| Penelope | Melanie | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Weaver (disputed) | black, dark |
| Origin | greek | greek |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | peh-NEL-oh-pee | MEL-uh-nee |
| Syllables | 4 | 3 |
| First appeared | 1880 | 1886 |
| Peak year | 2019 (6,734) | 1972 (6,296) |
| In 2025 | 6,225 | 2,074 |
| Trend | Near its peak | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Penelope | Melanie |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 37,005 | 13,337 |
| 2010s | 47,614 | 33,086 |
| 2000s | 5,677 | 35,228 |
| 1990s | 795 | 29,352 |
| 1980s | 609 | 35,952 |
| 1970s | 1,750 | 53,323 |
| 1960s | 2,871 | 36,751 |
| 1950s | 4,758 | 19,849 |
| 1940s | 6,383 | 5,029 |
| 1930s | 1,109 | 242 |
| 1920s | 562 | 183 |
| 1910s | 248 | 145 |
| 1900s | 29 | 79 |
| 1890s | 36 | 63 |
| 1880s | 34 | 21 |
Borne by the faithful wife of Odysseus. The meaning is uncertain: one line derives it from 'pene' ('thread, weft') giving 'weaver', while another ties it to 'penelops', a type of duck or waterfowl. Both readings are considered folk etymologies by some classicists, so the sense is unsettled.
From Greek 'melas / melania' meaning 'black, dark'. Borne by early Christian saints Melania the Elder and Melania the Younger.
Penelope is more popular than Melanie today: about 6,225 US babies were given the name Penelope in 2025, compared with 2,074 named Melanie.
Penelope means Weaver (disputed) (greek origin), while Melanie means black, dark (greek origin).
In US records, Penelope first appears in 1880 and Melanie in 1886, so Penelope has the longer recorded history.