Marvell
A masculine name of French origin meaning "miracle" or "wonder".
Name Census estimates that about 1,112 living Americans carry the first name Marvell. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 78.0% of registrations being male. The average person named Marvell today is around 38 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Marvell births was 2007 (33 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Marvell. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Marvell with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Marvell was once a predominantly female name but has become increasingly popular for boys in recent decades.
People living today
1.1K
~ 1 in 308,232 Americans
Peak year
2007
33 babies that year
Average age
38
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,703
Tracked since 1912
Census
Marvell in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 981 people with the first name Marvell, which placed it at #12,620 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#12,620
National first-name rank
People counted
981
981 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
80.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Marvell
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Marvell is Black at 80.1%. The next largest groups are White (9.3%) and Hispanic (4.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Marvell described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Marvell at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American80.1% · 786
- White9.3% · 91
- Hispanic or Latino4.9% · 48
- Two or more races4.4% · 43
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 9
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 4
Gender
Gender distribution for Marvell
Marvell is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 1,470 total registrations, 1,147 (78.0%) were male and 323 (22.0%) were female.
Marvell as a male name
- Ranked #8,703 in 2024
- 9 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2007 (33 births)
Marvell as a female name
- Ranked #9,091 in 1972
- 5 female births in 1972
- Peak: 1926 (15 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Marvell leans strongly male. 795 people counted with this name were male (81.1%), compared with 185 female bearers (18.9%).
Popularity
Marvell: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Marvell from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 204 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Marvell 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 Marvell during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Marvells live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. Illinois, Wisconsin, Tennessee recorded the most babies named Marvell, while Mississippi, Tennessee, Wisconsin recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 37 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Marvell
Marvell is a given name derived from the French word "merveille," which means "wonder" or "marvel." The name's origins can be traced back to the Old French language, which developed from the Gallo-Romance dialects spoken in northern France during the Middle Ages.
This name gained popularity during the Renaissance period, particularly in England, where it was used by several notable figures. One of the most famous individuals with this name was Andrew Marvell (1621-1678), an English metaphysical poet, satirist, and politician. His works, such as "To His Coy Mistress" and "The Garden," are considered masterpieces of 17th-century English literature.
Another notable historical figure with the name Marvell was Mervin Marvell (1692-1768), an English clergyman and philosopher. He wrote extensively on natural theology and was a prominent figure in the Church of England during the 18th century.
In the 19th century, Marvell Woodfield (1822-1892) was a renowned British architect who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Royal Albert Hall. His architectural style was heavily influenced by the Gothic Revival movement of the time.
Fast-forwarding to the 20th century, Marvell Frellick (1914-2001) was an American artist known for his abstract expressionist paintings. His works were exhibited in numerous galleries and museums across the United States, and he was recognized as a significant figure in the American art scene of the mid-20th century.
More recently, Marvell Wynne-Hill (1962-) is a British author and historian who has written several books on the history of England and the British Empire. His works have garnered critical acclaim and have contributed to a deeper understanding of British history and culture.
While the name Marvell has its roots in the French language, it has been adopted and used by individuals from various cultural backgrounds and nationalities throughout history. The name's association with notable figures in literature, religion, architecture, art, and academia has contributed to its enduring appeal and lasting legacy.
People
Marvell + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Marvell 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
Marvell: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Marvell?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,112 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Marvell 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 308,232 US residents.
Is Marvell a common name?
We classify Marvell as "Rare". It ranks above 90.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,470 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Marvell most popular?
The single biggest year for Marvell was 2007, when 33 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Marvell is about 38 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Marvell in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 981 people with the name Marvell, or 0.32 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #12,620 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Marvell in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Marvell?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Marvell leans strongly male. 795 people counted with this name were male (81.1%), compared with 185 female bearers (18.9%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Marvell?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Marvell is Black at 80.1%. The next largest groups are White (9.3%) and Hispanic (4.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Marvell most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Marvell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.1% (786 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
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 Marvell in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Marvell a male name?
Yes, 78.0% of people registered as Marvell 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 Marvell still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Marvell 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 Marvell 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.
How many people share the name Marvell?
You can see how many people share the name Marvell on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.