Head to head · Girls' names
Maryam vs Matilda
#351 vs #364 in 2025
Maryam is a whisker ahead (#351 vs #364 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Maryam is climbing the charts fast, Matilda is back after a long quiet spell.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
The tape is even: Maryam and Matilda each lead 3 measures of 6.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Maryam —, Matilda #110 — Matilda higher
- 1890s: Maryam —, Matilda #138 — Matilda higher
- 1900s: Maryam —, Matilda #178 — Matilda higher
- 1910s: Maryam —, Matilda #235 — Matilda higher
- 1920s: Maryam —, Matilda #300 — Matilda higher
- 1930s: Maryam —, Matilda #470 — Matilda higher
- 1940s: Maryam #4480, Matilda #690 — Matilda higher
- 1950s: Maryam —, Matilda #895 — Matilda higher
- 1960s: Maryam #4598, Matilda #1106 — Matilda higher
- 1970s: Maryam #2935, Matilda #1649 — Matilda higher
- 1980s: Maryam #1895, Matilda #2757 — Maryam higher
- 1990s: Maryam #1434, Matilda #2921 — Maryam higher
- 2000s: Maryam #988, Matilda #1502 — Maryam higher
- 2010s: Maryam #620, Matilda #594 — Matilda higher
- 2020s: Maryam #440, Matilda #429 — Matilda higher
Matilda stood higher in 12 of 15 decades; Matilda has held the lead since the 2010s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Maryam | Matilda |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | — | #110 |
| 1890s | — | #138 |
| 1900s | — | #178 |
| 1910s | — | #235 |
| 1920s | — | #300 |
| 1930s | — | #470 |
| 1940s | #4480 | #690 |
| 1950s | — | #895 |
| 1960s | #4598 | #1106 |
| 1970s | #2935 | #1649 |
| 1980s | #1895 | #2757 |
| 1990s | #1434 | #2921 |
| 2000s | #988 | #1502 |
| 2010s | #620 | #594 |
| 2020s | #440 | #429 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
Around the world
Maryam
- England & Wales#57
- France#79
- Canada#88
Matilda
- England & Wales#31
- Scotland#93
National statistics offices, latest published year.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Maryam
most often read as 'bitter' or 'beloved' — the underlying Hebrew name has never been fully resolved
Maryam goes back to Hebrew Miryam, and scholars have argued for several readings: 'bitter' or 'bitterness' from the root mar, 'rebellion' from marah, and 'beloved' from the Egyptian element mry, which fits a name that first appears in the Exodus narrative in an Egyptian setting. The medieval Latin gloss 'star of the sea' comes from a later misreading and is not an etymology. Separately, in Persian maryam is the word for the tuberose flower.
Miryam → Mariam → Maryam → Maria → Mary
How it traveled
The name begins as Hebrew Miryam, borne in the Torah by the sister of Moses and Aaron. Greek translators of the Hebrew Bible rendered it Mariam, and from there it passed into Latin as Maria and into the Christian world in dozens of shapes.
Matilda
mighty in battle
From the Germanic elements *maht* "might, strength" and *hild* "battle", combined in the old name Mahthildis.
Mahthildis → Mathilde → Matilda → Maud
How it traveled
The name began as Germanic Mahthildis and was borne by a tenth-century German queen later honored as a saint. It reached England in Latin form after 1066 with Matilda of Flanders, wife of William the Conqueror, and was carried by their granddaughter Empress Matilda, whose claim to the English crown set off the civil war of the twelfth century.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Maryam
MAR-yam
Two syllables in most Arabic and Persian speech, with the stress up front: MAR-yam. Many American families say a fuller three-syllable MAH-ree-am, and some use ma-RYAM. All are in genuine use — worth deciding early which one your family will give as the answer.
- Mary — The English cousin of the same name, used as an informal short form and long established as a given name in its own right.
- Mari — A clipped everyday form; also a standalone given name in Welsh and Scandinavian use.
- Mimi — Informal and affectionate, common within families rather than on documents.
- Maya — Used loosely as a nickname in some families, though it is a separate name with its own history.
- Also Mimo.
