Arlee is a unique and distinctive given name of American origin. It is believed to have been coined by the famous American writer, Edgar Rice Burroughs, who used it for one of the characters in his popular Tarzan series of novels.
The name Arlee is not derived from any specific language or cultural tradition. Instead, it appears to be a purely invented name, created by Burroughs himself for use in his stories set in Africa. The name first appeared in print in 1927, when it was used as the name of one of Tarzan's companions in the novel "Tarzan and the Golden Lion."
Despite its origins in popular literature, the name Arlee has not become particularly widespread or well-known outside of that context. It is still relatively rare today, both as a given name and as a surname.
In terms of meaning, there is no universally agreed-upon interpretation for the name Arlee. Given its invented nature, any association it may have with particular qualities or attributes would likely be shaped by the portrayal of its namesake character in Burroughs' Tarzan series.
The name Arlee has been given to a total of 435 babies born in the United States over the course of nearly a century, from 1915 to 2022. The years with the highest number of births were 1924 and 1925, each with 14 births. The name was most popular during the early 1920s, with peaks in 1923, 1924, and 1925. However, it continued to be used sporadically throughout the decades, with at least five births recorded in every decade from the 1970s up until the present day.