Mark
Mark was given to 1,416 boys in 2025, #245 among boys’ names; 1,366,672 Americans have been recorded with it since 1880 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026).
An estimated 1.08 million Americans named Mark and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (79% of everyone recorded); the median is 60 years old and half are between 47 and 67.
Mark is the #17 most common first name among living American men and boys, by this estimate.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Mark by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Mark mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Mark is “a male given name from Latin.”
From Middle English Mark, from the Latin praenomen (i.e. first name) Mārcus, derived from Mārs, the Roman god of war, originally Māvors, from Proto-Italic *Māwortis.
/mɑɹk/
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Mark?
#245 among boys’ names, 2025
Mark fell from #196 in 2015 to #245 in 2025 among boys’ names; its share of boys born fell from 1.1 to 0.83 per 1,000.
58,860 babies in 1960, the peak
Mark peaked in 1960, when 58,860 babies were given it (58,727 boys, #6 among boys’ names). The 1,416 births of 2025 are 2% of that peak.
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,416 | #245 | 0.83 |
| 2024 | 1,447 | #244 | 0.84 |
| 2023 | 1,401 | #249 | 0.82 |
| 2022 | 1,434 | #247 | 0.82 |
| 2021 | 1,408 | #252 | 0.80 |
| 2020 | 1,552 | #235 | 0.90 |
| 2019 | 1,685 | #223 | 0.94 |
| 2018 | 1,874 | #210 | 1.0 |
| 2017 | 1,948 | #203 | 1.1 |
| 2016 | 2,066 | #195 | 1.1 |
Every recorded year (146)
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 2,078 | #196 | 1.1 |
| 2014 | 2,194 | #189 | 1.1 |
| 2013 | 2,211 | #184 | 1.2 |
| 2012 | 2,204 | #176 | 1.2 |
| 2011 | 2,433 | #159 | 1.3 |
| 2010 | 2,415 | #162 | 1.3 |
| 2009 | 2,578 | #153 | 1.3 |
| 2008 | 2,916 | #139 | 1.4 |
| 2007 | 2,973 | #138 | 1.4 |
| 2006 | 3,252 | #128 | 1.6 |
| 2005 | 3,529 | #114 | 1.8 |
| 2004 | 3,770 | #113 | 1.9 |
| 2003 | 4,033 | #105 | 2.0 |
| 2002 | 4,222 | #93 | 2.2 |
| 2001 | 4,754 | #84 | 2.4 |
| 2000 | 5,230 | #79 | 2.7 |
| 1999 | 5,606 | #69 | 2.9 |
| 1998 | 5,893 | #64 | 3.1 |
| 1997 | 6,165 | #58 | 3.3 |
| 1996 | 6,599 | #55 | 3.5 |
| 1995 | 6,888 | #52 | 3.6 |
| 1994 | 7,488 | #48 | 3.9 |
| 1993 | 8,059 | #49 | 4.1 |
| 1992 | 8,745 | #49 | 4.4 |
| 1991 | 9,684 | #47 | 4.8 |
| 1990 | 10,689 | #47 | 5.2 |
| 1989 | 11,320 | #42 | 5.7 |
| 1988 | 11,715 | #39 | 6.1 |
| 1987 | 11,993 | #36 | 6.4 |
| 1986 | 12,615 | #35 | 6.9 |
| 1985 | 13,194 | #32 | 7.1 |
| 1984 | 13,214 | #32 | 7.3 |
| 1983 | 13,815 | #31 | 7.7 |
| 1982 | 13,865 | #32 | 7.6 |
| 1981 | 13,542 | #33 | 7.6 |
| 1980 | 14,169 | #30 | 7.9 |
| 1979 | 14,386 | #30 | 8.4 |
| 1978 | 14,851 | #26 | 9.0 |
| 1977 | 15,418 | #25 | 9.4 |
| 1976 | 15,508 | #25 | 9.9 |
| 1975 | 16,742 | #19 | 10.7 |
| 1974 | 18,905 | #16 | 12.0 |
| 1973 | 20,367 | #15 | 13.1 |
| 1972 | 21,490 | #18 | 13.3 |
| 1971 | 25,132 | #13 | 14.2 |
| 1970 | 31,461 | #9 | 16.9 |
| 1969 | 33,388 | #8 | 18.7 |
| 1968 | 35,401 | #7 | 20.4 |
| 1967 | 34,910 | #7 | 20.0 |
| 1966 | 34,801 | #7 | 19.5 |
| 1965 | 38,244 | #7 | 20.6 |
| 1964 | 45,261 | #6 | 22.7 |
| 1963 | 49,342 | #6 | 24.3 |
| 1962 | 53,520 | #6 | 25.9 |
| 1961 | 57,796 | #6 | 27.2 |
| 1960 | 58,727 | #6 | 27.5 |
| 1959 | 56,945 | #6 | 26.7 |
| 1958 | 52,698 | #7 | 24.8 |
| 1957 | 52,841 | #7 | 24.5 |
| 1956 | 48,828 | #8 | 23.1 |
| 1955 | 42,255 | #9 | 20.5 |
| 1954 | 36,198 | #12 | 17.8 |
| 1953 | 29,341 | #12 | 14.9 |
| 1952 | 25,678 | #17 | 13.2 |
| 1951 | 21,201 | #20 | 11.3 |
| 1950 | 16,604 | #23 | 9.3 |
| 1949 | 13,725 | #24 | 7.7 |
| 1948 | 10,267 | #29 | 5.9 |
| 1947 | 7,773 | #47 | 4.2 |
| 1946 | 5,331 | #58 | 3.3 |
| 1945 | 3,545 | #72 | 2.6 |
| 1944 | 2,742 | #93 | 2.0 |
| 1943 | 2,520 | #101 | 1.8 |
| 1942 | 2,039 | #117 | 1.5 |
| 1941 | 1,624 | #122 | 1.3 |
| 1940 | 1,165 | #149 | 1.0 |
| 1939 | 867 | #170 | 0.78 |
| 1938 | 902 | #166 | 0.81 |
| 1937 | 809 | #176 | 0.76 |
| 1936 | 712 | #182 | 0.69 |
| 1935 | 788 | #175 | 0.76 |
| 1934 | 702 | #185 | 0.68 |
| 1933 | 693 | #180 | 0.70 |
| 1932 | 716 | #185 | 0.69 |
| 1931 | 664 | #197 | 0.64 |
| 1930 | 591 | #220 | 0.54 |
| 1929 | 576 | #222 | 0.54 |
| 1928 | 652 | #209 | 0.59 |
