Melissa
Meaning: “bee, honey, or honeybee”
About the name Melissa
Melissa is a girl name with Ancient Greek roots, meaning “bee, honey, or honeybee”.
It has a classic feel. In 2025, Melissa ranked #420 for girls in the US, with 747 babies given the name. Its peak year since 1940 was 1979. Since 2000, 100% of US babies named Melissa were girls.
Etymology
From Ancient Greek, meaning “bee, honey, or honeybee”.
Name meaning adapted from Wiktionary (“Melissa”) by Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- US rank 2025
- #420
- In 2015
- #253
- Babies in 2025
- 747
Popularity of Melissa, 1940–2025
Latest SSA data: 2025.
Popularity data: U.S. Social Security Administration national baby names (public domain; names given to at least 5 babies of one sex per year).
Nicknames for Melissa
Names similar to Melissa
- Madeline“woman from Magdala”
- Margaret“Pearl”
- Melanie“black, dark”
- AndreaOrigin debated
- Angela“messenger, angel”
- Cynthia“Cynthian (of or pertaining to Mount Cynthus, a mountain of Delos, celebrated as the birthplace of Apollo and Artemis)”
- ElenaOrigin debated
- KatherineOrigin debated
- Lydia“the region of Lydia”
- Maggie“pearl”
Name meanings marked or linked “Wiktionary” are adapted from Wiktionary by Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; each name page links its source entry.