# Merlin (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/merlin/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | boys |
| Origin | not recorded |
| Meaning | “sea-hill”, “sea”, “stronghold”, “rampart” |
| Pronunciation | /ˈmɝlɪn/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | Marlin, Nimuë |
| US babies named this | 15,968 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 15,049 / 919 (6% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 411, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

From Middle English Merlyn, from Medieval Latin Merlinus and Old French Merlin, from Proto-Brythonic *Mor-ðin (literally “sea-hill”), from Proto-Celtic *mori (“sea”) + *dūnom (“stronghold, rampart”).

## What it means

Merlin is grouped under sea.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 12 | 9,539 |
| 2012 | 15 | 8,079 |
| 2013 | 8 | 12,777 |
| 2014 | 12 | 9,354 |
| 2015 | 12 | 9,324 |
| 2016 | 11 | 9,866 |
| 2017 | 14 | 8,142 |
| 2018 | 12 | 8,987 |
| 2019 | 10 | 10,239 |
| 2020 | 17 | 6,825 |
| 2021 | 12 | 8,818 |
| 2022 | 11 | 9,451 |
| 2023 | 13 | 8,345 |
| 2024 | 13 | 8,281 |
| 2025 | 14 | 7,758 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 31 | 3,489 |
| 2012 | 39 | 2,989 |
| 2013 | 37 | 3,036 |
| 2014 | 34 | 3,283 |
| 2015 | 35 | 3,284 |
| 2016 | 40 | 2,967 |
| 2017 | 54 | 2,408 |
| 2018 | 57 | 2,346 |
| 2019 | 53 | 2,514 |
| 2020 | 52 | 2,493 |
| 2021 | 70 | 2,092 |
| 2022 | 49 | 2,703 |
| 2023 | 62 | 2,285 |
| 2024 | 73 | 2,072 |
| 2025 | 59 | 2,343 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 10 | 2,039 |
| 2012 | 13 | 1,756 |
| 2013 | 4 | 3,822 |
| 2014 | 8 | 2,459 |
| 2015 | 10 | 2,150 |
| 2016 | 9 | 2,335 |
| 2017 | 27 | 1,068 |
| 2018 | 17 | 1,455 |
| 2019 | 21 | 1,217 |
| 2020 | 19 | 1,314 |
| 2021 | 23 | 1,184 |
| 2022 | 26 | 1,084 |
| 2023 | 13 | 1,799 |
| 2024 | 17 | 1,517 |
| 2025 | 14 | 1,798 |

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.