Gender Feminine & Masculine
Usage English
Pronounced Pron. MAD-i-sən  [key·IPA]

Meaning & History

From an English surname meaning "son of Maud". It was not commonly used as a feminine name until after the movie Splash (1984), in which the main character adopted it as her name after seeing a street sign for Madison Avenue in New York City. It was ranked second for girls in the United States by 2001. This rise from obscurity to prominence in only 18 years represents an unprecedented 550,000 percent increase in usage.

A famous bearer of the surname was James Madison (1751-1836), one of the authors of the American constitution who later served as president (and after whom Madison Avenue was named).

Related Names

DiminutivesMaddie, Maddy, Madi

People think this name is

modern   youthful   common   strong   simple  

Images

Allen and Madison from the movie Splash (1984)Allen and Madison from the movie Splash (1984) ©
Portrait of James Madison (1816)Portrait of James Madison (1816)

Categories

Entry updated January 21, 2022