Unfortunate, in the historical Anglo-Norman nickname tradition.
The surname-to-given-name history traces an old nickname through the unhappy or unlucky word. This historical word meaning is not a judgment, prediction or personality trait for a child.
Origin
Anglo-Norman surname, transferred to an English given name
The entry records given-name transfer from the surname, whose history is traced through Anglo-Norman and Old French. The historical surname is not a judgment about a child.
English pronunciation
/ˈmæləɹi/
Received Pronunciation and General American English; the first vowel is that of cat.
Recorded English reading, as published. Accents and preferred pronunciations can differ.
Published name usage
Counts apply only to the exact spelling, place, year and recorded usage shown. Places are separate; these figures are never added into a worldwide total. Missing or suppressed records never mean zero.
Latest published record available for this spelling in each place and recorded usage
Place
Year
Recorded usage
Published births
Rank
Notes
Canada
2025
Girls
49 · preliminary
611
2025 figures are preliminary. Quebec counts below five are randomly imputed by the publisher before national aggregation. Accents are removed in the source; this profile was matched only where the catalog spelling was unambiguous. Unpublished values are unknown, not zero. Rank basis: source published.
France
2025
Girls
10 (rounded to 5)
2366
Counts are rounded to the nearest multiple of five. Ranks use unrounded publisher counts with randomly ordered ties; equally rounded counts can have different ranks. National coverage excludes Mayotte before 2012. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Automated direction labels are withheld for this rounded-count series. Rank basis: source published.
France
2025
Boys
25 (rounded to 5)
1423
Counts are rounded to the nearest multiple of five. Ranks use unrounded publisher counts with randomly ordered ties; equally rounded counts can have different ranks. National coverage excludes Mayotte before 2012. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Automated direction labels are withheld for this rounded-count series. Rank basis: source published.
England & Wales
2025
Girls
32
1051
Published ranks differ from ranks calculated over visible rows. Counts retained; automated trend labels withheld. Rank basis: source published.
England & Wales
2023
Boys
4
4107
Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Scotland
2025
Girls
7
429
Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
United States
2025
Girls
825
372
Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: calculated from published counts.
United States
2023
Boys
6
10821
Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: calculated from published counts.
Canada, Ireland and France coverage includes confidently matched existing profiles only; unmatched spellings are awaiting review. French counts are rounded to five.
Sources & notes
Open an entry for its source, credit, licence and full qualifications. Different name traditions remain separate.
Meaning: Unfortunate, in the historical Anglo-Norman nickname tradition.
Checked against cited source
The surname-to-given-name history traces an old nickname through the unhappy or unlucky word. This historical word meaning is not a judgment, prediction or personality trait for a child.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
Origin: Anglo-Norman surname, transferred to an English given name
Checked against cited source
The entry records given-name transfer from the surname, whose history is traced through Anglo-Norman and Old French. The historical surname is not a judgment about a child.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
English pronunciation: /ˈmæləɹi/
Checked against cited source
Received Pronunciation and General American English; the first vowel is that of cat.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
Statistics Canada, Table 17-10-0147-01, 1991–2025, released 23 September 2026.
Credit: Statistics Canada, Table 17-10-0147-01, 1991–2025, released 23 September 2026.
License: Statistics Canada Open Licence
Adaptation: Adapted from Statistics Canada, First names at birth by sex at birth, selected indicators, Table 17-10-0147-01, reference years 1991–2025. This does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada of this product.
Source : Insee, Fichier des prénoms, updated 16 July 2026.
Credit: Source : Insee, Fichier des prénoms, updated 16 July 2026.
License: Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab)
Adaptation: Adapted by Rare Baby Names: column names and sex codes mapped and unique case-only spellings matched to existing profiles. Published rounded counts and ranks retained.