Maryclaire
A feminine name derived from Mary and Claire, meaning "star of the sea" and "bright" respectively.
Name Census estimates that about 575 living Americans carry the first name Maryclaire. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Maryclaire today is around 24 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Maryclaire births was 2008 (24 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Maryclaire. 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
575
~ 1 in 596,095 Americans
Peak year
2008
24 babies that year
Average age
24
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,813
Tracked since 1922
Popularity
Maryclaire: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Maryclaire from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 173 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Maryclaire remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Maryclaire 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 Maryclaire during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Maryclaires live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. Texas, Illinois, Louisiana recorded the most babies named Maryclaire, while Louisiana, Illinois, Texas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 7 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Maryclaire
The name Maryclaire is a compound given name derived from the names Mary and Claire. Mary is a feminine name of Hebrew origin, stemming from the Hebrew name Miryam. The name Miryam is thought to be derived from elements meaning "bitter," "beloved," or "rebellious." Claire is a feminine name of French origin, derived from the Latin word "clarus," meaning "clear" or "bright."
The name Mary has been a popular name for centuries, particularly in Christian cultures, due to its association with the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ. The earliest recorded use of the name Mary dates back to the 2nd century BCE, when it was used by Jews in Egypt. The name gained widespread popularity after the rise of Christianity and the veneration of the Virgin Mary.
The name Claire, on the other hand, has its roots in ancient Rome. It was a masculine name in Latin, but over time, it transitioned into a feminine name in French-speaking regions. The name became particularly popular in France during the Middle Ages and was often associated with nobility and high social status.
While the compound name Maryclaire is relatively modern, there are historical references to individuals bearing the individual names Mary and Claire. One notable example is Mary, Queen of Scots (1542-1587), who ruled Scotland from 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. Another is Claire of Assisi (1194-1253), a close friend and follower of St. Francis of Assisi, and the founder of the Order of Poor Ladies, also known as the Poor Clares.
Other famous historical figures with the name Mary include Mary Magdalene, a prominent figure in the New Testament; Mary Shelley (1797-1851), the author of the novel "Frankenstein"; and Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797), a British writer, philosopher, and advocate of women's rights. As for the name Claire, notable individuals include Claire Underwood, a fictional character from the TV series "House of Cards"; Claire Danes (born 1979), an American actress; and Claire Bloom (born 1931), an English actress.
It is worth noting that while the compound name Maryclaire is not as common as its individual components, it has been used throughout history, with records of individuals bearing this name dating back to the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
People
Maryclaire + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Maryclaire 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
Maryclaire: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Maryclaire?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 575 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Maryclaire 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 596,095 US residents.
Is Maryclaire a common name?
We classify Maryclaire as "Very Rare". It ranks above 85.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 604 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Maryclaire most popular?
The single biggest year for Maryclaire was 2008, when 24 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Maryclaire is about 24 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Maryclaire a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Maryclaire 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.
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.