Masculine dossier · first seen 1880
Merle
Endangered
Down 96.1% from peak
Peak era
1925
Peak births
836
Current vitality
Rare
Peak generation
Greatest Generation
Quick answers about Merle
How many people are named Merle?
An estimated 6,956 living Americans are named Merle.
How rare is Merle?
Merle is very rare among babies today, with 33 boys receiving the name in 2025, down 96.1% from its 1925 peak.
How old is the typical Merle?
The median age of a living American named Merle is approximately 67 years, with most bearers falling between 53 and 77 years old.
Is Merle still popular?
No. Merle is endangered as a baby name, down 96.1% from its 1925 peak with 33 births in 2025.
Where is Merle most common?
Merle has its strongest geographic signal in South Dakota, where it appears 7.0× more often than the national baseline.
1880Peak 19252025
Peak year
1925
Decline from peak
96.1%
2025
33
All-time
30,666
Where it lives now
Merle is most concentrated in South Dakota — about 7.0× the national rate in the 1930s.
States where Merle is given more often than the national average — its present-day heartland.