Jolene
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Meaning
modern coined name, combination of Jo and the popular name suffix -lene
Goes by Jojo. See all nicknames
The story
Jolene was assembled, not inherited: Jo plus the suffix -lene, a build the early twentieth century liked. The American record shows 14 girls in the 1910s, then a steady mid-century climb to 4,820 in the 1950s. Then 1973 happened. Dolly Parton released a song called Jolene, and the name got a boost it never asked for: 6,018 girls in the 1970s, the largest figure in its record to that point. The 1990s cooled to 1,784, and then the revival arrived, 4,514 in the 2010s and 3,454 so far this decade. Half a century on, the song still does the introductions. Somewhere every day, a Jolene hears her own name sung back to her, and has to decide, once again, to take it as a compliment.
Jolene in song
Jolene
Dolly Parton (1973)
Dolly Parton pleading with a red-haired beauty not to take her man, built on a real bank teller who flirted with her husband.
How popular is Jolene around the world?
In the United States, 3,454 babies were named Jolene between 2020 and 2025.
Jolene is on the official records of the United States, Canada, South Australia, England and Wales, Austria, Mexico City and Brazil.
United States
1 in 6,300
In the United States, 3,454 babies were named Jolene between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Jolene peaked in the 2010s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure. In US birth records Jolene has stayed between 1,784 and 6,030 births in every decade since the 1950s: a name everyone knows and few children get.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Canada
1 in 8,700
In Canada, 42 girls named Jolene were born in 2024, the 685th most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
South Australia
1 in 18,0002017
In South Australia, 1 girl was registered as Jolene in 2017.
The count never rose above 8 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
England and Wales
1 in 65,000
In England and Wales, 9 girls named Jolene were born in 2025, ranked 2,788th among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Austria
1 in 76,000
In Austria, 1 girl named Jolene was born in 2025, ranked 1,875th among girls that year, spellings that differ only by special characters counted together.
The count never rose above 6 in a year, too few to chart.
Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)
Mexico City City
1 in 120,000
In Mexico City, there was 1 registration of Jolene in 2022.
The count never rose above 5 in a year, too few to chart.
Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023, a partial extract through 3 Mar with no cell on record for this name, is excluded. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023
Brazil
1 in 1M
At the 2022 census, 157 people in Brazil were named Jolene, ranked 30,139th, with a median age of 40.
Among people named Jolene living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1980s than in any other decade.
people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth
People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
Ireland
last on record 2023
Jolene is not on the 2025 record for Ireland, where names under 3 in a year are withheld at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
New Zealand
last on record 1990
Jolene is not on the 2025 record for New Zealand, where names under 10 in a year are excluded at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Poland
last on record 2017
Jolene is not on the 2025 record for Poland, where names given fewer than 2 times in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)
Scotland
last on record 2006
Jolene is not on the 2024 record for Scotland, where spellings under 3 in total are suppressed at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
Not on the record in Spain, Argentina and Puerto Rico: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Jolene
People given the name Jolene in the United States span the generations: the middle half were born anywhere from 1960 to 2019. Age is the one thing the name won't tell you.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
The Jolene deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Jolene truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Jolene fits with your family’s names and surname.
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