 791 #297 – –
1970 1,220 #254 6 #4,436
1965 1,702 #194 7 #3,370
1960 2,546 #163 9 #2,948
1955 3,457 #122 8 #3,063
1950 3,039 #113 5 #3,893
1945 1,560 #151 – –
1940 1,222 #169 10 #2,384
1935 983 #180 8 #2,798
1930 959 #200 5 #4,228
1925 889 #218 – –
1920 758 #236 – –
1915 575 #246 – –
1910 151 #311 – –
1905 68 #410 – –
1900 37 #571 – –
1895 28 #566 – –
1890 11 #848 – –
1885 – – – –
1880 5 #871 – –

Famous people named Gwendolyn

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Gwendolyn Brooks Gwendolyn Brooks American writer (1917–2000) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Gwendolyn, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Gwendolyn?

The median living Gwendolyn is about 64 years old. Half of all living Gwendolyns are between 44 and 73 years old.

How many people named Gwendolyn are alive today?

An estimated 89 thousand people named Gwendolyn are alive in the United States, based on 124,718 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

How popular is the name Gwendolyn in 2025?

Gwendolyn ranked #360 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 848 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Gwendolyn?

124,718 babies have been named Gwendolyn in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Gwendolyn most popular?

Gwendolyn peaked in 1953, when 3,531 newborns received the name.

Is Gwendolyn a boy or girl name?

Gwendolyn is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Gwendolyn rising or falling?

Gwendolyn is on the rise, noticeably more popular now than a decade ago.

Will Gwendolyn become more popular?

Gwendolyn looks stable. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 858 girls named Gwendolyn in 2030, ranking around #355. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Gwendolyn?

Well-known people named Gwendolyn include Gwendolyn Brooks (writer).

Names like Gwendolyn

Names that sound and feel close to Gwendolyn: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Gwendolyn with similar names → More names starting with G →