Mercy
An English virtue name taken up after the Reformation, from Old French merci and ultimately Latin merces, a payment or favor.
Mercy in 2025
Mercy was given to 338 babies in the United States in 2025 — 25 boys and 313 girls, making it the 1,560th most popular name of the year. That is roughly one in every 9,809 babies born.
The history of Mercy
Mercy reached its highest point in 2019, when 461 babies were given the name, ranking 1,221st that year. Its best-ever ranking was 1,199th, in 1881.
Across the 145 years of records since 1881, 10,864 babies have been named Mercy. Half of them were born before 2009, which places the name's centre of gravity with Generation Z.
Mercy by decade
| Decade | Babies named Mercy | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 53 | 1,199 |
| 1890s | 25 | 2,023 |
| 1900s | 61 | 2,059 |
| 1910s | 192 | 2,307 |
| 1920s | 359 | 1,880 |
| 1930s | 368 | 1,863 |
| 1940s | 397 | 2,077 |
| 1950s | 494 | 2,044 |
| 1960s | 371 | 2,521 |
| 1970s | 531 | 2,357 |
| 1980s | 421 | 3,279 |
| 1990s | 677 | 2,704 |
| 2000s | 1,538 | 2,271 |
| 2010s | 3,223 | 1,221 |
| 2020s | 2,154 | 1,426 |
Where Mercy is heading
Mercy has risen 22% over the past decade, from 276 babies in 2015 to 338 in 2025.
Names like Mercy
Names that rose and fell at the same time as Mercy.