Rising since 1994, #4,758 for girls today.
Popularity of Meryem since 1992
Babies named Meryem per year in U.S. Social Security records.
Data table (by decade)
| Decade | Girls |
|---|---|
| 1990s | 41 |
| 2000s | 125 |
| 2010s | 283 |
| 2020s | 175 |
Meaning & origin
Meryem entered U.S. records in 1992 and has since carved a quiet but steady presence. It ranked 4,758 in 2025, with 1 in every 57,402 newborns receiving the name. Its trajectory has been upward since 1994, peaking in 2019, reflecting growing awareness of diverse naming traditions. The name appears most frequently in New York, where communities of Turkish and Arabic heritage are concentrated. Meryem carries deep Islamic resonance as the Turkish form of Maryam, the mother of Jesus in the Quran, and offers parents a name that is both spiritually grounded and cross-culturally recognizable.
Meryem is the Turkish and North African Arabic form of Maryam, the Arabic version of the Hebrew name Miryam. The name is deeply significant in Islam, where Maryam (Mary) is the mother of the prophet Jesus (Isa) and is the only woman named in the Quran. Meryem is used across the Arabic-speaking world and Turkey, often reflecting the Islamic veneration of Mary. It has been a common name in Turkey for centuries and gained modest use in the United States starting in the 1990s, primarily among families of Islamic or Turkish heritage.
Where Meryem is most popular
Births per 100,000 girls by state, 2025. The lightest shade means too few recorded births.
“Meryem” around the world
Where Meryem lands in the latest official birth statistics abroad, matched to the U.S. spelling.
France
185
babies in 2024
Ireland
4
babies in 2025
Sources: INSEE (France) · CSO Ireland (Ireland).
Nicknames & variants
Nicknames: Mer, Yem
Sibling names for Meryem
Names that share Meryem's style, for a brother or sister.
