Given name & surname
Merrick
“a great and powerful ruler”
Merrick is used as a given name and a surname. One English interpretation is “a great and powerful ruler.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “a great and powerful ruler.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
How it developed
Merrick is used as a form of Maurice.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1905. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Merrick through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 6,311
- 5,792 boys · 519 girls
- Most popular year
- 2017
- 296 babies
- 2025
- 191
- #1,183 for boys · #6,741 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −15%
- Easing
Boys, girls and both
The balance of boys and girls given this name has shifted over time. Recent births are 93% boys.
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 174 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 1,183 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 16.9% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 274 in 2018. It also appeared in 17 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (17). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 4,659 as a first name in 2020; 8,336 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Merrick’s family of names
In English usage, Merrick developed from the Welsh form Meurig. Merrick is a form of Maurice. Merrick has a related form in Myrick.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 22
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 2
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Merrick
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Merrick, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Maverick
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99% boys · 1% girls
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Maxwell
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Maicol
Maicol is a masculine given name from English. It is used in Portuguese.
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Maikol
Maikol is a given name from English. It is used in Spanish.
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Eidan
Eidan is a masculine given name from English. It is used in Spanish and Catalan.
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Clark
“a cleric; a clerk”
98% boys · 2% girls
Miller
“one who works at a mill” · “one who works at the mill”
69% boys · 31% girls