Boy · #12,182 in 2026

Mervyn

Mervyn is a masculine given name and occasionally a surname which is of Old Welsh origin, with elements mer, probably meaning "marrow", and myn, meaning "eminent".

Current Rank
#12,182
Peak Rank
#824 (1937)
Total Babies
2K
5-Yr Trend
Stable
1916
First Year
1916
Last Year
1916
Peak Year
#4417
Peak Rank
5
Total Count
1
Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Mervyn

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

Mervyn is a masculine given name and occasionally a surname which is of Old Welsh origin, with elements mer, probably meaning "marrow", and myn, meaning "eminent".

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

The Story of Mervyn

Mervyn first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby boy name in 1905, with 5 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1937, when 55 Mervyns were born — ranking #824 that year. As of 2026, Mervyn ranks #12,182 for baby boys with 5 births, with steady use. In total, more than 2K Mervyns have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1900s 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

Notable people named Mervyn

A small selection from Wikipedia. Tap "Read more" below to see the full list on Wikipedia.

  • Mervyn or Merfyn Frych , king of Gwynedd ( c. 825 – c. 844 )
  • Mervyn Archdall (disambiguation) , various people
  • Mervyn S. Bennion (1887–1941), US Navy captain killed in the attack on Pearl Harbor, posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor
  • Mervyn Bishop (born 1945), professional photographer, the first Aboriginal Australian to work on a metropolitan daily newspaper
  • Mervyn Carrick (born 1946), Northern Ireland politician
  • Mervyn Davies, Baron Davies of Abersoch (born 1952), former banker and UK government minister
  • Mervyn Davies (1946–2012), Welsh former rugby union player
  • Mervyn Twynam Davis (Miss)(1916–1985), Australian landscape architect

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

Names that sound like Mervyn

Phonetically similar names — useful when Mervyn 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 Mervyn

What does the name Mervyn mean?
Mervyn is a masculine given name and occasionally a surname which is of Old Welsh origin, with elements mer, probably meaning "marrow", and myn, meaning "eminent".
How popular is Mervyn in 2026?
In 2026, Mervyn ranks #12,182 among boys' names in the U.S., with 5 babies given the name that year.
When was Mervyn most popular?
Mervyn reached its peak popularity in 1937, ranking #824 that year with 55 babies given the name.
In which U.S. states is Mervyn most popular?
Mervyn has historically been most popular in California, New York, Illinois. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Mervyn.
Is Mervyn a unisex name?
In U.S. Social Security records, Mervyn is primarily a boy's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a girl's name.
What names go well with Mervyn?
Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Mervyn include Tatsuo, Trevion, Welton. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.

About the name Mervyn

Mervyn is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1905 and has accumulated 2K births in the dataset. Mervyn's peak popularity came in 1937 when it ranked #824. Use the chart and map above to compare Mervyn'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.