How common is the surname Merrill?

32,620 people in the United States had the surname Merrill in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 9,465 Americans. It ranked 1,073rd of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Merrill?

Dina Merrill, American actress (1923–2017), followed by James Merrill.

Where is the surname Merrill most common?

Wikidata records people named Merrill in the United States.

Is the surname Merrill getting more or less common?

More common. 31,758 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 32,620 in 2010, up 2.7%.

Is Merrill also a first name?

Yes. Merrill is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Merrill

A surname, carried by 32,620 people in the United States.

2 syllables Soundex M640 Also a first name

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Merrill is more common than 99.3% of them.

Origin

Variant of Muriel.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 32,620 people named Merrill in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 9,465 Americans. That is up 2.7% since 2000, when the Census counted 31,758.

#1,073

rank among US surnames

32,620

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+2.7%

change since 2000 (was #1,007)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#1,064	Newell	32,909	9,382
#1,065	Frey	32,904	9,383
#1,066	Carney	32,897	9,385
#1,067	Barrios	32,873	9,392
#1,068	Bolton	32,815	9,409
#1,069	Holman	32,788	9,416
#1,070	Tovar	32,760	9,424

Who is named Merrill

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

90% of people named Merrill identified as white (not Hispanic), 4.2% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.1% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 90%
Black (not Hispanic) 4.2%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.1%
Two or more races 1.7%
American Indian and Alaska Native 1.0%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.7%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Merrills

16 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Dina Merrill
American actress (1923–2017)
James Merrill
American poet (1926–1995)
Paul W. Merrill
American astronomer (1887–1961)
Stuart Merrill
American poet, who wrote mostly in the French language (1863-1915)
Alan Merrill
American musician (1951-2020)
Robert Merrill
American opera singer (1917-2004)
Sam Merrill
American basketball player (born 1996)
Winifred Edgerton Merrill
American mathematician (1862–1951)
Frank Merrill
American actor (1893-1966)
Robbie Merrill
American bassist, born 1963
Kieth Merrill
American filmmaker (born 1940)
Jon Merrill
American ice hockey defenceman, born 1992

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Merrill

Merrill has the Soundex code M640, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code M640.

Questions

Where does the surname Merrill come from?: Variant of Muriel.
How common is the surname Merrill?: 32,620 people in the United States had the surname Merrill in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 9,465 Americans. It ranked 1,073rd of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Merrill?: In the 2010 Census, 90% of people named Merrill identified as white (not Hispanic), and 4.2% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Merrill?: Dina Merrill, American actress (1923–2017), followed by James Merrill.
Where is the surname Merrill most common?: Wikidata records people named Merrill in the United States.
Is the surname Merrill getting more or less common?: More common. 31,758 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 32,620 in 2010, up 2.7%.
Is Merrill also a first name?: Yes. Merrill is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.