Marcus

Marcus is a traditionally masculine name with Gaelic and Latin roots. It can mean "polite," "shining," and/or "hammer," a somewhat violent reference that makes sense with Marcus' overlap root word with the Roman god of war, Mars.

Similar names include Mark, Marc, Marco, Marko, Markus, Markos, Marius, Margh, Marijo, Mariusz, and straight-up Mars. Other boys' names meaning "shining" include Abhat, Adeen, Bertie, Castor, Kirav, Muneer, Phaedron, and Taral. Or try other "polite" boys' names such as Adeeba, Kurt, Kurtis, or Imtithal. Boys' names that come from other Roman gods include Consus, Aries, Romulus, Amulius, Saturn, Remus, and Quirinus.

Famous Marcuses include Marcus Antonius (Mark Antony), Marcus Andronicus in Shakespeare's "The Tragedy of Titus Andronicus," Marcus Garvey, Marcus du Sautoy, Marcus Miller, Marcus Allen, Marcus Trescothick, Marcus Grönholm, and Marcus Mariota.

Marcus continues to rank in the top 100 for boy names in Australia, Canada, England, Scotland, Sweden, and Wales, and it's also popular in Norway, the Netherlands, Italy and Germany. In the U.S., Marcus started a slow climb in popularity in the 1940s/ '50s and peaked in 1971, after which it stayed relatively flat. In 2019, Marcus was #221 for boys in the U.S.

Marcus in quotes:

“The ends you serve that are selfish will take you no further than yourself but the ends you serve that are for all, in common, will take you into eternity.” — Marcus Garvey

"You have power over your mind — not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength." — Marcus Aurelius