Etymology & Historical Origin of the Baby Name Marilyn

Marilyn is simply the combination of the female names Mary and Lynn. The name was coined sometime in the 20th century but heavily influenced by the popularity of blonde bombshell actress and cultural icon Marilyn Monroe. Etymologically speaking, Mary is one of those names that has spawned scores of other female names such as Mariah, Mariana, Mariela, Marissa, Maryjane and, of course, Marilyn (just to name a few!) Similarly, Lynn has always been used as a popular suffix for girls (Evelyn, Jocelyn, Ashlyn, etc). Marilyn was a mid-20th century favorite for English-speaking girls but has since fallen from her heights of usage as we’ve crossed the threshold into the 21st century.

All About the Baby Name – Marilyn

Personality

OF THE GIRL NAME MARILYN

The number 11 is a Master Number, and embodies heightened traits of the Two. This personality is on a life journey to find spiritual truth. They are extremely idealistic and intuitive. Elevens have a rare and exceptional spiritual energy that brings a sense of obligation to illuminate the world around them. It's a very powerful responsibility, but these people have far more potential than they know. It's important that they surrender to higher ideals. They have the capacity to see the bigger picture, and they possess the skills to inspire others spiritually. Elevens have strong diplomatic skills and can become great peacemakers. Master numbers can be both a blessing and a curse, as they walk the fine line between greatness and the potential for self-destruction.

Popularity

OF THE GIRL NAME MARILYN

The name Marilyn first appeared on the female naming charts in 1906 and pretty quickly took off in popularity. It only took the name 20 years before she landed a spot on the Top 100 list of most commonly used female names in America. For over 30 years, Marilyn carved a place of her own on the Top 100 (1925-1958). It would not be until the late 1940s that a young starlet originally called Norma Jeane Baker would come on to the Hollywood scene. Her name was changed to Marilyn Monroe (Monroe being her birth mother’s maiden name and Marilyn being the choice of a 20th Century Fox executive). At first Norma Jeane resisted the name Marilyn but the studio executive eventually convinced her that the name sounded sexy and the double-M was an omen of good luck (at least we know the first part was true!). By the time Norma Jeane changed her name to Marilyn Monroe, Marilyn was already a Top 30 favorite girl’s name in the country. During the 1950s and the height of Monroe’s film career, she managed to keep the name on marquees across America. As the 1960s got underway, the name has been steadily dropping and is now down to low-moderate levels of success. Marilyn feels out-dated today in so far as the name is associated with the 1950s and so we picture older or middle aged women bearing this moniker in the 21st century. Still, the name is very pretty and flows nicely. Marilyn Monroe remains an iconic image to even young girls today, but they may opt for Monroe as a given name in homage to their idol (which is what Mariah Carey did when naming her daughter).

Quick Facts

ON MARILYN

GENDER:

Girl

ORIGIN:

English

NUMBER OF SYLLABLES:

3

RANKING POPULARITY:

373

PRONUNCIATION:

MER-ə-lin

SIMPLE MEANING:

Mary+Lynn

Characteristics

OF MARILYN

Inspirational

Highly Intuitive

Spiritual Teacher

Extremely Bright

Uplifting

Truth-seeker

Cultural References to the Baby Name – Marilyn

Literary Characters

OF THE BABY NAME MARILYN

We cannot find any significant literary characters by the name of Marilyn

Childrens Books

ON THE BABY NAME MARILYN

We cannot find any childrens books with the first name Marilyn


Popular Songs

ON MARILYN

Marilyn
a song by Windjammer

Marilyn Moore
a song by Sonic Youth

Marilyn and Joe
a song by Kinky Friedman

Marilyn & John
a song by Vanessa Paradis

Life Sized Marilyn Monroe
a song by Wild Strawberries

A New Marilyn
a song by Vonda Shepard

Famous People

NAMED MARILYN

Marilyn Monroe (b. Norma Jeane Mortenson/actress and iconic celebrity)
Marilyn Manson (b. Brian Hugh Warner/musician)
Marilyn Chambers (porn actress)
Marilyn (British pop singer)
Marilyn Horne (opera singer)
Marilyn Maxwell (actress)
Marilyn McCoo (singer)
Marilyn Quayle (former 2nd Lady of the U.S.)

Children of Famous People

NAMED MARILYN

We cannot find any children of famous people with the first name Marilyn

Historic Figures

WITH THE NAME MARILYN

As everyone on Planet Earth knows, Marilyn Monroe was born Norma Jeane Mortenson (immediately changed to Baker) to a mentally unstable mother and an absent father, had a chaotic upbringing in a series of foster homes, achieved iconic stardom via an early modeling career, married three times (including Joe DiMaggio and Arthur Miller), suffered miscarriages, was rumored to have had liaisons with the Kennedy brothers (for once Ted is innocent), was insecure, longed to be taken seriously, committed herself to a psychiatric hospital, became dangerously dependent on drugs and died of a fatal overdose, which was ultimately ruled a “probable suicide”. All in 36 years! What no one on aforementioned planet knows is the mystery of just how this woman managed to come into our consciousness, blaze for a magic moment, and just as suddenly leave. In the fifty years since her death, she has achieved the kind of celebrity that is almost immeasurable; her face is instantly and universally recognized, frozen as it is in an indelible image of almost innocent sexiness and childlike vulnerability. Our culture has forever imprinted on its collective mind that sassy, joyful picture of a beautiful, laughing Marilyn standing over a city grate while the steam blows her dress up. How, then, could we reconcile that Marilyn with a woman in her mid-eighties? Impossible. So perhaps that is why she left us so soon – rather like JFK, she is so fixed in the national psyche that we must keep her in that time capsule. Nonetheless, if there is an afterlife, and we sincerely hope there is, the first question we’re going to ask is: “What really happened to Marilyn Monroe?”