Marian
Marian was given to 217 girls in 2025, #1,103 among girls’ names; 143,295 Americans have been recorded with it since 1880 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026).
An estimated 43,900 Americans named Marian and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (31% of everyone recorded); the median is 71 years old and half are between 56 and 80.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Marian by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Marian mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Marian is “a female given name from Hebrew.”
A variant of Marion, a medieval derivation of Mary, often also interpreted as a contraction of Mary and Ann, or as a variant of Mariana.
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Marian?
#1,103 among girls’ names, 2025
Marian fell from #1,100 in 2015 to #1,103 in 2025 among girls’ names, although its share of girls born rose from 0.13 to 0.14 per 1,000.
4,235 babies in 1924, the peak
Marian peaked in 1924, when 4,235 babies were given it (4,197 girls, #64 among girls’ names). The 217 births of 2025 are 5% of that peak.
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 217 | #1,103 | 0.14 |
| 2024 | 209 | #1,154 | 0.13 |
| 2023 | 210 | #1,156 | 0.13 |
| 2022 | 214 | #1,141 | 0.13 |
| 2021 | 173 | #1,310 | 0.11 |
| 2020 | 164 | #1,347 | 0.10 |
| 2019 | 190 | #1,237 | 0.11 |
| 2018 | 197 | #1,205 | 0.12 |
| 2017 | 190 | #1,248 | 0.11 |
| 2016 | 203 | #1,216 | 0.11 |
Every recorded year (146)
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 236 | #1,100 | 0.13 |
| 2014 | 191 | #1,264 | 0.11 |
| 2013 | 172 | #1,356 | 0.10 |
| 2012 | 185 | #1,289 | 0.11 |
| 2011 | 151 | #1,486 | 0.09 |
| 2010 | 210 | #1,159 | 0.12 |
| 2009 | 169 | #1,402 | 0.09 |
| 2008 | 194 | #1,284 | 0.10 |
| 2007 | 182 | #1,339 | 0.09 |
| 2006 | 202 | #1,202 | 0.11 |
| 2005 | 204 | #1,144 | 0.11 |
| 2004 | 208 | #1,100 | 0.11 |
| 2003 | 191 | #1,138 | 0.10 |
| 2002 | 198 | #1,074 | 0.11 |
| 2001 | 207 | #1,038 | 0.11 |
| 2000 | 315 | #735 | 0.17 |
| 1999 | 172 | #1,140 | 0.10 |
| 1998 | 125 | #1,376 | 0.07 |
| 1997 | 160 | #1,157 | 0.09 |
| 1996 | 159 | #1,144 | 0.09 |
| 1995 | 153 | #1,145 | 0.09 |
| 1994 | 181 | #1,023 | 0.10 |
| 1993 | 170 | #1,072 | 0.09 |
| 1992 | 216 | #904 | 0.12 |
| 1991 | 232 | #862 | 0.12 |
| 1990 | 203 | #936 | 0.11 |
| 1989 | 193 | #929 | 0.10 |
| 1988 | 178 | #948 | 0.10 |
| 1987 | 179 | #927 | 0.10 |
| 1986 | 207 | #813 | 0.12 |
| 1985 | 201 | #813 | 0.12 |
| 1984 | 199 | #800 | 0.12 |
| 1983 | 180 | #850 | 0.11 |
| 1982 | 232 | #733 | 0.14 |
| 1981 | 205 | #792 | 0.12 |
| 1980 | 215 | #769 | 0.13 |
| 1979 | 189 | #828 | 0.12 |
| 1978 | 200 | #774 | 0.13 |
| 1977 | 205 | #747 | 0.13 |
| 1976 | 217 | #682 | 0.15 |
| 1975 | 207 | #715 | 0.14 |
| 1974 | 237 | #645 | 0.16 |
