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Mecca

#5,181 in 2025UnisexGirls' nameBoys' name

From Arabic مَكَّة; literal meaning unconfirmed

Mecca has been given to 3,118 babies in the U.S. since 1952. In 2025 it ranked #5,181 of 17,293 girls’ names in use. Its peak year was 1995, with 89 recorded. It's used for both sexes: 73% girls, 27% boys all-time.

Babies named Mecca, 2025

1 in 133,000

Mecca over time, 1880–2025

GirlsBoys
05010015018801900192019401960198020002020

Based on births in the U.S. Babies given the name each year. Hover the chart — or focus it and use the arrow keys — for any year. Gaps mean the name was given fewer than 5 times that year; these counts are unpublished.

Girls or boys — Mecca over time

In 2025, Mecca went to 27% girls and 73% boys.

19522025

A sex is only published in years it reached five applications, so a stretch at 0% or 100% means the other side stayed under that floor — not that it was never used.

Mecca: meaning, origin, and history

From Arabic مَكَّة; literal meaning unconfirmed

Deeper origin not confirmed in the cited records

What Mecca means

Mecca is a given name.

Dictionary etymologyReferences, data & attribution

From Arabic مَكَّة (Makka) of uncertain etymology. In American place names, in reference to the Arabian city.

Excerpt from Wiktionary: Mecca (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0

Wiktionary material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Origin, language, and formation

Mecca is used in English.

Mecca comes through Arabic مَكَّة.

Pronunciation and spelling

In English, Mecca is pronounced /ˈmɛkə/.

American usage and historical context

In the United States, 2,288 girls were recorded with the name Mecca between 1952 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 89 in 1995; its best national rank was #1,660 in 1995.

Over 5 years its rank fell, from #2,704 in 2020 to #5,181 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank rose, from #6,171 in 2015 to #5,181 in 2025.

In the United States, 830 boys were recorded with the name Mecca between 1975 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 108 in 2023; its best national rank was #1,617 in 2023.

Over 5 years its rank rose, from #2,408 in 2020 to #2,121 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank rose, from #3,486 in 2015 to #2,121 in 2025.

How common is Mecca?

Everything below is computed from the 2025 data — the most recent year available.

Among all babies, 2025
1 in 133,000
25 of 3,315,165 births
Among girls only
1 in 64,300
<0.01% of girls
Rank, 2025
#5,181
of 17,293 girls’ names in use
Coin-flip room size
91,917 kids
Even odds of a second one

Where Mecca sits on the popularity scale

Rarest published (5 a year)#1 — Olivia (13,544)

Chance at least one other child shares the name

If the other children were drawn at random from the 2025 national name distribution. Real classrooms cluster by region and community, so treat these as a floor, not a ceiling.

Class of 20Under 1%
Class of 30Under 1%
Grade of 100Under 1%
School of 500Under 1%

Put another way: gather 91,917 children born in 2025 and it's an even bet that one of them is another Mecca. In a class of 30 the chance is Under 1%.

When Meccas were born

Half of everyone ever recorded as Mecca was born before 1997 — so the typical Mecca is around 28 today.

Median birth year
1997
About 28 years old
Biggest decade
1990s
28.0% of all use
Born in the last 25 years
39.1%
Spread across generations
Recorded since 1950
2,288
People you could plausibly meet
Choose a decade

1990s — 28.0% of all recorded uses (640).

Is Mecca rising or falling?

Rank movement and count movement can disagree — the number of distinct names in use keeps growing, so a name holding a steady count still slides down the list. Both are shown.

Rank vs 1 year ago
−1,814
Places dropped
Rank vs 5 years ago
−2,477
Places dropped
Rank vs 10 years ago
+990
Places climbed
Births vs 10 years ago
1.19×
More babies than then
Share of its own peak
28.1%
Peak was 1995 (89)
Years since peak
30
Years
Year-to-year steadiness
Shifting
24.8% average annual change
Best rank ever
#1,660
1995

Spellings of Mecca

Mecca is not the most common spelling — Melba is, with 29.7% against Mecca's 2.0%.

