How popular is the baby name Wilona in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name Wilona.

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Popularity of the baby name Wilona


Posts that mention the name Wilona

Interesting one-hit wonder names in the U.S. baby name data

single flower

They came, they went, and they never came back!

These baby names are one-hit wonders in the U.S. baby name data. That is, they’ve only popped up once, ever, in the entire dataset of U.S. baby names (which accounts for all names given to at least 5 U.S. babies per year since 1880).

There are thousands of one-hit wonders in the dataset, but the names below have interesting stories behind their single appearance, so these are the one-hits I’m writing specific posts about. Just click on a name to read more.

2020s

  • (none yet)

2010s

2000s

1990s

1980s

1970s

1960s

1950s

1940s

1930s

1920s

1910s

1900s

  • (none yet)

1890s

As I discover (and write about) more one-hit wonders in the data, I’ll add the names/links to this page. In the meanwhile, do you have any favorite one-hit wonder baby names?

Image: Adapted from Solitary Poppy by Andy Beecroft under CC BY-SA 2.0.

[Latest update: Dec. 2023]

Where did the baby name Willona come from in the 1970s?

The character Willona Woods from the TV series "Good Times" (1974-1979).
Willona Woods from “Good Times

The name Willona first appeared in the U.S. baby name data in 1974:

  • 1980: unlisted
  • 1979: 12 baby girls named Willona
  • 1978: 12 baby girls named Willona
  • 1977: 14 baby girls named Willona
  • 1976: 13 baby girls named Willona
  • 1975: 16 baby girls named Willona
  • 1974: 15 baby girls named Willona [debut]
  • 1973: unlisted
  • 1972: unlisted

Why?

Because of the sitcom Good Times (1974-1979), which introduced TV audiences to feisty, fashionable Willona Woods (played by Ja’net Dubois).

The show was set in a housing project in Chicago, and the main focus was the Evans family: father James, mother Florida, and their three children (J.J., Thelma and Michael).

Scene-stealing Willona was the divorcée who lived across the hall and regularly popped in for visits [vid].

In a later season, Willona adopted an abused child named Penny (played by future superstar Janet Jackson).

The name Willona remained in the SSA data through the show’s six-season run.

What do you think of the name Willona?

Sources: Good Times – Wikipedia, SSA
Image: Screenshot of Good Times