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Home › Baby Names Directory › Melton

Melton

♂ Boy

How to Pronounce Melton

Pronounced MEL-tun /ˈmɛl.tən/High

Meaning: Melton is an English surname taken from any of several places named Melton, from Old English mylen, 'mill,' and tun, 'settlement, enclosure' — literally 'mill town.' Used as a first name it carries the place meaning; it is a surname-as-forename in the transferred-name tradition.Medium

In 30 seconds: Melton is an English place-and-surname meaning 'mill town' (said 'MEL-tun'). It saw modest use as a boy's name in the early twentieth century.
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Origin MediumEnglish
MeaningMelton is an English surname taken from any of several places named Melton, from Old English mylen, 'mill,' and tun, 'settlement, enclosure' — literally 'mill town.' Used as a first name it carries the place meaning; it is a surname-as-forename in the transferred-name tradition.
U.S. rank (2015)#13382 ↘ Falling
2015 U.S. births5 boys (0.00% of U.S. boys)
Peak year1921
Total births (all-time)≈ 4,235

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

peak 192118822015

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Melton comes from English villages called Melton, built from Old English mylen, 'mill,' and tun, 'town or enclosure' — a 'mill town.' Like Milton, Dalton, and Weldon, it moved from place to surname to first name in the American fashion for surname forenames.

As a boy's name it kept a quiet presence from the late eighteen-hundreds, peaking around 1921 at roughly eighty boys a year, then dwindling to near-disappearance by the later twentieth century. It reads as a sturdy, old-fashioned Southern surname-name today rather than a modern revival pick.

Did you know? Melton is best known as an English place name — and as the heavy woolen 'melton' cloth named for Melton Mowbray — but it also served as a given name, cresting around 1921.
Overall data confidence 66%
References — Melton — English place/surname 'mill town'; 1920s peak

Variations

MiltonMelten

Nicknames

Mel

Famous Bearers

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If you like Melton…

Milton— a near-twin -ton place-name meaning 'mill town'
Dalton— a like English surname-forename ending in -ton
Elton— another -ton place-name used as a boy's name
Weldon— a same-era English surname-name in the same style

Explore names like Melton

By themeenglishvintagesurname-name

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Frequently Asked

What does the name Melton mean?

Melton is an English place and surname meaning 'mill town,' from Old English for mill and settlement.

How do you pronounce Melton?

It's said MEL-tun /ˈmɛl.tən/ — two syllables, stress on the first.

Is Melton a boy or girl name?

Melton is used as a boy's name.

How popular is Melton?

Melton was an uncommon surname-name that peaked in the early nineteen-twenties and has been rare ever since.

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