Meryl

Meryl: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning: “sea-bright”
Origin: English
Say it: MER-ul · 2 syllables
Used for: Girls (92% of all uses)

Usually treated as an English variant of Meriel/Muriel, from Celtic elements often interpreted as 'sea' and 'bright.' Also used as a modern English given name, as in actress Meryl Streep.

English names Names meaning sea Names meaning light Classic names Literary names

How popular is Meryl?

20246.9 per million US babies

Drag the line or the slider to read any year. Values are per million US births recorded by Social Security. Records before about 1937 undercount births, so early peaks can look taller than they were.

Compare with another name

Babies named Meryl in 202423

Peak year1952

Total US babies since 18805,585

Meryl is steady now but far below its 1952 peak.

Names like Meryl

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

Oliviaolive tree · English
Evelyndesired; little bird · English
Harperharp player · English
Violetviolet flower · English
Hazelhazel tree · English
Ellieshort form of names ending in -el or -ella · English
Lilylily flower · English
Scarlettscarlet, bright red · English

Meryl questions

What does the name Meryl mean?

Meryl means "sea-bright". It comes from English. Usually treated as an English variant of Meriel/Muriel, from Celtic elements often interpreted as 'sea' and 'bright.' Also used as a modern English given name, as in actress Meryl Streep.

Is Meryl a boy or girl name?

Meryl is mainly a girl's name in US records (92% of uses since 1880).

How popular is Meryl?

23 US babies were named Meryl in 2024. Its peak year was 1952.

How do you pronounce Meryl?

Meryl is usually pronounced MER-ul.

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.