Fun Facts About the Name Starlette
- 726 babies named Starlette: U.S. records list 726 babies given the name Starlette from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Starlette Mean?
Starlette means "little star." It is an English formation, built from the English noun star plus the diminutive suffix -ette, which marks something small or a smaller version of the base word. The base goes back to Old English steorra, from a Germanic word related to Latin stella and Greek astēr; all of these descend from the same ancient root for "star." The suffix came into English through French, from Old French -ete (ultimately a Latin feminine diminutive ending), and has been used in English since the Middle Ages in words taken from French.
So Starlette is not a translation of a foreign name but an English word-shaped name whose literal sense is "small star." The -ette ending gives it a French appearance, but that is a matter of spelling and style rather than of French origin.
Starlette Name History & Origins
Starlette belongs to a small group of English names taken straight from star vocabulary: Star and Starr, and the Latin-derived Stella and Estella. Starlette stands out in that group because of its diminutive ending. The spelling with two t's uses the same -ette found in French-derived English words such as cigarette, statuette, and novelette.
The shorter form starlet is an ordinary English noun. It can mean simply a small star, and it also came to be used for a young performer, especially an actress, near the start of a career. That second sense is the one most people meet today, and the name Starlette is often read as a decorative spelling of it. The two share the same building blocks rather than one deriving from the other.
As a personal name, Starlette has been uncommon and is used mainly in the United States. It follows a broader English pattern of turning common nouns into girls' names, and of forming feminine names with -ette endings, but it has no long tradition tied to a particular language, region, or saint. Its use appears in scattered instances rather than in a continuous documented line of inheritance from an older name.
How Popular is the Name Starlette?
Starlette has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 1982. Its best rank was #2,918 in 1965.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #8,804 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2024 | #14,994 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 2023 | #8,910 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2022 | #8,987 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2021 | #10,210 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2020 | #10,975 | 9 | 0.0006% |
| 2019 | #11,262 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2018 | #15,441 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 2017 | #8,726 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 2016 | #10,027 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2015 | #16,190 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2014 | #12,934 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2013 | #14,416 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2012 | #13,326 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2011 | #14,660 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2010 | #8,238 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2009 | #17,030 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2008 | #17,234 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2007 | #17,355 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2006 | #7,819 | 16 | 0.0008% |
| 2005 | #16,187 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2002 | #15,163 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2001 | #13,312 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2000 | #10,636 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1999 | #16,592 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1997 | #10,697 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1991 | #15,124 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1990 | #10,068 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1989 | #12,168 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1988 | #6,239 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1987 | #6,737 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1986 | #9,422 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1985 | #8,222 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1984 | #4,939 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 1983 | #4,857 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 1982 | #3,884 | 21 | 0.0012% |
| 1981 | #4,708 | 16 | 0.0010% |
| 1980 | #6,716 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1979 | #5,380 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 1978 | #4,426 | 16 | 0.0010% |
| 1977 | #3,893 | 19 | 0.0012% |
| 1976 | #4,572 | 14 | 0.0010% |
| 1975 | #5,457 | 11 | 0.0008% |
| 1974 | #8,593 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1973 | #6,575 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1972 | #5,874 | 9 | 0.0006% |
| 1971 | #5,477 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1970 | #6,287 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1969 | #3,601 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 1968 | #3,586 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 1967 | #5,962 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1966 | #3,253 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 1965 | #2,918 | 19 | 0.0011% |
| 1964 | #3,362 | 16 | 0.0008% |
| 1963 | #3,615 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 1962 | #3,757 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1961 | #3,978 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 1960 | #3,194 | 16 | 0.0008% |
| 1959 | #4,001 | 11 | 0.0005% |
| 1957 | #3,466 | 13 | 0.0006% |
| 1956 | #4,130 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1955 | #3,552 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 1954 | #4,608 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1953 | #4,970 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1952 | #4,863 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1951 | #4,770 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1950 | #6,005 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1949 | #5,185 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1948 | #5,941 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1947 | #3,424 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1943 | #5,293 | 5 | 0.0004% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Starlette Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are spiritually intense and can sting or charm. Your name brings love and new starts into life and attracts money. In business, you are the creator and promoter of original ideas and usually enjoy considerable financial success. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
Creative and outgoing, you are always looking for an opportunity to show your abilities, especially before audience. You are very flexible and like to feel appreciated. You are looking for chances to mix with others socially and to communicate your ideas. You like to talk and can easily relate to different cultures and concepts. The biggest challenge for you is uncertainty. Easily getting bored, you can move from one job to another, switch projects and lovers. The high creative force can lead you either to happiness or unhappiness. If you understand your goals, if you can make major decisions in life and follow it directly and straight up without worry and uncertainty, you are able to achieve great heights.
✦ Starlette's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Starlette's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.