Merida
Feminine · “of the veterans”
Merida is overwhelmingly a girls’ name — 1,567 girls against 5 boys since 1880.
Mérida is a Roman colony in Spain — Emerita Augusta, the settlement of discharged veterans — and its theater still stages plays.
How old is the name Merida?
Merida first appears in US birth records in 1916 — 109 years ago. The typical Merida is a kid of about 9 — this name's wave is very recent. About 1,500 people named Merida are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Merida most popular?
Merida peaked in 2017, reaching #1792 nationally. Today it ranks #2645, 853 places below that high. See the whole 2017 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From emerita to Merida
The story of Merida
Emerita Augusta was founded in 25 BC for veterans of the Cantabrian wars, and its Roman theater is still used for a festival every summer. Emeritus, an honourably discharged soldier, gives the academic title. A Mexican Mérida was founded on a Maya city. The name is in current American use.
Meaning
of the veterans
From the Latin Emerita Augusta, a colony founded for emeriti — soldiers discharged with honor. The same word gives the English 'emeritus'. The Spanish city Mérida and the Mexican one are named from it. The Latin is documented.
How the name formed
- emerita
- Emerita Augusta
- Mérida
Related forms: Mérida · Emerita
Pronouncing Merida
MEH-ree-dah
Three syllables, stress on the first. Spanish marks the stress with an accent.
Nicknames for Merida
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
- 1916
- Most girls named
- 2017116 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1792reached in 2017
- Change vs 2024
- −12.2%65 in 2025, from 74
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.
Merida in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Mérida in Spanish — same name
- Emerita in Latin — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: Texas, California, Florida.
Meridas among us
people named Merida are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 24,727 born in 2025 was named Merida
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Jeanett test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Merida's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Jeanett climbed just as high around 1903, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Jeanett's path sketches the road Merida is walking now.
Merida 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
Where Merida is headed
Merida should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Merida beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Merida in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- That the Roman theater still stages plays every summer is a first-rate fact.
- That 'emeritus' comes from the same word is a genuinely good connection.
- Meri and Ida are two short forms, both with real use.
- One animated film is a strong recent association.
- It is a place name and reads as one.
- The accent is usually dropped in American records.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Merida
Feminine · #2645 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Meridas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,500 people named Merida are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Merida in 2025?
- Merida ranks #2645 among US girl names in 2025, with 65 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Merida?
- About 1 in every 24,727 US girls born in 2025 was named Merida — 65 in all.
- Will my child share the name Merida with classmates?
- Merida will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Merida
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Caliana#2645 · Aaira#2645 · Wylie#2645 · Henrietta#2645 · Mahogany#2645 · Amaiah#2645 · Charlize#2645 · Esra#2645
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Merida? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Merida and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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