Gwendolyn
Gwendolyn was the 360th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 848 babies. Its best year was 1951, when it ranked 112th; the most babies were born in 1953 (3,519). Over the last ten years it has moved up 46 places. More babies were named Gwendolyn in the 1950s than in any other decade.
Meaning white or blessed ring (Welsh) · Welsh
Say it GWEN-duh-lin /ˈɡwɛndəlɪn/
- Rank in 2025
- #360 girls, up 18 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 848girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19533,519 babies
- Total since 1880
- 124,718babies recorded
What does the name Gwendolyn mean?
Gwendolyn is a spelling of the Welsh name Gwendolen. Its first element is Welsh gwen, "white, fair, blessed", which the Random House dictionary gives as the meaning; the second is usually taken as dolen, "ring, loop". Geoffrey of Monmouth's 12th-century history names a legendary queen Gwendolen, and Wiktionary notes the -lyn spelling as a variant.
gwen (Welsh, “white, fair, blessed”)dolen (Welsh, “ring, loop (usual reading)”)
How sure is this? Probable. The gwen element is clear; the second element is less certain.
Related names: Gwendolen, Gwen, Wendy.
See also: Welsh names, names that mean a color.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Gwendolyn', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary.com Unabridged (based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary), with Collins English Dictionary, s.v. 'Gwendolyn', Dictionary.com / Random House / HarperCollins
- CMU Pronouncing Dictionary (cmudict), Carnegie Mellon University
Nicknames for Gwendolyn
The usual nicknames for Gwendolyn are Gwen and Wendy. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 girls named Gwendolyn in the last five years, 44 were named Gwen, against 29 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gwen · also for Guinevere | Traditional | #725 | 1,782 |
| Wendy | Traditional | #1,347 | 954 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Gwendolyns go by each one.
Gwendolyn popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 333 since 1924.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #360 | 848 |
| 2020 | #378 | 820 |
| 2010 | #561 | 518 |
| 2000 | #732 | 317 |
| 1990 | #681 | 314 |
| 1980 | #441 | 486 |
| 1970 | #254 | 1,220 |
| 1960 | #163 | 2,546 |
| 1950 | #113 | 3,039 |
| 1940 | #169 | 1,222 |
| 1930 | #200 | 959 |
| 1920 | #236 | 758 |
| 1910 | #311 | 151 |
| 1900 | #571 | 37 |
| 1890 | #848 | 11 |
| 1880 | #871 | 5 |
How popular is Gwendolyn, counting every spelling?
Gwendolyn is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #367 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #360 for Gwendolyn on its own. Together these spellings went to 901 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gwendolyn | 848 | #360 | 4,062 |
| Gwendolynn | 34 | #4,213 | 154 |
| Gwendolen | 11 | #9,072 | 62 |
| Gwendoline | 8 | #11,277 | 45 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Gwendolyn?
848 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Gwendolyn (0.24 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Gwendolyn born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 10 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Gwendolyn.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Gwendolyn?
About 84,900 people born in the US named Gwendolyn are alive today, with a median age of 64; half are between 42 and 73. That makes Gwendolyn a name most people associate with older generations.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Gwendolyn by state
How common Gwendolyn was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Maine (3.6×), Idaho (3.2×), New Hampshire (3.0×), Oregon (2.9×), Utah (2.4×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Mississippi, Louisiana, New Mexico.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Gwendolyn: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Gwendolyn, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Gwendolyn · Sibling names for Gwendolyn
Questions about the name Gwendolyn
What does Gwendolyn mean?
Gwendolyn means “white or blessed ring (Welsh)” (Welsh origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Gwendolyn?
Gwendolyn was the 360th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 848 babies. Its best year was 1951, when it ranked 112th; the most babies were born in 1953 (3,519). Over the last ten years it has moved up 46 places. More babies were named Gwendolyn in the 1950s than in any other decade.
Is Gwendolyn a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Gwendolyn in the US.
Where is Gwendolyn most popular?
In 2021–2025, Gwendolyn was most common in Maine (1.81 per 1,000 girls), followed by Idaho and New Hampshire.