Girls' name · since 1880
Martha
Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 551,741 babies named Martha, peaking in 1947. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- #55 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #712 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 551,741
- born since 1880
- 1940s
- peak decade
Martha currently ranks #712 among girls' names in America, with 551,741 babies recorded since 1880.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Martha has been recorded 551,741 times among girls since 1880, currently ranked #712 nationally and more common than 96% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 1940s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #55 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #712 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 551,741 born since 1880
- 1940s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Martha ranks #55 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #712 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 551,741 born since 1880, peaking in the 1940s.
- #55 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #712 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 551,741
- born since 1880
- 1940s
- peak decade
Martha's 551,741 recorded births place it above 99.92% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Texas.
How Martha compares
551,741 Top 1% higher than 99% of 17,297 names currently given to girls
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.
Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data
How the numbers stack up
Martha's all-time total is 1,467x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Martha | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 551,741 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 10,651 | 21 | 19,840 |
Martha's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Martha splits its recorded history at 1953: 27% of all births land in the more recent half, 73% in the earlier half, leaning more toward its earlier era than today's. The single quietest year was 2013 (344 births) -- compare that against the 1947 peak of 10,651 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Martha popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1947)
- 10,651
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Martha popularity over time - boys
1,991 total births recorded since 1882 (Martha as boys' name)
Martha by decade
1940s is the heaviest window (95,384 births, 17% of the file).
1940s was Martha's strongest decade.
95,384 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 17% of all-time use.
Martha births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 13,911
1880s
13,911 births
- 1890s 19,415
1890s
19,415 births
- 1900s 21,750
1900s
21,750 births
- 1910s
1910s
59,508 births
- 1920s
1920s
86,788 births
- 1930s
1930s
77,697 births
- 1940s
1940s
95,384 births
- 1950s
1950s
83,190 births
- 1960s
1960s
41,040 births
- 1970s 17,926
1970s
17,926 births
- 1980s 13,039
1980s
13,039 births
- 1990s 9,750
1990s
9,750 births
- 2000s 6,179
2000s
6,179 births
- 2010s 3,743
2010s
3,743 births
- 2020s 2,421
2020s
2,421 births
What this shows Peak: 1940s at 95,384 births (17% of all-time use).
How Martha compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Martha's total volume
Martha by state
Where Martha concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Texas | | 41,010 | 7.4% |
| #2 | California | | 29,790 | 5.4% |
| #3 | Pennsylvania | | 28,365 | 5.1% |
| #4 | Ohio | | 27,384 | 5.0% |
| #5 | Georgia | | 26,827 | 4.9% |
| #6 | North Carolina | | 24,041 | 4.4% |
| #7 | New York | | 22,607 | 4.1% |
| #8 | Tennessee | | 22,228 | 4.0% |
41,010 of 551,741 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Martha appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Martha? ▼
Where does Martha sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Martha most popular? ▼
Where is Martha most popular? ▼
How long has the name Martha been used? ▼
What names are similar to Martha? ▼
What to do with Martha's data
- Martha's decade-level peak was the 1940s (95,384 total births); usage has since declined to 2,421 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Texas records the most Marthas (41,010 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Texas names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Martha
Nearby Names Like Martha
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Martha
Compare Martha side by side: Martha vs Mary Martha vs Margaret Martha vs Maria
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Martha
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Martha: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1947)
Similar record span (~145 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1880–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Martha draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.