Baby Names US
Unisex name ★ peaked 2003

Marlen

Gender Unisex · 86% girls Rank 2025 #3,626 Trend ↓ Falling 19%
Rank 2025
#3,626
among girls · ↓71 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
48
named Marlen · +9% vs 2024
How common
1 in 38,268
girls born in 2025
Peak year
2003
272 babies
All-time total
6,438
#2,414 all-time among girls
First recorded
1915
in Social Security records

Marlen popularity over time

6,438 babies have been named Marlen since 1915, 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
0.040.080.110.1518801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

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 – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – – – – – –
1910s – 34 34 3 – –
1920s – 113 113 11 +232% –
1930s 42 151 193 19 +71% #3,019
1940s 44 99 143 14 -26% #3,166
1950s 32 69 101 10 -29% #4,077
1960s 126 56 182 18 +80% #2,791
1970s 229 101 330 33 +81% #2,457
1980s 473 64 537 54 +63% #1,912
1990s 1,337 105 1,442 144 +169% #1,161
2000s 2,171 82 2,253 225 +56% #918
2010s 773 31 804 80 -64% #1,588
2020s (to 2025) 285 21 306 51 -37% #2,921

Where Marlen is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (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 girls Implied rank
2026 41 0.03 outside top 500
2027 40 0.02 outside top 500
2028 39 0.02 outside top 500
2029 38 0.02 outside top 500
2030 37 0.02 outside top 500

Where Marlen is most popular

Girls named Marlen per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.028 per 1,000. Strongest in Texas, California, and Maryland.

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

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Marlen 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 Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Texas 49 0.061 +116%
California 47 0.056 +98%
Maryland 5 0.047 +67%
Arizona 5 0.036 +26%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Florida – – –
Georgia – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Illinois – – –
Indiana – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Massachusetts – – –
Maine – – –
Michigan – – –
Minnesota – – –
Missouri – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Carolina – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Jersey – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
New York – – –
Ohio – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Pennsylvania – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Tennessee – – –
Utah – – –
Virginia – – –
Vermont – – –
Washington – – –
Wisconsin – – –
West Virginia – – –
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 Marlen

Marlen is rare for girls in the United States, ranked #3,626 in 2025 with 42 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1915, 6,438 American babies have been named Marlen, about 86% girls and 14% boys, making it a genuinely unisex name. Its peak came in 2003, when 272 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2000s.

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 Marlen stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Marlen?

The median living Marlen is about 24 years old; half are between 17 and 33. An estimated 5,900 people named Marlen are alive in the United States today.

median 24 020406080100

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

Marlen 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 42 #3,626 6 #11,514
2024 44 #3,555 – –
2023 44 #3,558 5 #13,455
2022 47 #3,394 – –
2021 52 #3,144 5 #13,374
2020 56 #2,921 5 #13,354
2019 53 #3,073 – –
2018 55 #2,993 8 #9,348
2017 55 #3,002 – –
2016 63 #2,751 – –
2015 62 #2,836 – –
2014 58 #2,964 – –
2013 80 #2,321 9 #8,530
2012 93 #2,074 – –
2011 116 #1,766 5 #13,621
2010 138 #1,588 9 #8,551
2009 170 #1,394 8 #9,567
2008 213 #1,197 12 #7,043
2007 263 #1,008 5 #13,678
2006 224 #1,119 7 #10,261
2005 230 #1,041 11 #6,936
2004 216 #1,071 10 #7,348
2003 259 #918 13 #5,772
2002 200 #1,066 – –
2001 184 #1,138 10 #6,767
2000 212 #1,000 6 #9,873
1995 138 #1,240 17 #3,792
1990 113 #1,404 8 #6,198
1985 39 #2,524 6 #6,244
1980 44 #2,270 7 #5,298
1975 25 #2,928 13 #3,018
1970 16 #3,810 10 #3,197
1965 10 #4,389 – –
1960 7 #5,504 9 #3,001
1955 5 #6,398 11 #2,513
1950 – – – –
1945 6 #4,355 12 #2,088
1940 – – 10 #2,431
1935 – – 18 #1,693
1930 – – 12 #2,398
1925 – – 16 #2,053
1920 – – 10 #2,891
1915 – – 9 #2,747
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Marlen

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

  1. 1 Marlen Haushofer Marlen Haushofer Austrian writer (1920–1970) Contemporary
  2. 2 Marlen Khutsiev Marlen Khutsiev Georgian-born Soviet and Russian filmmaker (1925–2019) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Marlen?

The median living Marlen is about 24 years old. Half of all living Marlens are between 17 and 33 years old.

How many people named Marlen are alive today?

An estimated 5,900 people named Marlen are alive in the United States, based on 6,438 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

How popular is the name Marlen in 2025?

Marlen ranked #3,626 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 42 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Marlen?

6,438 babies have been named Marlen in the United States since 1915, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Marlen most popular?

Marlen peaked in 2003, when 272 newborns received the name.

Is Marlen a boy or girl name?

Marlen is used for both: about 86% of babies named Marlen have been girls and 14% boys.

Is the name Marlen rising or falling?

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

Will Marlen become more popular?

Marlen is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 37 girls named Marlen in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Marlen?

Well-known people named Marlen include Marlen Haushofer (writer), Marlen Khutsiev (film director).

Names like Marlen

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

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