How popular is the name Arlen?

Arlen ranks 823rd among boys' names in US records, with 16,866 births since 1909. Over the past decade it accounts for 1,558.

Is Arlen a unisex name?

No. Arlen is recorded almost entirely as a boys' name; births to the other gender are too few to register as a share.

1934, when 411 children were given the name. It has been in use for 116 years and is still recorded as of 2024.

Arlin, Arlan, Arlyn, Arlynn. All of these sound the same and are counted together in the totals on this page.

Boy name#823 of boy names

Pronounced AA1 R L AE1 N (ARPABET)

Arlen is a boys' name, and first appears in 1909. It has been given to 16,866 children — the 823rd most common boys' name on record.

It peaked in 1934, went quiet for most of a century, and is climbing again. Its best single year was 1934, when 411 children were given it.

Four other spellings are counted in that total — Arlin, Arlan, Arlyn and one more — because they are pronounced identically.

1934411

These spellings sound identical to Arlen and are counted together with it, which is why the totals here are higher than a single-spelling count.

Phonetic detail

Pronunciations:: AA1 R L AE1 N · AA1 R L AH0 N · AA1 R L IH0 N · AA1 R L IH1 N
Stress pattern:: 11 · 10 · 10 · 11
Syllables:: 2

Stress digits mark unstressed (0), primary (1) and secondary (2) syllables.

Same first letter and syllable count, peaking around the same time.

Names from the same era with a matching rhythm but a different initial.

How popular is the name Arlen?: Arlen ranks 823rd among boys' names in US records, with 16,866 births since 1909. Over the past decade it accounts for 1,558.
Is Arlen a unisex name?: No. Arlen is recorded almost entirely as a boys' name; births to the other gender are too few to register as a share.
When was Arlen most popular?: 1934, when 411 children were given the name. It has been in use for 116 years and is still recorded as of 2024.
How else is Arlen spelled?: Arlin, Arlan, Arlyn, Arlynn. All of these sound the same and are counted together in the totals on this page.