Boys' name · since 1880
Mervin
Mervin has 12,322 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1920 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #1,070 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #2,367 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 12,322
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Yes -- Mervin is the #2367 most popular boys' name in the U.S. today, with 12,322 recorded since 1880.
Mervin has 12,322 recorded births among boys since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #2367 as of the latest data, more common than 83% of boys, busiest in the 1920s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #1,070 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #2,367 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 12,322 born since 1880
- 1920s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Mervin ranks #1,070 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #2,367 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 12,322 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.
- #1,070 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #2,367 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 12,322
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Mervin's 12,322 recorded births place it above 97.64% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
35 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Pennsylvania.
How Mervin compares
12,322 Top 8% higher than 92% of 13,930 names currently given to boys
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked boys 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
Mervin's all-time total is 33x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Mervin | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 12,322 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 249 | 34 | 22,252 |
Mervin's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Mervin splits its recorded history at 1953: 39% of all births land in the more recent half, 61% in the earlier half, leaning more toward its earlier era than today's. The single quietest year was 1880 (6 births) -- compare that against the 1920 peak of 249 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Mervin popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1920)
- 249
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Mervin popularity over time - girls
38 total births recorded since 1919 (Mervin as girls' name)
Mervin by decade
1920s is the heaviest window (2,216 births, 18% of the file).
1920s was Mervin's strongest decade.
2,216 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 18% of all-time use.
Mervin births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 87
1880s
87 births
- 1890s 94
1890s
94 births
- 1900s 149
1900s
149 births
- 1910s
1910s
1,289 births
- 1920s
1920s
2,216 births
- 1930s
1930s
1,839 births
- 1940s
1940s
1,461 births
- 1950s
1950s
1,135 births
- 1960s
1960s
920 births
- 1970s 601
1970s
601 births
- 1980s 552
1980s
552 births
- 1990s 608
1990s
608 births
- 2000s 553
2000s
553 births
- 2010s 494
2010s
494 births
- 2020s 324
2020s
324 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 2,216 births (18% of all-time use).
How Mervin compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 boys names closest to Mervin's total volume
Mervin by state
Where Mervin concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Pennsylvania | | 1,941 | 15.8% |
| #2 | Ohio | | 773 | 6.3% |
| #3 | California | | 570 | 4.6% |
| #4 | Louisiana | | 543 | 4.4% |
| #5 | Indiana | | 510 | 4.1% |
| #6 | Iowa | | 468 | 3.8% |
| #7 | Illinois | | 360 | 2.9% |
| #8 | New York | | 359 | 2.9% |
1,941 of 12,322 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 35 reporting states.
Mervin appears in 35 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
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Where does Mervin sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Mervin most popular? ▼
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What to do with Mervin's data
- Mervin's decade-level peak was the 1920s (2,216 total births); usage has since declined to 324 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Pennsylvania records the most Mervins (1,941 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Pennsylvania names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Mervin
Nearby Names Like Mervin
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Mervin
Compare Mervin side by side: Mervin vs Merle Mervin vs Merlin Mervin vs Merrill
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Mervin
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Mervin: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1920)
Similar record span (~145 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, 1880–2025 (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 Mervin 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.