Grouped by closeness of spelling (up to two letter changes), same sex, with a floor on all-time use. It catches Sophia/Sofia and Aiden/Ayden, and misses spellings that sound alike but look different, like Sean and Shawn.

Where Mecca is used — girls

Across 1910–2025, Mecca was most concentrated in New Jersey — about 1 in 25,000 girls, against 1 in 98,875 across all states with data. It was least common in Ohio (1 in —).

04 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1New Jersey1 in 25,000
  2. 2New York1 in 50,000
  3. 3Pennsylvania1 in 50,000
  4. 4California1 in 100,000
  5. 5Georgia1 in 100,000
  6. 6Illinois1 in —
  7. 7Louisiana1 in —
  8. 8Maryland1 in —

Shading is the share of that state's recorded girls given this name, not the raw count — otherwise the map would just show which states are biggest. Unshaded states have no published records for this period. U.S. birth records suppress state-year counts below 5; state counts therefore don't add up to the national total. Every state links to its full rankings. Mecca has too little recent state data to map, so this covers all years from 1910.

Where Mecca is used — boys

Across 2016–2025, Mecca was most concentrated in Maryland — about 1 in 12,500 boys, against 1 in 36,284 across all states with data. It was least common in New York (1 in 100,000).

18 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1Maryland1 in 12,500
  2. 2Virginia1 in 16,667
  3. 3Georgia1 in 25,000
  4. 4Pennsylvania1 in 25,000
  5. 5California1 in 33,333
  6. 6Illinois1 in 33,333
  7. 7Ohio1 in 33,333
  8. 8Texas1 in 33,333

Shading is the share of that state's recorded boys given this name, not the raw count — otherwise the map would just show which states are biggest. Unshaded states have no published records for this period. U.S. birth records suppress state-year counts below 5; state counts therefore don't add up to the national total. Every state links to its full rankings.

Mecca around the world

Where Mecca ranks in official birth records elsewhere in the world. Rankings only — the number of births isn’t comparable between places, so it isn’t shown.

  • England & Wales
    2018–2022
    #4,646
    in 2022
  • France
    2024–2025
    #6,108
    in 2025
  • Canada
    2016–2023
    #2,973
    in 2023

Popularity data from Office for National Statistics, Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques and Statistics Canada. ONS data under Open Government Licence v3.0. INSEE data under Licence Ouverte / Etalab 2.0. StatCan data under Statistics Canada Open Licence.

Mecca by the numbers

The raw record for each sex the name is used for.

As a girl's name

Rank in 2025
#5,181
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
Down 2,477
Best rank ever
#1,660
1995
Peak year
1995
89 that year
First recorded
1952
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
2,288
Count in 2025
25

As a boy's name

Rank in 2025
#2,121
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
Up 287
Best rank ever
#1,617
2023
Peak year
2023
108 that year
First recorded
1975
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
830
Count in 2025
69

Names similar to Mecca

Matched on shared beginnings and endings, similar length, and comparable popularity.

BeccaLuccaMecheleMechelleMechellEriccaRebbeccaRabeccaMechelMecaMiccaMeciaRiccaMecoJessiccaMechaRobeccaMecoleMeckenzieJesiccaShameccaMechilleRebaccaEbecca

Names with a curve like Mecca

Not spelling — timing. These names rose, peaked and faded in the same years as Mecca, so they read as being from the same moment even when they look nothing alike.

MirellaSirenaJoriAideNohemiMalikaIndiraArinMarykateJamilahSarenaElisia

Sibling names for Mecca

Names from the same era and popularity tier — the two things that make a sibling set feel deliberate — skipping lookalike spellings and shared initials.

Explore around Mecca

Top names of 1995, Mecca's peak yearThe 1990s in fullOther names that peaked in 1995Girls' names starting with M