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Gwendolyn

Gender
Girl
Say it
GWEN-do-lin
Origin
Welsh
UK rank, 2025
#1,416 for girls
US rank, 2025
#360 for girls

Gwendolyn is a girls' name of Welsh origin, meaning “white ring”. In 2025 it ranked 1,416th for girls in the UK (23 babies) and 360th for girls in the US (848 babies).

What does Gwendolyn mean?

Welsh: from Welsh gwen + dolen

“white ring”

Gwendolen is a legendary queen of the Britons in Geoffrey of Monmouth; Wilde used it in The Importance of Being Earnest.

More on Wiktionary.

Is Gwendolyn a girl's or a boy's name?

Gwendolyn is a girls' name. In 2025, it was given to 23 girls in the UK and 848 girls in the US. Too few boys were given it to be listed.

How popular is Gwendolyn in the UK?

Rank in 2025
1,416th among girls
Babies in 2025
23 about 1 in 12,000 girls
Five-year trend
Rising up 53% in five years
Same name in a class
under 1% chance among 15 girls

In 2025, 23 girls in the UK were named Gwendolyn, making it the 1,416th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 2,566th. Its busiest year was 2024, with 33 girls.

Half of all the girls named Gwendolyn in the UK since 1996 were born between 2012 and 2022, the years shaded on the chart below.

Among girls in 2025, it was 1,362nd in England and Wales.

1996Busiest: 33 in 20242025
Gwendolyn in the UK, year by year
YearGirlsRank
202523#1,416
202433#1,084
202322#1,497
202227#1,283
202122#1,491
202010#2,566
201920#1,599
201821#1,577
201721#1,597
201628#1,291
201519#1,684
201413#2,189
201313#2,174
201216#1,914
20119#2,794
201012#2,234
200912#2,153
20089#2,663
200710#2,354
200610#2,263
20053#4,976
20046#2,957
20036#2,877
20020–
20010–
20000–
19998#2,089
19980–
19970–
19964#3,289

How popular is Gwendolyn in the US?

Rank in 2025
360th among girls
Babies in 2025
848 about 1 in 1,900 girls
Five-year trend
Steady down 2% in five years
Same name in a class
under 1% chance among 15 girls

In 2025, 848 girls in the US were named Gwendolyn, making it the 360th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 378th. Its busiest year was 1953, with 3,519 girls.

2025 had more girls named Gwendolyn than any year since 2019.

Half of all the girls named Gwendolyn in the US since 1880 were born between 1945 and 1970, the years shaded on the chart below.

1880Busiest: 3,519 in 19532025
Gwendolyn in the US, year by year
YearGirlsRank
2025848#360
2024804#393
2023814#378
2022802#389
2021794#397
2020820#378
2019852#370
2018845#371
2017822#377
2016826#402
2015791#405
2014764#422
2013651#471
2012592#514
2011513#565
2010518#561
2009522#582
2008527#589
2007455#651
2006458#628
2005508#564
2004476#590
2003458#597
2002453#576
2001374#670
2000317#731
1999347#660
1998315#702
1997311#691
1996281#752
1995228#855
1994289#715
1993267#772
1992317#683
1991314#682
1990314#678
1989318#647
1988310#638
1987317#609
1986370#548
1985410#494
1984359#535
1983392#496
1982432#481
1981444#478
1980486#441
1979533#406
1978543#385
1977586#367
1976731#313
1975791#296
1974795#301
1973764#304
1972870#289
19711,081#267
19701,220#253
19691,200#247
19681,241#233
19671,338#219
19661,414#217
19651,702#194
19641,893#193
19632,257#171
19622,508#161
19612,536#165
19602,546#163
19592,653#159
19582,668#151
19573,303#132
19563,377#128
19553,457#122
19543,409#122
19533,519#112
19523,328#114
19513,192#112
19503,039#113
19492,836#114
19482,506#124
19472,450#130
19462,062#132
19451,560#151
19441,525#160
19431,535#161
19421,380#169
19411,268#168
19401,222#169
19391,182#168
19381,205#169
19371,084#184
1936944#191
1935983#180
19341,002#181
1933927#183
1932929#198
1931893#205
1930959#199
1929892#207
1928988#203
1927960#204
1926848#217
1925889#216
1924884#220
1923849#222
1922771#233
1921819#227
1920758#236
1919647#252
1918657#250
1917577#258
1916574#254
1915575#245
1914382#265
1913298#271
1912276#269
1911194#278
1910151#311
1909123#323
1908127#314
1907100#354
190687#359
190568#409
190475#378
190362#404
190257#408
190139#481
190037#567
189927#593
189833#555
189727#584
189624#635
189528#565
189416#744
189315#767
189218#685
18916#1,213
189011#825
188912#757
18889#894
18878#860
18866#993
18850–
18840–
18830–
18820–
18815#830
18805#836

Nicknames for Gwendolyn

Names like Gwendolyn

Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.

Evelyn, Bonnie, Iris, Violet, Gracie, Aurora, Robyn, Nancy, Frankie, Billie, Gwen, Betsy

Other spellings of Gwendolyn

Gwendolynn

Names related to Gwendolyn

Gwendoline, Gwendolen, Gwendalyn, Gwendalynn, Gwyndolyn, Gwendelyn

More Welsh names

Dylan, Owen, Winnie, Maddox, Morgan, Idris, Reese, Bowen, Griffin, Rhys, Gavin, Reece, Nia, Seren, Winifred, Meredith

Every Welsh name

Sources

Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.

To cite this page: Nameling, “Gwendolyn: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/gwendolyn, updated 20 October 2026.