Boy names that start with the letter ‘M’ include Mark, Matthew, Michael, and many more, which we will explore in this article.
One subset of boy names that start with ‘M’ consists of those related to Marcus, a Latin name that dates back to the time of the Roman Empire. The name may sound familiar thanks to Marcus Aurelius, the Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher who authored a widely-read book called Meditations.
The name Marcus likely derives from Mars, the name of the Roman god of war, which would mean a shared origin with the English adjective “martial,” used in expressions like “martial arts.”
The name Marcus is still in use today —Marcus Miller, a well-known jazz musician, is an example. However, several other names derived from Marcus are more common today.
Mark is one of these. This name exists in many languages, and it is spelled with a ‘c’ in Latin-based languages, for example, Marc (in French), Marco and Mario (in Italian), and Marcos (in Spanish and Portuguese). It also exists as Marek in some Slavic languages like Czech and Polish.
Marcel, which many have heard of through the French author Marcel Proust, is another related name, as it comes from the Latin name Marcellus, a diminutive form of Marcus.
Martin (and Martino, its Italian form) are other names related to the Roman god Mars, through the Latin name Martinus.
Another group of boy names that start with ‘M’ consists of those related to Maximus, a Latin name with a very positive meaning as it derives from the Latin word “maximus” meaning “the greatest.”
Names in this group include Maximilian (a combination of the Latin names Maximus and Aemilianus) and Max, a shortened form of Maximilian or Maxwell.
Latin-based languages have their own versions of the name Maximus, for example, Máximo (in Spanish), Maxime (in French), and Massimo (in Italian) — the letter ‘x’ is rarely used in Italian aside from loanwords like “taxi.”
Matthew is a name that comes from Hebrew and means “gift of the Lord.” The names Dorothy and Theodore have a similar meaning but come from Ancient Greek. The word for “gift” starts with an ‘M’ sound in Hebrew and a ‘D’ sound in Ancient Greek. As a result, Matthew begins with an ‘M’ and Dorothy with a ‘D’.
Names related to Matthew include Matt (its diminutive form), as well as variants from other languages, such as Mateo (in Spanish), Matthias (in German), Matthieu (in French), Matteo (in Italian), and even Matti (in Finnish).
Michael is a name that comes from Hebrew. Related names include:
You may also want to explore names that start with ‘M’ found in other languages. We have published articles on this topic for names from the following languages: French, Spanish, Italian, and Japanese.
A famous namesake can make a name more attractive and provide a source of inspiration. In the table below is a list of well-known individuals who have first names that start with ‘M’
| individual | occupation |
|---|---|
| Martin Luther King Jr. | Christian minister and civil rights leader |
| Martin Scorsese | Film director |
| Marcus Aurelius | Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher |
| Mark Twain | American writer who wrote “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” |
| Michael Jordan | Basketball player |
| Miles Davis | Jazz musician |
| Milton Friedman | Economist who won the Nobel Prize |
| Marco Polo | Merchant and explorer born in Venice |
| Marcel Proust | French novelist who wrote “In Search of Lost Time” |
| Marlon Brando | Actor who starred as Vito Corleone in the movie “The Godfather” |
| Michelangelo | Renaissance artist |
| Morgan Freeman | Actor |
| Mel Gibson | Actor and director |
| Marvin Gaye | Singer |
| Muhammad Ali | American boxer |
| Mike Tyson | American boxer |
| Max Weber | German sociologist |
| Maurice Ravel | French composer |
| Max Planck | German physicist who won the Nobel Prize |
| Miguel de Cervantes | Spanish novelist who wrote “Don Quixote” |