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    The first name May

    A girl’s name from French meaning “maia's month”.

    Pronounced /meɪ/ 1 syllable Female Also a surname

    Meaning and origin

    French origin

    May means “maia's month” in French.

    From Middle English May, Mai, from Old French mai, from Latin Maius (“Maia's month”), from Maia, a Roman earth goddess.

    From Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

    Popularity

    Babies registered in England and Wales, 1996–2025

    In 2025, 64 girls were named May, making it the 610th most popular girls’ name. It peaked in 2007, with 137 births (#325).

    0100200 1996200020052010201520202025
    2,173
    babies named May, 1996–2025
    #610
    rank in 2025
    2007
    peak year

    Office for National Statistics; years with fewer than three births are not published and show as zero. Compare May with other names.

    Popularity in the United States

    Babies named May at birth, 1880–2025

    In 2025, 183 girls born in the United States were named May, the 1,233rd most popular girls’ name that year. It was used most in 1919, when 981 were.

    05001,000 188018851890189519001905191019151920192519301935194019451950195519601965197019751980198519901995200020052010201520202025
    50,099
    babies named May since 1880
    #1,233
    rank in 2025
    1919
    peak year

    US Social Security Administration, from applications for a Social Security card. A name is only published for a year when at least five babies were given it, so quieter years show as zero.

    May in other languages

    Equivalent forms of the name, from Wiktionary

    梅
    méi
    Chinese
    Touko
    Finnish, also touko, toukok.
    מַאי
    may
    Hebrew, also מַאיָה
    Maja
    Hungarian, also máj.
    Maija
    Latvian
    Ма́йя
    Májja
    Russian
    Máj
    Slovene, also Mája
    Maj
    Swedish, also May
    մյս
    mys
    Armenian
    kvě
    Czech
    მაი.
    mai.
    Georgian
    Μάι
    Mái
    Greek, also Μαΐ, λευκάκανθα
    mag.
    Italian, also mag
    geg.
    Lithuanian
    mai.
    Portuguese
    may.
    Spanish, also may
    May.
    Tagalog, also May
    трав.
    trav.
    Ukrainian
    thg 5
    Vietnamese

    Spelled May in Turkish too.

    Nicknames and spellings

    Other spellings and forms

    Famous people named May

    68 on Wikidata, most written-about first

    • Louisa May Alcott
      American novelist (1832–1888)
    • Anna May Wong
      Chinese American actress (1905-1961)
    • May Whitty
      English actress (1865-1948)
    • May Robson
      Australian-born American actress (1858-1942)
    • Edna May Oliver
      American actress (1883–1942)
    • Ethel May Collins
      English supercentenarian (born 1909)
    • May Calamawy
      Egyptian-Palestinian actress, born 1986
    • May McAvoy
      American actress (1899–1984)
    • May Pang
      American former music executive, born 1950
    • May Allison
      American actress (1890–1989)
    • Ina May Gaskin
      American midwife (*1940)
    • May el-Toukhy
      Danish-Egyptian film director and screenwriter, born 1977

    More French girls’ names

    All 210 names of French origin

    Questions

    What does the name May mean?
    May means “maia's month” in French.
    What is the origin of the name May?
    From Middle English May, Mai, from Old French mai, from Latin Maius (“Maia's month”), from Maia, a Roman earth goddess.
    How popular is the name May?
    In 2025, 64 girls born in England and Wales were named May, ranking 610th. Its peak was 2007, with 137 births.
    Is May a boy's or a girl's name?
    Mostly a girl's name: 99% of the 50,099 US babies named May since 1880 were girls.
    When was May most popular?
    1919 in the United States, when 981 babies were named May, its highest rank at 194th.
    How do you pronounce May?
    May is /meɪ/, one syllable.
    What are other spellings of May?
    Ma and Mae.
    Is May also a surname?
    Yes. May is used as a surname as well as a first name; its surname page has the origin and how many people carry it.