Masterpiece Generator Name Generator
How popular is the name May?
Births per year, rank history and how many Mays are alive today.
May (female) is a shortened form of the name Mary. Although May itself was given to 64 babies in England and Wales in 2025 (ranked 610th as a registered name), most Mays are registered as Mary, which ranked 329th in 2025 with 131 babies.
Most people called May are registered as Mary, and share that name's profile: the Mary you are most likely to meet is around 81 years old. Half of all Maries born in England and Wales are between 71 and 86, and there are at least 250,000 of them alive today. Only some Marys go by May.
How many babies are named May or Mary each year?
Combined registrations of Mary, May. Figures before 1996 are estimates.
Where does Mary rank as a registered name?
Where does May rank as a registered name?
Where this data comes from
Figures from 1996 onwards are the Office for National Statistics' annual baby-name registrations for England and Wales, which record every name given to three or more babies in a year. Figures before 1996 are estimates: the ONS published only top-100 rankings at ten-year intervals back to 1904, so counts for those years are modelled from the rankings, calibrated against Douglas Galbi's long-run research into English name frequencies, and shown with an uncertainty band. Estimates of living bearers combine these birth figures with national life tables and ONS mid-year population estimates.
One limit worth naming: these figures count names as registered at birth. Anyone who changes their name later in life - including trans people, and anyone who adopts a different name by deed poll or simply by use - is not reflected here. Birth registrations record where a name began, not the name a person lives with.
Common questions
Is May short for Mary?
Yes - May is a shortened form of Mary. Mays are usually registered as Mary at birth.
When was the name May most popular?
The full name Mary peaked in 1904, when around 32,400 babies in England and Wales were given the name. May itself peaked as a registered name in 1904, with 3,033 babies.
How many people are called May?
There's no official count of people who go by May, because it's a nickname rather than a registered name. What we can say: at least 250,000 people registered as Mary born in England and Wales are alive today, and some of them go by May.
How old is the typical May?
Most people called May are registered as Mary. Most living Maries are between 71 and 86; the most common age is about 81.
Is May becoming more or less popular?
Well past its peak: today's figures are a fraction of the 1904 peak, though numbers have levelled off in recent years.