Mictlan
An Aztec name meaning "underworld" or "place of the dead".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Mictlan. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Mictlan today is around 3 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Mictlan births was 2023 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Mictlan. 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 Mictlan. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
2023
5 babies that year
Average age
3
years old
2023 SSA rank
#13,494
Tracked since 2023
Popularity
Mictlan: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Mictlan 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 Mictlan during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Mictlan
Mictlan is a name with origins in the Nahuatl language of the Aztec civilization in ancient Mexico. The name is derived from the Nahuatl word "mictlampa," which translates to "the place of the dead" or "the underworld." It was the name given to the lowest and most significant of the nine levels of the afterlife in Aztec mythology.
The name Mictlan is closely tied to the Aztec beliefs about the underworld and the journey of the souls after death. It was believed that the souls of those who died from natural causes, such as old age or illness, would travel to Mictlan, a dark and dreary place ruled by the Lord and Lady of the Dead, Mictlantecuhtli and Mictecacihuatl.
Mictlan is mentioned extensively in various Aztec codices and historical texts, such as the Codex Borgia and the Florentine Codex, which provide detailed descriptions of the Aztec cosmology and religious beliefs. These ancient texts depict Mictlan as a treacherous and challenging realm that the souls had to navigate before reaching their final resting place.
While Mictlan was not typically used as a personal name among the Aztecs, it has been recorded in various historical accounts and records of individuals who played significant roles in the Aztec society. One notable figure was Mictlan Cuauhtli, a renowned Aztec warrior and military leader who lived in the 15th century and played a crucial role in the expansion of the Aztec Empire.
Another figure associated with the name Mictlan was Mictlan Tonatiuh, an Aztec astronomer and mathematician who lived in the late 15th century. He is credited with developing a complex calendar system and contributing to the advancement of Aztec astronomy and timekeeping.
In more recent times, the name Mictlan has been used sparingly as a given name, often serving as a tribute to the rich cultural heritage of the Aztec civilization. One such individual was Mictlan Villar, a Mexican writer and poet born in 1928, who explored themes of death and the afterlife in his works.
Additionally, Mictlan Huitzil, a Mexican artist born in 1947, gained recognition for his intricate and symbolic paintings that drew heavily from Aztec mythology and cosmology, including depictions of the underworld realm of Mictlan.
While not a commonly used name today, Mictlan holds significant cultural and historical significance, serving as a reminder of the deep-rooted beliefs and traditions of the Aztec civilization and their intricate understanding of the afterlife and the journey of the soul.
People
Mictlan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Mictlan 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
Mictlan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Mictlan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Mictlan 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Mictlan a common name?
We classify Mictlan as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% 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 Mictlan most popular?
The single biggest year for Mictlan was 2023, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Mictlan is about 3 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 Mictlan in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Mictlan a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Mictlan 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 Mictlan still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Mictlan 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 Mictlan 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 common is the name Mictlan?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.