as a First Name
Probably a contracted form of Meriel, but also associated with the small class of girls' names derived from birds, since it is identical in form with Old French merle ‘blackbird’ (Latin merula). The name came to public notice in the 1930s with the actress Merle Oberon (1911–79, born Estelle Merle O'Brien Thompson).
| 1,005th in the U.S. for 2011 |
Nicknames & variations
Quick facts
- Tens of Thousands
- of people in the U.S have this name
- 32,694
- to be exact (as of February 2011)
- 35,153
- if you include dead people (since the government started keeping track)
- South Dakota
- has the most people named Merle per capita
- 1921
- marked the height of its popularity
24%
76%
87%
55+
55+
12%
30-54
30-54
0.82%
13-29
13-29
0.33%
0-12
0-12
Top state populations
U.S. Distribution Map
