Melba vs Melissa

Side-by-side comparison of Melba and Melissa — popularity rank, total births, peak decade, and historical trends from Social Security Administration data.

Name A

Melba

Girl name · Rank #11100

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Name B

Melissa

Girl name · Rank #376

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Which name is more popular?

Metric Melba Melissa
Current Rank #11100 #376
Total Births (all years) 34,866 759,386
Peak Year 1924 1979
Peak Year Births 998 34,050
Peak Decade 1920ss 1970ss
Gender Girl Girl
First Recorded Year 1893 1880

Births by Decade

Decade Melba Melissa
1880ss — 427
1890ss 216 399
1900ss 763 323
1910ss 4,538 516
1920ss 9,099 526
1930ss 7,951 666
1940ss 5,691 2,838
1950ss 3,792 22,293
1960ss 1,538 119,202
1970ss 736 253,268
1980ss 311 217,929
1990ss 129 89,989
2000ss 50 32,624
2010ss 28 14,272
2020ss 24 4,114

Recent Annual Births (2014–present)

Year Melba Melissa
2014 5 1,509
2015 — 1,283
2016 10 1,236
2017 8 1,170
2018 — 1,117
2019 — 933
2020 5 887
2021 — 836
2022 11 823
2023 — 743
2024 8 825

Data Sources

Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, ssa.gov/oact/babynames.
Source: SSA Annual Name Rankings, 1893–2024.

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