boys' name ★ peaked 1960

Mark

Meaning From Middle English Mark, from the Latin praenomen (i Gender Boy Rank 2025 #245 Trend ↓ Falling 13%

From Middle English Mark, from the Latin praenomen (i.e.

Rank 2025
#245
among boys · ↓1 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
1,416
named Mark · -2% vs 2024
How common
1 in 1,206
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1960
58,860 babies
All-time total
1,366,672
#18 all-time among boys
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Mark popularity over time

1,366,672 babies have been named Mark since 1880, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
7.51522.53018801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
BoysGirls

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – 928 928 93 – #129
1890s 15 953 968 97 +4% #140
1900s 30 971 1,001 100 +3% #153
1910s 88 4,134 4,222 422 +322% #194
1920s 126 6,495 6,621 662 +57% #199
1930s 75 7,444 7,519 752 +14% #166
1940s 96 50,731 50,827 5,083 +576% #24
1950s 646 382,589 383,235 38,324 +654% #6
1960s 1,347 441,390 442,737 44,274 +16% #6
1970s 967 194,260 195,227 19,523 -56% #9
1980s 807 129,442 130,249 13,025 -33% #30
1990s 205 75,816 76,021 7,602 -42% #47
2000s 69 37,257 37,326 3,733 -51% #79
2010s 20 21,108 21,128 2,113 -43% #159
2020s (to 2025) 5 8,658 8,663 1,444 -32% #235

Where Mark is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 boys (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 boys Implied rank
2026 1,383 0.81 #250
2027 1,355 0.79 #256
2028 1,332 0.78 #261
2029 1,313 0.77 #263
2030 1,296 0.76 #266

Where Mark is most popular

Boys named Mark per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.823 per 1,000. Strongest in Alaska, Washington, and District of Columbia.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are boys named Mark born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Boys 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Alaska 29 2.44 +196%
Washington 275 1.68 +104%
District of Columbia 21 1.42 +73%
Illinois 348 1.36 +65%
New Jersey 266 1.32 +61%
Pennsylvania 322 1.21 +47%
New York 517 1.19 +45%
Massachusetts 164 1.19 +45%
South Carolina 113 1.09 +33%
Florida 487 1.03 +25%
Connecticut 69 1.02 +24%
Ohio 264 0.996 +21%
California 889 0.973 +18%
Michigan 198 0.967 +18%
Louisiana 97 0.948 +15%
Virginia 173 0.912 +11%
Oregon 69 0.909 +10%
Colorado 113 0.876 +6%
Texas 748 0.849 ≈ national
Kentucky 84 0.837 ≈ national
Oklahoma 74 0.837 ≈ national
Indiana 134 0.836 ≈ national
Missouri 114 0.822 ≈ national
Maryland 98 0.822 ≈ national
Utah 75 0.786 ≈ national
Georgia 198 0.782 -5%
West Virginia 25 0.766 -7%
North Dakota 13 0.761 -7%
Mississippi 43 0.757 -8%
North Carolina 192 0.752 -9%
Tennessee 131 0.726 -12%
Delaware 11 0.725 -12%
Alabama 78 0.714 -13%
Kansas 47 0.685 -17%
Idaho 28 0.684 -17%
Montana 12 0.680 -17%
Nevada 38 0.667 -19%
Arkansas 42 0.664 -19%
Arizona 108 0.660 -20%
Minnesota 79 0.644 -22%
Nebraska 28 0.644 -22%
Maine 12 0.618 -25%
Iowa 42 0.609 -26%
New Mexico 20 0.607 -26%
Wisconsin 71 0.599 -27%
New Hampshire 10 0.450 -45%
Hawaii 6 0.386 -53%
Rhode Island 5 0.307 -63%
South Dakota 5 0.269 -67%
Vermont – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Mark

Mark is moderately common for boys in the United States, ranked #245 in 2025 with 1,416 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 1,366,672 American babies have been named Mark. Its peak came in 1960, when 58,860 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1960s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Mark stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Mark?

