Molly (also spelled Molli or Mollie) is a diminutive of the feminine name
Mary that, like other English
diminutives in use since the
Middle Ages, substituted l for r. English surnames such as Moll, Mollett, and Mollison are derived from Molly. Molly has also been used as a diminutive of
Margaret and
Martha since the 1700s and as an independent name since at least 1720. The name was more popular in the United States than elsewhere in the
Anglosphere in the 1800s due to usage by Irish-American families and by Jewish American families who used Molly as an English version of Hebrew names such as
Miriam and Malka. Its popularity with Americans was also influenced by stories about
Molly Pitcher, a heroine of the
American Revolutionary War.[1]
Usage
The name has been among the 1,000 most popular names for girls in the United States since 1880 and was among the 100 most popular names for American girls
at different times between 1987 and 2012. It has been among the 100 most popular names for newborn girls in Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, Sweden, and the United Kingdom since the 1990s, and in Denmark since 2019. It was among the top 100 names for girls in some Canadian provinces between 2007 and 2011.[2]
People
Women
Mollie Arline Kirkland Bailey (c. 1844–1918), American circus musician, singer, wartime nurse and alleged Confederate spy
Molly Picon (née Małka Opiekun; 1898–1992), American actress in Yiddish theatre and film
Molly Pitcher, nickname of a woman said to have fought in the American Revolutionary War Battle of Monmouth, generally believed to have been Mary Ludwig Hays McCauley
Molly Mallard, a Disney character who is Scrooge McDuck's paternal grandmother
Molly Carpenter, whose full name is Margaret Katherine Amanda Carpenter, is initially featured in The Dresden Files as a recurring character, but grows into a main role in the novels following "Proven Guilty"
Molly the Goldfish Fairy, from the Rainbow Magic franchise
Molly, shortened name of Lady Emily Lenox, the sister-in-law of Charles Lenox in
Charles Finch's mysteries
^Campbell, Mike.
"Molly". www.behindthename.com. Behind the Name. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
Name list
This page or section lists people that share the same
given name. If an
internal link led you here, you may wish to change that link to point directly to the intended article.