Menu

Maria

Heart
Hebrew or Egyptian
"drop of the sea, bitter, or beloved"

Maria Origin and Meaning

The name Maria is a girl's name of Aramaic, Latin origin meaning "drop of the sea, bitter, or beloved".

As a highly popular girls’ name in all Spanish-speaking countries, this saintly Latin variation of Mary retains a timeless beauty. Through the centuries, Maria remains one of the most widely-used girl names starting with M.

This widespread name understandably has produced notable namesakes in almost every field – opera's Maria Callas (born Sophia Cecelia), tennis's Sharapova, education's Montessori, ad infinitum. And she's been celebrated in song as well, from Ave Maria to the eponymous song in West Side Story to "How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?" in The Sound of Music.

While the usual English pronunciation these days is the same as it is in non-English-speaking countries – mah-REE-ah – the British used to pronounce it mah-RYE-ah, like Mariah Carey.

Maria ultimately dervies from the Hebrew name Maryam/Mariam. The original meaning of Maryam is uncertain, but theories include "drop of the sea" (from Hebrew roots mar "drop" and yam "sea"); "bitter" (from Hebrew marah "bitterness"); and "beloved" (from the Egyptian root mr).

# 91 in the US

Maria Rank in US Top 1000

# 521 on Nameberry

Maria Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Maria Popularity

20 Names Similar to Maria

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Maria.

Famous People Named Maria

  • Saint Maria GorettiItalian virgin martyr
  • Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia ChristinaHoly Roman Empress
  • Maria I (born Maria Francisca Isabel Josefa Antónia Gertrudes Rita Joana)Queen of Portugal
  • Maria II (born Maria da Glória Joana Carlota Leopoldina da Cruz Francisca Xavier de Paula Isidora Micaela Gabriela Rafaela Gonzaga)Queen of Portugal
  • Maria of MontferratQueen of Jerusalem
  • Maria VladimirovnaGrand Duchess of Russia
  • Maria Feodorovna (born Marie Sophie Frederikke Dagmar)Empress consort of Alexander III of Russia
  • Maria of AustriaHoly Roman Empress consort of Maximilian II
  • Maria Anna of SpainHoly Roman Empress consort of Ferdinand III
  • Maria KomneneQueen consort of Amalric I of Jerusalem
  • Maria of AragonQueen consort of Manuel I of Portugal
  • Maria Pia of SavoyQueen consort of Luís I of Portugal
  • Maria of RomaniaQueen consort of Alexander of Yugoslavia
  • Maria of BytomQueen consort of Charles I of Hungary
  • Maria KazimieraQueen consort of Jan III Sobieski of Poland
  • Maria Luisa of ParmaQueen consort of Charles IV of Spain
  • Maria Christina Henriette Desideria Felicitas Raineria of AustriaQueen consort of Alfonso XII of Spain
  • María Teresa Mestre y BatistaGrand Duchess consort of Henri of Luxembourg
  • Maria NikolaevnaGrand Duchess of Russia, daughter of Nicholas II
  • Maria AlexandrovnaGrand Duchess of Russia, Duchess of Edinburgh
  • Maria Pavlovna the YoungerGrand Duchess of Russia, Duchess of Södermanland
  • (Ludovica Teresa) Maria Clotilde of SavoyPrincess Napoléon
  • Maria Owings ShriverAmerican journalist
  • Maria Callas (b. Sophia Cecelia Kalos)Greek,born opera singer
  • Maria Yuryevna SharapovaRussian tennis player
  • Maria Romanovna SotskovaRussian Figure skater
  • Maria Ewingopera singer & Rebecca Hall's mother
  • Maria Yuryevna KirilenkoRussian tennis player
  • Maria Louise KanellisAmerican pro wrestler
  • Mari­a Jose Marti­nez SanchezSpanish tennis player
  • Maria Teresa DizziaAmerican actress
  • Maria PitilloAmerican actress
  • Maria LewisReynolds, Alexander Hamilton's mistress
  • Maria HesterU.S. President James Monroe's child
  • Maria de Lourdes Villiers "Mia" FarrowAmerican actress
  • Maria GoeppertMayer, physicist & Nobel prize winner
  • Maria V SnyderAmerican novelist
  • Maria Gripe (Maja Stina Walter)Swedish children's novelist
  • Maria Augusta von TrappAustrian singer (Sound of Music)
  • Maria Muldaur (Maria D'Amato)American singer,songwriter
  • Maria EdgeworthAnglo,Irish children's novelist
  • Maria MenounosAmerican actress and TV presenter
  • Maria Anna Walburga Ignatia MozartAustrian musician
  • Maria Margarethe Anna SchellAustrian,Swiss actress
  • Maria Sara BartiromoAmerican journalist
  • Maria Mazowieckaprincess of Masovia
  • Maria Antonina (Maryla) RodowiczPolish singer
  • Maria Zofia DulębaPolish actress
  • Maria aka GentlewhisperingYouTuber
  • Maria Adeladaughter of American actress Penelope Miller
  • Maria MakinoJapanese pop singer and member of Morning Musume
  • Maria TolkachevaRussian rhythmic gymnast
  • Maria KravtsovaRussian rhythmic gymnast
  • Anastasia Maria DogrammatziGreek rhythmic gymnast
  • Maria Ioanna MandellouGreek rhythmic gymnast
  • Maria Sol Perezmodel called "Argentina's hottest weather girl"
  • Maria MontessoriItalian physician and educator
  • Maria ReicheGerman archaeologist
  • Maria Sibylla MerianGerman naturalist
  • Maria Teresa MirabalDominican activist

