Nashville International Airport is set to be renamed to honor Dolly Parton after a unanimous vote by the local airport authority. Once the effort clears all the hurdles, it will make Nashville, Tennessee, one of the few major cities in the country with an airport named after a woman.

The Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority Board of Commissioners, which oversees the airports, approved the name change in a 6-0 vote during a meeting Friday. In a statement, the authority said that “a final name has not yet been determined” and that the vote was the first step in a “multifaceted process.” It added that it anticipated having more “definitive plans” about next steps in the coming months.

Few people, in life or in death, have united Tennessee like Parton, a singer, actor and philanthropist. The effort to rename the airport, which began in 2025, picked up steam after Parton’s death last month at 80. More than 175,000 people, including singer Sheryl Crow, have signed an online petition supporting the name change.

Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican, announced his support for the renaming late last month. And Nashville Democrats, including Mayor Freddie O’Connell, who are rarely in line with Lee and state Republicans, have also supported honoring Parton.

Changing an airport’s name can be an expensive and lengthy undertaking that requires updating airport signage and coordinating with the global aviation systems that underpin airline ticketing and baggage.

Renaming the airport would be among the more permanent official tributes to Parton, who lived in Nashville.

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This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

By Christine Chung/Edward Keating
c. 2026 The New York Times Company