MARko

Marko is a masculine given name widely used in South Slavic languages, including Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Slovenia, as well as among diaspora communities. It is the South Slavic form of Marcus, corresponding to Mark in English and Marco in Italian and Spanish. The name derives from the Latin Marcus, via the Greek Markos, and has been common since early Christian and medieval periods.

Written as Марко in Cyrillic scripts, the form is standard in Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, while Latin-script usage is typical elsewhere in the region. The name is typically pronounced with two syllables: MAR-ko.

As a given name, Marko has been borne by numerous athletes, artists, and public figures in the Balkans and beyond, reflecting its broad regional popularity. Its continued use in contemporary times is associated with cultural and sports circles in the former Yugoslav states and their expatriate communities.

Marko also appears as a surname in some cases, and it forms the basis of patronymic surnames such as Marković in Serbian and Croatian contexts (meaning “son of Marko”). Related given names in other languages include Marco, Mark, and Markus.