Magdalen

Girl · Aramaic, through Greek

Magdalen

Say it: MAG-duh-lin

Try it with your surname

Meaning

From Greek Magdalēnē 'woman of Magdala', a town in Galilee.

Certainscholars agree on this meaning.

Used in late medieval and Tudor England, often pronounced Maudlin.

Its wave through time

Fading since the 1890s

In the United States

3,208 babies given this name since 1880
At its height in 1894, about 1 in 7,200 girls
15 babies in 2020

Through the ages

Used by

The family of the name

Other spellings: Maudlin, Magdalene

Latin	Magdalena
French	Madeleine
German	Magdalena

Names worth a look

AnnisGirlThe medieval English spoken form of Agnes, from Greek hagnē 'pure, holy'.Middle Ages · peak 1900 · forgotten

ElaGirlProbably a Norman name from a Germanic short form, perhaps from ali 'other' or alja 'all'; uncertain.Middle Ages · peak 2018 · forgotten

FelicitasGirlLatin felicitas 'good fortune, happiness'.Rome · peak 1928

BennetGirl or boyThe medieval English vernacular of Latin Benedictus 'blessed'.Middle Ages · peak 2019 · forgotten

EmmelineGirlFrom Old French Emeline, from a Germanic name built on amal or on Emma; the exact source is debated.Middle Ages · peak 2019

ParnellGirlThe medieval English vernacular form of Petronilla, from the Roman family name Petronius.Middle Ages · peak 1917 · forgotten

MagdaleneGirlGreek Magdalēnē, 'woman of Magdala', a town whose name comes from Hebrew migdal 'tower'.Biblical · peak 1904

MoctezumaBoyNahuatl Motēuczōma, usually explained as 'he who frowns like a lord', from tēuctli 'lord' and zōma 'to frown in anger'.Indigenous · forgotten

Where this comes from

The Hebrew Bible and the New Testament
Parish baptism registers
United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source

Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.

Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.