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Merlin

Welsh
"sea fortress"
Brynn McKeon
By Brynn McKeon
Updated Wed Apr 23 2025

Merlin Origin and Meaning

The name Merlin is a boy's name of Welsh origin meaning "sea fortress".

This name of the famous fifth-century sorcerer and mentor of King Arthur may or may not be a bit wizardy for a real-life modern child. Its most noted modern bearer: football star turned actor Merlin Olsen, whose father was named Merle.

Merlin fell off the US Top 1000 half a century ago, though it ranks in the Nameberry Top 1000, which could be a harbinger of its return. About 50 baby boys were named Merlin in the US last year, and about ten girls. It is used in contemporary Germany.

# 965 in the US

Merlin Rank in US Top 1000

# 1022 on Nameberry

Merlin Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Popularity of the name Merlin

20 Names Similar to Merlin

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Merlin.

Famous People Named Merlin

  • Merlin de Douai (born Philippe
    Antoine Merlin), French politician and lawyer
  • Merlin de Thionville (born Antoine
    Christophe Merlin), French revolutionary
  • Merlin Santana
    American actor
  • Merlin Olsen
    American football player and actor
  • Merlin Holland
    grandson of novelist Oscar Wilde
  • Merlin Mann
    American podcaster of 43 Folders
  • Merlin Ferry (b. 1991)
    son of singer Bryan Ferry
  • Merlin Esra Besson (b. 1992)
    son of musician Richard Z. Kruspe of Rammstein
  • Merlin Sheldrake (b. 1992)
    son of biologist and author Rupert Sheldrake; brother of Cosmo
  • Merlin van Lawick
    grandson of primatologist Jane Goodall

The name Merlin in Pop Culture

  • Merlin
    wizard of Arthurian legend
  • Merlin Langstaff
    character from the TV series "The Worst Witch"
  • Merlin
    female character in manga/anime The Seven Deadly Sins (Nanatsu no Taizai)
  • Merlin
    a type of bird (Latin name: Falco columbarius)
  • Merlin Wizard
    character on Bee and Puppycat

The name Merlin in Nameberry Blog Posts