boys' name ★ peaked 1963

Martin

Meaning of or like Mars Gender Boy Rank 2025 #335 Trend → Stable

From Middle English Martin, from Latin Mārtīnus (“of or like Mars” or “little Mars”), Mārs, Mārtis +‎ -īnus (diminutive suffix).

Rank 2025
#335
among boys · ↓27 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
1,009
named Martin · -9% vs 2024
How common
1 in 1,693
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1963
6,091 babies
All-time total
317,037
#111 all-time among boys
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Martin popularity over time

317,037 babies have been named Martin 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
123418801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 5 3,595 3,600 360 – #45
1890s 12 3,254 3,266 327 -9% #56
1900s 17 3,346 3,363 336 +3% #64
1910s 96 16,097 16,193 1,619 +382% #73
1920s 163 24,243 24,406 2,441 +51% #78
1930s 134 21,927 22,061 2,206 -10% #83
1940s 96 31,402 31,498 3,150 +43% #83
1950s 143 50,994 51,137 5,114 +62% #69
1960s 222 49,116 49,338 4,934 -4% #62
1970s 189 24,267 24,456 2,446 -50% #93
1980s 235 23,226 23,461 2,346 -4% #117
1990s 128 25,331 25,459 2,546 +9% #113
2000s 31 18,762 18,793 1,879 -26% #175
2010s 5 13,356 13,361 1,336 -29% #257
2020s (to 2025) – 6,645 6,645 1,108 -17% #289

Where Martin 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 991 0.58 #338
2027 976 0.57 #341
2028 964 0.56 #342
2029 953 0.56 #343
2030 945 0.55 #345

Where Martin is most popular

Boys named Martin per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.634 per 1,000. Strongest in Arizona, New Mexico, 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 Martin 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
Arizona 215 1.31 +107%
New Mexico 42 1.27 +101%
District of Columbia 16 1.08 +71%
California 910 0.995 +57%
Oregon 70 0.922 +45%
Illinois 233 0.912 +44%
Colorado 116 0.899 +42%
Texas 791 0.898 +42%
Nebraska 39 0.897 +41%
Minnesota 109 0.889 +40%
Florida 417 0.881 +39%
Nevada 50 0.877 +38%
Washington 140 0.856 +35%
Wisconsin 96 0.810 +28%
New Jersey 163 0.810 +28%
Massachusetts 106 0.771 +22%
New York 333 0.769 +21%
Kansas 49 0.714 +13%
Utah 68 0.712 +12%
Maryland 69 0.579 -9%
Pennsylvania 153 0.576 -9%
Connecticut 39 0.576 -9%
Idaho 23 0.562 -11%
Alabama 59 0.540 -15%
Iowa 37 0.537 -15%
Indiana 84 0.524 -17%
Arkansas 32 0.506 -20%
Georgia 128 0.505 -20%
Alaska 6 0.504 -21%
Virginia 92 0.485 -24%
Tennessee 87 0.482 -24%
Michigan 94 0.459 -28%
South Carolina 46 0.445 -30%
Ohio 116 0.438 -31%
North Carolina 111 0.435 -31%
Louisiana 42 0.411 -35%
Oklahoma 36 0.407 -36%
Missouri 54 0.390 -39%
Kentucky 35 0.349 -45%
Delaware 5 0.330 -48%
Rhode Island 5 0.307 -52%
North Dakota 5 0.293 -54%
Montana 5 0.284 -55%
South Dakota 5 0.269 -58%
Maine 5 0.258 -59%
Mississippi 5 0.088 -86%
Hawaii – – –
New Hampshire – – –
Vermont – – –
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 Martin

Martin is moderately common for boys in the United States, ranked #335 in 2025 with 1,009 babies given the name. It is currently holding steady compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 317,037 American babies have been named Martin. Its peak came in 1963, when 6,091 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 Martin stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Martin?

