Madison
An English surname, “son of Maud,” and so ultimately from the Germanic Matilda.
Popularity, 1880–2025
Invented as a girls' name by the 1984 film Splash, whose mermaid picks it off a Madison Avenue street sign; within two decades it was a top-3 name.
Madison appears in the national records from the very first year, 1880. It has ranked among the top 100 names for American girls in every year from 1993 to 2025. It spent 18 years inside the top 10. Its biggest year was 2001, when 22,166 newborn girls received the name, ranking it No. 2 nationally. In 2025 it ranked No. 40 for girls. All told, 427,675 Americans have been given the name since 1880.
Related names
Other spellings on record: Maddison (24,116), Madisyn (17,379), Madyson (13,372), Madisen (5,064), Madysen (2,708), Madisson (2,676) (total births since 1880)
Other names that share a story: Matilda, Maud
Explore Madison interactively →By the decade
| Decade | Births | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 16 | No. 7984 |
| 1980s | 3,794 | No. 222 |
| 1990s | 91,907 | No. 7 |
| 2000s | 193,222 | No. 2 |
| 2010s | 98,438 | No. 8 |
| 2020s | 32,429 | No. 23 |
Births and rank shown for girls, the sex more often given the name. The Social Security Administration omits name–year combinations with fewer than five births.
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Data: U.S. Social Security Administration national baby-name file, 1880–2025.