Macen
Of Irish origin, meaning "son of the fire" or "son of strength".
Name Census estimates that about 936 living Americans carry the first name Macen. It is a predominantly male name (99.5% of registrations). The average person named Macen today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Macen births was 2010 (56 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Macen. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
936
~ 1 in 366,191 Americans
Peak year
2010
56 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,244
Tracked since 1992
Gender
Gender distribution for Macen
Out of the 945 babies given the name Macen since 1880, 99.5% were registered as male. The name sits firmly on the male side of the spectrum, with only a handful of female registrations across the entire dataset.
Macen as a male name
- Ranked #3,244 in 2024
- 37 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2010 (56 births)
Macen as a female name
- Ranked #17,732 in 2004
- 5 female births in 2004
- Peak: 2004 (5 births)
Popularity
Macen: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Macen from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 419 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Macen remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Macen by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Macen during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Macens live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. Texas, California, Florida recorded the most babies named Macen, while Florida, California, Texas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 24 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Macen
The name Macen is of Scottish Gaelic origin, derived from the Gaelic word "mac" meaning "son". It is believed to have emerged as a given name in the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century, in the Scottish Highlands and Islands.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Macen can be found in the ancient Scottish manuscript known as the Book of Deer, a 9th-century religious text written in Latin and Gaelic. The name appears in the form "Maccen", likely referring to a local landowner or chieftain.
During the Middle Ages, the name Macen was particularly common among the clans and families of the Scottish Highlands. It was often used as a patronymic, meaning "son of", followed by the father's name. For example, "Macen mac Domhnall" would signify "Macen, son of Donald".
One notable historical figure who bore the name Macen was Macen, son of Anrias, a 6th-century king of the Brittonic kingdom of Gododdin, which encompassed parts of modern-day Scotland and northern England. He is mentioned in the ancient Welsh poem Y Gododdin, which recounts the heroic exploits of Brittonic warriors in the Battle of Catraeth.
In the 16th century, Macen MacDonald, also known as Macen Mor (Gaelic for "Big Macen"), was a prominent figure in the Scottish clan system. He served as the 8th Chief of the Clan Donald, one of the most powerful clans in the Western Isles of Scotland, from 1520 to 1540.
Another historical figure named Macen was Macen Gillespie, a Scottish writer and poet from the 17th century. Born around 1620 in Argyll, Scotland, he is best known for his collection of Gaelic poetry titled "The Songs of Macen Gillespie", which provides valuable insights into the cultural and linguistic traditions of the Scottish Highlands during that period.
In more recent times, Macen Lintz (born 1979) is an American actor and film producer, known for his roles in movies such as "The Crazies" (2010) and "The Shawshank Redemption" (1994). While not of Scottish descent, his unique first name reflects the enduring appeal and cultural significance of the name Macen.
People
Macen + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Macen as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Macen: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Macen?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 936 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Macen going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 366,191 US residents.
Is Macen a common name?
We classify Macen as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 945 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Macen most popular?
The single biggest year for Macen was 2010, when 56 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Macen is about 14 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Macen a male name?
Yes, 99.5% of people registered as Macen in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.