Magdeline
Feminine · “A spelling of Magdalene”
Magdeline is a spelling of Magdalene, the name of the woman from Magdala. The town of that name has given archaeologists one of their most striking finds, and the name has given Oxford one of its oldest dawn traditions.
How old is the name Magdeline?
Magdeline first appears in US birth records in 1912 — 113 years ago. The typical Magdeline alive today was born around 1949, making them about 76 years old. About 300 people named Magdeline are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Magdeline most popular?
Magdeline peaked in 1918, reaching #1887 nationally. See the whole 1918 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Magdala to Magdeline
The story of Magdeline
In 2009, while clearing ground for a guesthouse at Magdala on the Sea of Galilee, archaeologists found a first-century synagogue and in it a carved stone block decorated with a seven-branched menorah, one of the earliest such images known. In Oxford, Magdalen College — pronounced 'maudlin' — has kept up a custom for more than five centuries: at six on the morning of the first of May, its choir sings a hymn from the top of the great tower to a crowd in the street below. Magdeline was a spelling in use in the early twentieth century.
Meaning
A spelling of Magdalene, 'of Magdala'
Magdalene identifies Mary as a woman from Magdala, a town on the Sea of Galilee.
How the name formed
- Magdala
- Magdalene
- Magdeline
Related forms: Magdalene · Magdalena · Madeleine · Magdalena
Pronouncing Magdeline
MAG-duh-lin
Three syllables with the stress on the first.
Nicknames for Magdeline
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1912
- Most girls named
- 191820 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1887reached in 1918
- Change vs 2015
- 0.0%5 in 2020, from 5
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Magdeline in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Magdalene in English — spelling variant
- Magdalena in Spanish — same name
- Madeleine in French — same name
- Magdalena in German — same name
Magdelines among us
people named Magdeline are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Magdeline sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- A settled meaning with deep history.
- Comes with Maggie and Lena as ready short forms.
- Rare in this spelling.
- People will write Magdalene or Madeline.
- It reads as an older name.
- Some will read the spelling as a mistake.
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Magdeline
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Magdelines are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 300 people named Magdeline are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Magdeline in 2025?
- Magdeline is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Magdeline with classmates?
- Magdeline will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More M names
The most-given names starting with M, all years combined.
Mary#125 · Margaret#112 · Michelle#465 · Melissa#419 · Maria#87 · Martha#712 · Marie#617 · Mildred#1962
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Magdeline? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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