Nolen is a spelling variant of Nolan, an Irish surname from Ó Nualláin, "descendant of Nuallán", whose root nuall means "noble" or "famous". It carries the same easy, friendly sound as the much more common Nolan without the crowd. In the United States Nolen peaked at number 1516 in 2009, slipped back over the following decade and ranks number 2381 in 2025.