2000
#2,091
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,916
First available Census row
Per 100,000 5.90
Uncommon Last name
Mark
Derived from the given name Mark or an abbreviation of a longer surname beginning with "Mark-," such as Markson.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 15,747 Americans carry the last name Mark. That puts it at #2,571 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.59 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 21,766 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mark surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Mark with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
16K
1 in 21,766
Census rank
#2,571
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
14K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 13,732 bearers of the surname Mark in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.59 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2571st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mark, the largest self-reported group is White at 60.0%. The next largest groups are Black (15.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (12.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mark
The surname MARK is of English origin, derived from the Latin name "Marcus." It was first used as a personal name and later adopted as a surname during the Middle Ages.
The name MARK likely originated from the Roman tradition of using a personal name as a surname. In ancient Rome, the name Marcus was a common praenomen (personal name) given to males. As the practice of using family names became more widespread in Europe, some individuals adopted their personal names as hereditary surnames.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname MARK can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, a survey of land ownership in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name appears as "Marcus" in this historical record.
The surname MARK was particularly prevalent in areas of England where Roman influence was strong, such as the counties of Gloucestershire, Somerset, and Wiltshire. Some early records show variations in spelling, including Marke, Marck, and Merke.
Notable historical figures with the surname MARK include:
1. John Mark (c. 5 - c. 85), a companion of the Apostle Paul and author of the Gospel of Mark in the New Testament.
2. Marcus Junius Brutus (85 BC - 42 BC), a Roman senator and one of the assassins of Julius Caesar.
3. John Mark (1693 - 1756), an English composer and organist.
4. Mary Shelley, née Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin (1797 - 1851), married to the English Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley and author of the novel "Frankenstein." Her maiden name was MARK, though she is better known by her married name.
5. Pamela Lyndon Travers (1899 - 1996), an Australian-British novelist and writer, best known for the "Mary Poppins" book series. Her birth name was Helen Lyndon Goff, but she adopted the pen name P.L. Travers, with MARK as her middle name.
The surname MARK has a long history in England and has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including writers, composers, and historical figures. It continues to be a common surname today, with its origins rooted in the Latin tradition of personal names.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mark
Among Census respondents with the surname Mark, the largest self-reported group is White at 60.0%. The next largest groups are Black (15.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (12.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Mark bearers 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 surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Mark surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White60.0% · 8,238
- Black or African American15.9% · 2,185
- Asian and Pacific Islander12.6% · 1,733
- Hispanic or Latino4.5% · 616
- Two or more races4.3% · 588
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.7% · 372
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mark
Mark appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#2,537
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,265
-1,651 bearers (-10.4%)
Per 100,000 4.84
Rank movement Down 446 places
2020
#2,571
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,732
-533 bearers (-3.7%)
Per 100,000 4.59
Rank movement Down 34 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,091 | 15,916 | 5.90 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,537 | 14,265 | 4.84 | -1,651 bearers (-10.4%) | Down 446 places |
| 2020 | #2,571 | 13,732 | 4.59 | -533 bearers (-3.7%) | Down 34 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Mark surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #2,537 | #2,571 | -1.3% |
| Count | 14,265 | 13,732 | -3.7% |
| Per 100K | 4.84 | 4.59 | -5.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mark bearers went from 14,265 to 13,732 (-3.7% change). The surname moved down 34 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,537 to #2,571.
FAQ
Mark surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mark?
Name Census estimates that about 15,747 living Americans carry the surname Mark. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 21,766 residents.
How common is Mark?
Mark ranks #2,571 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.59 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 13,732 people with the surname Mark. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (15,747), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.59 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.59 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Mark.
Has Mark become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mark went from 14,265 recorded bearers to 13,732. That is a decrease of 533 (-3.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,537 to #2,571.
What does the Census say about the background of Mark?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mark, the largest self-reported group is White at 60.0%. The next largest groups are Black (15.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (12.6%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Mark in the 2020 Census, accounting for 60.0% (8,238 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mark appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (60.0%), Black (15.9%), Asian/Pacific Islander (12.6%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Mark (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Mark mean?
Derived from the given name Mark or an abbreviation of a longer surname beginning with "Mark-," such as Markson. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Mark (4.59 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the last name Mark?
Want to know how many people have the surname Mark? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.