Meda
Feminine
Meda is most likely Almeda with its first syllable gone. That syllable is unstressed and carries nothing, and English drops unstressed opening syllables so readily that whole words have been lost that way — a fortunate one became lucky, an example became a sample, an apron was once a napron.
How old is the name Meda?
Meda was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Meda alive today was born around 1918, making them about 107 years old. About 400 people named Meda are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Meda most popular?
Meda peaked in 1880, reaching #375 nationally. See the whole 1880 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Almeda to Meda
The story of Meda
There is a genuine Greek element that these letters land on. Medein meant to rule or to protect, and it closes a small set of ancient names — Andromeda is the ruler of men, Ganymede is generally read as a joy in counsel, and Medea's own name is built on it too. The element does not survive into modern languages as an independent word, so the names carrying it look opaque, and the connection between two of the most familiar figures in Greek myth is invisible unless somebody points at it. Whether an American family reached this name that way is another matter entirely.
Meaningnot established
Not established
If the source is Almeda the sense is disputed even there. An independent formation on a Greek element is possible and cannot be shown. No reading is available with any confidence.
How the name formed
- Almeda
- Meda
Pronouncing Meda
MEE-duh
Two syllables with the stress at the front. Some families say MAY-duh instead and the spelling supports either.
Nicknames for Meda
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
- 1880
- Most girls named
- 191841 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #375reached in 1880
- Change vs 2011
- +20.0%6 in 2018, 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.
Medas among us
people named Meda 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
Meda 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
- It is short, soft and completely easy to say on first hearing.
- The spelling contains nothing that needs explaining twice.
- It is genuinely rare with no competing associations.
- The first vowel is unsettled and strangers will guess.
- No meaning can be given, because the source cannot be identified.
- The generation that used it is now gone entirely.
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Meda
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Medas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 400 people named Meda are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Meda in 2025?
- Meda is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Meda with classmates?
- Meda 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 Meda? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Meda and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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