Mark
Feminine · “of Mars”
Mark is given to boys far more often — 1,362,176 boys against 4,496 girls since 1880. See Mark as a boy name
Mark is one of very few Roman first names still in use. Rome had about eighteen of them in general circulation, which is why the same handful turn up constantly in Latin texts, and Marcus was among the commonest — a name given to Mars, the god who began as an agricultural deity and ended up in charge of war.
How old is the name Mark?
Mark first appears in US birth records in 1892 — 133 years ago. The typical Mark alive today was born around 1968, making them about 57 years old. About 3,800 people named Mark are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Mark most popular?
Mark peaked in 1968, reaching #804 nationally. See the whole 1968 chart.
Where it comes from
From Marcus to Mark
The story of Mark
The Gospel of Mark is the shortest of the four and almost certainly the first written; the other two synoptic Gospels appear to have used it as a source, which makes it the earliest sustained account of Jesus that survives. Tradition connects its author to Peter. That put the name into every Christian language, and it has been in continuous English use since the Middle Ages without ever belonging to a single period. Of the eighteen Roman first names, this and Paul are the two that a modern English speaker meets daily.
Meaningscholars disagree
of Mars
Marcus is generally read as belonging to Mars, and the derivation is standard though, like most very old Roman praenomina, reconstructed rather than recorded. Mars himself changed considerably over Roman history: he begins as a god of agriculture and boundaries and becomes the god of war, which means the name's association shifted underneath it. The month of March carries the same name.
How the name formed
- Marcus
- Marcus
- Mark
Related forms: Marco · Marcos · Marc · Mark · Marek
Pronouncing Mark
MARK
MARK, one syllable, rhyming with dark. French drops the k sound and says MAHR; Italian and Spanish add a syllable. The English reading has been stable for many centuries and there has never been any ambiguity in it.
Nicknames for Mark
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
- 1892
- Most girls named
- 1968157 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #804reached in 1968
- Change vs 2013
- −16.7%5 in 2023, from 6
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.
Mark in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Marco in Italian — same name
- Marcos in Spanish — same name
- Marc in French — same name
- Mark in Russian — same name
- Marek in Polish — same name
Marks among us
people named Mark are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Mark sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- One syllable, four letters, understood instantly in every European language.
- It is one of only a handful of Roman first names still in ordinary use anywhere.
- It needs no short form and has never acquired one, which suits people who dislike being shortened.
- It has been in continuous English use for many centuries without belonging to one decade.
- The word mark is an ordinary English noun and verb, which gets played on regularly.
- It is strongly associated with the middle of the last century in America and dates a person fairly closely.
- A great many people carry it, so a Mark will rarely be the only one in a workplace.
- This spelling is recorded for girls too, though so rarely that a girl named Mark will be read as a boy on every form; Marcia carries the same root without that.
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What they receive
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Mark
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Marks are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 3,800 people named Mark are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Mark in 2025?
- Mark is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Mark with classmates?
- Mark will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More M names
The most-given names starting with M, all years combined.
Mary#125 · Margaret#112 · Michelle#465 · Melissa#419 · Maria#87 · Martha#712 · Marie#617 · Mildred#1962
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Mark? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Mark and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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