Maia | Name Meaning & Origin

Mythological Names, Roman Names, Greek Mythological Names

English speaking countries

Of uncertain meaning, Maia appears in both Greek and Roman mythologies.
It might come from the Old Greek word for mother or nurse. The root 'ma' means motherhood.
Her name could also derived from the root mai- "great", seen also in Latin maior "larger".

In Greek mythology, she was the eldest of the Pleiades, the most beautiful and shyest. She is also the goddess of fields. In a cave of Cyllene, Maia became by Zeus the mother of the god Hermes.

In Roman mythology Maia was identified with Maia Maiestas (also called Fauna, Bona Dea, and Ops), a goddess who may be equivalent to the goddess of spring.
Maia is associated to Vulcan as his wife. The goddess was accessible only to women; men were excluded from her precincts.
The month of May was named for her.