Mary
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "drop of the sea," "bitter," "beloved," or "rebelliousness."
Name Census estimates that about 1,492,757 living Americans carry the first name Mary. It sits at #132 in the overall ranking, outside the top 50 but still well-represented. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Mary today is around 65 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Mary births was 1921 (74,171 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Mary. 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 Mary with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Although Mary is used almost entirely for girls, the SSA data does show 15,172 boys registered with the name since 1880.
- • Compared to the 1920s, recent registration numbers for Mary have dropped to less than 5% of what they once were.
People living today
1.5M
~ 1 in 230 Americans
Peak year
1921
74,171 babies that year
Average age
65
years old
2020 SSA rank
#132
Tracked since 1880
Census
Mary in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,768,337 people with the first name Mary, which placed it at #7 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
#7
National first-name rank
People counted
1.8M
1,768,337 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
585.5
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
81.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mary
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mary is White at 81.1%. The next largest groups are Black (9.3%) and Hispanic (5.6%). 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 Mary 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 Mary at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.1% · 1,434,886
- Black or African American9.3% · 164,569
- Hispanic or Latino5.6% · 98,991
- Two or more races1.8% · 32,402
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.5% · 26,838
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 10,651
Gender
Gender distribution for Mary
Out of the 4,154,332 babies given the name Mary since 1880, 99.6% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Mary as a male name
- Ranked #13,358 in 2020
- 5 male births in 2020
- Peak: 1930 (340 births)
Mary as a female name
- Ranked #132 in 2024
- 2,196 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1921 (73,984 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Mary appears almost entirely female. Of the 1,768,343 people counted with this name, 99.8% were female and only a very small share were male.
Popularity
Mary: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Mary from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 704,187 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Mary 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 Mary during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 362 | 91,668 | 92,030 |
| 1890s | 494 | 131,138 | 131,632 |
| 1900s | 683 | 161,504 | 162,187 |
| 1910s | 1,373 | 478,636 | 480,009 |
| 1920s | 2,431 | 701,756 | 704,187 |
| 1930s | 3,028 | 572,997 | 576,025 |
| 1940s | 2,304 | 640,070 | 642,374 |
| 1950s | 1,538 | 625,609 | 627,147 |
| 1960s | 1,345 | 355,238 | 356,583 |
| 1970s | 680 | 126,254 | 126,934 |
| 1980s | 610 | 95,862 | 96,472 |
| 1990s | 197 | 75,713 | 75,910 |
| 2000s | 106 | 46,310 | 46,416 |
| 2010s | 16 | 25,683 | 25,699 |
| 2020s | 5 | 10,722 | 10,727 |
Geography
Where Marys live
The SSA's state-level files cover 51 states and territories. Pennsylvania, New York, Texas recorded the most babies named Mary, while Nevada, Alaska, Hawaii recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 73,809 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Mary
The given name Mary has a rich and fascinating history that spans thousands of years and multiple cultures. Its origins can be traced back to ancient Egypt, where it was derived from the word "mr," meaning "love" or "beloved." In Hebrew, the name takes the form of Miriam, which is believed to mean "wished-for child," "bitter," or "rebellious."
One of the earliest and most well-known historical references to the name Mary is in the New Testament of the Bible, where it is the name of the mother of Jesus Christ. According to Christian tradition, Mary was a young Jewish woman from Nazareth who was chosen by God to give birth to the savior of the world. Her story is central to the Christian faith and has inspired countless works of art, literature, and music throughout history.
Another notable Mary from ancient times was Mary Magdalene, a follower of Jesus who is mentioned several times in the New Testament. She is often depicted as a repentant sinner who became one of Jesus' most devoted disciples. In the Middle Ages, Mary Magdalene was venerated as a saint and became a symbol of redemption and spiritual transformation.
The name Mary also has a strong association with royalty and nobility. One of the most famous bearers of the name was Mary, Queen of Scots (1542-1587), who ruled Scotland from 1542 to 1567. Despite her tumultuous reign and eventual execution, Mary remains a iconic figure in Scottish history and has been the subject of numerous books, films, and plays.
Another royal Mary was Queen Mary I of England (1516-1558), also known as "Bloody Mary" for her persecution of Protestants during her reign. She was the daughter of King Henry VIII and his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, and ruled England from 1553 until her death in 1558.
The name Mary has also been borne by several influential women in the fields of science, literature, and social reform. One notable example is Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797), an English writer and philosopher who is considered one of the earliest advocates for women's rights. Her work, including the groundbreaking treatise "A Vindication of the Rights of Woman," laid the foundation for modern feminism.
Another pioneering Mary was Mary Anning (1799-1847), an English fossil collector and paleontologist whose discoveries helped to shape the field of geology. Despite facing significant barriers as a working-class woman in the male-dominated world of science, Anning made several important finds, including the first complete skeleton of an ichthyosaur.
Throughout history, the name Mary has been consistently popular and has been used in various forms and spellings across different cultures. In addition to its use in English-speaking countries, variations of the name can be found in Spanish (María), Italian (Maria), French (Marie), and many other languages.
Today, Mary remains a beloved and timeless name that continues to be given to girls all over the world. Its enduring popularity is a testament to its rich history and cultural significance, as well as its association with some of the most remarkable and inspiring women in human history.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Mary
People
Mary + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Mary 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
Mary: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Mary?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,492,757 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Mary 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 230 US residents.
Is Mary a common name?
We classify Mary as "Very Common". It ranks above 100% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 4,154,332 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Mary most popular?
The single biggest year for Mary was 1921, when 74,171 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Mary is about 65 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Mary in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,768,337 people with the name Mary, or 585.49 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #7 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 Mary 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 Mary?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Mary appears almost entirely female. Of the 1,768,343 people counted with this name, 99.8% were female and only a very small share were male. 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 Mary?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mary is White at 81.1%. The next largest groups are Black (9.3%) and Hispanic (5.6%). 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 Mary most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Mary in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.1% (1,434,886 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 Mary in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Mary a female name?
Yes, 99.6% of people registered as Mary in the SSA data are female. 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 Mary still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Mary 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 Mary 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 common is the name Mary?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Mary at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.