Azalee
A feminine name derived from the azalea flower, symbolizing fragility and beauty.
Name Census estimates that about 497 living Americans carry the first name Azalee. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Azalee today is around 36 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Azalee births was 1924 (50 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Azalee. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
497
~ 1 in 689,647 Americans
Peak year
1924
50 babies that year
Average age
36
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,404
Tracked since 1897
Popularity
Azalee: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Azalee from the 1890s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 359 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Azalee by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Azalee during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Azalees live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. South Carolina, Georgia, North Carolina recorded the most babies named Azalee, while Tennessee, Texas, North Carolina recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 117 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Azalee
The name Azalee is believed to have originated from the French word "azalée," which means "azalea" – a type of flowering shrub. This name likely emerged in the late 18th or early 19th century, during a period of fascination with nature and floral names in France.
The azalea plant itself has roots tracing back to ancient Greece, where it was known as "kalmia" or "rhododendron." The name Azalee is thought to be a modern adaptation of these older botanical terms, reflecting the growing interest in natural motifs and themes during the Romantic era.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Azalee can be found in the works of French author and playwright Victor Hugo (1802-1885). In his novel "Les Misérables," published in 1862, he included a minor character named Azalee, possibly as a nod to the growing popularity of floral names.
Another notable Azalee in history was Azalee Barlow (1858-1949), an American educator and suffragist. She played a significant role in the women's suffrage movement and worked tirelessly to secure the right to vote for women in the United States.
In the world of literature, Azalee Baug (1900-1978) was a renowned Indian poet and writer. She wrote extensively in the Sindhi language and is regarded as one of the most influential literary figures of her time in the region.
The name Azalee also found its way into the world of politics with Azalee Frith (1913-2005), a British Labour Party politician who served as a Member of Parliament for several years in the mid-20th century.
Lastly, Azalee Smarte (1935-2019) was a prominent African-American artist known for her vibrant abstract paintings and collages. Her work explored themes of identity, race, and the African diaspora, and she was celebrated for her unique artistic vision.
People
Azalee + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Azalee as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Azalee: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Azalee?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 497 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Azalee going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 689,647 US residents.
Is Azalee a common name?
We classify Azalee as "Very Rare". It ranks above 84.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,512 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Azalee most popular?
The single biggest year for Azalee was 1924, when 50 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Azalee is about 36 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Azalee a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Azalee in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.