Maria in Pop Culture

  • Maria von Trappmain character in "The Sound of Music"
  • Maria Nunezmain character in musical "West Side Story"
  • Maria Merryweathercharacter in "The Little White Horse"
  • Maria Wongcharacter in animated series "Braceface"
  • Maria Moonlitor Alice Merry,Go,Round, mother of Adam Moonlit and false prophet in the Evillious Chronicles
  • Maria Ruizcharacter on TV's "Orange Is the New Black"
  • Maria HillMarvel comics and movies character
  • Maria Starkcharacter from Marvel's Iron Man and mother of Tony Stark
  • Mariacharacter from video game Silent Hill 2
  • Mariacharacter from Shakespeare's "Love's Labour's Lost"
  • Mariawall 'protecting' humanity in anime 'Attack on Titan'
  • Maria Duszynskacharacter from Wood's "Night Trains"
  • Maria Jane Connorfrom British soap "Coronation Street"
  • Maria Santos Greycharacter on soap "All My Children"
  • Maria Robertscharacter on soap "One Life to Live"
  • Mariamaid in Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night"
  • Maria Mendozacharacter in "The House of the Scorpion"
  • Maria Diascharacter in G. A. Henty's "Treasure of the Incas"
  • María Posadacharacter in animated film "The Book of Life"
  • Mariacharacter on TV's "Sesame Street"
  • Maria Bertramcharacter in Jane Austen's novel "Mansfield Park"
  • Maria Nikolaevna Bolkonskayacharacter in "War & Peace"
  • Maria Akizukicharacter in "From the New World"
  • Maria "Masha" Ovchinnikovacharacter in "Not Dead or Undead"
  • Maria Stokescharacter in the Addicted Series
  • Cala Mariacharacter in the videogame “Cuphead”
  • "Maria" song by Green Day
  • "O Maria" song by Beck
  • "Maria" song by Ricky Martin
  • "Maria" song by Blondie
  • "Ave Maria" religious song
  • "They Call the Wind Maria" song in "Paint Your Wagon"
  • "Maria" song by Hwasa
  • Maria Renardcharacter in the video game series "Castlevania"