How Many People Are Named Harlen?
An estimated 2,064 people in the United States have the first name Harlen. It is predominantly male (97.0%). The average bearer is 36 years old, and Harlen peaked in popularity in 2023 with 80 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Harlen as a first name in the United States, including gender data, a year-by-year popularity timeline going back to 1880, a decade breakdown, and state-by-state birth registrations. You can also check how many people share the full name Harlen paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Harlen is overwhelmingly male, 104 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.
Estimated Living Americans
2,064
About 1 in 166,063 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Rare
Predicted Gender
Male
97.0% confidence
Average Age
36
years old
Peak Year
2023
80 births
Total Registered
3,449
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Harlen
Harlen is predominantly male (97.0%), though 104 female births have been registered. It functions as a unisex name for a small percentage of bearers.
Harlen as a male name
Ranked #2,284 in 2024
62 male births in 2024
Peak: 1936 (65 births)
Harlen as a female name
Ranked #12,594 in 2024
7 female births in 2024
Peak: 2022 (16 births)
Harlen: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Harlen span from the 1900s to the 2020s, covering 13 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 2010s, when 554 babies were registered. While Harlen is less common than at its peak in the 2010s, it remains a well-established name with steady registrations.
Harlen by Decade
How has Harlen tracked across different eras? The table below groups all SSA birth registrations into 10-year periods, with separate male and female counts. The colored bar shows each decade's share relative to the peak.
Harlen by State
Birth registrations for Harlen span all 17 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in Kentucky, Texas, West Virginia. The lowest are in North Dakota, North Carolina, Louisiana. On average, about 25 Harlens were registered per state.
Harlen + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Harlen as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Harlen
Other first names starting with H with a similar number of bearers.
Harlen: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Harlen?
We estimate approximately 2,064 people named Harlen are alive in the United States today. This is based on SSA birth records from 1880 to 2024, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables. About 1 in 166,063 Americans share this first name.
Is Harlen a common name?
Harlen is classified as "Rare" and is more popular than 93.8% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 3,449 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Harlen most popular?
Harlen reached peak popularity in 2023, when 80 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Harlen is approximately 36 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Harlen a male name?
Harlen is predominantly male. 97.0% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Harlen Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Harlen Smith, Harlen Johnson, Harlen Williams. You can also search any combination on our homepage.
Where does this data come from?
Our estimates use Social Security Administration birth records (1880 to 2024), adjusted for survival using CDC 2023 life tables broken down by sex. The U.S. population figure (342,754,338) is from the Census Bureau's July 2025 estimate. Full methodology.
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