Given name
Darlene
“ouf little darling”
Darlene is used as a given name. One English interpretation is “ouf little darling.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “ouf little darling.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1896. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Darlene through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 205,546
- 604 boys · 204,942 girls
- Most popular year
- 1958
- 8,307 babies
- 2025
- 108
- #1,847 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −18%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 108 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 1,847 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 17.7% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 8,278 in 1958. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (32). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 145,944 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Darlene’s family of names
Darlene has a related form in Darla. In English usage, Darlene has a related form in Darleen. In English usage, Darlene has a related form in Darleen.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 21
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 2
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Darlene
- Darlene LoveAmerican musicianborn 1941
- Darlene HardAmerican tennis player (1936–2021)
- Darlene ConleyAmerican actress (1934–2007)
- Darlene CatesAmerican actress (1947-2017)
- Darlene ZschechAustralian singer and pastorborn 1965
- Darlene VogelAmerican soap opera actorborn 1962
- Darlene HooleyAmerican politician (born 1939)
- Darlene GlóriaBrazilian actressborn 1943
- Darlene de SouzaBrazilian association football playerborn 1990
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love Darlene, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Dawn
“born at daybreak; of the day's first light”
1% boys · 99% girls
Rae
“son of grace”
3% boys · 97% girls
Ginny
“one who is chaste; virginal”
>99% girls
Toni
“a flourishing man; from an ancient Roman family”
8% boys · 92% girls
Lynn
“a man of the lake”
18% boys · 82% girls
Dionne
“of the sacred spring”
12% boys · 88% girls
Becky
“one who is bound to God”
>99% girls
Laurel
Laurel is a feminine given name from English. It is used in English, Spanish, Tagalog, and Cebuano.
>99% girls