girl's name
Melany
MEL-uh-nee
- Origin Greek
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 3
- Letters 6
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 19,316
the United States
#398
2025 births
Melany is a girl's name of Greek origin meaning "black" or "dark". It respells Melanie, from melas, the root behind melancholy and melanin, and its meaning is a plain color word rather than anything symbolic.
- Melany is a name of Greek origin.
- Peaked in 2025, when 779 babies were given the name.
- Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 4,256 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1942.
- 3 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Melany over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1940s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1940s | 23 |
| 1950s | 255 |
| 1960s | 442 |
| 1970s | 503 |
| 1980s | 508 |
| 1990s | 838 |
| 2000s | 5,275 |
| 2010s | 6,263 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 3,277 |
What Melany means
Melany means dark or black, from the Greek melas. Ancient naming used color words freely for hair or complexion, and the name says no more than that.
Where Melany comes from
Melany respells Melanie, from the Greek Melania, from melas, black or dark. The same root gives melanin, the pigment; melancholy, literally black bile, from the medieval theory of the humors; and melanoma. Two Roman saints named Melania, a grandmother and granddaughter, carried the name into Christian use, and it reached England through French. The Y spelling is a modern American variant and appears in our records from 1942. Gone with the Wind's Melanie Hamilton gave the parent name a boost in the 1930s.
Melany in use
Melany charts in only one of the seven countries we track and reached its highest recorded use in 2025.
How popular is Melany?
In 2025, Melany was given to 779 babies in the United States, ranking #398 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Melany is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
How Melany is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Mélany | Mélany is a rare spelling of Melany, written with an acute accent and recorded about 270 times, mostly in France. | 270 |
Names that peaked alongside Melany
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Melany also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Melany over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Melany
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Melany in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Melany
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Melany — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Melany
What does the name Melany mean?
Black or dark, from the Greek melas — the root of melanin and melancholy.
What is the difference between Melany and Melanie?
Only the spelling. Melanie is the standard form; Melany is a modern variant.
Why does melancholy come from the same root?
Melancholy is literally black bile, from the medieval theory of the four humors.
How popular is the name Melany?
In 2025, Melany was given to 779 babies in the United States, ranking #398 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Is Melany a girl's or a boy's name?
Melany is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Melany?
Melany has 3 syllables.
When was Melany most popular?
Melany peaked in 2025, when 779 babies were given the name. Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
What are the nicknames for Melany?
Melany is usually shortened to Mel.
Is Melany a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Melany currently ranks #398 in the United States. Its usage has held steady over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.