MEANING & HISTORY
What does Maya mean?
Maya has independent traditions. Sanskrit maya refers to illusion or a creative appearance of the world, with philosophical and religious uses.
Other naming routes represent Maria or Greek Maia. These do not share one root simply because they have the same Latin spelling. A specific bearer’s intended tradition needs separate evidence.
References for this explanation
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.
English
- /maɪ.ə/Received-Pronunciation · US
- /mæɪ.ə/Australia
- /mɑe.ə/Australia
- /ˈmaɪə/
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.
EnglishEtymology & source
From Maria, ultimately from Hebrew, From Maia, from Latin, from Ancient Greek Μαῖα (Maîa)
A female given name; A female given name from Hebrew, of modern usage, variant of Maria, equivalent to English Mary; A female given name from Latin, variant of Maia, equivalent to English May; A female given name from Greek
EnglishEtymology & source
Transliteration of Sanskrit माया (māyā).
A female given name from Sanskrit used in India.
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 Maya
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
Maya Barredo
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
Wikidata
1
distinct person records with an explicit given-name claim
Community-edited coverage, not a census or birth registry. Examples: Maya Barredo
PSA · OFFICIAL BIRTH RECORDS
Maya in the birth records
Exact spelling and stated year in the published name tables. Read the counts as individual snapshots.
Tables included: 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024. The 2016 fact sheet lists five names per sex; the later tables include ten. Missing counts are not inferred. Sex categories follow the official tables, independently of dictionary gender labels. Explore the official tables →
Similar names to Maya
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
- Aya♀Colour in 彩 or design in 綾 in Japanese
- Mara♀Bitter in Hebrew, or a Maria/Tamara short form
- May♀Month-name, or a familiar form of longer names
- Taya·Russian familiar form of Taisiya
- Maan♀Tagalog familiar compound-name form; Dutch Herman form also exists
- Mac♂Son; through Gaelic surname traditions
- Macy·Surname from the French place name Massy
- Mae♀Variant of May, the month-name or familiar form
What rhymes with Maya?
Matches share a dictionary-supplied rhyme key in the stated language. Check the recorded reading; another language or accent can change the rhyme.
Explore Maya further
Follow the sources
- Wikidata given-name item Q935522 — Maya (opens in a new tab)
Given-name identity, native labels, language associations and explicit class where present; not lexical meaning or population frequency.
- Wikidata — Maya Barredo (opens in a new tab)
Explicit given-name claim P735 linking to Q935522 and citizenship claim P27 linking to Philippines Q928; community-edited evidence, not a civil-registry record.
- Wiktionary contributors — Maya (English) (opens in a new tab)
Language-specific given-name etymology; shared spelling does not prove every bearer has this origin.
- Wiktionary: Maya (opens in a new tab)
Personal-name formation and etymological relationships; imported dictionary account consulted.
- Behind the Name: maya-1 (opens in a new tab)
Independently consulted exact source-name relationship and qualifications.
- Behind the Name: maya-2 (opens in a new tab)
Independently consulted exact source-name relationship and qualifications.