Boys' name · peaked in 1984
Marcus name popularity since 1925
237,989 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Marcus (0.6% girls, 99.4% boys). Half of them were born in 1989 or earlier, so the typical Marcus is about 37 years old in 2026. Marcus peaked in 1984 as the #57 name for boys, and it ranked #258 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 237,989
- Named Marcus, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- #258
- for boys in 2025 (1,341 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.4% boys
- 1,318 girls · 236,671 boys
- Most popular in
- District of Columbia
- 2.31× its national share
Peak year is the year Marcus made up the largest share of US boys, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Marcus births per year, 1925–2025
1984 was the biggest year for Marcus both by count and as a share of all babies.
- Fastest rise: Between 1966 and 1971, Marcus became 3.5× more common, from 1 in 1,410 baby boys to 1 in 401.
Shaded on the chart. This compares Marcus's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Marcus.
Decade by decade
Babies named Marcus in each decade, and its rank among boys' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 7 | 1,405 | – |
| 1930s | 10 | 2,298 | #361 |
| 1940s | 5 | 3,266 | #355 |
| 1950s | 54 | 8,694 | #228 |
| 1960s | 114 | 14,545 | #184 |
| 1970s | 376 | 39,464 | #68 |
| 1980s | 517 | 51,807 | #61 |
| 1990s | 143 | 46,497 | #81 |
| 2000s | 67 | 35,673 | #116 |
| 2010s | 20 | 24,143 | #168 |
| 2020–25 | 5 | 8,879 | #258 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
34.7% of babies named Marcus from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Millennial years (1981–1996). The full split by generation:
Where Marcus is most popular
The index compares Marcus's share of babies in each state with its share nationwide, 1925–2025 (1.50× = 50% more common). States with at least 300 babies named Marcus.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | 2.31× | 2,530 |
| Mississippi | 2.18× | 6,274 |
| Alabama | 1.71× | 7,172 |
| Georgia | 1.69× | 11,115 |
| Arkansas | 1.46× | 3,566 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Marcus and were given to at least 1,000 boys from 1925 to 2025, with the year each one was most popular.
| Spelling | Boys | Peak year |
|---|---|---|
| Marcus (this page) | 236,671 | 1984 |
| Marcos | 53,101 | 2001 |
| Markus | 14,897 | 1994 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Marcus's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Marcus.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Marcus (1984).
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national and state baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data