Mary, of Latin origin, means 'sea of bitterness' or 'rebelliousness'. It was the name given to the mother of Jesus in the New Testament and has been a popular choice among Christians since then. The name Mary has been used by numerous historical figures, including Mary, Queen of Scots, and Mary Wollstonecraft, a prominent feminist philosopher. In literature, it's famously associated with characters like Mary Shelley, author of 'Frankenstein'. The name Mary is often shortened to 'Molly' or 'Polly', among other variants.
The name Mary experienced varying popularity over the years with a total of 1867 births recorded between 1882 and 2023. The number of births fluctuated significantly; while there were as many as 37 births in 1918, there were only 5 births in certain years like 1994 and 2015. The most recent data available shows that the name Mary remained popular with 8 births recorded in 2023.