How Many People Are Named Merril?
An estimated 279 people in the United States have the first name Merril. It is used for both genders, with 86.5% male. The average bearer is 75 years old, and Merril peaked in popularity in 1920 with 37 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Merril 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 Merril paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- With an average bearer age of 75, Merril is a vintage name most associated with earlier generations. Most living bearers were born before 1961.
Estimated Living Americans
279
About 1 in 1,228,510 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Very Rare
Predicted Gender
Male
86.5% confidence
Average Age
75
years old
Peak Year
1920
37 births
Total Registered
992
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Merril
Merril is predominantly male (86.5%), though 134 female births have been registered. It functions as a unisex name for a small percentage of bearers.
Merril as a male name
Ranked #13,913 in 2008
5 male births in 2008
Peak: 1920 (37 births)
Merril as a female name
Ranked #7,490 in 1967
5 female births in 1967
Peak: 1950 (12 births)
Merril: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Merril span from the 1910s to the 2000s, covering 9 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1920s, when 273 babies were registered. Merril has declined significantly from its peak in the 1920s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Merril by Decade
How has Merril 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.
Merril by State
Birth registrations for Merril span all 4 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in Pennsylvania, New York, Kentucky. The lowest are in Wisconsin, Kentucky, New York. On average, about 11 Merrils were registered per state.
Merril + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Merril as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Merril
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
Merril: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Merril?
We estimate approximately 279 people named Merril 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 1,228,510 Americans share this first name.
Is Merril a common name?
Merril is classified as "Very Rare" and is more popular than 78.4% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 992 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Merril most popular?
Merril reached peak popularity in 1920, when 37 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Merril is approximately 75 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Merril a male name?
Merril is predominantly male. 86.5% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Merril Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Merril Smith, Merril Johnson, Merril 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.
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