Lolly
A feminine name derived from the endearing term for a lollipop.
Name Census estimates that about 226 living Americans carry the first name Lolly. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Lolly today is around 55 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Lolly births was 1959 (18 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Lolly. 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
226
~ 1 in 1,516,612 Americans
Peak year
1959
18 babies that year
Average age
55
years old
2023 SSA rank
#12,902
Tracked since 1916
Popularity
Lolly: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Lolly from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 110 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
Lolly 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 Lolly during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Lollys live
Origin
Meaning and history of Lolly
The given name Lolly is a diminutive form of the name Lola, which has its origins in the Spanish language. Lola itself is a shortened version of the Spanish name Dolores, derived from the Latin word "dolores," meaning "sorrows" or "pains." This name was initially given to honor the sorrows endured by the Virgin Mary.
Lolly emerged as a pet form or nickname for Lola in the late 19th century, particularly in parts of the United States and the United Kingdom. It was often used as an affectionate diminutive for young girls named Lola or as a standalone name in its own right.
While the name Lolly does not have any direct historical references in ancient texts or religious scriptures, its root name, Dolores, has been associated with the Catholic veneration of the Virgin Mary and her suffering during the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Lolly can be found in the United States census records from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was particularly popular in certain regions, such as the southern states and parts of the Midwest.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Lolly. One example is Lolly Willows (1878-1976), an English stage and film actress who had a successful career during the early 20th century. Another notable Lolly was Lolly Dyer (1899-1977), an American vaudeville performer and actress who appeared in numerous Broadway productions and films.
In the literary world, Lolly Follington is a character from the novel "The Rising Tide" by Molly Keane, published in 1937. This fictional character was a young woman from an upper-class Irish family.
Lolly Bright (1932-2008) was a British actress and singer who gained recognition for her roles in various television series and musicals in the 1960s and 1970s.
Lolly Belle (1935-1997) was an Australian-born actress and model who had a successful career in Hollywood during the 1950s and 1960s, appearing in numerous films and television shows.
People
Lolly + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Lolly as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Lolly: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lolly?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 226 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Lolly 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 1,516,612 US residents.
Is Lolly a common name?
We classify Lolly as "Very Rare". It ranks above 75.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 342 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Lolly most popular?
The single biggest year for Lolly was 1959, when 18 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Lolly is about 55 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Lolly a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Lolly 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.