Muriel
Muriel was the 4430th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 32 babies. Its best year was 1922, when it ranked 112th with 2,392 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 513 places. More babies were named Muriel in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Meaning "bright sea" · Irish, Scottish Gaelic
Say it MYUR-ee-ul /ˈmjʊriəl/
- Rank in 2025
- #4,430 girls, up 1,584 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 32girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19222,392 babies
- Total since 1880
- 55,646babies recorded
What does the name Muriel mean?
Muriel is the English form of a Gaelic name, Irish Muirgheal and Scottish Gaelic Muireall, made of muir, "sea", and geal, "bright, white". Wikipedia notes that, unusually for a Celtic name, it was common in medieval England (often as Merial) after the Norman Conquest, though it became rare after about 1300. It stayed in use in Scotland, returned to England in the mid-19th century helped by Dinah Craik's novel John Halifax, Gentleman (1856), and was most popular in the US in the 1910s and 1920s.
muir (Old Irish, “sea”)gel (Old Irish, “bright, white”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Meriel, Muirgheal, Merial.
See also: Irish names, names that mean light, names that mean water.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Muriel', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Wikipedia, 'Muriel (given name)', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation)
Muriel popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 762 since 1906.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #4,430 | 32 |
| 2020 | #6,014 | 20 |
| 2010 | #6,117 | 22 |
| 2000 | #3,953 | 32 |
| 1990 | #3,056 | 37 |
| 1980 | #2,057 | 51 |
| 1970 | #1,381 | 76 |
| 1960 | #792 | 168 |
| 1950 | #445 | 330 |
| 1940 | #258 | 581 |
| 1930 | #155 | 1,341 |
| 1920 | #123 | 2,071 |
| 1910 | #187 | 365 |
| 1900 | #211 | 224 |
| 1890 | #336 | 58 |
| 1880 | #719 | 7 |
How popular is Muriel, counting every spelling?
Muriel is the most common spelling of a name family that had 32 girls in 2025 across its spellings. Together these spellings went to 32 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Muriel | 32 | #4,430 | 150 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Muriel?
32 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Muriel (0.01 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Muriel born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 261 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Muriel.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Muriel?
About 9,600 people born in the US named Muriel are alive today, with a median age of 76; half are between 62 and 85. That makes Muriel a name most people associate with older generations.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Muriel by state
How common Muriel was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. In 49 states fewer than five girls a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Muriel: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Muriel, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Muriel · Sibling names for Muriel
Questions about the name Muriel
What does Muriel mean?
Muriel means “"bright sea"” (Irish, Scottish Gaelic origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Muriel?
Muriel was the 4430th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 32 babies. Its best year was 1922, when it ranked 112th with 2,392 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 513 places. More babies were named Muriel in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Is Muriel a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Muriel in the US.
Where is Muriel most popular?
In 2021–2025, Muriel was most common in Texas (0.02 per 1,000 girls), followed by California and California.