Merle

See also: merle

English

Etymology 1

Etymology tree

French Merlebor.

English Merle

Borrowed from French Merle.

Proper noun

Merle

1. A surname from French of French origin.
2. A male given name transferred from the surname.
   • 1968 May 3, Al Aronowitz, “New Country Twang Hits Town”, in Life Magazine, page 12:

     Merle Haggard is a name out of a morality play. And that's the kind of songs he sings.

Etymology 2

English 19th-century bird name from merle (“blackbird”), possibly also a variant of Muriel, Merrill, etc.

Proper noun

Merle

1. A female given name from English.
   • 1887, Emily Frances Adeline Sergeant, Jacob's Wife, page 92:

     Her name was Merle, and to her name she always said she owed the fact that Gilbert Vanborough ever looked at her.

   • 1976, From These Hills, From These Valleys: Pennsylvania Writers' Collection, University of Pittsburgh Press, →ISBN, page 186:

     "I wish I had a name like Merle Oberon or Miriam Hopkins," Mary Agnes said dreamily as she scanned the display of Coming Attractions.

Anagrams

• Lemer, Elmer, Emler

Estonian

Etymology

Modern coinage, possibly from English Merle, associated with similar sounding names like Merili (“Muriel”) or Merilin (“Marilyn”).

Proper noun

Merle

1. a female given name

French

Etymology

Originally a nickname or an occupational name from merle (“blackbird”).

Pronunciation

• Audio:

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Proper noun

Merle ?

1. a surname

Anagrams

• mêler

German

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛrlə/, [ˈmɛʁ.lə], [ˈmɛɐ̯.lə]

Etymology 1

From Middle High German merle, from Old High German merla, from Proto-West Germanic *merlā (“blackbird”). Doublet of Amsel (“blackbird”).

Noun

Merle f (genitive Merle, plural Merlen)

1. (now chiefly dialectal) blackbird

   Synonyms: Amsel, Schwarzdrossel

   • 1844, Annette von Droste-Hülshoff, “Die Nadel im Baume”, in Gedichte, Stuttgart, page 221:

     Eine schlanke schmächtige Erle,
     Da saßen wir oft in wachendem Traum
     Und horchten dem Schlage der Merle;
     Die hatte ihr struppiges Nest gebaut
     Grad in der schwankenden Krone[.]

     A slim and slender alder,
     There we often sat in waking dream
     And listened to the blackbird’s cry;
     She had built her scrubby nest
     Right in the swaying top[.]

Declension

Declension of Merle [feminine]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	eine	die	Merle	die	Merlen
genitive	einer	der	Merle	der	Merlen
dative	einer	der	Merle	den	Merlen
accusative	eine	die	Merle	die	Merlen

Etymology 2

Borrowed from English Merle with a spelling pronunciation (likely reinforced by etymology 1 above).

Proper noun

Merle f (proper noun, genitive Merles or (with an article) Merle)

1. a female given name of modern usage