Meaning and background
The story behind Muriel
Muriel is an anglicized form of Irish Muirgel and Scottish Muireall, and the reference also describes a Breton route into medieval England. Its modern literary history includes a character in Dinah Craik’s John Halifax, Gentleman. That combination gives the name more context than a single compressed translation. For a dog, Muriel may be chosen for a person, a book or its traditional sound. Preserve that individual story rather than assuming the same historical route explains every owner’s choice of the spelling.
- Origin
- Anglicized form of Irish Muirgel and Scottish Muireall, with a related Breton history. Source
Try Muriel out loud
Everyday moments“Muriel, come here!”
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About Muriel
Recorded as a dog’s name
Muriel appears in 3 dog licence records in the 2016 New York City dataset.
How to read this count
These records cover New York City and may count the same dog in more than one licence period. They are not a national popularity ranking.
Pronunciation and rhythm
/mjʊɹiəl/
US English sound sequence, converted from the CMU dictionary. Stress marks are shown separately.
Stress on the first syllable in the recorded US readings.
View dictionary notation
/mjʊɹiəl/ · primary stress on syllable 1M Y UH1 R IY0 AH0 L
These are US dictionary readings. Personal, regional and other language pronunciations may differ.
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Sources and research notes (2)
- New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene NYC Dog Licensing Dataset — all seven available extract years, retrieved 24 October 2026 — Recorded name spellings in NYC licence-period rows, extract years 2016–2018, 2022–2024 and 2026. Evidence selects one stated year per name. Annual snapshots overlap; never sum them as unique dogs. No national popularity, etymology or owner naming-intent claim.
- Carnegie Mellon University / CMU Sphinx maintainers CMU US English Pronouncing Dictionary — US English dictionary readings; not owner-specific or exhaustive multilingual pronunciation
References support the individual facts shown. A source link does not mean the entire profile has been verified.