Matilda
muh-TIL-duh
Stress on the middle syllable. The German and French Mathilde is closer to ma-TILL-duh or ma-TEELD, if relatives abroad reach for that version.
- Tilly — The most common short form in British and Australian use, and given independently as a full name too.
- Tillie — Older American spelling of the same short form; also stands alone as a given name.
- Mattie — Informal, long-established in American use, shared with Martha and Matthew.
- Tilda — Used on its own in Scandinavia as well as as a short form of Matilda.
- Also Maud.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Maryam if you want…
- a name most people already know#351 in 2025, 869 babies that year
- a name on the way upup 155 places on the charts in five years
- a name that charts abroad tooMaryam is on the national lists of England & Wales, France and Canada
- a newer arrivalMaryam entered the US charts in 1946
Choose Matilda if you want…
- a name fewer children share#364 in 2025 — matilda will almost certainly be the only one in school
- a long American recordMatilda was already in use when US records began in 1880
- a name that ages quietlyan estimated 30% chance of feeling dated by 2040, against 53% for Maryam
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Maryam
Strengths
- Read and recognized across Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Turkish, Hebrew and English-speaking communities, which makes it a name that travels without needing translation.
- Spelled the way it sounds in English, so it survives a phone call better than most names of this length.
- Belongs to one of the oldest continuously recorded name families in the world, with a written trail from the Hebrew Bible to now.
To consider
- Maryam, Mariam, Miriam and Marium are all in real circulation, and people will guess wrong. Expect to spell it often, and to correct autocorrect.
- The stress varies genuinely between communities — MAR-yam and MAH-ree-am are both correct for different families. Teachers and new acquaintances will need one clear model to copy.
- The religious weight is real and public: for Muslim and Christian readers alike, the name arrives already attached to a well-known figure. Many families choose it precisely for that; it is worth knowing it is not a neutral choice.
Matilda
Strengths
- An unbroken record in English since the Norman Conquest — long past the point where any fashion cycle can date it.
- Recognizable in German, French, Italian, Spanish, Polish and Scandinavian forms, so it travels without translation.
- Several established short forms already in real use — Tilly, Tillie, Mattie, Tilda — none of which need explaining.
To consider
- Roald Dahl's novel and its film and stage versions are the first thing many people will mention. It is affectionate rather than awkward, but expect it often.
- Mathilda, Mathilde and Matilde are all real spellings elsewhere, so the double-check question will come up on forms and rosters for life.
- The full name is still strongly represented among the oldest generations in the US, which is exactly what makes it read as vintage now — worth knowing if you would rather a name with no grandmotherly echo at all.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Maryam
53%chance Maryam feels dated by 2040
Maryam is climbing fast right now. Steep climbs tend to come with steep descents — the quicker a name arrives, the more firmly it belongs to its moment.
Matilda
30%chance Matilda feels dated by 2040
Matilda is on its second act. Revived names age gently: the generation that wore them first is far enough away that the name feels classic rather than dated.
A reading of where each name sits on the long naming cycle — computed, not measured, and explained on the data page.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Maryam and Matilda in full.
Weighing the whole shortlist? Run the full comparison — up to eight names with your last name, initials, classroom projections and a printable report.
Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
Still torn between Maryam and Matilda?
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More than two in the running? Settle it with a bracket or run the full comparison with your last name.
More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists that carry both names
Every list here names both Maryam and Matilda — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Maryam or Matilda — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Maryam or Matilda?
- Maryam, in 2025: Maryam ranked #351 with 869 babies; Matilda ranked #364 with 838 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Maryam or Matilda?
- Maryam. Over the last five years Maryam moved up 155 places; Matilda moved up 114 places.
- Which is the older name, Maryam or Matilda?
- Maryam entered the US charts in 1946; Matilda was already in use when US records began in 1880. On the American record, Matilda is the older name.
- How many people are named Maryam and Matilda?
- About 13,500 people named Maryam are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 16,000 people named Matilda are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Maryams or Matildas in the classroom?
- Maryam will almost certainly be the only one in school. Matilda will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025; international figures from national statistics agencies. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
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