US rank #4770 Girls' name Peak 1939 12,592 births

Arleen — #4770 US girls' name

12,592 babies named Arleen in U.S. Social Security records since 1898, with the highest year being 1939. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1890s121900s731910s5361920s16101930s15371940s25601950s21821960s18121970s3311980s3041990s3722000s5472010s5272020s189
#4770
of 17,661 girls in use

More common than 73% of names given to girls today.

1940s
Peak decade

20% of everyone ever named Arleen was born in this single decade.

1939
Single peak year

415 babies were named Arleen in 1939 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Arleen

The Social Security Administration has registered 12,592 babies named Arleen between 1898 and 2024, spanning 127 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a girl's name, Arleen currently holds the #4770 rank among girls for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1939, when 415 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Arleen performed strongest in the 1940s, accumulating 2,560 births during that ten-year window. Across the 14 decades of recorded activity, Arleen shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in New York, which accounts for 2,027 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by California and Pennsylvania. In total, SSA state-level files list Arleen in 38 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Arleen in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 12,592 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Arleen at a glance

Outside the top 1,000

Total births

12,592

Since 1898

127 years of records

Peak year

1939

415 births that year

Strongest decade: 1940s

Current rank

#4,770

Among girls

As of 2024

Active since

1898

Recorded for 127 years

Last year on file: 2024

Arleen popularity over time — girls

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1898

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1939)
415
Annual births at peak — across 127 years of records
-1000100200300400500 202420081992197619601944192819121898 5

Arleen popularity over time — boys

6 total births recorded since 1942 (Arleen as boys' name)

Unisex variant — 6 births
6 1942 6

Arleen by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 1940s
Peak decade
1940s
2,560 births that decade — 20% of Arleen's all-time total
1890s121900s731910s5361920s16101930s15371940s25601950s21821960s18121970s3311980s3041990s3722000s5472010s5272020s189

Arleen by state

Where Arleen concentrates geographically — total births since 1898

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Arleen
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 New York
2,027 16.1%
#2 California
1,830 14.5%
#3 Pennsylvania
572 4.5%
#4 New Jersey
564 4.5%
#5 Wisconsin
559 4.4%
#6 Texas
486 3.9%
#7 Illinois
484 3.8%
#8 Michigan
394 3.1%
New York share of Arleen's total US births 16.1%
Even split

2,027 of 12,592 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 38 reporting states.

Arleen appears in 38 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Arleen?
12,592 babies have been named Arleen since 1898. It currently ranks #4770 among girls. The peak year was 1939 with 415 births.
When was Arleen most popular?
Arleen was most popular in the 1940s decade with 2,560 total births. The single peak year was 1939.
Where is Arleen most popular?
The top states for the name Arleen are New York (2,027 births), California (1,830 births), Pennsylvania (572 births).
How long has the name Arleen been used?
Arleen has been recorded in Social Security data since 1898, spanning 127 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Arleen?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Arlene, Arline, Arlette, Arleth, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.

Keep exploring Arleen

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Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1898–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.