ninan.org

Marcus

Boys' name · Late 20th-century

Living in the US
~219,700 survival-weighted estimate
2025 rank
#258 among boys
Births in 2025
1,341 242,999 since 1880
Typical age
35 years, median

Marcus popularity over time

Marcus rank by birth year, 1880–2025Marcus ranked #241 in 1880 and #258 in 2025. Its best rank in the period was #57, in 1984.#100#258best #57 in 198418901920195019802010
Rank among US baby names by birth year, 1880–2025. Lower is more popular; the scale is logarithmic so the top of the chart is not compressed.

More children were named Marcus in 1984 than in any other year — 6,060 of them. The name is already in use in 1880, where the data begins. Across the record, 31 years put Marcus in the top 100.

As of 2025 the name sits at #258, with 1,341 births that year. The ten-year change is -46%.

Babies named Marcus per yearPeaks at 6,060 births in 1984.6,060 in 1984018901920195019802010
Recorded US births by year. The peak is labelled; the axis starts at zero.

How many people are named Marcus?

About 219,700 people named Marcus are alive in the United States today. That is out of 242,999 recorded births since 1880.

This is a survival-weighted estimate, not a headcount: every recorded birth year is multiplied by the chance someone born that year is still alive, using the SSA period life table. How the estimate works.

How old is the average Marcus?

Half of living Marcuss are older than 35, half younger. Most living bearers were born in the 1980s. By the site’s era rules that makes Marcus a late 20th-century name.

Your Marcus

Ages of living people named MarcusHalf of living Marcuss are older than 35 and half younger.median 35020406080100
Estimated living bearers by age today. Each bar is a birth year, weighted by the chance someone born then is still alive.

Where Marcus is most common

Marcus is 2.3× as common in New Mexico as it is nationally. Alaska, Montana and Mississippi follow.

Where Marcus is used more than average5 states use the name Marcus more than the national average.Alaska: 2.1× the national rateAKMaine: not over-representedMEVermont: not over-representedVTNew Hampshire: not over-representedNHWashington: not over-representedWAIdaho: not over-representedIDMontana: 1.9× the national rateMTNorth Dakota: not over-representedNDMinnesota: not over-representedMNIllinois: not over-representedILWisconsin: not over-representedWIMichigan: not over-representedMINew York: not over-representedNYOregon: 1.9× the national rateORNevada: not over-representedNVWyoming: not over-representedWYSouth Dakota: not over-representedSDIowa: not over-representedIAIndiana: not over-representedINOhio: not over-representedOHPennsylvania: not over-representedPANew Jersey: not over-representedNJConnecticut: not over-representedCTRhode Island: not over-representedRICalifornia: not over-representedCAUtah: not over-representedUTColorado: not over-representedCONebraska: not over-representedNEMissouri: not over-representedMOKentucky: not over-representedKYWest Virginia: not over-representedWVVirginia: not over-representedVAMaryland: not over-representedMDDelaware: not over-representedDEMassachusetts: not over-representedMAArizona: not over-representedAZNew Mexico: 2.3× the national rateNMKansas: not over-representedKSArkansas: not over-representedARTennessee: not over-representedTNNorth Carolina: not over-representedNCSouth Carolina: not over-representedSCDistrict of Columbia: not over-representedDCOklahoma: not over-representedOKLouisiana: not over-representedLAMississippi: 1.9× the national rateMSAlabama: not over-representedALGeorgia: not over-representedGAHawaii: not over-representedHITexas: not over-representedTXFlorida: not over-representedFL
Same as national3× or more
Location quotient, 2016–2025. Shaded states use the name more than the country does, relative to their own births. Exact figures are in the table below.
States where Marcus is over-represented, 2016–2025. The location quotient compares the state's share of the name with the national share.
StateBirthsvs national rate
New Mexico 140 2.3×
Alaska 46 2.1×
Montana 59 1.9×
Mississippi 204 1.9×
Oregon 269 1.9×

Marcus in England and Wales

ONS recorded 170 births named Marcus in 2025, ranking it #267.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Counts below three are suppressed by ONS.

Where the name Marcus comes from

Borrowing of Latin Marcus. Doublet of Mark.

Etymology summarised from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0. Wiktionary entry.

Notable people named Marcus

Ordered by how many Wikipedia language editions have an article about them — a measure of reach, not of importance.
NameKnown forYearsEditions
Marcus Rashford English footballer 1997 86
Marcus Garvey Jamaica-born British political activist, Pan-Africanist, orator, and entrepreneur 1887–1940 65
Marcus Tulio Tanaka Japanese association football player 1981 61
Marcus Thuram French footballer 1997 51
Marcus Berg Swedish association football player 1986 48
Marcus Stephen Nauruan sportperson and politician 1969 42
Marcus Ericsson Swedish racing driver 1990 41
Marcus Allbäck Swedish association football player 1973 36
Photo credits (6)

The sharpest rise. Births under this name jumped from 2,230 in 1969 to 4,345 in 1970 — 1.9 times over in a single year.

Birth records contain the rise and nothing about its cause. This site does not supply one.

People and dates from Wikidata (CC0), limited to those with an English Wikipedia article who are known by this name as their first name.

Names similar to Marcus

Matched by sound and spelling inside this dataset, then ordered by total recorded births. This is not a claim about shared etymology.

Same feel, less common

The same matches, limited to names given at most half as often as Marcus was in 2025.

Related pages

Get this data

Every number on this page is available as JSON: /api/name/marcus.json. Free to use with attribution (CC BY 4.0).