Gaylene
A feminine name of English origin, a combination of gail meaning "lively" and Lyn meaning "lake" or "pool".
Name Census estimates that about 1,717 living Americans carry the first name Gaylene. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Gaylene today is around 67 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Gaylene births was 1956 (118 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Gaylene. 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.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Gaylene is about 67 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Gaylenes were born before 1969.
People living today
1.7K
~ 1 in 199,624 Americans
Peak year
1956
118 babies that year
Average age
67
years old
1995 SSA rank
#14,190
Tracked since 1931
Popularity
Gaylene: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Gaylene from the 1930s through to the 1990s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 896 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Gaylene 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 Gaylene during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Gaylenes live
The SSA's state-level files cover 15 states and territories. California, Utah, Nebraska recorded the most babies named Gaylene, while Pennsylvania, Illinois, Michigan recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 64 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Gaylene
Gaylene is an English given name with origins rooted in the Gaelic language. It emerged as a feminine variant of the male name Galen, which itself derived from the Greek word "galēnos," meaning "calm" or "serene." The name's earliest recorded use dates back to the 19th century.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name Gaylene was Gaylene Gomez, a Cuban-American actress born in 1944. She is best known for her roles in television series such as "Sanford and Son" and "What's Happening!!" in the 1970s and 1980s.
Another notable figure was Gaylene Preston, a New Zealand filmmaker and writer born in 1947. She is renowned for her award-winning films, including "Mr. Wrong" (1985) and "Perfect Strangers" (2003), which explored themes of identity and societal issues.
In the literary world, Gaylene Dunbar, an American children's book author born in 1959, gained recognition for her works, such as "Tell Me Something Happy Before I Go to Sleep" (1999) and "Her Seven Brothers" (2007), which celebrate diversity and family bonds.
The name also has a connection to the sports realm, with Gaylene Clew, an Australian sprinter born in 1958. She represented her country in the 1980 and 1984 Olympic Games and won multiple gold medals at the Commonwealth Games.
Another notable bearer of the name was Gaylene Gould, an American medical researcher born in 1942. She made significant contributions to the study of cardiovascular diseases and was a pioneer in the field of medical technology.
While the name Gaylene has its roots in the Gaelic and Greek languages, it has transcended cultural boundaries and gained popularity across various regions, with individuals from diverse backgrounds embracing its unique and serene essence.
People
Gaylene + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Gaylene as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Gaylene: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Gaylene?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,717 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Gaylene 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 199,624 US residents.
Is Gaylene a common name?
We classify Gaylene as "Rare". It ranks above 93.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,570 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Gaylene most popular?
The single biggest year for Gaylene was 1956, when 118 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Gaylene is about 67 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Gaylene a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Gaylene 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.