Entry № 6555 · Aramaic origin

Martha Martha — Meaning, Origin & Baby Name Popularity

/ MAR-thah /
Gender
Girl
Origin
Aramaic
Meaning
"Lady (Jesus's friend; Martha Graham, founder of modern dance)"
Syllables
2
Rank · US 2025
№ 800
First recorded
Ancient (Aramaic)

A name that means "lady (jesus's friend; martha graham, founder of modern dance)".

Martha is from the Aramaic Marta (lady, mistress of the house). In the Gospel of Luke, Martha of Bethany was the sister of Lazarus and Mary who busied herself with hospitality while her sister sat at Jesus's feet — Jesus's gentle admonition ("Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things") gave the English language its archetype of the busy hostess. Martha Graham (1894-1991) was the American dancer-choreographer who founded modern dance; Martha Washington (1731-1802) was the first First Lady of the United States.

Subject of Sasha Waltz's Martha (2006) and many Christian devotional works.

Lady. Jesus's friend at Bethany; Martha Graham founded modern dance.

The name in its native script.

מַרְתָּא
Transliteration
Marta
Pronunciation
/ ˈmɑːr.θə /
Root
Grammatical form

Where Martha stands.

Current rank · 2025
№ 800 in the U.S.
All-time peak
№ 39 in 1880
Babies named Martha · last year
350 in the U.S.
First entered SSA top-1000
1880
Rank, 1995–2025 Lower = more popular
№25 №75 №150 №250 1995 2005 2015 2020 2025 PEAK · #39 NOW · #800

Marthas before her.

Real people
Martha Graham
Founder of modern dance.
1894 – 1991
Martha Washington
First US First Lady.
1731 – 1802
Martha Gellhorn
American war correspondent.
1908 – 1998
In fiction
Martha
Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
1962

Names connected to Martha.

The number behind Martha.

7

The Seeker

In Pythagorean numerology the letters of Martha reduce to 7, The Seeker. This is a traditional interpretive system, not a factual claim about the name.