Girl · #11,386 in 2026

Merita

Merita is a name with multiple cultural origins: Albanian, Esperanto.

  • Albanian
  • Esperanto
Current Rank
#11,386
Peak Rank
#1,498 (1955)
Total Babies
1K
5-Yr Trend
Stable
1912
First Year
1999
Last Year
1955
Peak Year
#1498
Peak Rank
1K
Total Count
75
Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Merita

What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.

Merita is a name with multiple cultural origins: Albanian, Esperanto.

Origin data from Behind the Name .

Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)

  • Albanian
  • Esperanto

The Story of Merita

American parents first put Merita on the record books as a baby girl name in 1912, with 5 registered babies. Its peak popularity came in 1955, when 46 Meritas were born — ranking #1,498 that year. The 1950s were its strongest decade, accounting for roughly 27% of all recorded Meritas. Its most recent appearance in the national data came in 1999 (7 births); the name has since faded from the published rankings. In total, more than 1K Meritas have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1910s through the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Popularity by State

ME
WA
MT
ND
MN
WI
MI
NY
VT
NH
MA
OR
ID
SD
IA
IL
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
RI
CA
NV
WY
NE
MO
KY
WV
VA
MD
DE
DC
UT
CO
KS
AR
TN
NC
SC
AK
AZ
NM
OK
LA
MS
AL
GA
HI
TX
FL
Top 10
11-50
51-100
101-500
500+
No data

Names that sound like Merita

Phonetically similar names — useful when Merita is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.

Frequently Asked Questions about Merita

What does the name Merita mean?
Merita is a name with multiple cultural origins: Albanian, Esperanto.
What is the origin of the name Merita?
Merita has roots in the following cultural and linguistic traditions: Albanian, Esperanto.
How popular is Merita in 2026?
In 2026, Merita ranks #11,386 among girls' names in the U.S., with 7 babies given the name that year.
When was Merita most popular?
Merita reached its peak popularity in 1955, ranking #1,498 that year with 46 babies given the name.
In which U.S. states is Merita most popular?
Merita has historically been most popular in South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Merita.
Is Merita a unisex name?
In U.S. Social Security records, Merita is primarily a girl's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a boy's name.
What names go well with Merita?
Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Merita include Sherrye, Irina, Jamilah. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.

About the name Merita

Merita is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1912 and has accumulated 1K births in the dataset. Merita's peak popularity came in 1955 when it ranked #1,498. Use the chart and map above to compare Merita's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.

Continue exploring

Data sources

  • Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
  • Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
  • Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
  • Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
  • Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .

Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.