Melanie

#142 for girls in 2025, 2,074 births · Last seen for boys in 2017 at #12,246
Given to girls 99.8% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1972 · 6,296 births
Debut · girls
8 births
In top 100 · girls
40 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
262,640
since 1886

Melanie over time

girls

Rank among girls' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201978peak #42, 1972girls
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025#1422,074
2024#1222,253
2023#1302,121
2022#1302,173
2021#1292,188
2020#1052,528
2019#1102,592
2018#1052,850
2017#903,240#12,2465
2016#823,490
2015#813,497
2014#813,701#9,6427
2013#843,474
2012#773,467
2011#893,289#12,2875
2010#823,486
2009#943,487
2008#853,714#9,0198
2007#814,000#5,66115
2006#854,034#7,9989
2005#923,495#6,63411
2004#893,583#5,00716
2003#933,550#7,8318
2002#943,484#8,4567
2001#1172,913#8,3397
2000#1142,968#5,29713
1999#1262,649#7,1398
1998#1352,459
1997#1272,522#6,1009
1996#1182,664#6,4968
1995#1172,646#5,50110
1994#1202,679#7,7706
1993#1102,987#5,7719
1992#983,353#4,32713
1991#963,580#5,09610
1990#863,813#3,16619
1989#883,628#2,90221
1988#992,834#3,70513
1987#1022,745#4,9688
1986#972,973#5,3327
1985#883,132#2,71018
1984#853,516#2,36421
1983#793,553#2,57718
1982#654,255#3,10814
1981#664,475#3,41212
1980#604,841#2,36721
1979#535,021#2,10424
1978#544,996#2,66916
1977#535,373#2,55617
1976#535,241#2,41718
1975#525,369#2,75114
1974#515,483#2,19919
1973#436,079#2,12419
1972#426,296#1,81924
1971#665,135#2,97311
1970#914,330#2,62113
1969#923,925#4,4045
1968#943,641#2,31113
1967#1103,108
1966#1163,050#3,5376
1965#1223,116#2,7809
1964#1053,943#2,11415
1963#1014,268#2,8589
1962#1064,281
1961#1233,757#3,6526
1960#1253,662#3,3377
1959#1492,826
1958#1572,535
1957#1522,474#3,5526
1956#1432,691#3,2167
1955#1412,658
1954#1781,859
1953#2101,423
1952#2111,351
1951#2441,006
1950#2371,026
1949#2171,199
1948#241955
1947#350520
1946#374410
1945#384335
1944#410307
1943#353407
1942#354388
1941#393308
1940#477200
1939#93057
1938#97253
1937#1,14439
1936#2,26313
1935#2,9269
1934#2,9239
1933#1,90617
1932#2,03716
1931#1,94117
1930#2,55212
1929#2,09816
1928#1,89720
1927#1,58727
1926#1,93220
1925#2,37815
1924#2,66113
1923#2,73212
1922#2,10918
1921#2,28216
1920#1,62626
1919#2,06317
1918#1,75422
1917#2,20415
1916#2,24614
1915#1,67220
1914#2,6388
1913#1,76612
1912#1,17820
1911#1,6569
1910#1,7738
1909#1,36910
1908#1,26111
1907#1,14212
1906#1,4168
1905#1,5387
1904#1,4867
1903#1,7925
1902
1901#1,4666
1900#1,05313
1899#1,0999
1898#1,04711
1897#1,2637
1896
1895#1,2997
1894#99810
1893#1,4375
1892#1,0858
1891#1,2136
1890
1889#1,0257
1888
1887#1,0366
1886#8288
1885
1884
1883
1882
1881
1880
First appearance
1886

The first year at least five girls were named Melanie! It came in at #828, and was given to 8 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1888, when fewer than 5 girls a year got the name.

