Head to head · Girls' names
Martha vs Mckinley
#712 vs #712 in 2025
Martha and Mckinley share the same spot on the 2025 charts (#712). The records cannot split them; sound and story will.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, Martha leads 4 measures of 6; Mckinley leads 0.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Martha #17, Mckinley — — Martha higher
- 1890s: Martha #25, Mckinley — — Martha higher
- 1900s: Martha #30, Mckinley — — Martha higher
- 1910s: Martha #26, Mckinley — — Martha higher
- 1920s: Martha #23, Mckinley — — Martha higher
- 1930s: Martha #26, Mckinley — — Martha higher
- 1940s: Martha #30, Mckinley — — Martha higher
- 1950s: Martha #51, Mckinley — — Martha higher
- 1960s: Martha #102, Mckinley — — Martha higher
- 1970s: Martha #159, Mckinley #9380 — Martha higher
- 1980s: Martha #208, Mckinley #7721 — Martha higher
- 1990s: Martha #296, Mckinley #3024 — Martha higher
- 2000s: Martha #496, Mckinley #1044 — Martha higher
- 2010s: Martha #748, Mckinley #444 — Mckinley higher
- 2020s: Martha #711, Mckinley #639 — Mckinley higher
Martha stood higher in 13 of 15 decades; Mckinley has held the lead since the 2010s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Martha | Mckinley |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #17 | — |
| 1890s | #25 | — |
| 1900s | #30 | — |
| 1910s | #26 | — |
| 1920s | #23 | — |
| 1930s | #26 | — |
| 1940s | #30 | — |
| 1950s | #51 | — |
| 1960s | #102 | — |
| 1970s | #159 | #9380 |
| 1980s | #208 | #7721 |
| 1990s | #296 | #3024 |
| 2000s | #496 | #1044 |
| 2010s | #748 | #444 |
| 2020s | #711 | #639 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Martha
lady, mistress of the house
Aramaic, and the feminine of the ordinary word for a lord or master. It is one of very few New Testament names that is Aramaic rather than Hebrew or Greek, which suits the character it belongs to.
marta → Martha
How it traveled
The most famous bearer of the name in modern times was a bird. She was the last passenger pigeon alive, a species that had numbered in the billions and darkened the sky over North America for days at a time within living memory, and she died in Cincinnati Zoo in the autumn of nineteen fourteen.
Mckinley
son of Fionnlagh, a Gaelic name meaning "fair hero"
The first element is Gaelic fionn, "fair, white." The second, laogh, is read as "hero" or "warrior" in the personal name, though its plain-word sense is "calf" — a shift that happened long before the surname formed.
Fionnlagh → Mac Fhionnlaigh → McKinlay → McKinley → Mckinley
How it traveled
The root is Fionnlagh, an old Gaelic given name that also gave English Finlay and Findlay. In the Highlands it became a family name, Mac Fhionnlaigh — son of Fionnlagh — anglicized in dozens of ways, McKinlay and McKinley among them.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Martha
MAR-thuh
Two syllables with the stress at the front. Most European languages drop the h entirely and say MAR-tah, which English does not.
- Marty — An affectionate ending; unisex and rather informal.
- Mattie — Built from the front by sound; warm and of an older generation.
- Patty — An old and now obscure short form of this name rather than of Patricia.
Mckinley
muh-KIN-lee
Three syllables with the stress in the middle. A flatter MACK-in-lee is sometimes heard, especially from readers treating the Mc- as a separate block.
- Kinley — The most-used short form, and also given on its own as a full name in the US.
- Mac — Informal; drawn from the Gaelic prefix, and used for both boys and girls.
- Mack — Same short form with the older surname spelling; informal.
- Kin — Very informal, mostly family use.
- Also Mickey.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Martha if you want…
- a name on the way upup 55 places on the charts in five years
- a name with fewer syllablesMartha is 2 syllables to Mckinley's 3
- a long American recordMartha was already in use when US records began in 1880
- a name that ages quietlyan estimated 12% chance of feeling dated by 2040, against 40% for Mckinley
Choose Mckinley if you want…
- a name past its most crowded yearsMckinley is stepping back from its peak
- a name with more sound in itMckinley runs 3 syllables, Martha 2
- plenty of nickname options5 recorded short forms — Kinley, Mac and Mack
- a newer arrivalMckinley entered the US charts in 1978
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Martha
Strengths
- It is recognized across Europe with almost no change of spelling.
- The meaning is dignified and easy to explain without etymology.
- It has stayed in continuous use for the whole length of the record.
To consider
- Its peak was very early and the name carries that age for some ears.
- The biblical character is proverbially the busy one, which colors the name.
- The record holds a few boys as well, and the boy is much the smaller side.
Mckinley
Strengths
- Traces an unbroken line from a Gaelic personal name through a Highland surname to a modern American given name.
- Has ready-made short forms — Kinley, Mac — one of which stands alone as a name in its own right.
- Familiar as a surname to nearly everyone, so the sound needs no explanation even when the given name is new to someone.
To consider
- The capitalization is a lifelong small nuisance: Mckinley, McKinley and MacKinley all circulate, and autocorrect has opinions. Deciding on one form early, and writing it that way consistently, saves a lot of correcting later.
- It reads as a girl's name in current American use, but the same spelling is still given to boys, and it remains a common surname — expect the occasional assumption to be corrected.
- The strongest association for many adults is President William McKinley and the Alaskan peak that carried his name for a century. That link is neutral for most people, but it is there.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Martha
12%chance Martha feels dated by 2040
Martha has held the top-100 across 8 different decades — it has never depended on fashion, and names like that read the same at any age.
Mckinley
40%chance Mckinley feels dated by 2040
Mckinley sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A reading of where each name sits on the long naming cycle — computed, not measured, and explained on the data page.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Martha and Mckinley in full.
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Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
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Put both to the vote.
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More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists these names appear on
- Greatest Generation names (born 1901–1927)
- Silent Generation names (born 1928–1945)
- Baby Boomer names (born 1946–1964)
- Downton Abbey names, upstairs and down
- all guides
Where Martha and Mckinley each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Martha or Mckinley — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Martha or Mckinley?
- They tie in 2025: Martha ranked #712 with 393 babies; Mckinley ranked #712 with 393 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Martha or Mckinley?
- Martha. Over the last five years Martha moved up 55 places; Mckinley moved down 158 places.
- Which is the older name, Martha or Mckinley?
- Martha was already in use when US records began in 1880; Mckinley entered the US charts in 1978. On the American record, Martha is the older name.
- How many people are named Martha and Mckinley?
- About 241,000 people named Martha are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 13,000 people named Mckinley are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Marthas or Mckinleys in the classroom?
- Martha will almost certainly be the only one in school. Mckinley will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
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