Contents [hide]

Mai History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Mai History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Germany
Italy
Ireland
Scotland

The ancient Norman culture that was established in England after the Conquest of 1066 produced the name of Mai. It was given to a person born or baptized in the month of May. The name Mai is derived from the Old French word mai, which has cognates in the other European languages that were all derived from the Latin word Maius. 1

Robert, Ralph de Mai and Robert Mai were listed in Normandy 1180-1198 (Magni Rotuli Scaccarii Normanniae) 2

Early Origins of the Mai family

The surname Mai was first found in Lincolnshire where Johannes filius Maie was listed in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1274. A few years later, Elenza May was found in the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire in 1301 and the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 includes an entry for May de Hindley. William Mai was found in the Pipe Rolls of Norfolk in 1167 and a later Pipe Rolls included William le Mal in 1177. Thomas le Mey and Goscelin Mey were both listed in Suffolk in 1221. 3

The Hundredorum Rolls also includes: Richard le May, Huntingdonshire; Bateman le May, Bedfordshire; Cristin le May, Cambridgeshire; Roger filius Maye, Shropshire; John Filius Maye, Lincolnshire; and Emman le May, Oxfordshire. 4

In Scotland, "William May rendered homage at Berwick, 1291. David May had a feud of the lands of Chapeltoun of Both from the Abbey of Culross, 1587. Alexander May appears in Bourhillis, Aberdeenshire, 1597 and John Maii in Harvestoun in Tillycultrie, 1638, and Robert Maii in Dunglas, 1640. The family is associated with Clan Macdonald where it is a form of Omay." 5

Early History of the Mai family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Mai research. Another 77 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1291, 1573, 1604, 1605, 1611, 1614, 1621, 1624, 1625, 1626, 1628, 1629, 1630, 1640, 1642, 1655, 1665, 1684, 1685, 1698, 1797 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Mai History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Mai Spelling Variations

Multitudes of spelling variations are a hallmark of Anglo Norman names. Most of these names evolved in the 11th and 12th century, in the time after the Normans introduced their own Norman French language into a country where Old and Middle English had no spelling rules and the languages of the court were French and Latin. To make matters worse, medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, so names frequently appeared differently in the various documents in which they were recorded. The name was spelled May, Mai, Maye and others.

Early Notables of the Mai family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Sir Humphrey May (1573-1630), an English politician, Member of Parliament for Bere Alston (1605-1611), Westminster (1614), Lancaster (1621-1624) and 1625, and Leicester (1624-1625) and (1626-1629); Thomas May (c.1604-1655), an English...
Another 37 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Mai Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Mai Ranking

In the United States, the name Mai is the 6,692^nd most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 6 However, in France, the name Mai is ranked the 3,918^th most popular surname with an estimated 1,500 - 2,000 people with that name. 7

Migration of the Mai family to Ireland

Some of the Mai family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 93 words (7 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Mai migration to the United States +

Because of this political and religious unrest within English society, many people decided to immigrate to the colonies. Families left for Ireland, North America, and Australia in enormous numbers, traveling at high cost in extremely inhospitable conditions. The New World in particular was a desirable destination, but the long voyage caused many to arrive sick and starving. Those who made it, though, were welcomed by opportunities far greater than they had known at home in England. Many of these families went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Mai or a variant listed above:

Mai Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Friederic Mai, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1749 8
Christoph Mai, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1754 8

Mai Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Maria Margaretha Mai, who landed in North America in 1838 8
Philipp, II Mai, who arrived in North America in 1838 8
John Mai, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1843 8
Joh Anton Mai, who arrived in America in 1849 8
Jakob Mai, who landed in New York, NY in 1852 8
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Mai (post 1700) +

Angelo Mai (1782-1854), Italian Cardinal and philologist
Mai Shanley (b. 1963), American beauty queen and pageant holder, Miss New Mexico USA 1984
Mai Zetterling (1925-1994), Swedish actress/film director
Mai F. Surran, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from New Jersey, 1948 9

Historic Events for the Mai family +

Bismarck

Fritz Mai (1919-1941), German Matrosengefreiter who served aboard the German Battleship Bismarck during World War II when it was sunk heading to France; he died in the sinking 10

Citations +

Barber, Henry, British Family Names London: Elliot Stock, 62 Paternoster Row, 1894. Print.
The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 8) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Bismarck & Tirpitz Class - Crew List Bismarck. (Retrieved 2018, February 06). Retrieved from https://www.bismarck-class.dk/bismarck/crew/bismarck_crew.html#crew_details