Given name
Melva
“one who holds the rank of chief”
Melva is used as a given name. One Celtic interpretation is “one who holds the rank of chief.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Celtic interpretation is “one who holds the rank of chief.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Celtic.
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
Melva through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 14,185
- 30 boys · 14,155 girls
- Most popular year
- 1938
- 313 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for girls is 5 in 2024. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for girls was 308 in 1938. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 7,590 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Melva’s family of names
Melva has a related form in Melvina. Melva has a related form in Melvena. Melva has a related form in Melveena.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 5
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
Similar names
If you love Melva, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Moina
“a mild-mannered lady”
>99% girls
Angharad
“love”
>99% girls
Glenda
“one who is good and fair”
>99% girls
Arlene
“an oath; a pledge”
>99% girls
Muriel
“of the shining sea”
>99% girls
Kay
“filled with happiness; rejoicing”
17% boys · 83% girls
Treva
“from the homestead near the sea” · “one who is prudent”
>99% girls
Noreen
“light”
>99% girls