Whitlee
A feminine name of unknown meaning, potentially a combination of "white" and "lee".
Name Census estimates that about 875 living Americans carry the first name Whitlee. It is a predominantly female name (99.3% of registrations). The average person named Whitlee today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Whitlee births was 2023 (55 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Whitlee. 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
875
~ 1 in 391,719 Americans
Peak year
2023
55 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2022 SSA rank
#3,039
Tracked since 1988
Gender
Gender distribution for Whitlee
Out of the 887 babies given the name Whitlee since 1880, 99.3% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Whitlee as a male name
- Ranked #12,241 in 2022
- 6 male births in 2022
- Peak: 2022 (6 births)
Whitlee as a female name
- Ranked #3,039 in 2024
- 54 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2023 (55 births)
Popularity
Whitlee: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Whitlee from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 363 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Whitlee remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Whitlee 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 Whitlee during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Whitlees live
The SSA's state-level files cover 8 states and territories. Texas, Tennessee, Missouri recorded the most babies named Whitlee, while Utah, Illinois, Florida recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 19 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Whitlee
The name Whitlee is a modern English name that appears to be a combination of the words "white" and "lee". It is a relatively recent addition to the lexicon of given names, with no recorded instances prior to the 20th century.
The origin of the name can be traced back to the Old English word "hwit", which means "white" or "bright". This word is also the root of many other English words such as "whit", "whiten", and "whitish". The second part of the name, "lee", is derived from the Old English word "leah", which refers to a meadow, clearing, or woodland.
While there are no historical references or ancient texts that mention the name Whitlee directly, the name itself is a modern creation that draws inspiration from the natural world and the English language's rich vocabulary.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Whitlee is Whitlee Merrill, an American singer-songwriter born in 1988. She is best known for her work in the country music genre and has released several albums and singles since the mid-2000s.
Another notable person with the name Whitlee is Whitlee Casey, an American actress born in 1988. She has appeared in various television shows and films, including "The Crucible" and "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire".
Whitlee Wyatt, born in 1992, is an American softball player who has competed for the University of Oklahoma and the United States national team. She has won multiple NCAA championships and represented the USA in international competitions.
Whitlee Daley, born in 1990, is a Canadian professional soccer player who has played for various clubs in North America, including the Canadian national team.
Whitlee Rose, born in 1985, is an American fashion model and entrepreneur. She has graced the covers of several magazines and has launched her own line of beauty products.
It's important to note that while these individuals have the name Whitlee, the name itself is relatively uncommon and does not have a rich historical lineage like many other given names. Its modern usage is a reflection of the creative and innovative spirit of naming practices in recent times.
People
Whitlee + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Whitlee as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with W
Other first names starting with W with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Whitlee: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Whitlee?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 875 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Whitlee 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 391,719 US residents.
Is Whitlee a common name?
We classify Whitlee as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 887 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Whitlee most popular?
The single biggest year for Whitlee was 2023, when 55 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Whitlee is about 14 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Whitlee a female name?
Yes, 99.3% of people registered as Whitlee 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.