The median living Martin is about 54 years old; half are between 31 and 67. An estimated 207 thousand people named Martin are alive in the United States today.

median 54 020406080100

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

Martin 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 – – 1,009 #335
2024 – – 1,105 #308
2023 – – 1,152 #289
2022 – – 1,108 #303
2021 – – 1,103 #301
2020 – – 1,168 #293
2019 – – 1,253 #281
2018 – – 1,296 #272
2017 – – 1,283 #282
2016 – – 1,396 #258
2015 – – 1,344 #275
2014 5 #18,274 1,434 #259
2013 – – 1,346 #265
2012 – – 1,350 #265
2011 – – 1,321 #262
2010 – – 1,333 #257
2009 – – 1,526 #234
2008 – – 1,700 #221
2007 6 #16,843 1,881 #208
2006 5 #19,033 1,942 #199
2005 8 #12,592 1,836 #206
2004 – – 1,858 #203
2003 – – 1,889 #198
2002 7 #13,121 1,959 #192
2001 5 #16,992 2,061 #182
2000 – – 2,110 #175
1995 14 #6,492 2,398 #147
1990 26 #3,968 3,080 #113
1985 23 #3,686 2,136 #132
1980 22 #3,679 2,227 #123
1975 15 #4,279 2,162 #119
1970 19 #3,382 3,500 #93
1965 26 #2,383 4,932 #67
1960 15 #3,304 5,495 #77
1955 20 #2,520 5,068 #77
1950 11 #3,357 4,180 #85
1945 7 #3,900 2,823 #90
1940 10 #2,891 2,423 #85
1935 15 #2,176 2,116 #93
1930 16 #2,171 2,322 #83
1925 13 #2,722 2,417 #83
1920 10 #3,262 2,439 #78
1915 16 #2,017 2,070 #79
1910 7 #2,058 396 #86
1905 – – 332 #75
1900 – – 383 #70
1895 – – 317 #65
1890 5 #1,460 347 #58
1885 – – 357 #49
1880 – – 357 #45

Famous people named Martin

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

  1. 1 Martin Sheen Martin Sheen American actor (born 1940) Contemporary
  2. 2 Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. American minister and civil rights activist (1929–1968) Contemporary
  3. 3 Martin Scorsese Martin Scorsese American filmmaker (born 1942) Contemporary
  4. 4 Martin Luther Martin Luther German priest, theologian and author (1483–1546) Medieval
  5. 5 Martin Van Buren Martin Van Buren President of the United States from 1837 to 1841 1782–1862 · 18th century
  6. 6 Martin Bormann Martin Bormann German Nazi politician (1900–1945) Contemporary
  7. 7 Martin Landau Martin Landau American actor (1928–2017) Contemporary
  8. 8 Martin Heidegger Martin Heidegger German philosopher (1889–1976) 19th century
  9. 9 Martin Balsam Martin Balsam American actor (1919–1996) Contemporary
  10. 10 Martin of Tours Martin of Tours Christian cleric and saint (316/336–397) Antiquity
  11. 11 Martin Niemöller Martin Niemöller German theologian (1892–1984) 19th century
  12. 12 Martin de Porres Martin de Porres Catholic saint (1579–1639) 16th century
  13. 13 Martin Cooper Martin Cooper American engineer (born 1928) Contemporary
  14. 14 Martin Buber Martin Buber Austrian-Israeli philosopher (1878–1965) 19th century
  15. 15 Martin Seligman Martin Seligman American psychologist and writer (born 1942) Contemporary
  16. 16 Martin Gardner Martin Gardner American mathematics and science writer (1914–2010) Contemporary
  17. 17 Martin of Aragon Martin of Aragon King of Aragon from 1396 to 1410 1356–1410 · Medieval
  18. 18 Martin Waldseemüller Martin Waldseemüller German cartographer and scholar (c. 1470 – 1520) Medieval
  19. 19 Martin Schulz Martin Schulz German politician (born 1955) Contemporary
  20. 20 Martin Bucer Martin Bucer German Protestant reformer (1491–1551) Medieval

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Martin?

The median living Martin is about 54 years old. Half of all living Martins are between 31 and 67 years old.

How many people named Martin are alive today?

An estimated 207 thousand people named Martin are alive in the United States, based on 317,037 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Martin mean?

From Middle English Martin, from Latin Mārtīnus (“of or like Mars” or “little Mars”), Mārs, Mārtis +‎ -īnus (diminutive suffix).

How popular is the name Martin in 2025?

Martin ranked #335 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 1,009 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Martin?

317,037 babies have been named Martin in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Martin most popular?

Martin peaked in 1963, when 6,091 newborns received the name.

Is Martin a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Martin rising or falling?

Martin has been roughly stable over the past decade.

Will Martin become more popular?

Martin is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 945 boys named Martin in 2030, which would rank around #345. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Martin?

Well-known people named Martin include Martin Sheen (actor), Martin Luther King Jr. (social activist), Martin Scorsese (film director).

Names like Martin

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

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