Dolly Parton Revealed What She Would've Named A Baby

Dolly Parton and her husband of nearly six decades, Carl Dean, never had children of their own.

However, the beloved late legend shared in an interview more than a decade ago that she and Dean dreamt of what their children would be like. They even had a name picked out if they ever welcomed a daughter.

Parton "died peacefully today in Nashville, Tennessee. She was 80 years old," according to an official announcement on Tuesday (August 25). Representatives for the "I Will Always Love You" singer-songwriter confirmed in a statement to PEOPLE that she passed away "after bravely facing a brief battle with cancer." Dean died in March 2025. He was 82. Parton said in a statement at the time, "Carl and I spent many wonderful years together. Words can't do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years. Thank you for your prayers and sympathy."

In a 2014 interview with The Guardian, which resurfaced after Parton's death, she opened up about the family she and Dean never started while speaking about her book, Dream More. The interviewer noted that Parton wrote about "being struck by sudden thoughts of the children she'd never had," while serving as a commencement speaker at the University of Tennessee.

"You always wonder," Parton told The Guardian at that time. "My husband and I, when we first got married, we thought about if we had kids, what would they look like? Would they be tall - because he's tall? Or would they be little squats like me? If we'd had a girl, she was gonna be called Carla... Anyway, we talked about it, and we dreamed it, but it wasn't meant to be. Now that we're older? We're glad.

"I would have been a great mother, I think," she added. "I would probably have given up everything else. Because I would've felt guilty about that, if I'd have left them [to work, to tour]. Everything would have changed. I probably wouldn't have been a star."

Parton had also opened up in interviews about her endometriosis, a partial hysterectomy in the '80s and struggles with infertility. She told PEOPLE in a health update days before her death, "as I've shared in video messages throughout the past year, I am dealing with some health issues that I just didn't pay attention to when I was watching over Carl. You know, this isn't the first time I've had to manage something like this. Back in the early '80s, I was down for several months with female issues, and I was struggling with my weight at the time too, so it's not like I haven't been through hard times with my health." The publication also noted that Parton told Gloria Steinem for TODAY in the late '80s, "I can't have children physically. I love children. I don't know that it also wasn't God's will, you know, for me not to have kids. I mean, I try to look at things in a way that I can put them in a proper place because somebody has to be out there doing something to entertain other people's children."

Parton has served as a beloved aunt and godmother, including to pop superstar Miley Cyrus. Ancestry data revealed in 2024 that the two artists are actually seventh cousins, once removed. Cyrus previously told W Magazine that "Dolly's been like a mother to me." Parton shared the same sentiment when she told the London Evening Standard that Cyrus "is like a daughter to me." Cyrus is one of many to share an emotional tribute to Parton after her passing earlier this week.

Another way Parton has supported other people's children over the years is through her Imagination Library. The program, inspired by Parton's late father, helps provide free books to children from birth through age 5. Parton started Imagination Library in 1995, and since then, the program has gifted more than 332 million books to children around the world. The Imagination Library is one of many ways Parton is leaving a powerful legacy, along with her music, her films, her Broadway musical, her philanthropic efforts and more.

The official announcement on Tuesday stated that "Dolly is preceded in death by her beloved husband of 59 years Carl Thomas Dean (1942 - 2025), her mother Avie Lee Caroline Owens (1923 - 2003), and father, Robert Lee Parton, Sr. (1921 - 2000). …At Dolly's request, a small, private service will be held for immediate family. Dolly's fans and friends from around the world are encouraged to pay tribute to Dolly on social media by tagging @DollyParton or by leaving a message at www.dollyparton.com. In lieu of flowers the family asks for donations to be made to Dolly Parton's Imagination Library."