Marlene Dietrich
There are approximately 4 people named Marlene Dietrich living in the United States today. That makes this name combination very rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 85,688,585 Americans.
This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Marlene with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Dietrich. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and ancestry information.
Expected bearers
4
1 in 85,688,585
Named Marlene
71K
Alive today
Named Dietrich
18K
Alive today
US population
343M
Denominator
Estimated living: 71K
Rarity: Uncommon
Gender: Female
Peak year: 1936
Average age: 61
Estimated bearers: 18K
Rarity: Uncommon
Census rank: #2,291
Per 100K: 5.39
Top ancestry: White (94.5%)
First name trend
Marlene: popularity over time
Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Marlene. The peak year was 1936 with 5,354 births. The average person named Marlene today is 61 years old.
Babies born per year
Ethnicity
Ancestry of the Dietrich surname
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the surname Dietrich, from the 2010 US Census Bureau. The largest group is White at 94.5%.
- White94.5%
- Hispanic or Latino2.3%
- Two or more races1.6%
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7%
- Black or African American0.6%
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4%
Methodology
How we calculated this
The first name Marlene has a living-bearer frequency of 0.0209% of the US population, based on 71,496 estimated living Americans carrying this first name (from SSA birth records going back to 1880, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables).
The surname Dietrich appears at a rate of 5.39 per 100,000 residents in the 2010 Census Bureau surname file, which translates to a frequency of 0.0054%.
Multiplying these two independent frequencies against the current US population of 342,754,338 gives an expected count of approximately 4 people with the full name Marlene Dietrich. This assumes statistical independence between first and last names, which is a simplification but produces reasonable estimates for most combinations.
FAQ
Marlene Dietrich: questions and answers
How many people are named Marlene Dietrich?
We estimate approximately 4 people in the United States share the full name Marlene Dietrich. That works out to about 1 in 85,688,585 Americans. This is calculated by combining the first-name frequency (0.0209%) with the surname frequency (5.39 per 100K) against the current US population.
How rare is the name Marlene Dietrich?
We classify Marlene Dietrich as "Very Rare". About 1 in 85,688,585 Americans share this exact first and last name combination.
Is Marlene a male or female name?
Marlene is predominantly female. Out of 130,755 total SSA registrations, 0.3% were male and 99.7% were female. See the full Marlene profile for detailed gender data.
Where does this data come from?
First-name data comes from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files (1880 to 2024). Surname data comes from the 2010 US Census Bureau decennial surname tables. Living-bearer estimates use CDC actuarial life tables to adjust for mortality. Read the full methodology.