Madelina

Meaning & origin

Madelina is a rare feminine name that first appeared in U.S. birth records in 1915. It has remained in low but consistent use, with a peak in 2022. As of 2025, it ranks 7885 with an estimated 1 in 123,636 baby girls receiving the name, and its trajectory is stable. Madelina is a variant of Madeline, appealing to parents who like the classic sound but seek a less common spelling. Despite its rarity, it has never fully fallen out of use, showing quiet staying power over the past century. The name is most often given to girls, and its top states of use are not concentrated in any particular region.

Madelina is a spelling variant of Madeline, which derives from the French Madeleine, itself from the Greek Magdalēnē, meaning 'woman from Magdala.' Magdala was a town on the Sea of Galilee, and the name is often associated with Mary Magdalene. The variant Madelina emerged as a creative respelling in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly in the United States, where similar elaborations of classic names were fashionable. It has seen modest but consistent use since the 1910s.