Madeleine

What Madeleine means

Same root as Magdalene, meaning “woman from Magdala”

Doublet of Magdalene || From Ancient Greek Μαγδαληνή (Magdalēnḗ, “woman from Magdala”), byname of the biblical Mary Magdalene, "Mary of Magdala ", from Μαγδαλά (Magdalá), the name of a village on Lake Galilee (the name of which derives from Hebrew מגדל (migdál, “t

Source: Wiktionary, “Madeleine” (revision 93424094) and “Magdalene” (revision 94541411), CC BY-SA 4.0. Quoted from the etymology; we don’t write our own.

How popular is Madeleine?

US: Falling: down from #303 in 2015. England & Wales: Falling: down from #173 in 2015.

Biggest US share so far: 1998, when 1,424 girls got the name (#217 that year). First in the US records in 1881.

How common

• About 1 in 2,367 baby girls in the US in 2025
• About 1 in 1,415 baby girls in England and Wales in 2025
• About 1 in 2,236 baby girls in Scotland in 2025

“1 in N” divides by all listed births for that sex. The US list leaves out names given to fewer than 5 babies, and the UK lists leave out names given to 2 or fewer, so the real figure is a little rarer than shown.

Where in the US

Most popular in DC (4.46 per 1,000 girls), NM (1.28 per 1,000 girls), CT (1.22 per 1,000 girls) in 2025.

SSA state data, 2025. Share of all listed girls born in each state.

US vs UK

Madeleine is #454 in the US and #259 in England & Wales (2025).

Same sex as this page (girls). SSA (US), ONS (England and Wales), NRS (Scotland).

Boy or girl?

In 2025, 99.9+% of US babies named Madeleine were girls.

Counts below the publishing threshold (US 5, UK 3) are not included.

How to say it

IPA from Wiktionary.

Other spellings parents chose in 2025

• Madeline3,086 US · 144 E&W
• Madelyne81 US
• Madelin74 US
• Madelaine24 US
• Madelynne23 US
• Madaline20 US
• Madeleyn17 US
• Madelein11 US

Names that sound the same and differ by a letter or two, with baby counts for the same sex. US and E&W counts.

If you like Madeleine

Girls

• Isabelle#166Variant of Elizabeth, meaning “my God is an oath”^*
• Giselle#382French, meaning “pledge”^*
• Claire#68Variant of Clare, meaning “bright, shining, clear”^*
• Sophie#55French form of Sophia, meaning “wisdom”^*
• Avery#37Editor’s note Used for both: 82% of US babies named Avery in 2025 were girls
• Valery#743Editor’s note Up from #1,209 in 2015 to #743 in 2025 in the US

For a brother

• Avery#291Editor’s note Down from #188 in 2015 to #291 in 2025 in the US
• Joan#984“God is gracious”^*
• Julien#709Editor’s note More popular in the US than England & Wales: #709 vs #3,256 in 2025
• Austin#113“majestic”^*
• Noel#478French, meaning “birthday of the Lord”^*
• Augustine#545Same root as Austin, meaning “majestic”^*

Picked from the US top 1,000 in 2025: names Wiktionary also files under French, whose US popularity since 1990 rose and fell most like Madeleine’s. Rank is US 2025.