Mack
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Meaning
short form of Mac- surnames, Gaelic for 'son of'
The story
Mack is the Gaelic mac, son of, promoted from prefix to the whole name, the surname sound America wore as a first name through the first half of the century: about 3,900 in the 1910s, 5,500 in the 1920s, 5,700 in the 1940s. Then the long ebb to about 1,000 in the 1990s, and the grandpa-name turn: 3,200 in the 2010s and already 3,600 so far this decade, the same road Otto and Arthur are walking, Otto at 6,500 so far this decade, Arthur at 17,500. In our records it goes to boys about 41,700 to 180. Mack never needed a formal version to shorten; it is the short form, standing alone, one syllable of pure friendliness with a century of work behind it.
How popular is Mack around the world?
In the United States, 3,630 babies were named Mack between 2020 and 2025. In South Australia, 9 boys were registered as Mack in 2017.
Mack is on the official records of the United States, South Australia, Scotland, New Zealand, Canada, Ireland, England and Wales and Brazil.
United States
1 in 6,000
In the United States, 3,630 babies were named Mack between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Mack peaked in the 1890s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure. In US birth records Mack has stayed between 1,019 and 4,228 births in every decade since the 1950s: a name everyone knows and few children get.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
South Australia
1 in 2,0002017
In South Australia, 9 boys were registered as Mack in 2017.
The count never rose above 9 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
Scotland
1 in 2,900
In Scotland, 16 boys named Mack were registered in 2024, the 246th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
New Zealand
1 in 3,800
In New Zealand, 15 boys named Mack were registered in 2025.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Canada
1 in 7,600
In Canada, 48 boys named Mack were born in 2024, the 575th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
Ireland
1 in 14,000
In Ireland, 4 boys named Mack were born in 2025, the 676th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
England and Wales
1 in 20,000
In England and Wales, 30 boys named Mack were born in 2025, ranked 1,007th among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Brazil
1 in 1M
At the 2022 census, 161 people in Brazil were named Mack, ranked 29,622nd, with a median age of 29.
Among people named Mack living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1990s than in any other decade.
people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth
People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
Not on the record in Spain, Mexico City, Argentina, Puerto Rico and Poland: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Austria record for 1984 to 2025: Statistik Austria publishes every first name down to a single birth, so this name was not given there in those years (before 2010 the record covers babies with Austrian citizenship only). Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Mack
People given the name Mack in the United States span the generations: the middle half were born anywhere from 1950 to 2019. Age is the one thing the name won't tell you.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
The Mack deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Mack truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Mack fits with your family’s names and surname.
Does Mack fit YOUR family?
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