See more about Melanie
Momentum · girls
Falling
  • 20 spots since 2024 (#122#142)
  • 37 spots since 2020 (#105#142)
  • 61 spots since 2015 (#81#142)
  • Biggest jump: 453 spots in 1940 (#930#477)
  • Biggest drop: 301 spots in 1895 (#998#1,299)
Rise & fade · girls
86 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1886
  • Peaked 1972 at #42 (6,296 births)
  • Births halved by 1985, 13 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 100 for 40 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 40 yrs · run 1968–1986
  • Top 1,000: 90 yrs · run 1938–2025
Share of babies · girls
1 in 240
  • Highest: 1 in 240 girls born in 1973 were named Melanie (0.42%)
  • Latest: 1 in 775 girls born in 2025 (0.13%)
  • Its best rank, #42 in 1972, was only 1 in 242 (0.41%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · girls
The 1970s
  • 20.3% of all girls named Melanie (53,323) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s21#828 (1886)#963
1890s63#998 (1894)#1,180
1900s79#1,053 (1900)#1,391
1910s145#1,178 (1912)#1,895
1920s183#1,587 (1927)#2,130
1930s242#930 (1939)#1,959
1940s5,029#217 (1949)#355
1950s19,849#141 (1955)#182
1960s36,751#92 (1969)#109
1970s53,323#42 (1972)#56
1980s35,952#60 (1980)#83
1990s29,352#86 (1990)#113
2000s35,228#81 (2007)#94
2010s33,086#77 (2012)#88
2020s13,337#105 (2020)#126

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 girls in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Melanie in 1978

girls
#54
4,996 births · 1 in 307 girls
boys
#2,669
16 births · 1 in 102,615 boys

Top girls' names in 1978

  1. #1Jennifer56,314
  2. #2Melissa28,327
  3. #3Jessica26,102
  4. #4Amy23,213
  5. #5Heather22,270
  6. #6Amanda20,520
  7. #7Angela20,517
  8. #8Sarah19,976
  9. #9Michelle18,856
  10. #10Nicole17,279
  11. #54Melanie4,996

Top boys' names in 1978

  1. #1Michael67,127
  2. #2Jason51,600
  3. #3Christopher47,236
  4. #4David40,684
  5. #5James39,894
  6. #6Matthew34,282
  7. #7John34,014
  8. #8Robert33,374
  9. #9Brian29,432
  10. #10Joseph26,663
  11. #2,669Melanie16
More about 1978

girls

1,531,859 girls got a published name in 1978; 1 in 307 of them was named Melanie, which outranked 99.5% of the 11,475 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 16.5% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Melanie
  1. #51Kristy5,332
  2. #52Dawn5,217
  3. #53Stacey4,998
  4. #54Melanie4,996
  5. #55Holly4,972
  6. #56Wendy4,918
  7. #57Kathryn4,808
Biggest movers since 1977
Risers
  1. 4,240Aja#4,652#412
  2. 1,987Kiley#2,606#619
  3. 1,951Kylee#2,838#887
  4. 1,785Winter#2,780#995
  5. 1,620Kylie#2,026#406
Fallers
  1. 913Shalon#868#1,781
  2. 760Farah#854#1,614
  3. 519Tennille#462#981
  4. 398Shawnte#740#1,138
  5. 362Farrah#177#539

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

1,641,837 boys got a published name in 1978; 1 in 102,615 of them was named Melanie, which outranked 60.5% of the 6,762 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 24.6% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Melanie
  1. #2,568Yarnell17
  2. #2,568Yves17
  3. #2,568Zakary17
  4. #2,669Melanie16
  5. #2,669Alexi16
  6. #2,669Alvino16
  7. #2,669Ana16
  8. #2,799Aloysius15
  9. #2,799Alpha15
  10. #2,799Americo15

Tied with 129 names at #2,669; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1977
Risers
  1. 3,237Dequan#4,164#927
  2. 626Nicholaus#1,367#741
  3. 617Nicklaus#1,515#898
  4. 578Zebulon#1,476#898
  5. 424Anwar#1,121#697
Fallers
  1. 674Kinte#834#1,508
  2. 668Kunta#572#1,240
  3. 417Telly#732#1,149
  4. 415Lesley#937#1,352
  5. 310Amin#904#1,214

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1978