Parlee
A unisex name of uncertain origin, possibly Pahlavi meaning "heavenly".
Name Census estimates that about 14 living Americans carry the first name Parlee. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Parlee today is around 94 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Parlee births was 1918 (19 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Parlee. 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 Parlee is about 94 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Parlees were born before 1942.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Parlee. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
14
~ 1 in 24,482,453 Americans
Peak year
1918
19 babies that year
Average age
94
years old
1940 SSA rank
#4,238
Tracked since 1883
Popularity
Parlee: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Parlee from the 1880s through to the 1940s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1910s, with 128 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1910s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Parlee 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 Parlee during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Parlees live
Origin
Meaning and history of Parlee
The name Parlee has its roots in the ancient Sanskrit language, originating from the Indian subcontinent during the Vedic period, around 1500-500 BCE. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "pari-laya," which means "to encompass" or "to surround." This name likely held spiritual or philosophical significance in ancient Hindu traditions, reflecting the idea of embracing or encompassing the divine.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Parlee can be found in the Mahabharata, a revered Hindu epic composed between the 8th and 4th centuries BCE. It appears as the name of a minor character, a sage or rishi, who played a role in imparting wisdom to the central figures of the epic.
In the 5th century CE, a renowned Buddhist monk and scholar named Parlee Vaibhashika made significant contributions to the study and preservation of the Abhidharma texts, which are a collection of Buddhist philosophical treatises. His work helped to spread the teachings of Buddhism throughout the Indian subcontinent and beyond.
During the Gupta Empire, which ruled over much of the Indian subcontinent from the 4th to the 6th century CE, a notable poet and playwright named Parlee Datta gained recognition for his literary works. His plays were often performed at the royal court and celebrated for their poetic language and insightful commentary on social and political issues of the time.
In the 11th century, a Sufi mystic and poet named Parlee Gami, born in present-day Afghanistan, wrote celebrated works that explored themes of divine love and spiritual enlightenment. His poetry, written in Persian, had a profound influence on the development of mystic literature in the Islamic world.
Parlee Samanta was a prominent 16th-century Bengali philosopher and scholar who made significant contributions to the study of Navya-Nyaya, a school of Indian logic and epistemology. His treatises on logic and reasoning were widely studied and continue to be influential in the field of Indian philosophy.
While the name Parlee has its origins in ancient Sanskrit and was primarily used in the Indian subcontinent, it has also been adopted and adapted in various other cultures and languages over time, with slight variations in spelling and pronunciation. However, its core meaning and connection to the concept of encompassing or surrounding remain a common thread throughout its long and rich history.
People
Parlee + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Parlee as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with P
Other first names starting with P with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Parlee: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Parlee?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 14 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Parlee 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 24,482,453 US residents.
Is Parlee a common name?
We classify Parlee as "Very Rare". It ranks above 34% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 414 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Parlee most popular?
The single biggest year for Parlee was 1918, when 19 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Parlee is about 94 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Parlee in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Parlee a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Parlee 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 Parlee still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Parlee 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 Parlee 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are named Parlee?
Want to know how many Americans are named Parlee? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.