Arlene

Where Arlene comes from

A nineteenth-century coinage probably based on similar-sounding names such as Charlene and Arlette.
— Wiktionary's entry for Arlene
  • Vowel-ended
Along the way
  1. 1888
    First appearance
    #894 among girls, 9 babies — the first year at least five got the name.
  2. 1925
    Arlene Dahl born
    American actress
  3. 1934
    Peak, #53
    3,917 babies named Arlene — more than any year before or since.
  4. 1956
    The fade
    The first year with half the peak's births — down to #191.
  5. 1970
    Arlene Foster born
    British politician
In the dictionary
  • A female given name originating as a coinage.
Namesakes
  • Arlene Dahl · American actress, 1925–2021
  • Arlene Foster · British politician, born 1970
  • Arlene Francis · American actress and television host, 1907–2001
  • Arlene Martel · American writer, actress and acting coach, 1936–2014
  • Arlene Golonka · actress, 1936–2021

Sources: the origin note and dictionary entry are quoted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); the namesakes come from Wikidata (CC0); the milestones are worked out from the SSA record.