Meloney
Feminine · “Black”
Meloney is a respelling that accidentally hides two English words inside a Greek name. Neither of them is in it, and both will be seen by anybody reading quickly.
How old is the name Meloney?
Meloney first appears in US birth records in 1953 — 72 years ago. The typical Meloney alive today was born around 1972, making them about 53 years old. About 800 people named Meloney are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Meloney most popular?
Meloney peaked in 1964, reaching #1892 nationally. See the whole 1964 chart.
Where it comes from
From Melania to Meloney
The story of Meloney
Spell a familiar name a new way and you take a risk with what the eye finds in it. This arrangement of letters contains a fruit and a currency, neither of which has anything to do with the Greek word underneath, and both of which will be spotted by children immediately. That is the cost of the respelling; what it buys is a name that looks unlike the thousands of others its bearer shares a sound with. Every respelled name is that trade made once, by somebody weighing distinctiveness against the jokes, and the record is full of the results. The name itself is unaffected: it still means dark, and the root it comes from is sitting in a dozen English words about blackness.
Meaning
Black, dark
The Greek word behind Melanie means black or dark, and it is the same root that gives melanin and melancholy — which was named for black bile, one of the four humors. The honey reading offered for this spelling comes from a different Greek word entirely and is not connected to the name.
How the name formed
- Melania
- Melanie
- Meloney
Related forms: Mélanie · Melania · Melania
Pronouncing Meloney
MEL-uh-nee
Three syllables, stress at the front. Identical to Melanie; the o is an unstressed vowel and sounds like the a it replaced.
Nicknames for Meloney
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
- 1953
- Most girls named
- 196439 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1892reached in 1964
- Change vs 2012
- +80.0%9 in 2014, 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.
Meloney in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Mélanie in French — same name
- Melania in Italian — same name
- Melania in Spanish — same name
Meloneys among us
people named Meloney 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
Meloney 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
- The meaning is settled and connects to words English uses every day.
- It is read correctly on sight in spite of the spelling.
- It is rare while the name behind it is completely familiar.
- Melanie is the standard spelling and hers will be corrected to it constantly.
- The letters contain two English words that children will find.
- The honey reading offered online belongs to a different Greek word.
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What they receive
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Meloney
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Meloneys are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 800 people named Meloney are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Meloney in 2025?
- Meloney is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Meloney with classmates?
- Meloney 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 Meloney? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Meloney and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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