Given name & surname · also German, Latin
Mayer
“a large man”·“a farmer”·“one who is shining bright”
Mayer is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “a large man”, “a farmer”, and “one who is shining bright”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Original GermanMeyer
Meaning & origin
What it means
Interpretations include “a large man”, “a farmer”, and “one who is shining bright”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Where it comes from
This spelling has been associated with Latin, German, and Hebrew naming traditions.
How it developed
In English usage, Mayer as a surname developed from MIRE.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1912. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Mayer through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 2,613
- 2,545 boys · 68 girls
- Most popular year
- 2024
- 100 babies
- 2025
- 92
- #1,898 for boys · #10,615 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +27%
- Rising
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 83 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 1,898 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 22.4% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. It also appeared in 9 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, New York had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (39). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,919 as a first name in 2020; 37,738 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.
Mayer’s family of names
In English usage, Mayer as a surname developed from the French form MIRE. Mayer has a related form in Meir. Mayer has a related form in Mayur.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Mayer has relatives in 5 languages. Lines run from its Hebrew roots to each of them.
18 related names in 5 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 22
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
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.
People named Mayer
- Mayer Amschel RothschildJewish German banker (1744–1812)
- Marcel SchwobFrench writer (1867–1905)
- Mayer Carl von RothschildGerman banker (1820-1886)
- Chic HechtAmerican politician (1928-2006)
- Mayer MizrachiPanamanian politician and entrepreneurborn 1950
- Mayer GilSalvadoran-Colombian footballerborn 2003
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Mayer, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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