Girls' name · since 1936
Merrily
1,037 babies named Merrily in U.S. Social Security records since 1936, with the highest year being 1942. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #7,322 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #15,135 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 1,037
- born since 1936
- 1940s
- peak decade
Merrily currently ranks #15135 among girls' names in America, with 1,037 babies recorded since 1936.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Merrily has been recorded 1,037 times among girls since 1936, currently ranked #15135 nationally and more common than 12% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 1940s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1936 to 2025.
- #7,322 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #15,135 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 1,037 born since 1936
- 1940s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Merrily ranks #7,322 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #15,135 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 1,037 born since 1936, peaking in the 1940s.
- #7,322 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #15,135 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 1,037
- born since 1936
- 1940s
- peak decade
Merrily's 1,037 recorded births place it above 89.87% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
14 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Merrily compares
1,037 Top 32% higher than 68% of 17,297 names currently given to girls
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.
Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data
How the numbers stack up
Merrily's all-time total is 176% above the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Merrily | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 1,037 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 210 | 21 | 19,840 |
Merrily's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Merrily splits its recorded history at 1962: 19% of all births land in the more recent half, 81% in the earlier half, leaning more toward its earlier era than today's. The single quietest year was 1936 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1942 peak of 210 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Merrily popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1936–2025
- Peak year (1942)
- 210
- Annual births at peak, across 90 years of records
Merrily by decade
1940s is the heaviest window (638 births, 62% of the file).
1940s was Merrily's strongest decade.
638 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 62% of all-time use.
Merrily births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1930s 12
1930s
12 births
- 1940s
1940s
638 births
- 1950s 171
1950s
171 births
- 1960s 111
1960s
111 births
- 1970s 67
1970s
67 births
- 1980s 17
1980s
17 births
- 1990s 5
1990s
5 births
- 2000s 5
2000s
5 births
- 2020s 11
2020s
11 births
What this shows Peak: 1940s at 638 births (62% of all-time use).
How Merrily compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Merrily's total volume
Merrily by state
Where Merrily concentrates geographically, total births since 1936
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 74 | 7.1% |
| #2 | New York | | 62 | 6.0% |
| #3 | Illinois | | 58 | 5.6% |
| #4 | Washington | | 49 | 4.7% |
| #5 | Ohio | | 30 | 2.9% |
| #6 | Pennsylvania | | 27 | 2.6% |
| #7 | Michigan | | 22 | 2.1% |
| #8 | Minnesota | | 18 | 1.7% |
74 of 1,037 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 14 reporting states.
Merrily appears in 14 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Merrily? ▼
Where does Merrily sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Merrily most popular? ▼
Where is Merrily most popular? ▼
How long has the name Merrily been used? ▼
What names are similar to Merrily? ▼
What to do with Merrily's data
- Merrily's decade-level peak was the 1940s (638 total births); usage has since declined to 11 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Merrilys (74 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Merrily
Nearby Names Like Merrily
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Merrily
Compare Merrily side by side: Merrily vs Meredith Merrily vs Mercedes Merrily vs Merle
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Merrily
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Merrily: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1942)
Similar record span (~89 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1936–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Merrily draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.