Arlyn
Feminine
Arlyn is given to both — 2,344 girls and 2,181 boys since 1880. See Arlyn as a boy nameSee other names given to both
Arlyn joins Ar- to the -lyn ending, and both belong to the American naming workshop of the early twentieth century that produced Arlene and Marlene.
How old is the name Arlyn?
Arlyn first appears in US birth records in 1914 — 111 years ago. The typical Arlyn alive today was born around 2000, making them about 25 years old. About 1,900 people named Arlyn are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Arlyn most popular?
Arlyn peaked in 1937, reaching #1580 nationally. Today it ranks #3975, 2,395 places below that high. See the whole 1937 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Arlyn
Ours, offered as ours. Arlene appeared in American records around 1900 with no traceable ancestry and rose steadily for forty years, which is the ordinary life of a name that was simply made. Arlyn, Arline and Arleen followed it. The tradition that produced them was working with sounds rather than with meanings — the -lene and -lyn endings were doing all the work — and it produced dozens of names in two generations.
Meaningnot established
Not established
No source is established. Arlene, the likeliest parent, is itself of unknown origin — readings connecting it to Charlene, to Irish, or to a Germanic element have all been offered without support. The -lyn ending is a modern suffix.
Pronouncing Arlyn
AR-lin
Two syllables, first stressed. There is little variation.
Nicknames for Arlyn
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1914
- Most girls named
- 200759 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1580reached in 1937
- Change vs 2023
- −7.7%36 in 2025, from 39
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Arlyn in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Arlene in English — related form
- Arline in English — spelling variant
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, New York.
Arlyns among us
people named Arlyn are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 44,646 born in 2025 was named Arlyn
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Arlyn
- #3975
- Arlyn on the 2025 chart
- #904
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Arlyn went to 36 girls in 2025, but Arlynn and Arlin are the same name said out loud. Together the 3 spellings went to 56, which makes it the 904th most-given girls’ name of the year — 3,071 places above the chart.
About 1 girl in 28,701 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 44,646 for Arlyn itself.
Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Montine test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Arlyn's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Montine climbed just as high around 1921, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Montine's path sketches the road Arlyn is walking now.
Arlyn sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Arlyn is headed
Arlyn should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Arlyn beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Arlyn in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Lyn is a complete short form with its own American history.
- Read correctly on sight by every English speaker.
- Five letters and two syllables, quick to write.
- It is used for both sexes, so forms may guess wrong.
- Arlyn, Arlene and Arline are all in use and none is dominant.
- There is no documented meaning.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Arlyn
Feminine · #3975 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Arlyns are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,900 people named Arlyn are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Arlyn?
- Arlyn is the most-used spelling in US records — 36 of the 56 babies given the name in 2025. The others recorded are Arlynn and Arlin.
- How popular is the name Arlyn in 2025?
- Arlyn ranks #3975 among US girl names in 2025, with 36 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Arlyn?
- About 1 in every 44,646 US girls born in 2025 was named Arlyn — 36 in all.
- Will my child share the name Arlyn with classmates?
- Arlyn will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Arlyn
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Rubie#3975 · Bradley#3975 · Jodi#3975 · An#3975 · Ilianna#3975 · Saja#3975 · Ansleigh#3975 · Dorcas#3975
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Arlyn? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Arlyn and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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