Given name & surname
Mahlon
“one who is sick”
Mahlon is used as a given name and a surname. One Hebrew interpretation is “one who is sick.”
Original Hebrewמחלון
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Hebrew interpretation is “one who is sick.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Hebrew.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
In the Bible
In the Bible, the name Mahlon appears in Ruth 1:2.
From biblical name research
Mahlon through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 5,683
- 5,660 boys · 23 girls
- Most popular year
- 1919
- 95 babies
- 2025
- 44
- #2,867 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −1%
- Steady
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 44 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 2,867 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 4.1% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 95 in 1919. In 2025, Pennsylvania had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (10). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 2,877 as a first name in 2020; 106 as a surname in 2010.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Mahlon’s family of names
In English usage, Mahlon has a conventional equivalent in the Hawaiian form MAHELONA. Mahlon has a related form in Mahlah. Mahlon has a related form in Mahlan.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 6
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 6
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Mahlon
- Mahlon DickersonAmerican politician (1770-1853)
- Mahlon Hamiltonactor (1880-1960)
- Mahlon RomeoEnglish footballer (born 1995)
- Mahlon LoomisAmerican inventor (1826-1886)
- Mahlon PitneyAmerican politician and Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1858-1924)
- Mahlon DeLongAmerican neurologist1938–2024
- Mahlon Hoaglandbiochemist (1921-2009)
- Mahlon Dickerson MansonUnion Army general (1820-1895)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Mahlon, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Abe
“father of a multitude; father of nations” · “father of a multitude (of nations)”
>99% boys
Enos
“mankind” · “a man”
>99% boys
Lemuel
“devoted to God” · “one who belongs to God”
>99% boys
Hiram
“my brother has been exalted”
>99% boys
Mose
Mose is a given name from Latin. It is used in German.
>99% boys
Rubin
“behold, a son!”
>99% boys
Barney
“son of consolation” · “the son of the prophet; the son of encouragement”
>99% boys
Benjiman
“son of the right hand” · “son of the south”
>99% boys