Every Boy Name

Boy's name

Martin

Say it MAR-tin 2 syllables

Latin · “of or like Mars”

Loved in Spain. Common in France, Austria, Norway, and 3 more places. Rare across the UK, Italy, Poland, and 14 more places.

1 in 424 boys born in Ireland in 2025. Number 102 there.

Martin in every place

Rank, count and share in all 40 places: loved in 1, common in 6, rare in 19.
Martin in every place we hold figures for
Place Rankyear Boysshare 5 years earlier
British Isles
England and Wales363 (down)20251151 in 2,3652812020
Scotland333 (up)2025101 in 1,9644262020
Northern Ireland237 (down)202581 in 1,0351802020
Ireland102 (down)2025561 in 424902020
North America
Ontario (province)245 (up)202456about 1 in 1,0692642019
Quebec (province)463 (down)20259about 1 in 3,2282422020
British Columbia (province)318 (down)202310about 1 in 1,3022972018
Nova Scotia (province)Not in the published top 212025Not listed2020
Oceania
New South Wales (state)Not in the published top 1002025Not listed2020
Victoria (state)Not in the published top 1012025Not listed2020
Queensland (state)Not in the published top 1012025Not listed2020
South Australia (state)Not in the published top 1002025Not listed2020
New ZealandNot in the published top 1002025Not listed2020
Western Europe
France34 (down)20251,2901 in 235312020
Netherlands656 (down)202520about 1 in 3,3264682020
Central Europe
Austria92 (down)2025831 in 459642020
Switzerland138 (down)2025571 in 6321192020
Berlin (city)212 (down)202316about 1 in 9691872018
Munich (city)Rare: below the complete list20251142020
Cologne (city)206 (down)20236about 1 in 1,063582018
Bonn (city)118 (up)20256about 1 in 5281262020
Leipzig (city)389 (down)20251about 1 in 2,8762832020
Rostock (city)172 (new in the list)20251about 1 in 1,047Not listed2020
Nordic countries
Norway69 (down)2025981 in 238482020
Sweden371 (down)202518about 1 in 2,3963102020
DenmarkNot in the published top 502025Not listed2020
FinlandNot in the published top 502025No list2020
IcelandNot in the published top 102025No list2020
Southern Europe
Spain3 (down)20242,69322019
Catalonia (region) (as Martín)3020251421 in 146302020
Italy174 (down)20241101 in 1,7211312019
Central and Eastern Europe
Poland210 (down)2025341 in 3,7181622020
Hungary34 (up)2025308372020
Slovenia100 (down)202519about 1 in 381482020
EstoniaNot in the published top 272025142020
Moscow (city)Not in the published top 612025Not listed2020
CroatiaNot in the published top 502025No list2020
Middle East
TurkeyNot in the published top 302025Not listed2020
IsraelRare: below the complete list20248472019
Latin America
ArgentinaNot in the published top 202024Not listed2019

Germany publishes no national list; the German rows are city registers. About: the publisher leaves out its smallest names, so the share is approximate. ▲ and ▼ compare the rank with five years earlier. Not listed five years earlier: not in that year’s list. No list: the place published no list that year. How these figures are computed.

About the name

Martin comes from the Latin Mārtīnus, 'of or like Mars' or 'little Mars', built on the name of the Roman god. It reached English in the Middle Ages.

2 more paragraphs

It has two syllables, MAR-tin, and a steady, familiar sound. The accented Martín is common, and related forms include Marten, Morten, Marcin, Martti and Märt.

Martin is a top name in Spain and popular in Catalonia and France. In English-speaking countries it is rarer, found in the lists for Ireland, Northern Ireland and Ontario. French records put its peak in the late 2010s, but it is now falling in most of the places that record it.

Meaning, origin and how to say it

Say it
MAR-tin · 2 syllables · Stress on beat 1 of 2.
Meaning
“of or like Mars”
Origin
Latin
Spellings counted
Counted together with Martin here: Martín.
Related names
Mark, Marten, Marton, Marti, Marcin, Marku, Marte, Morten, Mart, Martti, Märt, Mertinas, Martie, Sartin, Srortan, Šrortan, Martino
Where Martin comes from (Wiktionary)

From Middle English Martin, from Latin Mārtīnus (“of or like Mars” or “little Mars”), Mārs, Mārtis + -īnus (diminutive suffix).

Shortened from the Wiktionary entry for Martin. Text available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Martin over time

Rising in 2 of the 23 regions we can compare over five years, falling in 12. Peak in France: 2018.

Rank in England and Wales, 1996 to 2025

Martin in England and Wales: #109 in 1996, and #363 in 2025.

#1#10#50#100#300#1,000200020052010201520202025Top 101996: #109, 435 boys1997: #124, 325 boys1998: #133, 295 boys1999: #138, 250 boys2000: #162, 224 boys2001: #177, 196 boys2002: #206, 165 boys2003: #210, 171 boys2004: #203, 181 boys2005: #216, 172 boys2006: #253, 148 boys2007: #234, 182 boys2008: #260, 167 boys2009: #257, 173 boys2010: #267, 174 boys2011: #244, 196 boys2012: #259, 183 boys2013: #268, 179 boys2014: #247, 220 boys2015: #242, 226 boys2016: #252, 213 boys2017: #259, 207 boys2018: #225, 231 boys2019: #262, 187 boys2020: #281, 165 boys2021: #240, 208 boys2022: #317, 141 boys2023: #301, 147 boys2024: #346, 126 boys2025: #363, 115 boyspeak #109, 1996#363in 2025
Show the numbers
YearRankBoys
1996109435
1997124325
1998133295
1999138250
2000162224
2001177196
2002206165
2003210171
2004203181
2005216172
2006253148
2007234182
2008260167
2009257173
2010267174
2011244196
2012259183
2013268179
2014247220
2015242226
2016252213
2017259207
2018225231
2019262187
2020281165
2021240208
2022317141
2023301147
2024346126
2025363115

Source: Office for National Statistics (OGL v3)

The long view: in France

Half of the boys named Martin in France since 1925 were born in or after 2006. Peak: 2018, about 586 per 100,000 boys. Babies per 100,000 boys, five-year periods.

