Colene
A feminine name derived from Nicholas, meaning "victory of the people."
Name Census estimates that about 798 living Americans carry the first name Colene. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Colene today is around 62 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Colene births was 1931 (47 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Colene. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Colene with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
798
~ 1 in 429,517 Americans
Peak year
1931
47 babies that year
Average age
62
years old
1997 SSA rank
#14,209
Tracked since 1908
Census
Colene in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,038 people with the first name Colene, which placed it at #12,115 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#12,115
National first-name rank
People counted
1.0K
1,038 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
83.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Colene
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Colene is White at 83.8%. The next largest groups are Black (8.3%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Colene described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Colene at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.8% · 870
- Black or African American8.3% · 86
- Two or more races3.6% · 37
- Hispanic or Latino2.2% · 23
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 13
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 9
Popularity
Colene: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Colene from the 1900s through to the 1990s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1930s, with 358 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1930s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Colene 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 Colene during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Colenes live
The SSA's state-level files cover 9 states and territories. North Carolina, Kentucky, California recorded the most babies named Colene, while Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Nebraska recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 16 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Colene
The name Colene is a feminine given name with roots in the Greek language. Its origins can be traced back to the ancient Greek word "kolene," which means "sheath" or "scabbard." This word was often used in reference to the protective covering for a sword or other bladed weapon.
In ancient Greek culture, the name Colene may have been inspired by the idea of protection, strength, and resilience, perhaps symbolizing the bearer's ability to withstand challenges or safeguard others. However, the precise reasoning behind its adoption as a personal name remains uncertain.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Colene can be found in the writings of the ancient Greek historian and philosopher Plutarch, who lived from around 46 to 120 AD. In his work "Parallel Lives," Plutarch makes mention of a woman named Colene, though few details about her life or significance are provided.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Colene. One such individual was Colene Clemens, an American author and the niece of the famous writer Mark Twain. Born in 1888 and lived until 1962, she authored several books, including a biography of her uncle titled "My Husband, Gabrilowitsch."
Another prominent Colene was Colene Hoback, a American jazz singer and actress who achieved popularity in the 1940s and 1950s. Born in 1925 and passed away in 1976, she was known for her performances in films such as "Swing Parade" and "Moonlight in Havana."
In the realm of sports, Colene Douglas made her mark as a professional tennis player from the United States. Born in 1961, she competed in several Grand Slam tournaments during the 1980s and reached a career-high ranking of No. 27 in the world.
Another notable figure was Colene Watters, a Canadian artist and sculptor who lived from 1892 to 1983. Her works were featured in numerous exhibitions and are held in the collections of several prestigious museums, including the National Gallery of Canada.
Lastly, Colene Louter was a Dutch journalist and writer born in 1934. She was known for her contributions to various newspapers and magazines, as well as her work as a novelist and children's book author.
People
Colene + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Colene as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Colene: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Colene?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 798 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Colene 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 429,517 US residents.
Is Colene a common name?
We classify Colene as "Very Rare". It ranks above 88.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,624 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Colene most popular?
The single biggest year for Colene was 1931, when 47 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Colene is about 62 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Colene in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,038 people with the name Colene, or 0.34 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #12,115 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Colene in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Colene?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Colene appears almost entirely female. Of the 1,047 people counted with this name, 99.7% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Colene?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Colene is White at 83.8%. The next largest groups are Black (8.3%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Colene most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Colene in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.8% (870 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Colene in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Colene a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Colene 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.
Is Colene still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Colene in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Colene can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
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.
How common is the name Colene?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.