Mace
Masculine · “club”
Mace is a spice and a weapon at once — the spice from a nutmeg's covering, the weapon from a Latin word for a club.
How old is the name Mace?
Mace was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Mace alive today was born around 2007, making them about 18 years old. About 1,600 people named Mace are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Mace most popular?
Mace peaked in 1902, reaching #744 nationally. Today it ranks #2480, 1,736 places below that high. See the whole 1902 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From mattea to Mace
The story of Mace
The ceremonial mace carried before a speaker or a mayor descends from an actual club, and English also uses mace for the lacy covering of a nutmeg — an entirely different word. Mace was a medieval English pet form of Matthew. It appears in American records in current use.
Meaningscholars disagree
club; spice
Two routes. The English mace, a club, from the Old French mace and a Latin mattea. And a short form of Mason or Matthew through the medieval Mace. The spice mace is a separate word from the Latin macir. All are documented and unrelated.
How the name formed
- mattea
- mace
- Mace
Related forms: Masse · Mason
Pronouncing Mace
MAYSS
One syllable. It is a homophone of the ordinary English noun.
Nicknames for Mace
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1880
- Most boys named
- 201665 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #744reached in 1902
- Change vs 2023
- +8.0%54 in 2025, from 50
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Mace in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Masse in French — related form
- Mason in English — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: Texas, California, Florida.
Maces among us
people named Mace are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 31,631 born in 2025 was named Mace
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Mace
- #2480
- Mace on the 2025 chart
- #792
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Mace went to 54 boys in 2025, but Maze and Mase are the same name said out loud. Together the 3 spellings went to 136, which makes it the 792nd most-given boys’ name of the year — 1,688 places above the chart.
- Maze55
- Mace54
- Mase27
About 1 boy in 12,559 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 31,631 for Mace itself.
Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Mace 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 scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Mace is headed
Mace should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Mace beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Mace in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- That a ceremonial mace descends from an actual club is a genuinely good fact.
- Matthew and Mason are both available as fuller versions.
- One syllable, sharp, and never mispronounced.
- It is an ordinary English noun with three unrelated senses.
- A brand of pepper spray shares the name.
- It is very short and can be swallowed by a long surname.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Mace
Masculine · #2480 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Maces are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,600 people named Mace are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Mace?
- Mace is one of 3 recorded spellings. Maze is the more common one — 55 births in 2025 against 54 for Mace.
- How popular is the name Mace in 2025?
- Mace ranks #2480 among US boy names in 2025, with 54 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Mace?
- About 1 in every 31,631 US boys born in 2025 was named Mace — 54 in all.
- Will my child share the name Mace with classmates?
- Mace will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Mace
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Arya#2480 · Kaeson#2480 · Demian#2480 · Marion#2480 · Florian#2480 · Niles#2480 · Hardy#2480 · Caine#2480
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Mace? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Mace and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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