Given name & surname
Maier
“giving light”·“a large man”·“a farmer”
Maier is a variant of Meir. One Hebrew interpretation is “giving light.” Maier is a variant of Mayer. Interpretations include “a large man”, “a farmer”, and “one who is shining bright”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Maier is a variant of Meir. One Hebrew interpretation is “giving light.” Maier is a variant of Mayer. Interpretations include “a large man”, “a farmer”, and “one who is shining bright”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Maier is a variant of Meir. An origin associated with Meir is Hebrew. Maier is a variant of Mayer. Mayer has been associated with Latin, German, and Hebrew naming traditions.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
In German usage, Maier as a surname developed from Majer.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 2013. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Maier through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 24
- 24 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2023
- 8 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for boys is 5 in 2024. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 13,479 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Maier’s family of names
In German usage, Maier as a surname developed from Majer. Maier has a related form in Meir. Maier has a related form in Mayer.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Maier has relatives in 3 languages.
13 related names in 3 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 11
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Meirvariant
- Meyervariant · German
- Mayervariant · German
- Meiervariant · German, English
- Meierlevariant · German
- Meyerlevariant · German
- Mayrvariant · German
- Maierlevariant · German
Show 3 moreShow fewer
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
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