| 1973 | 265 | #595 | 0.18 |
| 1972 | 264 | #604 | 0.17 |
| 1971 | 315 | #564 | 0.19 |
| 1970 | 381 | #515 | 0.22 |
| 1969 | 343 | #533 | 0.20 |
| 1968 | 389 | #491 | 0.24 |
| 1967 | 480 | #429 | 0.29 |
| 1966 | 518 | #407 | 0.31 |
| 1965 | 599 | #373 | 0.34 |
| 1964 | 756 | #346 | 0.40 |
| 1963 | 853 | #323 | 0.44 |
| 1962 | 900 | #311 | 0.46 |
| 1961 | 906 | #304 | 0.45 |
| 1960 | 1,024 | #285 | 0.51 |
| 1959 | 1,069 | #269 | 0.53 |
| 1958 | 1,055 | #270 | 0.52 |
| 1957 | 1,352 | #227 | 0.66 |
| 1956 | 1,247 | #232 | 0.62 |
| 1955 | 1,499 | #208 | 0.77 |
| 1954 | 4,013 | #104 | 2.1 |
| 1953 | 1,366 | #217 | 0.73 |
| 1952 | 1,245 | #221 | 0.67 |
| 1951 | 1,236 | #220 | 0.69 |
| 1950 | 1,258 | #212 | 0.73 |
| 1949 | 1,363 | #199 | 0.80 |
| 1948 | 1,387 | #196 | 0.82 |
| 1947 | 1,606 | #179 | 0.91 |
| 1946 | 1,649 | #162 | 1.0 |
| 1945 | 1,446 | #163 | 1.1 |
| 1944 | 1,587 | #155 | 1.2 |
| 1943 | 1,793 | #149 | 1.3 |
| 1942 | 1,838 | #141 | 1.4 |
| 1941 | 1,678 | #142 | 1.4 |
| 1940 | 1,694 | #142 | 1.5 |
| 1939 | 1,839 | #130 | 1.7 |
| 1938 | 1,864 | #128 | 1.7 |
| 1937 | 1,904 | #129 | 1.8 |
| 1936 | 2,059 | #114 | 2.0 |
| 1935 | 2,265 | #105 | 2.2 |
| 1934 | 2,426 | #97 | 2.3 |
| 1933 | 2,638 | #89 | 2.6 |
| 1932 | 2,837 | #86 | 2.7 |
| 1931 | 2,862 | #84 | 2.7 |
| 1930 | 3,213 | #80 | 2.9 |
| 1929 | 3,447 | #75 | 3.1 |
| 1928 | 3,886 | #71 | 3.4 |
| 1927 | 3,721 | #74 | 3.1 |
| 1926 | 3,859 | #70 | 3.3 |
| 1925 | 3,979 | #67 | 3.3 |
| 1924 | 4,197 | #64 | 3.4 |
| 1923 | 4,029 | #65 | 3.3 |
| 1922 | 3,951 | #67 | 3.3 |
| 1921 | 4,064 | #69 | 3.3 |
| 1920 | 3,845 | #73 | 3.2 |
| 1919 | 3,261 | #82 | 2.9 |
| 1918 | 3,503 | #76 | 3.0 |
| 1917 | 3,267 | #74 | 3.0 |
| 1916 | 3,198 | #72 | 3.1 |
| 1915 | 2,612 | #86 | 2.7 |
| 1914 | 1,862 | #90 | 2.4 |
| 1913 | 1,452 | #93 | 2.3 |
| 1912 | 1,313 | #93 | 2.4 |
| 1911 | 884 | #105 | 2.1 |
| 1910 | 806 | #106 | 2.0 |
| 1909 | 641 | #114 | 1.8 |
| 1908 | 578 | #117 | 1.7 |
| 1907 | 556 | #119 | 1.7 |
| 1906 | 498 | #126 | 1.7 |
| 1905 | 455 | #136 | 1.6 |
| 1904 | 406 | #141 | 1.5 |
| 1903 | 355 | #147 | 1.4 |
| 1902 | 338 | #152 | 1.3 |
| 1901 | 296 | #159 | 1.2 |
| 1900 | 408 | #145 | 1.4 |
| 1899 | 336 | #138 | 1.4 |
| 1898 | 343 | #145 | 1.3 |
| 1897 | 309 | #149 | 1.3 |
| 1896 | 267 | #164 | 1.1 |
| 1895 | 265 | #161 | 1.1 |
| 1894 | 124 | #243 | 0.56 |
| 1893 | 140 | #218 | 0.66 |
| 1892 | 164 | #195 | 0.77 |
| 1891 | 108 | #233 | 0.58 |
| 1890 | 112 | #231 | 0.59 |
| 1889 | 90 | #245 | 0.50 |
| 1888 | 92 | #242 | 0.52 |
| 1887 | 85 | #227 | 0.58 |
| 1886 | 55 | #280 | 0.38 |
| 1885 | 64 | #252 | 0.48 |
| 1884 | 61 | #249 | 0.47 |
| 1883 | 47 | #267 | 0.42 |
| 1882 | 42 | #270 | 0.39 |
| 1881 | 39 | #261 | 0.42 |
| 1880 | 56 | #205 | 0.62 |
Ranks and shares: girls’ names in each year’s SSA file; share of all girls SSA recorded that year.
