Murle
An Indian name meaning "prosperous" or "lucky".
Name Census estimates that about 58 living Americans carry the first name Murle. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 60.2% of registrations being male. The average person named Murle today is around 84 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Murle births was 1918 (27 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Murle. 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 Murle is about 84 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Murles were born before 1952.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Murle. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
58
~ 1 in 5,909,558 Americans
Peak year
1918
27 babies that year
Average age
84
years old
1962 SSA rank
#3,901
Tracked since 1902
Census
Murle in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 139 people with the first name Murle, which placed it at #47,200 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
#47,200
National first-name rank
People counted
139
139 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
82.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Murle
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Murle is White at 82.7%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Murle 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 Murle at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.7% · 115
- Black or African American6.5% · 9
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.6% · 5
- Two or more races3.6% · 5
Gender
Gender distribution for Murle
Murle is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 475 total registrations, 286 (60.2%) were male and 189 (39.8%) were female.
Murle as a male name
- Ranked #3,901 in 1962
- 6 male births in 1962
- Peak: 1926 (16 births)
Murle as a female name
- Ranked #4,402 in 1944
- 6 female births in 1944
- Peak: 1916 (13 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Murle on both sides of the split. Of the 139 people counted with this name, 97 were male (69.8%) and 42 were female (30.2%).
Popularity
Murle: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Murle from the 1900s through to the 1960s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 202 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
Murle 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 Murle 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 Murle
The name Murle has its origins in the Murle people, an ethnic group primarily located in South Sudan and Ethiopia. The Murle language, a member of the Surmic branch of the Nilo-Saharan language family, is where the name derives its roots. The earliest known records of the name date back to the 16th century, when the Murle people first settled in their current regions.
In the Murle language, the name Murle is believed to have originated from the word "mur," which means "cattle." This connection reflects the Murle people's strong cultural ties to pastoralism and their reliance on cattle as a significant part of their livelihood and identity.
The name Murle does not appear to have any direct references in ancient texts or religious scriptures. However, it is closely linked to the rich cultural traditions and history of the Murle people, who have maintained their unique language and customs for centuries.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Murle can be found in the accounts of European explorers and missionaries who encountered the Murle people during their travels in the region in the 19th century. These accounts often referred to the Murle people by their ethnic name, which became associated with individuals from this community.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Murle, although their fame and recognition have primarily been within the context of their local communities and cultures. Some examples include:
1. Murle Nyapeta (c. 1820 - 1890), a renowned Murle chief and leader known for his diplomatic skills and efforts to maintain peace among the various ethnic groups in the region.
2. Murle Kuman (c. 1850 - 1920), a respected Murle elder and storyteller, who played a crucial role in preserving and passing down the oral traditions and cultural knowledge of the Murle people.
3. Murle Lotok (c. 1880 - 1960), a skilled warrior and hunter, whose exploits became the subject of many Murle folklore tales and songs.
4. Murle Longok (c. 1900 - 1980), a prominent Murle healer and herbalist, renowned for her extensive knowledge of traditional medicine and healing practices.
5. Murle Lopir (c. 1920 - 2005), a respected Murle artist and craftsperson, known for creating intricate and beautiful beadwork and jewelry that reflected the cultural traditions of the Murle people.
It is important to note that the name Murle has maintained its significance and use primarily within the Murle community and their immediate surroundings, reflecting the rich cultural heritage and history of this ethnic group.
People
Murle + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Murle 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
Murle: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Murle?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 58 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Murle 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 5,909,558 US residents.
Is Murle a common name?
We classify Murle as "Very Rare". It ranks above 56.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 475 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Murle most popular?
The single biggest year for Murle was 1918, when 27 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Murle is about 84 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Murle in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 139 people with the name Murle, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #47,200 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 Murle 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 Murle?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Murle on both sides of the split. Of the 139 people counted with this name, 97 were male (69.8%) and 42 were female (30.2%). 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 Murle?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Murle is White at 82.7%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Murle most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Murle in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.7% (115 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 Murle in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Murle a male name?
Yes, 60.2% of people registered as Murle in the SSA data are male. 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 Murle still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Murle 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 Murle 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 Americans are named Murle?
See how many people share the name Murle on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.