Myer
Masculine · “one who gives light”
Myer is given to both — 1,073 boys and 46 girls since 1880. See other names given to both
Myer has two entirely separate ancestries — Hebrew meir, one who shines, and German Meier, a steward or tenant farmer — and Jewish naming in Europe used both.
How old is the name Myer?
Myer first appears in US birth records in 1893 — 132 years ago. The typical Myer alive today was born around 1928, making them about 97 years old. About 500 people named Myer are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Myer most popular?
Myer peaked in 1912, reaching #765 nationally. Today it ranks #4050, 3,285 places below that high. See the whole 1912 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From me'ir to Myer
The story of Myer
The fusion is real and well documented: Ashkenazi Jews took German surnames in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and Meier was a natural choice for men already called Meir, so the two lines merged in the same families. Myer, Meyer, Mayer and Meir are all in use for both. It appears in American records as a given name in real numbers around 1910.
Meaningscholars disagree
one who gives light; or a steward
Hebrew me'ir means illuminating or giving light. German Meier, from Latin maior, names a steward or the head tenant of an estate. Ashkenazi families used the German surname and the Hebrew name interchangeably, which fused the two.
How the name formed
- me'ir
- Meier
- Myer
Related forms: Meir · Meyer · Meyer
Pronouncing Myer
MY-er
Two syllables, first stressed. Hebrew Meir is meh-EER, which is a real difference.
Nicknames for Myer
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
- 1893
- Most boys named
- 191848 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #765reached in 1912
- Change vs 2024
- −16.1%26 in 2025, from 31
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.
Myer in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Meir in Hebrew — related form
- Meyer in German — related form
- Meyer in Yiddish — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: California.
Myers among us
people named Myer are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 65,695 born in 2025 was named Myer
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
Myer 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 Myer is headed
Myer looks set to keep climbing gently, with roughly 23% more babies a year by 2030 if the current curve holds. Its history is short or jumpy, though, so read this as a sketch rather than a promise.
Low 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.
Myer beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Myer in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Two documented ancestries, Hebrew and German, both real and genuinely fused.
- Five letters and two syllables, quick to write.
- Read correctly on sight by every English speaker.
- Myer, Meyer, Mayer and Meir are all in use and mark different traditions.
- The Hebrew and English pronunciations differ entirely.
- It reads as a surname to people meeting it in front of another one.
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What they receive
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Myer
Masculine · #4050 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Myers are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 500 people named Myer are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Myer in 2025?
- Myer ranks #4050 among US boy names in 2025, with 26 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Myer?
- About 1 in every 65,695 US boys born in 2025 was named Myer — 26 in all.
- Will my child share the name Myer with classmates?
- Myer will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Myer
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Hewitt#4050 · Antonino#4050 · Egan#4050 · Johnmichael#4050 · Gauge#4050 · Emran#4050 · Demani#4050 · Freeman#4050
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Myer? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Myer and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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