Dolly
Girl name · #1777 in 2025 · Rare
Dolly is currently the #1777 girl name in the United States — 113 babies received it in 2025. A decade ago it stood at #4584, so the name has been rising over the past ten years. Roughly one in every 15,929 girls born in 2025 was named Dolly.
The 145-year story
Dolly first appears in the Social Security records in 1880, when 21 girls received the name. Its peak came in 1926, when 395 girls were named Dolly — good for #332 that year. Today's parents encounter it as a name from their grandparents’ generation, which is precisely the vintage window from which names get revived. Following the curve matters more than today's snapshot: a name's position on its rise-peak-decline arc is the best predictor of how common it will feel in a kindergarten class five years from now.
Babies named Dolly per year. Source: SSA.
Unlock the 5-year forecast and compare Dolly against up to 5 other names.
Uniqueness: will there be another Dolly in class?
On our rarity read — which blends how common Dolly is today with its five-year momentum — the name reads as "rare". A high score means genuine rarity — your Dolly will likely be the only one in the room, with the occasional spelling-out as the price.
Where Dolly is most common
State-level data for Dolly is too sparse in 2025 to rank by rate — in most states its count falls below the SSA's per-state reporting threshold (counts under 5 are withheld).
Names like Dolly
Statistically, parents drawn to Dolly tend to be choosing among names with similar popularity arcs, era profiles, and sounds — the closest matches in our model are Sally, Dorothea, Lenore, Sybil, and Mable.
SallyDorotheaLenoreSybilMableDoraEffieMarion
Rank history (last 25 years)
| Year | Babies named Dolly | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 113 | #1777 |
| 2024 | 127 | #1630 |
| 2023 | 129 | #1614 |
| 2022 | 113 | #1807 |
| 2021 | 87 | #2154 |
| 2020 | 61 | #2712 |
| 2019 | 54 | #3002 |
| 2018 | 53 | #3050 |
| 2017 | 49 | #3247 |
| 2016 | 42 | #3656 |
| 2015 | 30 | #4584 |
| 2014 | 23 | #5625 |
| 2013 | 26 | #5143 |
| 2012 | 20 | #6341 |
| 2011 | 13 | #8614 |
| 2010 | 26 | #5247 |
| 2009 | 19 | #6811 |
| 2008 | 18 | #7073 |
| 2007 | 17 | #7394 |
| 2006 | 19 | #6592 |
| 2005 | 18 | #6528 |
| 2004 | 15 | #7391 |
| 2003 | 10 | #9671 |
| 2002 | 16 | #6698 |
| 2001 | 15 | #6956 |
Frequently asked questions
Is Dolly a popular girl name?
Dolly ranked #1777 among girls in 2025 with 113 babies given the name — outside the top 500, making it an uncommon pick. Ten years earlier it ranked #4584.
When was the name Dolly most popular?
Dolly peaked in 1926, when 395 American girls received the name (ranked #332 that year). Since 1926 the name has declined from that high.
How rare is the name Dolly?
In 2025, roughly 1 in 15,929 newborn American girls was named Dolly. On our rarity scale (rarity blended with momentum) we classify it as "rare".
Data source: U.S. Social Security Administration name statistics, 1880–2025, national and state files. Counts reflect Social Security card applications; names with fewer than 5 occurrences in a state-year are suppressed by the SSA.