Melanie
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218705543
2008-06-11T20:31:12Z
75.4.8.74
{{Infobox Given Name Revised
| name = Melanie
| image=
| imagesize=
| caption=
| pronunciation= MEL-a-nee (USA) ME-lah-nee (German)
| gender = Female
| meaning = black, dark
| region =
| origin = Greek
| related names = Mel
| footnotes =
}}
Melanie is a feminine given name derived from the [[Greek language|Greek]] μελαινα or ''melaina'', meaning "black, dark." It was the name of a 5th century saint venerated by the [[Roman Catholic]] and [[Eastern Orthodox]] churches.<ref>[http://www.behindthename.com/php/find.php?name=melanie Behind the Name]</ref> The name became more popular following the release of the book and movie [[Gone with the Wind]], which had a character named [[Melanie Wilkes]]. The name was the 80th most popular name for girls born in the [[United States]] in 2007. It was the 86th most popular name for girls born in [[France]] in 2004.<ref>[http://www.behindthename.com/top/search.php?terms=melanie Behind the Name]</ref>
==People named Melanie==
* [[Melanie Brown]], a [[Spice Girl]].
* [[Melanie Chisholm]], a [[Spice Girl]].
* [[Melanie Griffith]], an [[United States|American]] actress.
* [[Melanie Johnson]], a [[United Kingdom|British]] [[politician]].
* [[Melanie Martinez]], a television and stage [[actress]].
* [[Melanie Safka]], an [[United States|American]] songwriter (usually known simply as Melanie), best known for "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)" and "Brand New Key".
* [[Melanie Thornton]], singer (former singer of [[La Bouche]]).
* [[Melanie Wilkes]], a fictional character from the 1936 book ''[[Gone with the Wind]]'' and the [[Gone with the Wind (film)|1939 film of the same name]].
* [[Melanie Marcus]], a character from [[Queer as Folk (North American TV series)|Queer as Folk]].
== Other uses ==
* ''[[Mélanie (album)]]'', 1984 album by [[Celine Dion|Céline Dion]].
* [[Melanie (song)|"Melanie" (song)]], song by [["Weird Al" Yankovic]].
* "[[Melanie (Toto song)|"Melanie" (Toto song)]]", song by [[Toto (band)|Toto]].
* "[[Melanie (Guster song)|"Melanie" (Guster song)]]", song on [[Guster]]'s album ''[[Goldfly (album)|Goldfly]]''.
* [[Melanie (rocket)|Melanie]], name of a French rocket engine.
* [[ Melanie Estrada ]], psychologist
==Notes==
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Given names]]
[[Category:English given names]]
[[de:Melanie]]
[[it:Melania]]
[[hu:Melánia]]
[[pl:Melania]]
[[sk:Melánia]]
[[sr:Меланија (име)]]