How Many People Are Named Meryl?
An estimated 3,547 people in the United States have the first name Meryl. It is predominantly female (92.3%). The average bearer is 53 years old, and Meryl peaked in popularity in 1956 with 156 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Meryl 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 Meryl paired with any surname.
Estimated Living Americans
3,547
About 1 in 96,632 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Rare
Predicted Gender
Female
92.3% confidence
Average Age
53
years old
Peak Year
1956
156 births
Total Registered
5,585
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Meryl
Meryl is predominantly female (92.3%), though 431 male births have been registered. It functions as a unisex name for a small percentage of bearers.
Meryl as a male name
Ranked #4,354 in 1967
5 male births in 1967
Peak: 1921 (18 births)
Meryl as a female name
Ranked #5,532 in 2024
23 female births in 2024
Peak: 1956 (156 births)
Meryl: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Meryl span from the 1890s to the 2020s, covering 14 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1950s, when 1,327 babies were registered. Meryl has declined significantly from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Meryl by Decade
How has Meryl 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.
Meryl by State
Birth registrations for Meryl span all 12 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania. The lowest are in Texas, Ohio, Kansas. On average, about 204 Meryls were registered per state.
Meryl + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Meryl as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Meryl
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
Meryl: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Meryl?
We estimate approximately 3,547 people named Meryl 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 96,632 Americans share this first name.
Is Meryl a common name?
Meryl is classified as "Rare" and is more popular than 95.7% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 5,585 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Meryl most popular?
Meryl reached peak popularity in 1956, when 156 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Meryl is approximately 53 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Meryl a female name?
Meryl is predominantly female. 92.3% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Meryl Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Meryl Smith, Meryl Johnson, Meryl 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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