Mardell
A feminine name with uncertain origins, possibly related to the name "Mary".
Name Census estimates that about 670 living Americans carry the first name Mardell. It is a predominantly female name (95.8% of registrations). The average person named Mardell today is around 72 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Mardell births was 1927 (67 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Mardell. 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.
Key insights
- • Although Mardell is used almost entirely for girls, the SSA data does show 94 boys registered with the name since 1880.
- • The typical person named Mardell is about 72 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Mardells were born before 1964.
People living today
670
~ 1 in 511,574 Americans
Peak year
1927
67 babies that year
Average age
72
years old
2010 SSA rank
#11,418
Tracked since 1896
Gender
Gender distribution for Mardell
Mardell leans heavily female at 95.8% of total registrations, but 94 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Mardell as a male name
- Ranked #13,536 in 2010
- 5 male births in 2010
- Peak: 1979 (8 births)
Mardell as a female name
- Ranked #11,418 in 1981
- 5 female births in 1981
- Peak: 1932 (67 births)
Popularity
Mardell: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Mardell from the 1890s through to the 2010s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 580 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Mardell 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 Mardell during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Mardells live
The SSA's state-level files cover 12 states and territories. Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa recorded the most babies named Mardell, while Texas, South Dakota, Pennsylvania recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 45 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Mardell
The name Mardell is believed to have originated from a combination of the Germanic elements "mar" meaning "famous" and "dell" meaning "valley" or "dell." Its roots can be traced back to medieval times in regions such as Germany and the Low Countries.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Mardell can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of historical documents from the 9th to the 15th century, where a woman named Mardell von Koln was mentioned in the 13th century. This suggests that the name was already in use during that time period.
In the 14th century, a Mardell von Bremen was recorded as a merchant in the town of Bremen, Germany. This indicates that the name was not only used by nobility but also among the common people.
During the Renaissance period, a notable figure named Mardell Fugger (1459-1512) was a wealthy merchant and member of the prominent Fugger family from Augsburg, Germany. She played a significant role in the family's banking and trading business.
In the 16th century, Mardell Sittich (1532-1589) was a German noblewoman and landowner, known for her patronage of the arts and her support of the Protestant Reformation.
Another historical figure with the name Mardell was Mardell von Hohenzollern (1575-1631), a German princess from the House of Hohenzollern who married into the House of Saxe-Weimar.
While the name Mardell has its roots in medieval Germany, it has been used across various regions and cultures over the centuries, although it has remained relatively uncommon compared to more popular names.
People
Mardell + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Mardell 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
Mardell: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Mardell?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 670 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Mardell 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 511,574 US residents.
Is Mardell a common name?
We classify Mardell as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,264 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Mardell most popular?
The single biggest year for Mardell was 1927, when 67 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Mardell is about 72 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Mardell a female name?
Yes, 95.8% of people registered as Mardell 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.
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.