Eilene
A feminine name possibly derived from the name Ellen, of Greek origin.
Name Census estimates that about 962 living Americans carry the first name Eilene. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Eilene today is around 58 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Eilene births was 1946 (54 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Eilene. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
962
~ 1 in 356,293 Americans
Peak year
1946
54 babies that year
Average age
58
years old
2024 SSA rank
#12,480
Tracked since 1909
Census
Eilene in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,308 people with the first name Eilene, which placed it at #10,269 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#10,269
National first-name rank
People counted
1.3K
1,308 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.4
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
70.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Eilene
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Eilene is White at 70.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (14.8%) and Black (6.5%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Eilene described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Eilene at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.2% · 918
- Hispanic or Latino14.8% · 193
- Black or African American6.5% · 85
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.6% · 73
- Two or more races1.5% · 20
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.5% · 19
Popularity
Eilene: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Eilene from the 1900s through to the 2020s, spanning 13 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1940s, with 387 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1940s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Eilene by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Eilene during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Eilenes live
The SSA's state-level files cover 9 states and territories. California, Ohio, Pennsylvania recorded the most babies named Eilene, while Nebraska, Massachusetts, Iowa recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 29 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Eilene
The name Eilene is believed to have its origins in the Greek language, derived from the word "helene," which means "bright one" or "shining light." It is a variation of the more common name Helen, which has been widely used across various cultures and time periods.
The earliest recorded use of the name Eilene can be traced back to the late 19th century, particularly in English-speaking countries like the United States and the United Kingdom. However, its roots can be traced back further to ancient Greece, where the name Helen was associated with the mythological figure, Helen of Troy, whose beauty was said to have sparked the Trojan War.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the name Eilene was Eilene Galloway (1906-1997), an American artist and illustrator known for her work in children's books. She collaborated with several prominent authors, including Dr. Seuss, and her illustrations graced the pages of numerous beloved children's books.
Another prominent figure with the name Eilene was Eilene Zimmerman (1914-2008), an American journalist and author. She worked for several major newspapers, including the New York Times, and wrote extensively on social issues, particularly those related to women's rights and civil liberties.
In the realm of literature, Eilene Ingram (1929-2013) was an American poet and educator. She published several collections of poetry and taught creative writing at various universities throughout her career. Her work often explored themes of nature, identity, and the human experience.
Moving to the field of science, Eilene Cross (1941-2020) was an American biochemist and academic. She made significant contributions to the understanding of protein structure and function and served as a professor at several prestigious institutions, including the University of California, Berkeley.
Lastly, Eilene Janifer (1936-2021) was an American author and editor who wrote extensively in the science fiction and fantasy genres. She published numerous short stories and novels, and her work was celebrated for its imaginative and thought-provoking exploration of speculative themes.
While the name Eilene may not be as widely used today as it once was, it carries a rich history and has been borne by individuals who have made significant contributions across various fields, from the arts and literature to science and journalism.
People
Eilene + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Eilene as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Eilene: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Eilene?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 962 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Eilene going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 356,293 US residents.
Is Eilene a common name?
We classify Eilene as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,077 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Eilene most popular?
The single biggest year for Eilene was 1946, when 54 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Eilene is about 58 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Eilene in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,308 people with the name Eilene, or 0.43 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #10,269 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Eilene in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Eilene?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Eilene appears almost entirely female. Of the 1,312 people counted with this name, 99.8% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Eilene?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Eilene is White at 70.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (14.8%) and Black (6.5%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Eilene most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Eilene in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.2% (918 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Eilene in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Eilene a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Eilene in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Eilene still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Eilene in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Eilene can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many Americans are named Eilene?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.