1925-1929: 53.8 per 100,000 boys1930-1934: 44.9 per 100,000 boys1935-1939: 42.5 per 100,000 boys1940-1944: 41 per 100,000 boys19401945-1949: 27 per 100,000 boys1950-1954: 33 per 100,000 boys1955-1959: 38.3 per 100,000 boys1960-1964: 34.7 per 100,000 boys19601965-1969: 27.1 per 100,000 boys1970-1974: 30.2 per 100,000 boys1975-1979: 48.7 per 100,000 boys1980-1984: 77.1 per 100,000 boys19801985-1989: 181.6 per 100,000 boys1990-1994: 266.8 per 100,000 boys1995-1999: 347.5 per 100,000 boys2000-2004: 403 per 100,000 boys20002005-2009: 406.4 per 100,000 boys2010-2014: 433 per 100,000 boys2015-2019: 550.4 per 100,000 boys2020-2024: 466.7 per 100,000 boys20202025: 426.2 per 100,000 boys20252015-2019: about 1 in 182 boys
Show the numbers
YearsPer 100,000 boys
1925–192953.8
1930–193444.9
1935–193942.5
1940–194441
1945–194927
1950–195433
1955–195938.3
1960–196434.7
1965–196927.1
1970–197430.2
1975–197948.7
1980–198477.1
1985–1989181.6
1990–1994266.8
1995–1999347.5
2000–2004403
2005–2009406.4
2010–2014433
2015–2019550.4
2020–2024466.7
2025426.2

Source: INSEE, Fichier des prénoms (édition 2025) (Licence Ouverte / Etalab 2.0). Dark bar: the period holding the median birth year.

Brothers and middle names for Martin

Brother names

Names that rose and fell with Martin, from the same generation, with no clashing sounds.

  1. 1 in 66, Poland

  2. 1 in 206, France

  3. 1 in 240, Norway

  4. 1 in 62, Poland

  5. 1 in 593, Ireland

  6. 1 in 25, Poland

  7. 1 in 290, Poland

  8. 1 in 486, England and Wales

  9. 1 in 72, Italy

  10. 1 in 185, Ireland

All 40 brother names for Martin

Middle names

Scored for rhythm against Martin's 2 syllables and for long, steady use.

  1. 1 in 86, England and Wales

  2. 1 in 50, Ireland

  3. 1 in 61, Northern Ireland

  4. 1 in 103, England and Wales

  5. 1 in 130, Scotland

  6. 1 in 62, Poland

  7. 1 in 88, England and Wales

  8. 1 in 137, Scotland

Full-name check

Martin Oliver

Syllables 2-3Initials M.O.No sound clashes between the parts.

All 40 middle names for Martin

Sisters for Martin: Victoria, Helena, Sara, and 5 more
  1. VictoriaRose and fell with Martin · Same generation as Martin
  2. HelenaRose and fell with Martin · Same generation as Martin
  3. SaraRose and fell with Martin · Same generation as Martin
  4. AnaRose and fell with Martin · Same generation as Martin
  5. ClaraRose and fell with Martin · Same generation as Martin
  6. LinaRose and fell with Martin · Same generation as Martin
  7. LuciaRose and fell with Martin · As common as Martin
  8. EvaRose and fell with Martin · Same generation as Martin

Girls' names from the same engine, over the girls' lists of the same publishers.

Moved with Martin

The boy names whose popularity rose and fell most like Martin's across every region and decade we hold.

  1. Common in England and Wales, Italy, Poland, and 22 more places.

  2. Rare across France, the UK, Italy, and 18 more places.

  3. Rare across the UK, Italy, Poland, and 15 more places.

  4. Rare across France, the UK, three Canadian provinces, and 13 more places.

  5. Rare across France, the UK, Italy, and 17 more places.

  6. Rare across the UK, Italy, Poland, and 14 more places.

  7. Rare across France, the UK, Poland, and 16 more places.

  8. Rare across France, the UK, Poland, and 18 more places.

Famous people named Martin

Martin Luther, Martin Luther King Jr., and 6 more

From Wikidata, ranked by how many Wikipedia language editions have an article on them. People: Wikidata (CC0). Links go to Wikipedia in this page's language when an article exists, else English.

Questions about Martin

How popular is Martin in Ireland?

Martin ranked #102 in Ireland in 2025, given to 56 boys, about 1 in 424.

Is Martin rising in popularity?

Not overall: it is falling in more places than it is rising. Rising in 2 of the 23 regions we can compare over five years, falling in 12. Rising in: Scotland and Rostock.

What does Martin mean?

Martin means “of or like Mars”, according to Wiktionary.

How many syllables does Martin have?

Martin has 2 syllables: MAR-tin.

Every rank and count on this page comes from an official birth register. How these figures are computed.

Meanings, origins and people: Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0), Wikidata (CC0).

The 42 birth registers behind these figures

0kept

Kept names collect here.

Compare