Mars
Masculine
Mars is given to both — 1,320 boys and 202 girls since 1880. See other names given to both
Mars was a god of farming before he was a god of war, and his month opens both seasons at once — the sowing and the campaigning began together.
How old is the name Mars?
Mars first appears in US birth records in 1923 — 102 years ago. The typical Mars is a kid of about 5 — this name's wave is very recent. About 1,300 people named Mars are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Mars most popular?
Mars peaked in 2023, reaching #1253 nationally. Today it ranks #1609, 356 places below that high. See the whole 2023 chart.
Where it comes from
From Mamers to Mars
The story of Mars
Mars was second only to Jupiter in Roman religion and the father of Romulus and Remus, which made him the ancestor of the Roman people. His festivals opened and closed the campaigning season. Word- and planet-names rose in American naming from the 2010s, and Mars appears in the registers for both sexes in current use.
Meaningnot established
Not established
The god's own name is genuinely unrecovered. It may be Etruscan, borrowed into Latin, and older forms include Mavors and the Oscan Mamers. No Latin etymology holds. The planet, the month of March, and the words martial and Tuesday's Romance forms all descend from him.
How the name formed
- Mamers
- Mavors
- Mars
Related forms: Mars · Marte · Marte
Pronouncing Mars
MARZ
One syllable. It is a homophone of the ordinary English plural 'mars' and of the planet.
Nicknames for Mars
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
- 1923
- Most boys named
- 2023154 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1253reached in 2023
- Change vs 2024
- −16.0%105 in 2025, from 125
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.
Mars in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Mars in Latin — same name
- Marte in Italian — related form
- Marte in Spanish — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, New York.
Marss among us
people named Mars are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 16,267 born in 2025 was named Mars
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Holt test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Mars's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Holt climbed just as high around 1906, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Holt's path sketches the road Mars is walking now.
Mars 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 Mars is headed
Mars looks set to keep climbing gently, with roughly 16% more babies a year by 2030 if the current curve holds. Its history is short or jumpy, though, so read this as a sketch rather than a promise.
Low 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.
Mars beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Mars in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- The farming-before-war history is genuinely surprising and well documented.
- A planet, a month and the ancestor of Rome all carry it.
- One syllable, firm, and never mispronounced.
- The god's own name is genuinely unrecovered.
- The planet and the confectionery brand are both strong associations.
- It is very new as a given name and is thoroughly unisex.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Mars to the vote.
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What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Mars
Masculine · #1609 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Marss are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,300 people named Mars are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Mars in 2025?
- Mars ranks #1609 among US boy names in 2025, with 105 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Mars?
- About 1 in every 16,267 US boys born in 2025 was named Mars — 105 in all.
- Will my child share the name Mars with classmates?
- Mars will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Mars
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Keagan#1609 · Cru#1609 · Cristobal#1609 · Steve#1609 · Phineas#1609 · Zade#1609 · Karam#1609 · Valen#1609
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Mars? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Mars and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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