Jackelyn
A feminine name of English origin, a variant spelling of Jacqueline, meaning "supplanter".
Name Census estimates that about 3,762 living Americans carry the first name Jackelyn. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Jackelyn today is around 27 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Jackelyn births was 2000 (193 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Jackelyn. 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
3.8K
~ 1 in 91,110 Americans
Peak year
2000
193 babies that year
Average age
27
years old
2024 SSA rank
#7,353
Tracked since 1943
Census
Jackelyn in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 3,315 people with the first name Jackelyn, which placed it at #5,240 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
#5,240
National first-name rank
People counted
3.3K
3,315 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
1.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
71.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Jackelyn
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Jackelyn is Hispanic at 71.2%. The next largest groups are White (21.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.5%). 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 Jackelyn 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 Jackelyn at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino71.2% · 2,359
- White21.9% · 727
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.5% · 116
- Black or African American1.9% · 63
- Two or more races1.2% · 40
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 10
Popularity
Jackelyn: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Jackelyn from the 1940s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 1,413 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Jackelyn 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 Jackelyn during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Jackelyns live
The SSA's state-level files cover 17 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Jackelyn, while Wisconsin, Utah, Massachusetts recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 134 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Jackelyn
The name Jackelyn is a feminine variant of the male name Jackson, which has its origins in the English language. The name Jackson is derived from the surname Jackson, which means "son of Jack." Jack is a diminutive form of the name John, which comes from the Hebrew name Yohanan, meaning "Yahweh is gracious."
Jackelyn as a given name gained popularity in the early 20th century, particularly in the United States and other English-speaking countries. It is believed to have emerged as a feminized version of Jackson, following the trend of creating feminine variations of traditionally masculine names.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Jackelyn can be found in the 1905 novel "The Princess Passes" by C.N. Williamson and A.M. Williamson, where a character bears this name. However, it is likely that the name was in use before this literary reference.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Jackelyn. One of the earliest recorded examples is Jackelyn Heloise Rodgers (1901-1988), an American actress and vaudeville performer who was active in the early 20th century.
Another prominent figure bearing this name is Jackelyn Zeman (born 1953), an American actress best known for her role as Bobbie Spencer on the long-running soap opera "General Hospital." She has been a part of the show since 1977 and has received multiple Daytime Emmy Award nominations for her performance.
In the literary world, Jackelyn Victoria "Jackie" D'Antenbring (born 1979) is an American author and illustrator of children's books, including the popular "Little Robin" series. Her work has been widely acclaimed and has introduced the name Jackelyn to a new generation of readers.
Jackelyn Myrrh (born 1973) is a British singer-songwriter and musician who has released several albums and has gained recognition for her unique blend of folk and alternative rock styles.
In the field of sports, Jackelyn Sanchez (born 1985) is a Mexican professional golfer who has competed on the Ladies European Tour and the LPGA Tour. She has won multiple tournaments throughout her career and has represented Mexico in international competitions.
These examples showcase the diverse backgrounds and achievements of individuals who have borne the name Jackelyn throughout history, contributing to its enduring popularity and cultural significance.
People
Jackelyn + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Jackelyn as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with J
Other first names starting with J with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Jackelyn: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Jackelyn?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 3,762 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Jackelyn 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 91,110 US residents.
Is Jackelyn a common name?
We classify Jackelyn as "Rare". It ranks above 95.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 3,890 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Jackelyn most popular?
The single biggest year for Jackelyn was 2000, when 193 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Jackelyn is about 27 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Jackelyn in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 3,315 people with the name Jackelyn, or 1.10 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #5,240 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 Jackelyn 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 Jackelyn?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Jackelyn appears almost entirely female. Of the 3,318 people counted with this name, 99.8% 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 Jackelyn?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Jackelyn is Hispanic at 71.2%. The next largest groups are White (21.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.5%). 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 Jackelyn most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Jackelyn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 71.2% (2,359 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 Jackelyn in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Jackelyn a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Jackelyn 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 Jackelyn still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Jackelyn 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 Jackelyn 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 many people have Jackelyn as a first name?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Jackelyn at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.