Mark
What does the name Mark mean?
The different meanings of the name Mark are:- Latin meaning: From the god Mars (Ancient God of War)
- English meaning: English form of Marcus
Additional information: Mark is a masculine name of Latin origin, and is derived from the old Latin Mart-kos, meaning “consecrated to the god Mars”. A more modern interpretation of the meaning of Mark would be “Warlike”. Although brought into use in English by Saint Mark the Evangelist, the missionary companion to Peter and Paul and author of the second Gospel of the life of Jesus, it wasn’t until the 19th century that it really came into common use.
In the Medieval tale "Tristan and Isolde" (the legendary tale of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table), King Mark is the aged ruler of Cornwall to whom Isolde is brought as a bride by Tristan. His name though was presumably of Celtic origin, perhaps derived from the element march 'horse'. This was not a particularly common name in the Middle Ages but was more frequent use by the end of the 16th century.
For names similar to Mark, consider the names of the other three authors of the Gospels – Matthew, Luke, or John. Foreign variants of the name Mark generally come from its original form of Marcus, which is still used as a given name today; these foreign spellings include Marek (Czech), Marco (Spanish), Markus (German), and Marc (Welsh). Feminine names that sound similar to Mark include Marcia, Markie, and Marsha, which all also mean ‘Warlike’. Mark is commonly misspelled as ‘Makr’, ‘Marke’, and ‘Marek’.
The popularity of the name Mark has waned in the USA since its heyday in the fifties, sixties, and seventies, when it was in the top ten names for boys from 1955 to 1970. During this time, the name was also relatively popular as a feminine name. In 2014, the popularity of the name Mark as a boys name had dropped to 189th. In England and Wales, Mark’s popularity as a boys name has dipped since the start of the 21st century, falling from consistently being in the top hundred names to 218th in 2014.
Famous celebrities with the name Mark include Mark Twain (American author, who took his pen name from a call he heard used by riverboat workers), Mark Zuckerberg (founder of Facebook), and Mark Ronson (music producer). A famous Roman bearer of the name was Mark Antony (Marcus Antonius), politician and military general, also the lover of Cleopatra.
Although Mark Twain has been widely attributed with saying “The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco”, this is nothing more than an urban legend – there is no mention of him saying this in any of his writings or publications.
In the Medieval tale "Tristan and Isolde" (the legendary tale of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table), King Mark is the aged ruler of Cornwall to whom Isolde is brought as a bride by Tristan. His name though was presumably of Celtic origin, perhaps derived from the element march 'horse'. This was not a particularly common name in the Middle Ages but was more frequent use by the end of the 16th century.
For names similar to Mark, consider the names of the other three authors of the Gospels – Matthew, Luke, or John. Foreign variants of the name Mark generally come from its original form of Marcus, which is still used as a given name today; these foreign spellings include Marek (Czech), Marco (Spanish), Markus (German), and Marc (Welsh). Feminine names that sound similar to Mark include Marcia, Markie, and Marsha, which all also mean ‘Warlike’. Mark is commonly misspelled as ‘Makr’, ‘Marke’, and ‘Marek’.
The popularity of the name Mark has waned in the USA since its heyday in the fifties, sixties, and seventies, when it was in the top ten names for boys from 1955 to 1970. During this time, the name was also relatively popular as a feminine name. In 2014, the popularity of the name Mark as a boys name had dropped to 189th. In England and Wales, Mark’s popularity as a boys name has dipped since the start of the 21st century, falling from consistently being in the top hundred names to 218th in 2014.
Famous celebrities with the name Mark include Mark Twain (American author, who took his pen name from a call he heard used by riverboat workers), Mark Zuckerberg (founder of Facebook), and Mark Ronson (music producer). A famous Roman bearer of the name was Mark Antony (Marcus Antonius), politician and military general, also the lover of Cleopatra.
Although Mark Twain has been widely attributed with saying “The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco”, this is nothing more than an urban legend – there is no mention of him saying this in any of his writings or publications.
Categories: American Names, Australian Names, Biblical Names, British Names, Canadian Names, Christian Names, English Names, Latin Names, Literary Characters Names, Roman Names, Russian Names
Used in: English speaking countries
Gender: Boy Names
Starts with: M