Is Marian a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Marian has been given almost only to girls: 1,351 boys in 146 years of records.
Girls and boys named Marian: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Marian, and how old are they?
43,900 alive in 2026, estimated
That is 31% of the 143,295 Americans ever recorded as Marian. The median Marian alive today is 71 years old; half are between 56 and 80.
The 2020 Census counted 61,582 people named Marian (59,020 women and girls, 2,562 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 54,568 born in the U.S. The Census count is 13% above that prediction. Possible reasons: the Census counts people born abroad, whom SSA’s files leave out, and it records the name people give, which SSA may have recorded under another spelling or as part of a compound name.
Alive today, by age
Alive today, by generation
| Generation | Born | Alive |
|---|---|---|
| Silent Generation | 1928-1945 | 10,300 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 19,800 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 4,700 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 3,060 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 3,060 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 2,580 |
An estimate, not a count. SSA’s files count people born in the United States who received a Social Security number, so anyone born abroad is not in them; before 1937 most people got a number as adults, and their survival is counted from that age.
Living estimate: SSA births carried forward with the survival rates in SSA’s cohort life tables (2024 Trustees Report) for each birth year and sex. How the estimate is made. Count: Census Bureau, first names in the 2020 Census (released April 14, 2026; names reported 100 or more times, with the Bureau’s disclosure-avoidance adjustment).
Where are babies named Marian born?
The states with the most babies named Marian are Pennsylvania, New York and Illinois, with 28% of its births recorded by state since 1910.
| State | Since 1910 | Rank, girls | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pennsylvania | 15,724 | #906 | 1.5× |
| New York | 12,507 | #1,978 | 1.0× |
| Illinois | 8,652 | #1,547 | 1.2× |
| California | 8,164 | #1,543 | 1.2× |
| Ohio | 7,827 | #1,103 | 1.1× |
| Michigan | 7,515 | #1,347 | 1.4× |
| Wisconsin | 4,604 | not ranked | 1.4× |
| Minnesota | 4,452 | #944 | 1.5× |
| Texas | 4,431 | #793 | 0.6× |
| New Jersey | 3,839 | #1,291 | 0.9× |
Where Marian is more common than its national share predicts
Relative to its national share, Marian is most over-represented in Pennsylvania: since 1910 it was given 1.5 times as often there as its national share each year would predict.
States: SSA state file, 1910-2025, published May 8, 2026; births count girls and boys together, and the rank is among girls’ names in the state in 2025. The file leaves out any state and year with fewer than 5 babies of the name, so small states are undercounted; each ratio compares the state’s births of Marian with the births its national share predicts year by year, for states with at least 100 births of the name.
Names spelled alike
Of these 8 names spelled alike, given to 499,927 babies since 1880, Marian is the second most given (29% of them). In 2025 it was given to 217 of their 1,357 babies (16%), again the second most given.
Spelled alike: names in the SSA national file with the same pattern of letters and sounds and at most two letters apart, and Wiktionary’s listed forms; births since 1880 and in 2025, and each name’s peak year, from the SSA national file, published May 8, 2026. Some are separate names, not spellings of one.
Names that rose and fell in the same decades as Marian
Names whose births rose and fell across the same decades, measured on each decade’s share of births.
Similar histories: each decade’s share of births, from the SSA national file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
More about Marian and names like it
- Compare Marian and MarionBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 1920sMarian peaked in 1924.
- Pennsylvania’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Marian since 1910.
- Hebrew namesWiktionary’s origin for Marian: every such name, by how often it is given.
- The top names of 1924The year the most babies were named Marian.
- The names of the Baby BoomersMost people named Marian alive today were born 1946-1964.
- Names starting with MMost given first.