The first person named "Jalen" was Jalen Rose, a former NBA player born in 1973. His mother created the name by combining the names of his biological father, James, and her brother, Leonard. This unique name had not been used before, making Jalen Rose the original person named Jalen. Though an ESPN investigation found one other person named Jalen born three years earlier, that individual was not famous and did not popularize the name. Jalen Rose's popularity in college basketball and the NBA led to the name becoming widely used and famous starting in the early 1990s.