Marvan
An Arabic masculine name meaning "rebellious" or "stubborn".
Name Census estimates that about 4 living Americans carry the first name Marvan. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Marvan today is around 64 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Marvan births was 1969 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Marvan. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Marvan. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
4
~ 1 in 85,688,585 Americans
Peak year
1969
5 babies that year
Average age
64
years old
1969 SSA rank
#4,795
Tracked since 1969
Popularity
Marvan: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Marvan 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 Marvan during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Marvan
The name Marvan has its origins in Arabic and Persian cultures, dating back to the 7th century. It is derived from the Arabic word "marw," which means "flourishing" or "prosperous." The name was particularly popular during the Umayyad Caliphate, which ruled over a vast empire spanning parts of the Middle East, North Africa, and the Iberian Peninsula from 661 to 750 CE.
One of the earliest and most notable figures with the name Marvan was Marvan I, the fourth caliph of the Umayyad Caliphate. He ruled from 684 to 685 CE and is remembered for his military campaigns and efforts to consolidate power within the caliphate. Another prominent Marvan was Marvan II, who ruled as the last Umayyad caliph from 744 to 750 CE before being overthrown by the Abbasid revolution.
In Islamic literature and history, the name Marvan is mentioned in various texts, including the Qur'an and hadith collections. One example is the hadith narrated by Ibn 'Abbas, where the Prophet Muhammad is said to have praised a man named Marvan for his wisdom and knowledge.
Beyond the Umayyad caliphate, the name Marvan has been used throughout the centuries by individuals from various backgrounds. One notable figure was Marvan al-Taqafi, a prominent Arab poet and warrior who lived in the 7th century CE and fought in several battles during the early Islamic conquests.
In more recent history, Marvan was the name of Marvan Naamani (1910-1980), a prominent Lebanese politician and diplomat who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and later as the Prime Minister of Lebanon in the 1950s and 1960s.
Another notable individual with the name Marvan was Marvan Atapattu (born 1970), a former Sri Lankan cricketer who captained the national team and is considered one of the country's most successful batsmen.
Additionally, Marvan Halil (1943-2007) was a renowned Bosnian painter and artist known for his abstract expressionist works, which reflected the turbulent history and culture of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
People
Marvan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Marvan 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
Marvan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Marvan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 4 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Marvan 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 85,688,585 US residents.
Is Marvan a common name?
We classify Marvan as "Very Rare". It ranks above 6.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Marvan most popular?
The single biggest year for Marvan was 1969, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Marvan is about 64 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Marvan in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Marvan a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Marvan 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.
Is Marvan still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Marvan in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Marvan can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many Americans are named Marvan?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Marvan at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.