Manon
Feminine · “Hebrew Miryam”
Manon is overwhelmingly a girls’ name — 833 girls against 5 boys since 1880.
Manon Lescaut was published in 1731 and produced two major operas by rival composers within nine years of each other. Massenet's Manon appeared in 1884 and Puccini's Manon Lescaut in 1893. Almost no novel has done that.
How old is the name Manon?
Manon first appears in US birth records in 1917 — 108 years ago. The typical Manon alive today was born around 1994, making them about 31 years old. About 700 people named Manon are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Manon most popular?
Manon peaked in 1928, reaching #2497 nationally. Today it ranks #9457, 6,960 places below that high. See the whole 1928 chart.
Where it comes from
From Miryam to Manon
The story of Manon
The Abbe Prevost published the story of the Chevalier des Grieux and Manon Lescaut in 1731 as part of a much longer work, and it was banned in France and immediately reprinted. Its afterlife is remarkable. Massenet's opera Manon opened in Paris in 1884 and became one of the most performed French operas ever written. Puccini, warned that following Massenet was reckless, produced Manon Lescaut in Turin in 1893; it was his first real success and he said afterwards that Massenet had felt the subject as a Frenchman and he as an Italian. There is also a ballet, several films, an Auber opera from 1856, and a Henze work. Very few novels sustain two canonical operas, and fewer still by composers working within living memory of each other.
Meaning
Hebrew Miryam, of unknown meaning
Manon is a French familiar form of Marie, formed through Marion with the -on ending that French uses for affectionate forms. Marie is Hebrew Miryam, whose meaning is genuinely unknown. The name is standard in France and in Quebec and has been in the French top ranks for decades. The American peak is 1928.
How the name formed
- Miryam
- Marie
- Marion
- Manon
Related forms: Manon · Manon
Pronouncing Manon
ma-NOHN
Two syllables, stress on the second. French says the final syllable with a nasal vowel and no audible n, which English cannot reproduce.
Nicknames for Manon
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
- 1917
- Most girls named
- 199926 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2497reached in 1928
- Change vs 2023
- +25.0%10 in 2025, from 8
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.
Manon in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Manon in French — same name
- Manon in Dutch — same name
Manons among us
people named Manon are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 160,727 born in 2025 was named Manon
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Manon sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Manon beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Manon in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Five letters and two syllables, easy to write.
- It is a standard and well-established French name.
- The stressed ending gives it a firm final beat.
- The French nasal vowel has no English equivalent.
- It is unfamiliar to most Americans.
- The literary heroine's story ends badly.
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Manon
Feminine · #9457 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Manons are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 700 people named Manon are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Manon in 2025?
- Manon ranks #9457 among US girl names in 2025, with 10 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Manon?
- About 1 in every 160,727 US girls born in 2025 was named Manon — 10 in all.
- Will my child share the name Manon with classmates?
- Manon will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Manon
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Leta#9457 · Inga#9457 · Delphia#9457 · Cammie#9457 · Lisandra#9457 · Amee#9457 · Venecia#9457 · Annetta#9457
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Manon? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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