Mark Name Meaning, Origins & History

Mark

Pronunciation: MAHRK

Meaning Warlike Origin Latin Gender Boy
BOYS RANK
#245
TREND
1

Rank shows the name’s position among U.S. baby names for each gender in 2025. Trend shows how many places it rose or fell since 2024. Rank 1 is the most popular. Based on U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA) data. Peak and lowest years are based on the number of boys named Mark in the available records.

Fun Facts About the Name Mark

  • An all-time favorite: U.S. records show 1,362,185 boys named Mark from 1880 through 2025.
  • Decades of popularity: Mark stayed in the U.S. top 100 for 59 consecutive years, from 1944 through 2002.
  • More than 1 million babies named Mark: U.S. records list 1,366,681 babies given the name Mark from 1880 through 2025. Even 4,496 girls received the name Mark - about 1 girl for every 303 boys.

What Does the Name Mark Mean?

Mark is the English form of the Latin name Marcus, and its established meaning is "warlike" or "dedicated to Mars," after Mars (genitive Martis), the Roman god of war. The god's name is the most widely accepted source of the personal name, though the deeper origin of Mars itself is not securely known. A secondary proposal connects Marcus to the Latin mas (genitive maris), meaning "male," but this is less commonly accepted. The meaning "warlike" is a customary interpretation of the link to the war god rather than a literal translation of a known root.

Mark Name History & Origins

Marcus was one of the most common personal names in ancient Rome, used as a praenomen, or first name, across many families. It appears in the Etruscan form Marce, and some scholars think the Romans may have adopted the name through Etruscan. Well-known Roman bearers include the orator and statesman Marcus Tullius Cicero and the emperor Marcus Aurelius, who wrote his Meditations in Greek.

The name moved into Christian use through Mark the Evangelist, the traditional author of the Gospel of Mark, who is called John Mark in the Acts of the Apostles; his name appears in Greek as Markos. Through that association the name spread widely across Europe, taking forms such as Italian Marco, Spanish Marcos, and German Markus.

In English the name is found from the medieval period onward, carried in by the Latin and French Marc. Its continued use rested partly on the evangelist and on later saints of the same name rather than on any single event.

How Popular is the Name Mark?

Mark remained among the top 100 boy names in the U.S. from 1944 to 2002. Its highest annual birth count was in 1960, and people born that year turn 66 in 2026.

U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.

Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.

Famous People Named Mark

Explore Name Lists Featuring Mark

Carl appears in several baby name collections based on U.S. popularity records, naming trends, and name characteristics. Explore these lists to discover other names with similar histories, styles, or features.

Most Popular Boy Names at All Time

Most Popular Boy Names of All Time

Longtime Favorite Boy Names

Longtime Favorite Boy Names Through the Years

Explore More Lists with Name Mark

Most Popular Boy Names That Start with M

See List of Most Popular Boy Names Starting with M

Unique Short Boy Names That Start with M

Discover Popular Boy Names Starting with M

How the Name Mark Shapes Your Personality and Life?

You have psychic power. You can carry on for others with joy. You have a receptive nature and may bear burdens for others. You are pragmatic, thorough, strong-willed, practical and stubborn at times. You are hard working, often martyr to duty. You like home and security above all. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.

You are very intuitive. You have a reservoir of inspired wisdom combined with inherited analytical ability, which could reward you through expressions of spiritual leadership, business analysis, marketing, artistic visions, and scientific research. Operating on spiritual side of your individuality can bring you to the great heights, and drop you off if you neglect your spiritual identity. You are always looking for an opportunity to investigate the unknown, to use and show your mental abilities, to find the purpose and meaning of life. You want to grow wise and to understand people and things. You need privacy to replenish your energy. You have a unique way of thinking, intuitive, reflective, absorbing.

✦ Mark's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Mark's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.
Explore Insights & Tips

Name Search