Melanie is a feminine given name derived from the Greek μελανία (melania), "blackness" and that from μέλας (melas), meaning "dark".Melas, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, ''A Greek-English Lexicon''
at Perseus project Borne in its Latin form by two saints, Melania the Elder and her granddaughter Melania the Younger,Behind the Name
/ref> the name was introduced to England by the Normans in its French form ''Melanie''. However, the name only became common in English usage in the 1930s because of the popularity of Margaret Mitchell's 1936 novel '' Gone with the Wind'' and its 1939 film adaptation, as one of the novel's main characters was named Melanie Hamilton. The name's popularity increased until the 1970s, since remaining constant. Melanie was the 80th most popular name for girls born in the United States in 1957 and, as Mélanie, it was the 86th most popular name for girls born in France in 2004.

People named Melanie

* Melanie Blake, English talent agent and author * Melanie Blatt (born 1975), British singer, member of All Saints *

Melanie le Brocquy Melanie le Brocquy (23 December 191922 June 2018) was an Irish sculptor who specialized in female figures and family members. Forms are reduced to a simple statement. Although she did not create very many works, her skills are widely respected. Am ...

(1919–2018), Irish sculptor * Melanie Brown (Mel B) (born 1975), British singer and member of the Spice Girls * Melanie Chisholm (Melanie C) (born 1974), British singer and member of the Spice Girls *

Melanie Clewlow Melanie "Mel" Clewlow (born 7 May 1976 in Dover, Kent) is an English field hockey player. She was a member of the England and Great Britain squads. She made her international debut in 1996, and was part of the England squad that won silve ...

(born 1976), English hockey defender * Melanie Counsell (born 1964), Welsh filmmaker, installation artist and sculptor * Melanie Doane (born 1967), Canadian singer * Melanie Fiona (born 1983), Canadian singer * Melanie Fontana (born 1986), American singer *

Melanie Wade Goodwin Melanie Wade Goodwin (July 22, 1970 – September 1, 2020) was an American politician who served in the North Carolina House of Representatives from the 66th district as a member of the Democratic Party. She was the first member of the North ...

(1970–2020), American politician * Melanie Griffith (born 1957), American actress * Melanie Hahnemann (1800–1878), homeopath * Melanie Hall (1970–2004), English murder victim * Melanie Hall (basketball), Australian athlete * Sister Mary Melanie Holliday (1850-1939), American Catholic nun * Melanie Jans (born 1973), Canadian squash player * Melanie Johnson (born 1955), British politician * Melanie Klaffner (born 1990), Austrian tennis player * Melanie Klein (1882–1960), Austrian-born British psychoanalyst * Melanie Kreis (born 1971), German businesswoman * Melanie Lambert (born 1974), American adagio and pair skater * Melanie Leslie (born 1961), dean of the

Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law The Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law is the law school of Yeshiva University. Located in New York City and founded in 1976, the school is named for Supreme Court Justice Benjamin N. Cardozo. Cardozo graduated its first class in 1979. An LL.M. p ...

* Melanie Lynskey (born 1977), New Zealand actress * Melanie Martinez (born 1972), American actress * Melanie Martinez (singer) (born 1995), American singer-songwriter * Melanie Mayron (born 1952), American actress * Melanie McFadyean, British journalist * Melanie McGuire (born 1972), American criminal who murdered her husband, dismembered his body and put it into suitcases * Melanie Merkosky (born 1986), Canadian actress *

Melanie Nolan Melanie Claire Nolan (born 1960) is a historian and university academic from New Zealand, specialising in labour and gender history. She is the Director of the National Centre of Biography at the Australian National University, and General Editor ...

(born 1960), New Zealand historian * Melanie Phillips (born 1951), British journalist * Melanie Safka (born 1947), American singer/songwriter born Melanie Anne Safka, professionally known as Melanie * Melanie South (born 1986), British tennis player *

Melanie Stabel Melanie Stabel (born 30 September 1999) is a German deaf sport shooter. She represented Germany at the 2017 Summer Deaflympics and claimed 3 medals including a gold medal in the women's 10m air rifle with a record score of 412.6 in the finals. ...

(born 1999), German sport shooter * Melanie Stansbury (born 1979), American politician and scientist * Melanie Thornton (1967–2001), American pop singer *

Melanie Weisner Melanie Weisner (born September 30, 1986) is an American professional poker player. She is also known by her PokerStars online screen name Callisto 5. Poker Online poker Born in Houston, Texas, Weisner studied vocal performance at New York Un ...

(born 1986), American professional poker player

People named Mélanie

Mélanie is a feminine French given name. Notable people with the name include: *

Mélanie Bernier Mélanie Bernier (born 5 January 1985) is a French actress. She has appeared in several films, such as '' L'Assaut'' (2011), directed by Julien Leclerq, relating the hijacking of an Air France A300 in December 1994, and also in several televisi ...

(b. 1985), French actress *

Mélanie Bonis Mélanie Hélène Bonis, known as Mel Bonis (21 January 1858 – 18 March 1937), was a prolific French late-Romantic composer. She wrote more than 300 pieces, including works for piano solo and four hands, organ pieces, chamber music, ''mélodies'' ...

(1858–1937), French composer * Mélanie Calvat (1831–1904), French nun * Mélanie Cohl (b. 1982), Belgian singer * Mélanie Doutey, French actress * Mélanie Laurent (b. 1983), French actress and director * Mélanie de Pourtalès (1836–1914), French salonnière and courtier * Mélanie Turgeon (b. 1976), Canadian skier

Fictional characters

Melanie Barnett Melanie Barnett-Davis is a fictional character, portrayed by actress Tia Mowry, who appears in the American sitcom ''The Game'', which aired on the CW Television Network and BET from 2006 to 2015. Introduced in a backdoor pilot on the sitcom '' ...

, a character from the television series ''

The Game The Game or The Games may refer to: Sports and games * The Game (dice game) (German: ''Das Spiel''), a dice game designed by Reinhold Wittig * The Game (mind game), a mind game, the objective of which is to avoid thinking about The Game itself * ...

'' * Melanie Bush, a character in the television series ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'' * Melanie Hamilton, a character in the novel '' Gone with the Wind'' * Melanie Jonas, a former character on the American soap opera ''

Days of Our Lives ''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that streams on the streaming service Peacock. The soap, which aired on the American television net ...

'' * Melanie Marcus, a character in the television series ''Queer as Folk'' * Melanie Stryder, a character from the book '' The Host'' by Stephenie Meyer * Melanie Walker, a character from '' Batman Beyond''

References

{{given name English feminine given names Given names of Greek language origin Scottish feminine given names Irish feminine given names French feminine given names German feminine given names Dutch feminine given names Welsh feminine given names

People named Melanie

People named Mélanie

Fictional characters

See also

References