Mastin
A diminutive form of the name Martin, derived from Mars, the Roman god of war.
Name Census estimates that about 11 living Americans carry the first name Mastin. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Mastin today is around 17 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Mastin births was 2013 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Mastin. 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 Mastin. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
11
~ 1 in 31,159,485 Americans
Peak year
2013
6 babies that year
Average age
17
years old
2013 SSA rank
#11,666
Tracked since 2004
Popularity
Mastin: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Mastin from the 2000s through to the 2010s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 6 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Mastin 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 Mastin during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Mastin
The name Mastin is an English given name derived from the Old French word "mastin," which means "mastiff dog." This word can be traced back to the Latin "mansuetinus," meaning "tamed" or "domesticated." The name likely originated during the Middle Ages when mastiff dogs were popular as guard dogs and hunting companions among the European nobility.
In the 12th century, the name Mastin appeared in English records as a surname, indicating that it was used as a nickname or a descriptive name for someone who worked with or kept mastiff dogs. Over time, it transitioned into a given name, though its popularity has remained relatively low throughout history.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Mastin as a given name can be found in the 14th century English manuscript, "The Canterbury Tales" by Geoffrey Chaucer. In this literary work, a character named Mastin is mentioned, suggesting that the name was in use during that time period.
In the 16th century, a notable Englishman named Mastin Brock (c. 1530-1599) was a Member of Parliament and Sheriff of Wiltshire. He played a role in the political and legal affairs of the time.
Another historical figure with the name Mastin was Sir Mastin Lemon (1616-1668), an English politician and landowner who served as a Member of Parliament for Cornwall during the English Civil War era.
In the 18th century, Mastin Maddocks (1738-1819) was a Welsh-born Anglican clergyman and author who served as the Archdeacon of Dorset and wrote several religious works.
More recently, Mastin Kipp (1888-1944) was an American painter and printmaker known for his landscape and urban scenes, particularly those depicting New York City.
While the name Mastin has historically been uncommon, it has maintained a presence throughout the centuries, often associated with individuals from England and Wales. Its unique etymology and connection to the mastiff dog breed have contributed to its distinctive character as a given name.
People
Mastin + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Mastin 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
Mastin: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Mastin?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 11 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Mastin 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 31,159,485 US residents.
Is Mastin a common name?
We classify Mastin as "Very Rare". It ranks above 30.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 11 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Mastin most popular?
The single biggest year for Mastin was 2013, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Mastin is about 17 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 Mastin in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Mastin a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Mastin 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 Mastin still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Mastin 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 Mastin 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 people are called Mastin?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.