Merrilynn
A feminine name derived from a combination of "merri" (pleasant) and "lynn" (lake or pool).
Name Census estimates that about 17 living Americans carry the first name Merrilynn. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Merrilynn today is around 73 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Merrilynn births was 1965 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Merrilynn. 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
- • The typical person named Merrilynn is about 73 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Merrilynns were born before 1963.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Merrilynn. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
17
~ 1 in 20,162,020 Americans
Peak year
1965
7 babies that year
Average age
73
years old
1965 SSA rank
#5,626
Tracked since 1943
Popularity
Merrilynn: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Merrilynn from the 1940s through to the 1960s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1940s, with 22 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1940s peak, Merrilynn remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Merrilynn 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 Merrilynn 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 Merrilynn
The given name Merrilynn is a modern English name that first appeared in the mid-20th century. It is a combination of the English names Merrill and Lynn. The name Merrill is derived from the Old French word "merle," meaning blackbird. It was originally a surname referring to someone who lived near a meadow where blackbirds gathered. The name Lynn is an English name with several possible origins, including a Welsh word meaning "lake or pool," a French word meaning "linden tree," and an Old English word meaning "torrent or waterfall."
There are no known historical references to the name Merrilynn in ancient texts, religious scriptures, or historical records prior to the 20th century. The earliest recorded examples of the name appear to be from the 1940s and 1950s in the United States.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the name Merrilynn was Merrilynn Gipson (born 1950), an American fashion model who appeared on the cover of numerous magazines in the 1970s and 1980s. Another individual named Merrilynn was Merrilynn Trestain (born 1943), an American lawyer and political activist who served as a special assistant to the U.S. Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare in the 1970s.
In the field of literature, Merrilynn Branch (born 1945) is an American author known for her historical fiction novels set in the Old West. In the realm of science, Merrilynn Funk (born 1955) is a Canadian biologist and professor who has made significant contributions to the study of plant ecology and conservation.
Another notable individual with the name Merrilynn is Merrilynn Deline (born 1952), an American actress who appeared in several television shows and movies in the 1970s and 1980s, including the popular sitcom "The Jeffersons."
People
Merrilynn + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Merrilynn 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
Merrilynn: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Merrilynn?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 17 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Merrilynn 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 20,162,020 US residents.
Is Merrilynn a common name?
We classify Merrilynn as "Very Rare". It ranks above 37.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 29 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Merrilynn most popular?
The single biggest year for Merrilynn was 1965, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Merrilynn is about 73 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Merrilynn a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Merrilynn 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.