Country music legend Dolly Rebecca Parton was born on 19 January 1946 and died on 25 August 2026, aged 80.
Dolly Parton’s parents were Robert Lee Parton Senior (1921-2000) and Avie Lee Caroline (née Owens, 1923–2003). She had eleven siblings.
Dolly Parton’s middle name, Rebecca, came from her 2x great grandmother Rebecca Dunn (1861-1930). Her family lived in Tennessee for generations, and she also had ancestors from the American states of North Carolina, Alabama, Virginia and Pennsylvania. She had English ancestry, as her 4x great grandfather Alexander Dixon was born in England in 1792, and German ancestry, as her 5x great grandparents were Johann Philipp Emmert, born in Neckarelz, Baden, c.1704 and Maria Catherina Kamm, born in Eppingen, Baden, in 1713.
In 2024, Dolly said that she thought she had Welsh ancestry from the Owens side of her family. She mentioned her Welsh connections while appearing in a social media clip to promote the Disney Plus TV programme Welcome to Wrexham.
