Merari
A feminine name of Biblical Hebrew origin signifying "bitter" or "prosperous".
Name Census estimates that about 1,327 living Americans carry the first name Merari. It is a predominantly female name (98.5% of registrations). The average person named Merari today is around 23 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Merari births was 2004 (66 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Merari. 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.
People living today
1.3K
~ 1 in 258,293 Americans
Peak year
2004
66 babies that year
Average age
23
years old
2018 SSA rank
#8,239
Tracked since 1953
Gender
Gender distribution for Merari
Merari leans heavily female at 98.5% of total registrations, but 21 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Merari as a male name
- Ranked #13,461 in 2018
- 5 male births in 2018
- Peak: 1997 (6 births)
Merari as a female name
- Ranked #8,239 in 2024
- 13 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2004 (66 births)
Popularity
Merari: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Merari from the 1950s through to the 2020s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 526 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Merari 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 Merari during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Meraris live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Merari, while Florida, Arizona, North Carolina recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 86 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Merari
The name Merari traces its origins to the Hebrew language and culture, originating in ancient times. It is derived from the Hebrew root words "mar" meaning "bitter" and "ri" meaning "vision" or "seer." The name is believed to have been first used during the biblical period, as it appears in the Book of Genesis as the name of one of the sons of Levi.
In the biblical account, Merari was one of the three sons of Levi, the others being Gershon and Kohath. The Merarites were responsible for carrying the boards, bars, pillars, and sockets of the Tabernacle during the Israelites' journey through the wilderness. The name Merari is also mentioned in the Book of Numbers, where it refers to the Levite clan descended from Merari.
One of the earliest recorded individuals bearing the name Merari was a Jewish scholar and philosopher who lived in the 12th century CE. Known as Merari ben Shlomo, he was a prominent figure in the Jewish community of Ramerupt, France, and wrote several works on Jewish law and ethics.
In the 16th century, Merari ben Yitzchak Katz was a renowned Kabbalist and rabbinical scholar from Cracow, Poland. He authored several important works on Kabbalah and Jewish mysticism, including the influential book "Sefer Merari."
Another notable figure was Merari Norzi, an Italian Jewish scholar and philosopher who lived in the 16th century. He was known for his commentary on the Bible and his work on Hebrew grammar and linguistics.
In more recent times, Merari Maor was an Israeli scholar and expert on the Dead Sea Scrolls. Born in 1925, he made significant contributions to the study and interpretation of these ancient manuscripts.
While the name Merari is not as common today as it was in ancient times, it continues to hold significance within Jewish and Hebrew culture, carrying the weight of its biblical and historical roots.
People
Merari + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Merari 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
Merari: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Merari?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,327 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Merari 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 258,293 US residents.
Is Merari a common name?
We classify Merari as "Rare". It ranks above 91.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,360 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Merari most popular?
The single biggest year for Merari was 2004, when 66 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Merari is about 23 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Merari a female name?
Yes, 98.5% of people registered as Merari 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.