The median living Mark is about 59 years old; half are between 47 and 66. An estimated 1.1 million people named Mark are alive in the United States today.

median 59 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Mark year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 – – 1,416 #245
2024 – – 1,447 #244
2023 5 #16,742 1,401 #249
2022 – – 1,434 #247
2021 – – 1,408 #252
2020 – – 1,552 #235
2019 – – 1,685 #223
2018 – – 1,874 #210
2017 – – 1,948 #203
2016 – – 2,066 #195
2015 – – 2,078 #196
2014 8 #12,676 2,194 #189
2013 6 #15,848 2,211 #184
2012 – – 2,204 #176
2011 – – 2,433 #159
2010 6 #16,254 2,415 #162
2009 – – 2,578 #153
2008 – – 2,916 #139
2007 5 #19,461 2,973 #138
2006 6 #16,407 3,252 #128
2005 9 #11,500 3,529 #114
2004 11 #9,663 3,770 #113
2003 5 #17,403 4,033 #105
2002 11 #9,243 4,222 #93
2001 10 #9,836 4,754 #84
2000 12 #8,360 5,230 #79
1995 22 #4,626 6,888 #52
1990 43 #2,721 10,689 #47
1985 91 #1,406 13,194 #32
1980 79 #1,511 14,169 #30
1975 89 #1,261 16,742 #19
1970 138 #932 31,461 #9
1965 119 #935 38,244 #7
1960 133 #922 58,727 #6
1955 55 #1,358 42,255 #9
1950 31 #1,702 16,604 #23
1945 8 #3,579 3,545 #72
1940 6 #4,171 1,165 #149
1935 9 #3,081 788 #175
1930 12 #2,637 591 #220
1925 18 #2,164 651 #211
1920 13 #2,681 589 #219
1915 15 #2,104 529 #205
1910 7 #2,056 131 #200
1905 – – 94 #189
1900 6 #1,858 137 #153
1895 5 #1,741 102 #154
1890 – – 83 #169
1885 – – 74 #178
1880 – – 85 #160

Famous people named Mark

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Mark Wahlberg Mark Wahlberg American actor (born 1971) Contemporary
  2. 2 Mark Ruffalo Mark Ruffalo American actor (born 1967) Contemporary
  3. 3 Mark Zuckerberg Mark Zuckerberg American businessman and programmer (born 1984) Contemporary
  4. 4 Mark Hamill Mark Hamill American actor (born 1951) Contemporary
  5. 5 Mark Harmon Mark Harmon American actor (born 1951) Contemporary
  6. 6 Mark Twain Mark Twain American author and humorist (1835–1910) 19th century
  7. 7 Mark David Chapman Mark David Chapman Murderer of John Lennon (born 1955) Contemporary
  8. 8 Mark Knopfler Mark Knopfler British musician (born 1949) Contemporary
  9. 9 Mark Strong Mark Strong British actor (born 1963) Contemporary
  10. 10 Mark Antony Mark Antony Roman politician and general (83–30 BC) -83–-30 · Antiquity
  11. 11 Mark Rutte Mark Rutte Secretary General of NATO since 2024 b. 1967 · Contemporary
  12. 12 Mark Rylance Mark Rylance English actor, playwright and theatre director (born 1960) Contemporary
  13. 13 Mark Margolis American actor (1939–2023) Contemporary
  14. 14 Mark Phillips Mark Phillips English equestrian (born 1948) Contemporary
  15. 15 Mark Rothko Mark Rothko Abstract painter (1903–1970) Contemporary
  16. 16 Mark Dacascos Mark Dacascos American actor, martial artist, television personality (born 1964) Contemporary
  17. 17 Mark Williams Mark Williams English actor, comedian, presenter and screenwriter b. 1959 · Contemporary
  18. 18 Mark Felt Mark Felt American law enforcement officer (1913–2008) Contemporary
  19. 19 Mark Hollis Mark Hollis English musician and singer-songwriter (1955–2019) Contemporary
  20. 20 Mark the Evangelist Mark the Evangelist Apostle of Jesus 10–68 · Antiquity

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Mark, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Mark?

The median living Mark is about 59 years old. Half of all living Marks are between 47 and 66 years old.

How many people named Mark are alive today?

An estimated 1.1 million people named Mark are alive in the United States, based on 1,366,672 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Mark mean?

From Middle English Mark, from the Latin praenomen (i.e.

How popular is the name Mark in 2025?

Mark ranked #245 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 1,416 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Mark?

1,366,672 babies have been named Mark in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Mark most popular?

Mark peaked in 1960, when 58,860 newborns received the name.

Is Mark a boy or girl name?

Mark is overwhelmingly a boy's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Mark rising or falling?

Mark is declining, less popular now than a decade ago.

Will Mark become more popular?

Mark is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 1,296 boys named Mark in 2030, which would rank around #266. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Mark?

Well-known people named Mark include Mark Wahlberg (actor), Mark Ruffalo (actor), Mark Zuckerberg (businessperson).

Names like Mark

Names that sound and feel close to Mark: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Mark with similar names → More names starting with M →