MEANING & HISTORY
What does Pauline mean?
Pauline is the French feminine form of Paulinus. The Roman Paulinus was derived from Paulus, the Latin name meaning small.
This gives a clear chain of formation rather than a newly coined adjective meaning humble. Humility may be a later personal association, but it is not the literal lexical root. Pauline belongs to the wider Paul family through a derived Roman form, which accounts for the added syllables and feminine ending.
References for this explanation
Pronunciation & syllables
Dictionary readings are kept by language. Select the reading that matches your intended pronunciation. Dots show the source’s written divisions; they are not a universal syllable count across languages.
English
- /ˈpɔːˌliːn/
- /pɔˈlin/General-American
- /pɑˈlin/US · cot-caught-merger · dialectal · of Canada
- /pɒˈlin/Canada · dialectal · of the US
Wiktionary contributors / Kaikki / Wiktextract · CC BY-SA 4.0
Origin and name formation
Language-specific accounts from the dictionary. A shared spelling can have more than one history.
EnglishEtymology & source
From French Pauline, in turn from Latin Paulīna; in regular use since the 19th century. By surface analysis, Paul + -ine (feminine suffix).
A female given name from Latin.
Wiktionary: Pauline (English) ↗ · Contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0
Adapted from Wiktionary contributors via Kaikki/Wiktextract. Source accounts remain in their original English; editorial summaries and filters are adapted. Attribution and downloads
People with the name Pauline
Public figures and other documented namesakes linked by an explicit given-name claim. This is a selection of records, not a popularity ranking.
DOCUMENTED NAMESAKE
Pauleen Luna
Filipino actress
DOCUMENTED NAMESAKE
Pauline Louise Lopez
Filipino taekwondoin
The record establishes the name association, not the person’s intended meaning, pronunciation or ancestry. Descriptions are attributed to Wikidata contributors (CC0).
Use in Philippine-linked records
Wikidata
5
distinct person records with an explicit given-name claim
Community-edited coverage, not a census or birth registry. Examples: Pauleen Luna, Pauline Louise Lopez
PSA · OFFICIAL BIRTH RECORDS
Pauline in the birth records
Exact spelling and stated year in the published name tables. Read the counts as individual snapshots.
Tables included: 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024. The 2016 fact sheet lists five names per sex; the later tables include ten. Missing counts are not inferred. Sex categories follow the official tables, independently of dictionary gender labels. Explore the official tables →
Similar names to Pauline
Names with a similar opening or ending, ordered by spelling distance. Similar spelling does not imply the same meaning or origin.
Names in this collection
- Paulina♀Feminine form of Paulinus; in the Paul family
- Paulino♂Derived from Paulus, meaning small
- Paulito·Diminutive of Paulo; small-name tradition
- Adeline♀Diminutive of Adela; noble
- Armine♂♀Armenian feminine of Armen, linked with Armenia
- Caroline♀French feminine of Carolus, in the Charles family
- Claudine♀French feminine form of Claude
- Janine♀Familiar form of Jeanne; God is gracious
What rhymes with Pauline?
No dictionary-confirmed rhyme match is available for this spelling in the current catalogue.
Explore Pauline further
Follow the sources
- Wikidata given-name item Q18009833 — Pauline (opens in a new tab)
Given-name identity, native labels, language associations and explicit class where present; not lexical meaning or population frequency.
- Wikidata — Pauleen Luna (opens in a new tab)
Explicit given-name claim P735 linking to Q18009833 and citizenship claim P27 linking to Philippines Q928; community-edited evidence, not a civil-registry record.
- Wikidata — Pauline Louise Lopez (opens in a new tab)
Explicit given-name claim P735 linking to Q18009833 and citizenship claim P27 linking to Philippines Q928; community-edited evidence, not a civil-registry record.
- Wiktionary contributors — Pauline (English) (opens in a new tab)
Language-specific given-name etymology; shared spelling does not prove every bearer has this origin.
- Behind the Name — Pauline (opens in a new tab)
Consulted account of the name’s formation, relevant root elements, or explicitly linked base name.
- Behind the Name — Paulino (opens in a new tab)
Consulted account of the name’s formation, relevant root elements, or explicitly linked base name.
- Behind the Name — Paul (opens in a new tab)
Consulted account of the name’s formation, relevant root elements, or explicitly linked base name.