US Name Trends

Martha

Aramaic Marta, “lady” or “mistress of the house.”

1947peak year
No. 14best rank (1882)
553,732babies since 1880
No. 712rank in 2025

Popularity, 1880–2025

Babies named Martha per year — peak 10,651▬ girls ▬ boys18801900192019401960198020002020

Martha appears in the national records from the very first year, 1880. It has ranked among the top 100 names for American girls in every year from 1880 to 1965. Its biggest year was 1947, when 10,651 newborn girls received the name, ranking it No. 32 nationally. Its best ranking came in 1882, at No. 14. In 2025 it ranked No. 712 for girls. All told, 553,732 Americans have been given the name since 1880.

Related names

Other names that share a story: Mattie

Explore Martha interactively →

By the decade

DecadeBirthsBest rank
1880s13,911No. 14
1890s19,415No. 21
1900s21,750No. 28
1910s59,508No. 22
1920s86,788No. 21
1930s77,697No. 24
1940s95,384No. 25
1950s83,190No. 32
1960s41,040No. 81
1970s17,926No. 143
1980s13,039No. 174
1990s9,750No. 224
2000s6,179No. 373
2010s3,743No. 692
2020s2,421No. 666

Births and rank shown for girls, the sex more often given the name. The Social Security Administration omits name–year combinations with fewer than five births.

🍼 Enjoying this? Buy my baby a diaper

Data: U.S. Social Security Administration national baby-name file, 1880–2025.