May
Girl nameMay has been given to 50,099 babies in the U.S. since 1880. It peaked in 1919.
Meaning & origin /meɪ/
From Middle English May, Mai, from Old French mai, from Latin Maius (“Maia's month”), from Maia, a Roman earth goddess.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Popularity over time births per year, 1880–2025
Total babies
50,099
Peak year
1919 (991 babies)
Rank in 2025
Below top 1000
First recorded
1880
10-year trend
▲ +41%
Gender split
99% girls / 1% boys
Rank through the decades
May's rank among U.S. girl names at 25-year milestones.
| Year | Girls rank |
|---|---|
| 1900 | #91 |
| 1925 | #221 |
| 1950 | #623 |
— means outside the top 1000 that year.
Spellings & variants
Names one letter away from May — alternate spellings parents actually use.
Famous people named May
May Whitty
English actress (1865-1948)
May Robson
Australian-born American actress (1858-1942)
Edna May Oliver
American actress (1883–1942)
May Calamawy
Egyptian-Palestinian actress
Notability data from Wikidata (CC0).
Names with a similar vibe
Same primary gender, peaked around the same years, and roughly as common as May.
FAQ
How popular is the name May?
May has been given to 50,099 babies in the U.S. since 1880. It ranked below the top 1000 in 2025.
When did the name May peak?
May peaked in 1919, when 991 babies were given the name.
Is May a girl or boy name?
May is primarily a girl name (99% of babies named May are girls).
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