NameTides

May

May was the #1,229 girls' name in the US in 2025 (183 babies), and #610 in England & Wales and #1,882 in Canada.

May as a girl’s name

  • US
  • England & Wales
  • Scotland
  • Northern Ireland
  • Ireland
  • Canada
May as a girl’s name, US, England & Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Ireland, CanadaBabies per 1,000 in the published list, 1880–2025, for US, England & Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Ireland, Canada. Gaps mark years with too few babies to be published.02.557.51018801900192019401960198020002020ScotlandEngland & WalesIrelandUSCanada
May as a girl’s name, US, England & Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Ireland, CanadaBabies per 1,000 in the published list, 1880–2025, for US, England & Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Ireland, Canada. Gaps mark years with too few babies to be published.02.557.5101880192019602000
Babies per 1,000 of the same sex in each published list. Breaks in a line are years with too few babies to be published.
Show the numbers
YearUSEngland & WalesScotlandNorthern IrelandIrelandCanada
2025#1,229 (183)#610 (64)#301 (11)—#718 (4)#1,882 (12)
2024#1,358 (168)#610 (64)—#407 (3)#342 (11)#1,032 (26)
2023#1,430 (156)#637 (57)——#262 (15)#831 (33)
2022#1,443 (155)#630 (60)——#304 (14)#781 (35)
2021#1,680 (123)#654 (59)#442 (7)—#299 (14)#1,110 (23)
2020#1,704 (119)#631 (60)#471 (6)—#315 (13)#942 (28)
2019#1,598 (133)#737 (52)#560 (5)#424 (3)#325 (13)#1,067 (24)
2018#1,640 (129)#778 (49)#809 (3)—#361 (12)#1,062 (24)
2017#1,677 (128)#683 (60)#570 (5)#355 (4)#289 (16)#1,230 (20)
2016#1,649 (131)#567 (74)#675 (4)#276 (6)#515 (7)#1,533 (15)
2015#1,643 (130)#643 (64)—#426 (3)#402 (11)#1,016 (25)
2014#1,569 (138)#576 (73)#537 (6)#365 (4)#353 (13)#1,229 (20)
2013#1,849 (109)#515 (81)#816 (3)#440 (3)#424 (10)#1,165 (21)
2012#1,886 (106)#493 (89)#665 (4)—#677 (5)#1,350 (18)
2011#2,156 (88)#414 (106)#579 (5)—#359 (13)#2,009 (10)

The tide so far

  • Peaked in the US in 1880 at #57.
  • Rising over the last five years.
  • In the US records since the data begins in 1880.
  • In 1996, 94% of US babies named May were girls.

How common is it?

about 1 in 8,800 baby girls in the published US list for 2025.

In a group of 1,000 children born that year, you would expect to meet fewer than 1. How we work this out.

How common, country by country

WhereSexLatest yearShareVerdict
USGirls2025about 1 in 8,800uncommon
England & WalesGirls2025about 1 in 4,000uncommon
ScotlandGirls2025about 1 in 1,600uncommon
IrelandGirls2025about 1 in 5,300uncommon
CanadaGirls2025about 1 in 13,000rare

Next year

On its recent trend, May is likely to keep rising in the US in 2026: about 1 in 7,900 baby girls. Likely range 1 in 7,000 to 1 in 8,900.

Estimate, not an official figure. How we estimate.

Across the US

May by state, 2025Alaska: fewer than 5 babiesAKMaine: fewer than 5 babiesMEWisconsin: fewer than 5 babiesWIVermont: fewer than 5 babiesVTNew Hampshire: fewer than 5 babiesNHWashington: #541WAIdaho: fewer than 5 babiesIDMontana: fewer than 5 babiesMTNorth Dakota: fewer than 5 babiesNDMinnesota: fewer than 5 babiesMNIllinois: #1,405ILMichigan: #1,061MINew York: #1,418NYMassachusetts: #873MAOregon: #483ORNevada: fewer than 5 babiesNVWyoming: fewer than 5 babiesWYSouth Dakota: fewer than 5 babiesSDIowa: fewer than 5 babiesIAIndiana: fewer than 5 babiesINOhio: #1,438OHPennsylvania: #1,015PANew Jersey: #1,168NJConnecticut: fewer than 5 babiesCTRhode Island: fewer than 5 babiesRICalifornia: #1,185CAUtah: #605UTColorado: #634CONebraska: fewer than 5 babiesNEMissouri: #926MOKentucky: fewer than 5 babiesKYWest Virginia: fewer than 5 babiesWVVirginia: fewer than 5 babiesVAMaryland: #731MDDelaware: fewer than 5 babiesDEArizona: fewer than 5 babiesAZNew Mexico: fewer than 5 babiesNMKansas: fewer than 5 babiesKSArkansas: fewer than 5 babiesARTennessee: fewer than 5 babiesTNNorth Carolina: fewer than 5 babiesNCSouth Carolina: fewer than 5 babiesSCDistrict of Columbia: fewer than 5 babiesDCOklahoma: fewer than 5 babiesOKLouisiana: fewer than 5 babiesLAMississippi: fewer than 5 babiesMSAlabama: fewer than 5 babiesALGeorgia: fewer than 5 babiesGAHawaii: fewer than 5 babiesHITexas: #1,460TXFlorida: #1,887FL
May (girls) rank in each state, 2025. Hatched states recorded fewer than 5 babies.
  • #1–10
  • #11–50
  • #51–100
  • #101–500
  • below #500

Across Canada

ProvinceYearRankBabies
Ontario2024#93212

May (girls): rank in each province’s latest list. Only Quebec and Ontario publish full name lists; Ontario’s latest list is a year behind.

Spellings

Official statistics count each spelling separately, so we show them side by side rather than adding them up.

SpellingWhereSexLatest rankBabies
MayCanadaGirls#1,88212
MayEngland & WalesGirls#61064
MayIrelandGirls#7184
MayNorthern IrelandGirls—too few
MayScotlandGirls#30111
MayUSGirls#1,229183
MayUSBoys—too few