How Many People Are Named Merle?
An estimated 12,101 people in the United States have the first name Merle. It is used for both genders, with 67.5% male. The average bearer is 70 years old, and Merle peaked in popularity in 1921 with 1,275 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Merle as a first name in the United States, including gender data, a year-by-year popularity timeline going back to 1880, a decade breakdown, and state-by-state birth registrations. You can also check how many people share the full name Merle paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- With an average bearer age of 70, Merle is a vintage name most associated with earlier generations. Most living bearers were born before 1966.
- Merle has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1920s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
12,101
About 1 in 28,324 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Uncommon
Predicted Gender
Male
67.5% confidence
Average Age
70
years old
Peak Year
1921
1,275 births
Total Registered
45,348
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Merle
Merle is a genuinely unisex name, used for both males (67.5%) and females (32.5%). Out of 45,348 total births registered, 30,630 were male and 14,718 were female.
Merle as a male name
Ranked #4,640 in 2024
22 male births in 2024
Peak: 1925 (836 births)
Merle as a female name
Ranked #17,896 in 2004
5 female births in 2004
Peak: 1921 (442 births)
Merle: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Merle span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1920s, when 11,573 babies were registered. Merle has declined significantly from its peak in the 1920s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Merle by Decade
How has Merle tracked across different eras? The table below groups all SSA birth registrations into 10-year periods, with separate male and female counts. The colored bar shows each decade's share relative to the peak.
| Decade | Total | Male | Female | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 370 | 207 | 163 | |
| 1890s | 1,095 | 378 | 717 | |
| 1900s | 1,717 | 651 | 1,066 | |
| 1910s | 7,465 | 4,645 | 2,820 | |
| 1920s | 11,573 | 7,970 | 3,603 | |
| 1930s | 8,297 | 5,800 | 2,497 | |
| 1940s | 6,341 | 4,187 | 2,154 | |
| 1950s | 4,181 | 3,030 | 1,151 | |
| 1960s | 1,866 | 1,503 | 363 | |
| 1970s | 1,023 | 929 | 94 | |
| 1980s | 559 | 502 | 57 | |
| 1990s | 315 | 292 | 23 | |
| 2000s | 224 | 214 | 10 | |
| 2010s | 180 | 180 | 0 | |
| 2020s | 142 | 142 | 0 | |
Merle by State
Birth registrations for Merle span all 46 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in Pennsylvania, Illinois, Iowa. The lowest are in New Hampshire, District of Columbia, New Mexico. On average, about 768 Merles were registered per state.
Merle + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Merle as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Merle
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
Merle: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Merle?
We estimate approximately 12,101 people named Merle are alive in the United States today. This is based on SSA birth records from 1880 to 2024, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables. About 1 in 28,324 Americans share this first name.
Is Merle a common name?
Merle is classified as "Uncommon" and is more popular than 98% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 45,348 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Merle most popular?
Merle reached peak popularity in 1921, when 1,275 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Merle is approximately 70 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Merle a male name?
Merle is predominantly male. 67.5% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Merle Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Merle Smith, Merle Johnson, Merle Williams. You can also search any combination on our homepage.
Where does this data come from?
Our estimates use Social Security Administration birth records (1880 to 2024), adjusted for survival using CDC 2023 life tables broken down by sex. The U.S. population figure (342,754,338) is from the Census Bureau's July 2025 estimate. Full methodology.
Search for a full name combination
How Many of Me