| 1927 | 701 | #200 | 0.62 |
| 1926 | 702 | #200 | 0.63 |
| 1925 | 651 | #211 | 0.58 |
| 1924 | 672 | #206 | 0.59 |
| 1923 | 659 | #203 | 0.60 |
| 1922 | 667 | #199 | 0.61 |
| 1921 | 626 | #212 | 0.57 |
| 1920 | 589 | #219 | 0.55 |
| 1919 | 587 | #212 | 0.60 |
| 1918 | 627 | #205 | 0.62 |
| 1917 | 528 | #214 | 0.57 |
| 1916 | 571 | #199 | 0.64 |
| 1915 | 529 | #205 | 0.62 |
| 1914 | 386 | #210 | 0.59 |
| 1913 | 349 | #194 | 0.68 |
| 1912 | 284 | #201 | 0.66 |
| 1911 | 142 | #207 | 0.63 |
| 1910 | 131 | #200 | 0.67 |
| 1909 | 101 | #214 | 0.62 |
| 1908 | 67 | #259 | 0.43 |
| 1907 | 97 | #200 | 0.66 |
| 1906 | 85 | #210 | 0.64 |
| 1905 | 94 | #189 | 0.71 |
| 1904 | 113 | #165 | 0.88 |
| 1903 | 81 | #196 | 0.68 |
| 1902 | 104 | #169 | 0.85 |
| 1901 | 92 | #164 | 0.86 |
| 1900 | 137 | #153 | 0.91 |
| 1899 | 89 | #166 | 0.84 |
| 1898 | 108 | #159 | 0.88 |
| 1897 | 104 | #149 | 0.92 |
| 1896 | 119 | #140 | 1.0 |
| 1895 | 102 | #154 | 0.87 |
| 1894 | 84 | #181 | 0.73 |
| 1893 | 92 | #159 | 0.82 |
| 1892 | 86 | #182 | 0.70 |
| 1891 | 86 | #154 | 0.85 |
| 1890 | 83 | #169 | 0.75 |
| 1889 | 101 | #146 | 0.91 |
| 1888 | 115 | #135 | 1.0 |
| 1887 | 76 | #167 | 0.75 |
| 1886 | 106 | #129 | 1.0 |
| 1885 | 74 | #178 | 0.69 |
| 1884 | 96 | #144 | 0.84 |
| 1883 | 91 | #142 | 0.87 |
| 1882 | 90 | #154 | 0.79 |
| 1881 | 94 | #129 | 0.93 |
| 1880 | 85 | #160 | 0.77 |
Ranks and shares: boys’ names in each year’s SSA file; share of all boys SSA recorded that year.
Is Mark a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Mark has been given almost only to boys: 4,496 girls in 146 years of records.
Girls and boys named Mark: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Mark, and how old are they?
1.08 million alive in 2026, estimated
That is 79% of the 1,366,672 Americans ever recorded as Mark. The median Mark alive today is 60 years old; half are between 47 and 67.
The 2020 Census counted 1,135,541 people named Mark (1,134 women and girls, 1,134,407 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 1,143,401 born in the U.S. The Census count is 1% below that prediction.
Alive today, by age
Alive today, by generation
| Generation | Born | Alive |
|---|---|---|
| Silent Generation | 1928-1945 | 6,240 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 485,000 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 337,000 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 165,000 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 60,900 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 22,600 |
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 Mark born?
The states with the most babies named Mark are California, New York and Ohio, with 24% of its births recorded by state since 1910.
| State | Since 1910 | Rank, boys | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 132,874 | #196 | 1.0× |
| New York | 106,333 | #184 | 0.9× |
| Ohio | 85,960 | #216 | 1.2× |
| Pennsylvania | 84,713 | #211 | 1.1× |
| Illinois | 80,052 | #144 | 1.1× |
| Michigan | 74,191 | #262 | 1.2× |
| Texas | 72,610 | #284 | 0.8× |
| Massachusetts | 46,981 | #204 | 1.2× |
| Indiana | 42,094 | #262 | 1.2× |
| New Jersey | 41,214 | #191 | 1.0× |
Where Mark is more common than its national share predicts
Relative to its national share, Mark is most over-represented in Minnesota: since 1910 it was given 1.3 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 boys’ 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 Mark 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 5 names spelled alike, given to 1,511,893 babies since 1880, Mark is the most given (90% of them). In 2025 it was given to 1,416 of their 1,655 babies (86%), again the 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 Mark
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 Mark and names like it
- Compare Mark and MarcBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 1960sMark peaked in 1960.
- California’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Mark since 1910.
- Latin namesWiktionary’s origin for Mark: every such name, by how often it is given.
- The top names of 1960The year the most babies were named Mark.
- The names of the Baby BoomersMost people named Mark alive today were born 1946-1964.
- Names starting with MMost given first.