Given name
Donelle
“ruler of the world”
Donelle connects to the Donald name family through Donna. One Scottish interpretation is “ruler of the world.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
Donelle connects to the Donald name family through Donna. One Scottish interpretation is “ruler of the world.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Donelle is a variant of Donna. An origin associated with Donna is Italian.
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1922. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Donelle through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,450
- 323 boys · 1,127 girls
- Most popular year
- 1979
- 48 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for boys is 7 in 2019. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 20 in 1979. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,304 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.
Donelle’s family of names
Donelle has a related form in Donna.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 1
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Similar names
If you love Donelle, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Jenelle
“God is gracious”
>99% girls
Janelle
“God is gracious”
>99% girls
Lynelle
“a man of the lake”
>99% girls
Darci
“a dark beauty” · “having dark features”
>99% girls
Monique
“one who provides wise counsel”
>99% girls
Dionne
“of the sacred spring”
12% boys · 88% girls
Desiree
“one who is desired”
>99% girls
Rochelle
“from the little rock”
>99% girls