May
May was the 1233rd most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 183 babies. Its best year was 1880, when it ranked 57th; the most babies were born in 1919 (981). Over the last ten years it has moved up 419 places. More babies were named May in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Meaning (as Mae) pet form of Mary or Margaret · English
- Rank in 2025
- #1,233 girls, up 481 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 183girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 1919981 babies
- Total since 1880
- 50,099babies recorded
What does the name May mean?
May is a spelling of Mae, pronounced the same way, so it shares Mae's meaning and origin.
Mae is a spelling of May, a pet form of Mary or Margaret, as Wiktionary notes; the Random House dictionary calls it a form of Mary. It is popular as a middle name and was fashionable as a first name in the US around 1900, a style the actress Mae West made famous. DMNES notes that the meaning of Mary's Hebrew original is uncertain.
How sure is this? Well established. Mae is a pet form; its parent names have uncertain (Mary) or Greek ('pearl', Margaret) meanings.
Related names: May, Mary, Margaret, Maisie.
See also: English names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Mae', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary.com Unabridged (based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary), with Collins English Dictionary, s.v. 'Mae', Dictionary.com / Random House / HarperCollins
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources (ed. S. L. Uckelman), Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Mary', DMNES, Durham University
- CMU Pronouncing Dictionary (cmudict), Carnegie Mellon University
May popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 699 since 1882.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,233 | 183 |
| 2020 | #1,714 | 119 |
| 2010 | #1,892 | 107 |
| 2000 | #1,917 | 89 |
| 1990 | #1,751 | 84 |
| 1980 | #1,087 | 129 |
| 1970 | #1,210 | 93 |
| 1960 | #891 | 139 |
| 1950 | #623 | 184 |
| 1940 | #408 | 285 |
| 1930 | #270 | 554 |
| 1920 | #204 | 956 |
| 1910 | #138 | 594 |
| 1900 | #91 | 744 |
| 1890 | #65 | 751 |
| 1880 | #57 | 462 |
How popular is May, counting every spelling?
May is a spelling of Mae, a name family that ranked #366 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #1,233 for May on its own. Together these spellings went to 903 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mae | 594 | #501 | 3,007 |
| May | 183 | #1,233 | 785 |
| Mei | 117 | #1,744 | 418 |
| Maye | 9 | #10,614 | 50 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name May?
183 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named May (0.05 per 1,000 births). For a girl named May born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 46 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named May.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named May?
About 10,200 people born in the US named May are alive today, with a median age of 48; half are between 22 and 73. That makes May mostly worn by adults in their thirties to fifties. The wide spread shows a name popular in two different eras.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
May by state
How common May was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Utah (3.0×), Washington (2.0×), Colorado (1.9×). In 29 states fewer than five girls a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with May: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like May, they share its era and feel.
Questions about the name May
What does May mean?
May is a spelling of Mae, which means “pet form of Mary or Margaret” (English origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name May?
May was the 1233rd most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 183 babies. Its best year was 1880, when it ranked 57th; the most babies were born in 1919 (981). Over the last ten years it has moved up 419 places. More babies were named May in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Is May a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name May in the US.
Where is May most popular?
In 2021–2025, May was most common in Utah (0.29 per 1,000 girls), followed by Washington and Colorado.