THE MEANING & THE CONTEXT
The story behind May
May is recorded as a female given name in Tagalog and Cebuano. The source gives a linguistic connection through English, specifically the form May. Quoted root glosses describe elements in the etymology, not an automatic translation of the complete personal name. The source expresses uncertainty; this account keeps that qualification.
Pronunciation & syllables
Dictionary readings are kept by language. Select the reading that matches your intended pronunciation. Dots show the source’s written divisions; they are not a universal syllable count across languages.
Tagalog
- /ˈmej/Standard-Tagalog
- [ˈmeɪ̯]Standard-Tagalog
May1 source divisions
Dictionary reading & contributors ↗Wiktionary contributors / Kaikki / Wiktextract · CC BY-SA 4.0
Origin and name formation
Language-specific accounts from the dictionary. A shared spelling can have more than one history.
TagalogEtymology & source
Borrowed from English May.
a female given name from English
CebuanoEtymology & source
From English May, from Middle English, from Old English, from Old French mai, from Latin maius (“Maia's month”), from Maia, a Roman earth goddess, possibly from Proto-Indo-European *magya (“she who is great”), from Proto-Indo-European base *meg- (“great”).
a female given name from English
EnglishEtymology & source
From Middle English May, Mai, from Old French mai, from Latin Maius (“Maia's month”), from Maia, a Roman earth goddess.
A female given name, usually pet name for Mary and Margaret, reinforced by the month and plant meaning.
Adapted from Wiktionary contributors via Kaikki/Wiktextract. Source accounts remain in their original English; editorial summaries and filters are adapted. Attribution and downloads
People with the name May
Public figures and other documented namesakes linked by an explicit given-name claim. This is a selection of records, not a popularity ranking.
DOCUMENTED NAMESAKE
May Ling Su
Filipino pornographic actress
DOCUMENTED NAMESAKE
May Villarica
actor
The record establishes the name association, not the person’s intended meaning, pronunciation or ancestry. Descriptions are attributed to Wikidata contributors (CC0).
Use in Philippine-linked records
Public-record transcription
2
eligible source records · 2001
This spelling is reported in an openly licensed transcription of elected-candidate records. This is a record count, not a birth count or national popularity measure.
OpenHalalan / COMELEC ↗Wikidata
2
distinct person records with an explicit given-name claim
Community-edited coverage, not a census or birth registry. Examples: May Ling Su, May Villarica
PSA · OFFICIAL BIRTH RECORDS
May in the birth records
Exact spelling, stated year, published top-ten tables. Read the counts as individual snapshots.
Available publications: 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024. No 2021 count is inferred. Sex categories follow the official tables, independently of dictionary gender labels. Explore the official tables →
Similar names to May
Names with a similar opening or ending, ordered by spelling distance. Similar spelling does not imply the same meaning or origin.
Names in this collection
- Mac♂Name formation documented in dictionary sources
- Macy·Name formation documented in dictionary sources
- Mae♀Name formation documented in dictionary sources
- Maj♀Given name documented in Philippine-linked records; lexical meaning not established here
- Mar♂Given name documented in Philippine-linked records; lexical meaning not established here
- Mary♀Etymology uncertain; see source accounts
- Maan♀Short form of Maria Ana, Maria Angela, Maria Angelica, Mary Ann, and Marie Antoinette
- Macky♂♀Given name documented in Philippine-linked records; lexical meaning not established here
What rhymes with May?
Matches share a dictionary-supplied rhyme key in the stated language. Check the recorded reading; another language or accent can change the rhyme.
- GayTagalog · /-ej/
- KayeTagalog · /-ej/
- MaeTagalog · /-ej/
- JayEnglish · /-eɪ/
- JoseEnglish · /-eɪ/
- RaeEnglish · /-eɪ/
- RayEnglish · /-eɪ/
- ReaEnglish · /-eɪ/
Names with a similar written ending
Spelling suggestions; these are not verified phonetic rhymes.
Explore May further
Follow the sources
- OpenHalalan — pinned 2001 COMELEC transcription (opens in a new tab)
Source-reported given-name form in a row with a separate explicit middle initial; ODbL-1.0.
- COMELEC — 2001 List of Elected Candidates (opens in a new tab)
Original document identified by the transcription; selected PDF entries were spot-checked, not every imported row.
- Wikidata given-name item Q1746523 — May (opens in a new tab)
Given-name identity, native labels, language associations and explicit class where present; not lexical meaning or population frequency.
- Wikidata — May Ling Su (opens in a new tab)
Explicit given-name claim P735 linking to Q1746523 and citizenship claim P27 linking to Philippines Q928; community-edited evidence, not a civil-registry record.
- Wikidata — May Villarica (opens in a new tab)
Explicit given-name claim P735 linking to Q1746523 and citizenship claim P27 linking to Philippines Q928; community-edited evidence, not a civil-registry record.
- Wiktionary contributors — May (Tagalog) (opens in a new tab)
Explicit given-name sense and separately attributed etymology; no birth-frequency claim.
- Wiktionary contributors — May (Cebuano) (opens in a new tab)
Explicit given-name sense and separately attributed etymology; no birth-frequency claim.
- Wiktionary contributors — May (English) (opens in a new tab)
Language-specific given-name etymology; shared spelling does not prove every bearer has this origin.