Nolen
A variant spelling of the English surname derived from the Olde English nickname for "nut gatherer."
Name Census estimates that about 2,564 living Americans carry the first name Nolen. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Nolen today is around 26 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nolen births was 2009 (110 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nolen. 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 Nolen with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
2.6K
~ 1 in 133,680 Americans
Peak year
2009
110 babies that year
Average age
26
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,353
Tracked since 1892
Census
Nolen in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 2,095 people with the first name Nolen, which placed it at #7,321 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
#7,321
National first-name rank
People counted
2.1K
2,095 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.7
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
72.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nolen
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nolen is White at 72.9%. The next largest groups are Black (11.1%) and Hispanic (6.8%). 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 Nolen 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 Nolen at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.9% · 1,528
- Black or African American11.1% · 232
- Hispanic or Latino6.8% · 143
- Two or more races5.1% · 106
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.9% · 61
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 25
Gender
Gender distribution for Nolen
Out of the 3,399 babies given the name Nolen since 1880, 99.7% were registered as male. The name sits firmly on the male side of the spectrum, with only a handful of female registrations across the entire dataset.
Nolen as a male name
- Ranked #2,353 in 2024
- 60 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2009 (110 births)
Nolen as a female name
- Ranked #16,946 in 2023
- 5 female births in 2023
- Peak: 2014 (5 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Nolen leans strongly male. 2,047 people counted with this name were male (97.7%), compared with 49 female bearers (2.3%).
Popularity
Nolen: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nolen from the 1890s through to the 2020s, spanning 14 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 846 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Nolen remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Nolen 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 Nolen during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Nolens live
The SSA's state-level files cover 21 states and territories. Texas, California, Alabama recorded the most babies named Nolen, while Virginia, Missouri, Minnesota recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 40 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Nolen
The name Nolen is derived from the Old Irish Gaelic word "nuall," which means "noble" or "illustrious." It originated in Ireland during the Middle Ages, with the earliest recorded instances dating back to the 12th century. The name was particularly common among the noble families of the Irish clans, suggesting it was a prestigious name during that era.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Nolen was Nolen Ua Dunadhaigh, a prominent Irish chieftain and military leader who lived in the late 12th century. He was known for his bravery and leadership during the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland.
In the 14th century, Nolen O'Moloney was a renowned Irish poet and historian who documented the lives and achievements of many notable figures of his time. His works provide valuable insights into the cultural and historical landscapes of medieval Ireland.
During the 16th century, Nolen FitzGerald was a prominent Irish statesman and diplomat who served as the Lord Chancellor of Ireland. He played a crucial role in negotiating between the English Crown and the Irish clans, seeking to maintain peace and stability in the region.
In the 17th century, Nolen O'Neill was a celebrated Irish soldier who fought alongside the Irish Confederate forces during the Irish Confederate Wars. He was known for his bravery and tactical prowess on the battlefield.
Another notable figure with the name Nolen was Nolen Shadrach, an Irish-American artist and sculptor who lived in the late 19th century. His works, which often depicted scenes from Irish mythology and folklore, are highly regarded and can be found in various museums and galleries across the United States.
While the name Nolen has its roots in Irish culture, it has been adopted and used in various other cultures and regions over the centuries. However, its strong historical ties to Ireland and the noble families of the Irish clans make it a name steeped in tradition and a sense of pride in one's heritage.
People
Nolen + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nolen as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with N
Other first names starting with N with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Nolen: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nolen?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2,564 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nolen 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 133,680 US residents.
Is Nolen a common name?
We classify Nolen as "Rare". It ranks above 94.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 3,399 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nolen most popular?
The single biggest year for Nolen was 2009, when 110 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nolen is about 26 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Nolen in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 2,095 people with the name Nolen, or 0.69 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #7,321 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 Nolen 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 Nolen?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Nolen leans strongly male. 2,047 people counted with this name were male (97.7%), compared with 49 female bearers (2.3%). 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 Nolen?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nolen is White at 72.9%. The next largest groups are Black (11.1%) and Hispanic (6.8%). 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 Nolen most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Nolen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.9% (1,528 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 Nolen in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Nolen a male name?
Yes, 99.7% of people registered as Nolen in the SSA data are male. 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 Nolen still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Nolen 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 Nolen 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 Americans are named Nolen?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.