May
- Pronunciation
- [May]
- Gender
- Female
- Meaning
- Old Arabic Name; Meaning Unknown
- Origin
- Arabic
About the Name May
May presents a genuinely layered history. One tradition connects it to an old Arabic name of uncertain meaning, while in English-language naming May has historically functioned on multiple levels simultaneously: as a short form of Mary and Margaret, as an evocation of the month of May (itself derived from the Latin Maius, associated with the Roman goddess Maia, connected with spring and growth), and as a standalone name chosen for its botanical and seasonal brightness. This layered identity — part diminutive, part seasonal, part independent — has given May a resilience that single-etymology names often lack.
May appears in the US Social Security top-1000 from 1880 — its first and peak year, at rank #57 — and remained in the top-1000 through 1901, accumulating over 14,000 top-1000 births. Its early and relatively brief top-1000 run places it firmly in the late-Victorian era of American naming, when seasonal and floral names were at their height of fashion.
Today May functions most commonly as a middle name or as a standalone name chosen for its seasonal brightness and graceful single-syllable simplicity. Its compact form and open vowel give it a timeless, universal quality. Recorded variants include Mae, Maia, and Maya — each extending the same sound into slightly different cultural registers.
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration name data, 1880–2024 (methodology). By Marvin Tang.
Quick Facts About May
US Popularity History (1880–1901)
Annual US births named May by gender, from US Social Security Administration records. Peak year: 1888 with 782 girls named May (girl rank #63 that year).
Where it stands today: in 1901, ranked #95 for girls (550 US births). That's 32 places below its 1888 peak.
Source: US Social Security Administration. Limitations: US birth-certificate data only; names appearing fewer than 5 times in a given year are suppressed for privacy; spelling variants are counted separately. For names that ranked outside the US top 100 before year 2000, only the years they reached the top 100 are shown — the chart may have gaps for less-popular historical names.
Paste the snippet below on any HTML page. Includes a credit link back to 9BabyNames — please keep it intact.
Variant Forms
Looking for names like May?
A dedicated page with 60+ related names — spelling variants, rhymes, alliterations, same-origin matches, and shared meaning concepts — lives at its own URL so each kind of similarity gets a deeper treatment than fits here.
Compare May to Other Popular Names
Side-by-side popularity charts and crossover years for May against today's most popular girls-name peers (top 8 by US births in the last 10 years of SSA records).
May Baby Name Ideas
- Should You Use a Baby Name a Close Friend Has Already Chosen? A Real-Life Overlap Test
- Should Sibling Names Be Similar in Popularity? Building a Set Without Ranking the Children
- Amelia or Emilia? How to Hear the Different Openings, Initials, and Full-Name Rhythm
- Baby Names for Last Names Starting With C: Test Hard and Soft Openings Before You Commit
- Best Middle Names for Layla: Shape the L Rhythm, Open Ending, and Full-Name Flow
- Maya or Mia? How to Choose Between Two Short Names That Sound Closer Than They Look
- Should First and Middle Names Come From the Same Language or Origin? Mixing With a Clear Family Story
- When a Nickname Starts With a Different Letter From the Legal Name: Plan for Initials, Forms, and Daily Use
- Baby Names for Last Names Starting With L: Keep the Repeated L Clear Without Losing Flow
- Best Middle Names for Ella: Build Space After the Double L and Open-A Ending
- Ivy or Iris? How to Choose Between Two Short Botanical Names
- Can You Use a Different-Gender Name as an Honor Name? Building a Recognizable Family Connection
- Baby Names for Last Names Starting With T: Keep the T Seam Clear Without Overcorrecting
- Do You Need a One-Syllable Middle Name? When a Short Anchor Helps—and When It Flattens the Full Name
- What Is Teddy Short For? From Theodore and Edward to Standalone Teddy
- What Is Evie Short For? From Eve and Evelyn to Evangeline
- Baby Names for Last Names Starting With R: Manage the Repeated R Without Flattening the Surname
- Should Sibling Names Be Similar in Length? Pairing a Short Name With a Long One
- Should First and Middle Names Start With the Same Letter? Testing Alliteration Beyond the Monogram
- Best Middle Names for Lucy: Balance the Long-E Ending, Initials, and Surname