Recorded 1913–2023 Girls' name Peak 1948 10,362 births

Marva — girls' name

10,362 babies named Marva in U.S. Social Security records since 1913, with the highest year being 1948. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1910s801920s3941930s18471940s31151950s25761960s13441970s5711980s2811990s1102000s192010s152020s10

The verdict

10,362 girls have been named Marva since 1913, peaking in the 1940s, last recorded in 2023.

10,362
total births
1913–2023
years on record
1940s
peak decade
30%
born in that decade
1940s
Peak decade

30% of everyone ever named Marva was born in this single decade.

1948
Single peak year

371 babies were named Marva in 1948 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Marva

The Social Security Administration has registered 10,362 babies named Marva between 1913 and 2023, spanning 111 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a girl's name, Marva currently falls outside the top 1,000 girls' names for 2023. The name reached its historical peak in 1948, when 371 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Marva performed strongest in the 1940s, accumulating 3,115 births during that ten-year window. Across the 12 decades of recorded activity, Marva shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in Texas, which accounts for 719 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Florida and California. In total, SSA state-level files list Marva in 36 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Marva in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 10,362 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Marva at a glance

Last recorded 2023

Total births

10,362

Since 1913

111 years of records

Peak year

1948

371 births that year

Strongest decade: 1940s

Current rank

Unranked

Outside the modern top-1,000

As of 2023

Active since

1913

Recorded for 111 years

Last year on file: 2023

Marva popularity over time — girls

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2023–1913

Last recorded 2023
Peak year (1948)
371
Annual births at peak — across 111 years of records
-1000100200300400 202319941982197019581946193419221913 5

Marva popularity over time — boys

7 total births recorded since 1936 (Marva as boys' name)

Unisex variant — 7 births
7 1936 7

Marva by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 1940s
Peak decade
1940s
3,115 births that decade — 30% of Marva's all-time total
1910s801920s3941930s18471940s31151950s25761960s13441970s5711980s2811990s1102000s192010s152020s10

Marva by state

Where Marva concentrates geographically — total births since 1913

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Marva
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 Texas
719 6.9%
#2 Florida
434 4.2%
#3 California
431 4.2%
#4 Michigan
423 4.1%
#5 Pennsylvania
416 4.0%
#6 Ohio
409 3.9%
#7 Louisiana
399 3.9%
#8 Illinois
378 3.6%
Texas share of Marva's total US births 6.9%
Even split

719 of 10,362 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 36 reporting states.

Marva appears in 36 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Marva?
10,362 babies have been named Marva since 1913. It was last recorded in 2023. The peak year was 1948 with 371 births.
When was Marva most popular?
Marva was most popular in the 1940s decade with 3,115 total births. The single peak year was 1948.
Where is Marva most popular?
The top states for the name Marva are Texas (719 births), Florida (434 births), California (431 births).
How long has the name Marva been used?
Marva has been recorded in Social Security data since 1913, spanning 111 years of data through 2023.
What names are similar to Marva?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Mary, Margaret, Maria, Martha, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.

Keep exploring Marva

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Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1913–2023 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.