Meaning & origin
A reliable meaning for Merlene isn’t established in our sources yet. Rather than guess, we show what is recorded: how the name is used, how often, and the names it’s connected to.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1913. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Merlene through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 2,379
- 0 boys · 2,379 girls
- Most popular year
- 1940
- 93 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 1984. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for girls was 93 in 1940. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,883 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.
Merlene’s family of names
The ring: across languages.
Across languages 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Merlene
- Merlene OtteyJamaican-born Slovenian track athleteborn 1960
- Merlene FrazerJamaican athletics competitor (born 1973)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Merlene, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Harlene
“from the meadow of the hares”
>99% girls
Eilene
“a birdlike woman”
>99% girls
Marcellene
>99% girls
Merrily
“one who is lighthearted and joyful” · “filled with joy”
>99% girls
Marcelene
>99% girls
Marylee
“star of the sea” · “from the sea of bitterness”
>99% girls
Marine
“woman of the sea”
>99% girls
Rosalene
>99% girls