Maely
A feminine name of uncertain origins, possibly English or Gallic.
Name Census estimates that about 372 living Americans carry the first name Maely. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Maely today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Maely births was 2014 (27 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Maely. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Maely with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
372
~ 1 in 921,383 Americans
Peak year
2014
27 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,959
Tracked since 2004
Census
Maely in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 298 people with the first name Maely, which placed it at #29,601 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#29,601
National first-name rank
People counted
298
298 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
51.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Maely
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Maely is White at 51.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (37.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.7%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Maely described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Maely at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White51.7% · 154
- Hispanic or Latino37.6% · 112
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.7% · 11
- Two or more races3.7% · 11
- Black or African American3.4% · 10
Popularity
Maely: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Maely from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 203 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Maely remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Maely by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Maely during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Maely
The name Maely is a relatively modern invention, believed to have originated as a feminine variation of the French name Maël. The root of the name can be traced back to the Breton language, which is a Celtic language spoken in the Brittany region of northwestern France.
The name Maël is derived from the Breton word "mael," which means "prince" or "chief." It is thought that the name was initially used to refer to rulers or leaders in Breton culture. The addition of the "y" ending in Maely is likely a creative twist to feminize the name and make it more suitable for girls.
Despite its Breton origins, the name Maely does not appear to have any significant historical references or mentions in ancient texts or religious scriptures. Its use as a given name is relatively modern and seems to have gained popularity in recent decades.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Maely can be found in the 20th century. Maely Hommeau (1905-1988) was a French actress and singer who appeared in several films and stage productions during the mid-20th century. Her birth name was Marie-Louise Hommeau, but she adopted the stage name Maely, which was likely a unique variation of her given name.
Another notable bearer of the name was Maely Younan (1923-2017), a Lebanese painter and sculptor. She was known for her abstract and surrealist works, and she held numerous exhibitions throughout her career. Younan was born in Beirut and studied art in both Lebanon and Paris.
In the realm of literature, Maely Menendez is a contemporary Cuban-American author and playwright. She has written several plays and short stories that explore themes of identity, family, and cultural heritage. Menendez's works often draw inspiration from her Cuban roots and the experiences of the Cuban diaspora.
Moving to the world of sports, Maely Desjobert is a French professional basketball player. Born in 1993, she currently plays as a guard for the French club Bourges Basket. Desjobert has represented France in various international competitions, including the FIBA Women's EuroBasket.
Lastly, Maely Andrade is a Brazilian model and social media influencer. Born in 1997, she has amassed a significant following on platforms like Instagram, where she shares fashion and lifestyle content. Andrade has also worked with various brands and participated in modeling campaigns.
It's important to note that while these individuals represent some of the most notable bearers of the name Maely, the name's usage and popularity may vary across different regions and cultures.
People
Maely + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Maely as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Maely: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Maely?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 372 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Maely going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 921,383 US residents.
Is Maely a common name?
We classify Maely as "Very Rare". It ranks above 81.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 375 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Maely most popular?
The single biggest year for Maely was 2014, when 27 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Maely is about 11 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Maely in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 298 people with the name Maely, or 0.10 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #29,601 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Maely in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Maely?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Maely appears almost entirely female. Of the 302 people counted with this name, 100.0% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Maely?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Maely is White at 51.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (37.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.7%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Maely most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Maely in the 2020 Census, accounting for 51.7% (154 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Maely in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Maely a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Maely in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Maely still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Maely in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Maely can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people share the name Maely?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.