girls' name ★ peaked 1974

Jolene

Meaning A female given name originating as a coinage Gender Girl Rank 2025 #666 Trend ↓ Falling 25%

A female given name originating as a coinage.

Rank 2025
#666
among girls · ↓63 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
423
named Jolene · -15% vs 2024
How common
1 in 3,800
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1974
1,060 babies
All-time total
36,236
#733 all-time among girls
First recorded
1918
in Social Security records

Jolene popularity over time

36,236 babies have been named Jolene since 1918, 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
0.250.50.75118801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
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 – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – – – – – –
1910s 14 – 14 1 – #4,040
1920s 226 – 226 23 +1514% #947
1930s 999 – 999 100 +342% #492
1940s 2,347 – 2,347 235 +135% #454
1950s 4,820 – 4,820 482 +105% #364
1960s 4,789 – 4,789 479 -1% #378
1970s 6,018 12 6,030 603 +26% #245
1980s 5,293 – 5,293 529 -12% #315
1990s 1,784 – 1,784 178 -66% #793
2000s 1,966 – 1,966 197 +10% #1,044
2010s 4,514 – 4,514 451 +130% #450
2020s (to 2025) 3,454 – 3,454 576 +28% #455

Where Jolene 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 402 0.25 outside top 500
2027 385 0.24 outside top 500
2028 371 0.23 outside top 500
2029 360 0.22 outside top 500
2030 350 0.22 outside top 500

Where Jolene is most popular

Girls named Jolene per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.346 per 1,000. Strongest in Oregon, West Virginia, and Indiana.

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 Jolene 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
Oregon 47 0.722 +109%
West Virginia 17 0.649 +87%
Indiana 90 0.641 +85%
Ohio 149 0.628 +82%
Kansas 35 0.607 +75%
Missouri 69 0.573 +65%
California 471 0.560 +62%
Michigan 101 0.554 +60%
Washington 74 0.512 +48%
Wisconsin 52 0.505 +46%
Pennsylvania 119 0.503 +45%
Oklahoma 32 0.435 +26%
Colorado 48 0.430 +24%
Virginia 72 0.422 +22%
Idaho 14 0.418 +21%
Tennessee 65 0.410 +19%
Minnesota 43 0.398 +15%
Kentucky 33 0.386 +12%
Florida 165 0.386 +11%
Arizona 54 0.385 +11%
Montana 5 0.369 +7%
Texas 290 0.361 ≈ national
Arkansas 19 0.360 ≈ national
Illinois 75 0.328 -5%
Nevada 15 0.323 -7%
Massachusetts 39 0.323 -7%
New York 126 0.318 -8%
North Carolina 70 0.307 -11%
Maryland 31 0.293 -15%
New Mexico 7 0.288 -17%
Louisiana 25 0.286 -17%
New Jersey 48 0.266 -23%
South Carolina 23 0.256 -26%
Connecticut 13 0.223 -35%
Iowa 12 0.205 -41%
Georgia 38 0.167 -52%
Nebraska 5 0.139 -60%
Alabama 12 0.128 -63%
Utah 9 0.108 -69%
Alaska – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Maine – – –
Mississippi – – –
North Dakota – – –
New Hampshire – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Dakota – – –
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 Jolene

Jolene is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #666 in 2025 with 423 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1918, 36,236 American babies have been named Jolene. Its peak came in 1974, when 1,060 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1970s.

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 Jolene stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Jolene?

The median living Jolene is about 45 years old; half are between 17 and 61. An estimated 33 thousand people named Jolene are alive in the United States today.

median 45 020406080100

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

Jolene 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 423 #666 – –
2024 497 #603 – –
2023 555 #544 – –
2022 645 #488 – –
2021 687 #455 – –
2020 647 #475 – –
2019 693 #450 – –
2018 692 #455 – –
2017 691 #460 – –
2016 544 #573 – –
2015 384 #734 – –
2014 388 #722 – –
2013 277 #919 – –
2012 298 #889 – –
2011 284 #916 – –
2010 263 #970 – –
2009 239 #1,070 – –
2008 228 #1,131 – –
2007 194 #1,269 – –
2006 204 #1,190 – –
2005 193 #1,189 – –
2004 222 #1,044 – –
2003 186 #1,165 – –
2002 181 #1,146 – –
2001 170 #1,202 – –
2000 149 #1,294 – –
1995 159 #1,117 – –
1990 254 #793 – –
1985 447 #471 – –
1980 718 #337 – –
1975 998 #248 5 #5,874
1970 383 #512 – –
1965 451 #448 – –
1960 522 #427 – –
1955 531 #382 – –
1950 352 #431 – –
1945 194 #527 – –
1940 186 #508 – –
1935 93 #696 – –
1930 49 #1,055 – –
1925 15 #2,432 – –
1920 9 #3,461 – –
1915 – – – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Jolene

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

  1. 1 Jolene Blalock Jolene Blalock American actress and model b. 1975 · Contemporary
  2. 2 Jolene Purdy American actress b. 1983 · Contemporary
  3. 3 Jolene Marie Rotinsulu Jolene Marie Rotinsulu Indonesian beauty pageant winner b. 1996 · Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Jolene?

The median living Jolene is about 45 years old. Half of all living Jolenes are between 17 and 61 years old.

How many people named Jolene are alive today?

An estimated 33 thousand people named Jolene are alive in the United States, based on 36,236 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Jolene mean?

A female given name originating as a coinage.

How popular is the name Jolene in 2025?

Jolene ranked #666 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 423 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Jolene?

36,236 babies have been named Jolene in the United States since 1918, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Jolene most popular?

Jolene peaked in 1974, when 1,060 newborns received the name.

Is Jolene a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Jolene rising or falling?

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

Will Jolene become more popular?

Jolene is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 350 girls named Jolene in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Jolene?

Well-known people named Jolene include Jolene Blalock (actor), Jolene Purdy (actor), Jolene Marie Rotinsulu (model).

Names like Jolene

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

Compare Jolene with similar names → More names starting with J →