By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal
footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.
Where Merlin is most popular
Boys named Merlin per 1,000 boys born in
each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.036 per 1,000.
Strongest in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Colorado.
Vs national average well below below near national above well above no data
All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are boys named Merlin born
2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes
comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.
State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any
state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.
The story of Merlin
Merlin is rare for boys in the United States, ranked #2,343 in 2025 with 59 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.
Since 1885, 15,968 American babies have been named Merlin, about 94% boys and 6% girls, making it a genuinely unisex name. Its peak came in 1927, when 405 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1920s.
The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Merlin stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.