Recent in Baby
When Baby Resists SolidsWhen Baby Resists SolidsBaby Biting TipsBaby Biting Tips5 Tips To Help Prevent Highchair Injuries5 Tips To Help Prevent Highchair InjuriesWhen Baby and Pet MeetWhen Baby and Pet MeetTreatments for ColicTreatments for ColicBaby Milestones – The First YearBaby Milestones – The First YearTips for Relieving Teething PainTips for Relieving Teething PainBenefits of Making Your Own Baby FoodBenefits of Making Your Own Baby Food

Home › Baby Names Directory › Shirlene

Shirlene

♀ Girl

Pronounced shur-LEEN /ʃɜːrˈliːn/Medium

Meaning: Shirlene elaborates Shirley, from the Old English scir ('bright') and leah ('clearing, meadow'), with the mid-century -lene ending. It joined the wave of names that dressed a familiar parent in a fresh suffix.Medium

In 30 seconds: A postwar twist on Shirley ('bright meadow'): Shirlene swaps in a soft -lene ending (said 'shur-LEEN'). It peaked around 1956, then faded.
💕 Browse more names
Origin MediumEnglish
MeaningShirlene elaborates Shirley, from the Old English scir ('bright') and leah ('clearing, meadow'), with the mid-century -lene ending. It joined the wave of names that dressed a familiar parent in a fresh suffix.
U.S. rank (2010)#19431 ↗ Rising
2010 U.S. births5 girls (0.00% of U.S. girls)
Peak year1956
Total births (all-time)≈ 4,856

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

peak 195619232010

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Shirlene reworks Shirley, from Old English scir ('bright') and leah ('meadow'), with the fashionable -lene ending shared by Charlene and Marlene. It rode the tail of the Shirley Temple era, peaking around 1956. As -lene names cooled, Shirlene faded with them (said 'shur-LEEN').

By the 1970s the name had grown rare on American birth records. It reads today as a bright postwar feminine. Meadow-rooted, breezy, and uncommon.

Did you know? Shirlene extends Shirley, whose Old English roots mean 'bright meadow', and it peaked for American girls around 1956, in the wake of Shirley's own popularity.
Overall data confidence 58%
References — Shirlene — Elaboration of Shirley; Old English 'bright meadow'

Variations

ShirleneSharleneShirleen

Nicknames

ShirLene

Famous Bearers

  • Famous bearers coming soon.

If you like Shirlene…

Shirley— the parent name Shirlene elaborates
Charlene— a like -lene mid-century sister
Marlene— a like soft -lene ending name
Darlene— a like rhyming postwar feminine

Explore names like Shirlene

By themevintagefadedelaborationmidcentury

All themes →All meanings →All origins →

Frequently Asked

What does the name Shirlene mean?

Shirlene means 'bright meadow', an elaboration of Shirley from the Old English scir and leah.

How do you pronounce Shirlene?

It's said shur-LEEN /ʃɜːrˈliːn/ — two syllables, stress on the second.

Is Shirlene a boy or girl name?

Shirlene is a girl's name, an elaboration of Shirley.

Is Shirlene making a comeback?

It stays rare, and the -lene family reads as mid-century rather than current.

💬 Ask Nia