Name Awesome

Mel

#7,504 in 2025UnisexBoys' nameGirls' name

Short form of Melvin

Mel has been given to 4,201 babies in the U.S. since 1902. In 2025 it ranked #7,504 of 13,926 boys’ names in use. Its peak year was 1958, with 120 recorded. It's used for both sexes: 88% boys, 12% girls all-time.

Babies named Mel, 2025

1 in 301,000

Mel over time, 1880–2025

BoysGirls
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 Gaps mean the name was given fewer than 5 times that year; these counts are unpublished.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 — Mel over time

In 2025, Mel went to 59% girls and 41% boys.

19022025

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.

Mel: meaning, origin, and history

Short form of Melvin

Deeper origin not confirmed in the cited records

What Mel means

Mel is a short form of Melvin.

Meaning behind the documented name family

The name developed through Mel → Melvin. The family’s meaning is “bad + settlement”, recorded in English with the source elements mala and ville.

Origin, language, and formation

Mel is used in English.

Related names and everyday forms

Related names include Melvin.

Pronunciation and spelling

In English, Mel is pronounced /mɛl/.

American usage and historical context

In the United States, 3,693 boys were recorded with the name Mel between 1902 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 120 in 1958; its best national rank was #688 in 1958.

Over 5 years its rank rose, from #10,225 in 2020 to #7,504 in 2025.

In the United States, 508 girls were recorded with the name Mel between 1916 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 30 in 2004; its best national rank was #2,893 in 1957.

Over 5 years its rank rose, from #7,442 in 2020 to #7,029 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank rose, from #12,618 in 2015 to #7,029 in 2025.

Sources & methodologyReferences, data & attribution

Meaning, origin, and language notes draw on the references below.

American popularity figures use published Social Security Administration records for this exact spelling. Counts below five for a name, sex, and year are omitted.

Wiktionary material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

How common is Mel?

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

Among all babies, 2025
1 in 301,000
11 of 3,315,165 births
Among boys only
1 in 155,000
<0.01% of boys
Rank, 2025
#7,504
of 13,926 boys’ names in use
Coin-flip room size
208,901 kids
Even odds of a second one

Where Mel sits on the popularity scale

Rarest published (5 a year)#1 — Liam (20,818)

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 208,901 children born in 2025 and it's an even bet that one of them is another Mel. In a class of 30 the chance is Under 1%.

When Mels were born

Half of everyone ever recorded as Mel was born before 1956 — so the typical Mel is around 69 today.

Median birth year
1956
About 69 years old
Biggest decade
1950s
22.8% of all use
Born in the last 25 years
6.9%
Mostly a past generation
Recorded since 1950
2,345
People you could plausibly meet
Choose a decade

1950s — 22.8% of all recorded uses (843).

Is Mel 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
+1,243
Places climbed
Rank vs 5 years ago
+2,721
Places climbed
Rank vs 10 years ago
—
Not ranked then
Births vs 10 years ago
—
Not published both years
Share of its own peak
9.2%
Peak was 1958 (120)
Years since peak
67
Years
Year-to-year steadiness
Volatile
29.4% average annual change
Best rank ever
#688
1958

Where Mel is used — boys

Across 1910–2025, Mel was most concentrated in California — about 1 in 33,333 boys, against 1 in 92,639 across all states with data. It was least common in Washington (1 in —).

03 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1California1 in 33,333
  2. 2Illinois1 in 50,000
  3. 3New York1 in 50,000
  4. 4Michigan1 in 100,000
  5. 5New Mexico1 in 100,000
  6. 6Ohio1 in 100,000
  7. 7Texas1 in 100,000
  8. 8Colorado1 in —

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. Mel has too little recent state data to map, so this covers all years from 1910.

Where Mel is used — girls

Across 1910–2025, Mel was most concentrated in California — about 1 in — girls, against 1 in 522,004 across all states with data. It was least common in Florida (1 in —).

00 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1California1 in —
  2. 2Florida1 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. Mel has too little recent state data to map, so this covers all years from 1910.

Mel around the world

Where Mel 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
    1997–2004
    #3,009
    in 2004
  • Ireland
    1964–2012
    #616
    in 2012
  • France
    1986–2024
    #6,036
    in 2024
  • South Australia
    1966–2004
    #589
    in 2004

Popularity data from Office for National Statistics, Central Statistics Office, Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques and Consumer and Business Services (South Australia). ONS data under Open Government Licence v3.0. CSO, CBS SA data under CC BY 4.0. INSEE data under Licence Ouverte / Etalab 2.0.

Mel by the numbers

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

As a boy's name

Rank in 2025
#7,504
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
Up 2,721
Best rank ever
#688
1958
Peak year
1958
120 that year
First recorded
1902
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
3,693
Count in 2025
11

As a girl's name

Rank in 2025
#7,029
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
Up 413
Best rank ever
#2,893
1957
Peak year
2004
30 that year
First recorded
1916
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
508
Count in 2025
16

Names similar to Mel

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

MeloRomelMelikRamelMeltonMelvynAmelJamelMellRommelCarmelJermelKamelMelissaRahmelArmelMelloMelfordMelvenMelvilleJemelMelchorShamelMelanie

Names with a curve like Mel

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

GaylonDennieWallyWoodyRoddyRandleLawranceDuwayneVicJameDonnaWindell

Sibling names for Mel

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 Mel

Top names of 1958, Mel's peak yearThe 1950s in fullOther names that peaked in 1958Boys' names starting with M