Melba: name meaning, origin & popularity
- Meaning
- “place name turned given name”
- Origin
- English
- Say it
- MEL-buh · 2 syllables
- Used for
- Girls
Created from Melbourne, the stage name of Australian soprano Nellie Melba, whose surname came from Melbourne. Later adopted as a given name; original literal meaning is tied to the place name, not a personal-name root.
How popular is Melba?
Babies named Melba in 20248
Peak year1924
Total US babies since 188034,918
Melba is rising: use over the last five years is 2.2× what it was a decade earlier.
Names like Melba
Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.
Melba questions
What does the name Melba mean?
Melba means "place name turned given name". It comes from English. Created from Melbourne, the stage name of Australian soprano Nellie Melba, whose surname came from Melbourne. Later adopted as a given name; original literal meaning is tied to the place name, not a personal-name root.
Is Melba a boy or girl name?
Melba is mainly a girl's name in US records (100% of uses since 1880).
How popular is Melba?
8 US babies were named Melba in 2024. Its peak year was 1924.
How do you pronounce Melba?
Melba is usually pronounced MEL-buh.
Birth counts: US Social Security Administration national data, 1880–2024 (names given to 5+ babies of a sex in a year). How we write meanings.