Arlene
Arleen or Arlene is an Irish feminine given name and variant of Carlene or Charlene and in the French derived from feminine diminutive of Charles.
Meaning & Origin of Arlene
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Arleen or Arlene is an Irish feminine given name and variant of Carlene or Charlene and in the French derived from feminine diminutive of Charles.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
The Story of Arlene
Arlene first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1888, with 9 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1934, when 3,917 Arlenes were born — ranking #53 that year. As of 2026, Arlene ranks #1,897 for baby girls with 105 births, gradually falling (-13%). In total, more than 143K Arlenes have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1880s through the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Names that sound like Arlene
Phonetically similar names — useful when Arlene is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Arlene
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About the name Arlene
Arlene is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1888 and has accumulated 143K births in the dataset. Arlene's peak popularity came in 1934 when it ranked #53. Use the chart and map above to compare Arlene's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 1934 →
- Names of the 1930s →
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- Browse all girl names →
- Top names of 2026 →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.