first name
MARLIN
of 53,615 first names recorded in the 2020 Census
Of the 15,488 people named Marlin, 62.4% reported their origin as White, 18.7% as Hispanic or Latino and 14.1% as Black. 79.8% are male. These count how people described themselves on the 2020 Census, not where the name comes from.
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Marlin peaked in 1935, when 400 babies got the name.
At least 22,834 babies have been given the name since 1884. Years SSA withheld, because fewer than 5 were born, are skipped rather than drawn as zero. * 2025 is the newest year published and it undercounts: a card application is filed some time after a birth.
Marlin by decade
Among all names given to American babies, its best decade was the 1930s, when it ranked #630. The largest share of babies named Marlin, 26%, were born between 1928 and 1945, the Silent Generation's birth years.
Rank counts both sexes together, among every name SSA recorded that decade; the number under it is births. The 2020s run only to 2025. Generation years follow Pew Research Center, which has not named a generation after 2012.
Where Marlin is most common
Compared with all babies born in each state since 1910, Marlin has been most common in South Dakota (5.3×), North Dakota (4.6×), and Pennsylvania (4.2×), and least common in North Carolina (0.12×).
16,267 births recorded by state, 1910–2025. 2× means twice as common as nationally. States with fewer than 30 such births are left blank, and SSA withholds any year with fewer than 5 in a state, so small states read low.
Either side of Marlin
Spelled almost the same
8 first names in the 2020 Census spelled within a letter or two of Marlin, most common first.
Also a last name
As a last name, Marlin ranks #6,780 of 156,621, with 4,780 people. See Marlin as a last name
Compare
🔎 MARLIN 🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦⬜⬜ 1 in 19,501 Americans Rarer than 77.4% of us Peaked in 1935 with 400 babies Beat that 👇 https://howrareismy.name/first/marlin/