Melida
A feminine name of unknown origin, possibly deriving from Spanish "miel" meaning honey.
Name Census estimates that about 563 living Americans carry the first name Melida. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Melida today is around 41 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Melida births was 1976 (15 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Melida. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
563
~ 1 in 608,800 Americans
Peak year
1976
15 babies that year
Average age
41
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,979
Tracked since 1917
Census
Melida in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 2,652 people with the first name Melida, which placed it at #6,131 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#6,131
National first-name rank
People counted
2.7K
2,652 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.9
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
92.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Melida
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Melida is Hispanic at 92.6%. The next largest groups are White (4.6%) and Black (2.1%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Melida described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Melida at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino92.6% · 2,455
- White4.6% · 123
- Black or African American2.1% · 56
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 9
- Two or more races0.3% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Popularity
Melida: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Melida from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 90 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1970s peak, Melida remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Melida by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Melida during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Melidas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Melida
The name Melida is believed to have originated from the Greek language, with its roots tracing back to ancient times. It is derived from the Greek word "meli," meaning honey, and the suffix "-da," which often denotes a feminine name. This combination suggests that the name Melida may have originally been associated with sweetness, gentleness, or perhaps even a connection to beekeeping or agriculture.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Melida can be found in ancient Greek texts, where it was used as a name for minor characters or commoners. However, there is no record of any prominent historical figures bearing this name during the classical Greek era.
As the name spread across various cultures and regions, it underwent slight variations in spelling and pronunciation. In some European countries, such as Italy and Spain, the name was adapted to Melida or Melinda, while in other regions, it took on forms like Melissa or Melita.
Throughout history, there have been a few notable individuals who carried the name Melida. One such example is Melida Annavini, an Italian poet and writer from the 16th century, who gained recognition for her works exploring themes of love and nature.
Another figure with this name was Melida Garcés, a Spanish noblewoman who lived during the 15th century. She was known for her influential role in the court of King Ferdinand II of Aragon and her support for the arts and sciences.
In the realm of religion, there was Melida of Assisi, a Franciscan nun who lived in the 13th century and was renowned for her piety and charitable works. Her life and devotion inspired many in her local community.
Moving forward in time, Melida Mercouri was a Greek actress, singer, and politician who lived from 1920 to 1994. She gained international fame for her acting roles in films such as "Never on Sunday" and served as the Minister of Culture in Greece, advocating for the preservation of cultural heritage.
Lastly, Melida Álvarez was a Colombian journalist and activist born in 1953. She dedicated her career to reporting on human rights issues and advocating for social justice, particularly for marginalized communities in her country.
While the name Melida may not have been widely popular throughout history, these examples demonstrate its enduring presence across various cultures and time periods, carrying connotations of sweetness, grace, and strength.
People
Melida + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Melida as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Melida: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Melida?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 563 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Melida going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 608,800 US residents.
Is Melida a common name?
We classify Melida as "Very Rare". It ranks above 85.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 678 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Melida most popular?
The single biggest year for Melida was 1976, when 15 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Melida is about 41 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Melida in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 2,652 people with the name Melida, or 0.88 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #6,131 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Melida in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Melida?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Melida appears almost entirely female. Of the 2,657 people counted with this name, 99.8% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Melida?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Melida is Hispanic at 92.6%. The next largest groups are White (4.6%) and Black (2.1%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Melida most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Melida in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.6% (2,455 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Melida in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Melida a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Melida in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Melida still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Melida in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Melida can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How common is the name Melida?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.