Menelik
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- MEN-eh-lik
- Origin
- Amharic
- UK rank, 2025
- #5,065 for boys
- US rank, 2025
- #5,859 for boys
Menelik is a boys' name of Amharic origin. In 2025 it ranked 5,065th for boys in the UK (3 babies) and 5,859th for boys in the US (15 babies).
What does Menelik mean?
Amharic: Ethiopian royal name, traditionally explained as 'son of the king'
Menelik II, Emperor of Ethiopia, defeated the invading Italian army at the Battle of Adwa in 1896.
Is Menelik a girl's or a boy's name?
Menelik is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 3 boys in the UK and 15 boys in the US. Too few girls were given it to be listed.
How popular is Menelik in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- 5,065th among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 3 about 1 in 100,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Steady down 22% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 3 boys in the UK were named Menelik, making it the 5,065th most popular name for boys. Its busiest year was 2018, with 9 boys.
Half of all the boys named Menelik in the UK since 1996 were born between 2001 and 2022. It was already well used in 1996, when the records begin, so earlier boys aren't counted.
Among boys in 2025, it was 4,974th in England and Wales.
Menelik in the UK, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 3 | #5,065 |
| 2024 | 0 | – |
| 2023 | 4 | #4,335 |
| 2022 | 6 | #3,219 |
| 2021 | 0 | – |
| 2020 | 0 | – |
| 2019 | 0 | – |
| 2018 | 9 | #2,388 |
| 2017 | 0 | – |
| 2016 | 4 | #4,214 |
| 2015 | 0 | – |
| 2014 | 0 | – |
| 2013 | 0 | – |
| 2012 | 0 | – |
| 2011 | 0 | – |
| 2010 | 3 | #4,865 |
| 2009 | 0 | – |
| 2008 | 0 | – |
| 2007 | 0 | – |
| 2006 | 0 | – |
| 2005 | 0 | – |
| 2004 | 0 | – |
| 2003 | 0 | – |
| 2002 | 7 | #1,900 |
| 2001 | 3 | #3,255 |
| 2000 | 3 | #3,146 |
| 1999 | 3 | #3,043 |
| 1998 | 0 | – |
| 1997 | 3 | #2,979 |
| 1996 | 3 | #2,949 |
How popular is Menelik in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- 5,859th among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 15 about 1 in 110,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Steady down 9% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 15 boys in the US were named Menelik, making it the 5,859th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 4,017th. Its busiest year was 2020, with 25 boys. It first appears in the records in 1980.
Half of all the boys named Menelik in the US since 1880 were born between 1999 and 2019, the years shaded on the chart below.
Menelik in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 15 | #5,859 |
| 2024 | 12 | #6,827 |
| 2023 | 15 | #5,922 |
| 2022 | 13 | #6,473 |
| 2021 | 14 | #6,027 |
| 2020 | 25 | #4,017 |
| 2019 | 8 | #8,883 |
| 2018 | 13 | #6,341 |
| 2017 | 14 | #6,056 |
| 2016 | 12 | #6,721 |
| 2015 | 9 | #8,035 |
| 2014 | 8 | #8,775 |
| 2013 | 12 | #6,598 |
| 2012 | 9 | #8,152 |
| 2011 | 14 | #5,939 |
| 2010 | 6 | #10,759 |
| 2009 | 5 | #12,486 |
| 2008 | 10 | #7,693 |
| 2007 | 10 | #7,586 |
| 2006 | 8 | #8,726 |
| 2005 | 7 | #9,108 |
| 2004 | 6 | #9,941 |
| 2003 | 8 | #7,824 |
| 2002 | 8 | #7,636 |
| 2001 | 15 | #4,884 |
| 2000 | 10 | #6,309 |
| 1999 | 15 | #4,531 |
| 1998 | 9 | #6,308 |
| 1997 | 7 | #7,275 |
| 1996 | 11 | #5,180 |
| 1995 | 6 | #7,785 |
| 1994 | 7 | #6,962 |
| 1993 | 7 | #6,809 |
| 1992 | 5 | #8,426 |
| 1991 | 11 | #4,752 |
| 1990 | 5 | #8,108 |
| 1989 | 0 | – |
| 1988 | 5 | #7,264 |
| 1987 | 6 | #6,083 |
| 1986 | 8 | #4,848 |
| 1985 | 0 | – |
| 1984 | 0 | – |
| 1983 | 5 | #6,234 |
| 1982 | 0 | – |
| 1981 | 0 | – |
| 1980 | 8 | #4,493 |
Names like Menelik
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Muhammad, Matteo, Musa, Marley, Elijah, Mustafa, Maverick, Malik, Elias, Hudson, Tobias, Ibrahim
More Amharic names
Amare, Aryam, Gelila, Mahelet, Nolawi, Haset, Tafari, Bruk, Leul, Naod, Kidus, Melat, Haile, Nuhamin, Meklit, Kirubel
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Menelik: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/menelik, updated 20 October 2026.