girls' name ★ peaked 1927

Mavis

Gender Girl · 1% boys Rank 2025 #561 Trend ↑ Rising 71%

Coined at the end of the 19th century from mavis, a poetical name for the song thrush.

Rank 2025
#561
among girls · ↑5 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
537
named Mavis · +1% vs 2024
How common
1 in 2,993
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1927
603 babies
All-time total
23,150
#966 all-time among girls
First recorded
1893
in Social Security records

Mavis popularity over time

23,150 babies have been named Mavis since 1893, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.190.380.560.7518801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – – – –
1890s 58 – 58 6 – #963
1900s 235 – 235 24 +305% #699
1910s 1,708 10 1,718 172 +631% #334
1920s 5,529 68 5,597 560 +226% #270
1930s 4,508 42 4,550 455 -19% #279
1940s 2,697 10 2,707 271 -41% #354
1950s 1,722 – 1,722 172 -36% #551
1960s 987 5 992 99 -42% #836
1970s 335 – 335 34 -66% #1,874
1980s 176 – 176 18 -47% #3,037
1990s 131 – 131 13 -26% #4,797
2000s 128 – 128 13 -2% #7,692
2010s 2,097 – 2,097 210 +1538% #790
2020s (to 2025) 2,704 – 2,704 451 +115% #561

Where Mavis is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 586 0.36 outside top 500
2027 630 0.39 #482
2028 671 0.42 #461
2029 707 0.44 #437
2030 740 0.46 #423

Where Mavis is most popular

Girls named Mavis per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.293 per 1,000. Strongest in Idaho, Oklahoma, and Alaska.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Mavis born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Idaho 42 1.26 +328%
Oklahoma 61 0.829 +183%
Alaska 7 0.813 +177%
West Virginia 21 0.801 +173%
Indiana 105 0.748 +155%
Missouri 87 0.722 +146%
Nebraska 25 0.695 +137%
Kansas 39 0.676 +131%
Oregon 43 0.660 +125%
New Mexico 16 0.658 +124%
Arkansas 34 0.643 +119%
Wisconsin 66 0.641 +119%
Utah 52 0.625 +113%
Iowa 32 0.548 +87%
Michigan 98 0.538 +83%
Washington 75 0.519 +77%
Minnesota 52 0.482 +64%
Ohio 109 0.459 +57%
North Dakota 6 0.456 +56%
Arizona 60 0.428 +46%
Tennessee 67 0.423 +44%
Colorado 47 0.421 +44%
Kentucky 35 0.409 +40%
Montana 5 0.369 +26%
Nevada 16 0.344 +17%
North Carolina 77 0.338 +15%
Illinois 72 0.315 +7%
California 253 0.301 ≈ national
Virginia 51 0.299 ≈ national
Texas 228 0.283 ≈ national
Pennsylvania 58 0.245 -16%
Alabama 23 0.245 -16%
South Carolina 22 0.245 -17%
Georgia 50 0.220 -25%
Florida 75 0.175 -40%
Maryland 17 0.160 -45%
Louisiana 12 0.137 -53%
New York 45 0.114 -61%
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Massachusetts – – –
Maine – – –
Mississippi – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Jersey – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Dakota – – –
Vermont – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Mavis

Mavis is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #561 in 2025 with 537 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1893, 23,150 American babies have been named Mavis. Its peak came in 1927, when 603 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1920s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Mavis stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Mavis?

The median living Mavis is about 55 years old; half are between 6 and 78. An estimated 11 thousand people named Mavis are alive in the United States today.

median 55 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Mavis year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 537 #561 – –
2024 533 #566 – –
2023 502 #595 – –
2022 429 #682 – –
2021 378 #755 – –
2020 325 #841 – –
2019 321 #842 – –
2018 304 #890 – –
2017 342 #800 – –
2016 361 #790 – –
2015 269 #1,004 – –
2014 232 #1,103 – –
2013 167 #1,389 – –
2012 43 #3,688 – –
2011 39 #3,886 – –
2010 19 #6,811 – –
2009 16 #7,946 – –
2008 11 #10,546 – –
2007 13 #9,366 – –
2006 12 #9,698 – –
2005 12 #9,244 – –
2004 15 #7,692 – –
2003 13 #8,320 – –
2002 12 #8,640 – –
2001 12 #8,549 – –
2000 12 #8,367 – –
1995 14 #6,498 – –
1990 16 #5,730 – –
1985 13 #5,560 – –
1980 24 #3,465 – –
1975 27 #2,782 – –
1970 45 #1,924 – –
1965 70 #1,299 – –
1960 134 #918 – –
1955 171 #726 – –
1950 209 #579 – –
1945 229 #477 – –
1940 333 #354 – –
1935 406 #304 8 #2,864
1930 531 #282 6 #3,861
1925 579 #277 9 #3,060
1920 487 #295 13 #2,410
1915 264 #372 – –
1910 37 #701 – –
1905 18 #890 – –
1900 19 #877 – –
1895 12 #963 – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Mavis

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Mavis Staples Mavis Staples American R&B and gospel singer (born 1939) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Mavis, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Mavis?

The median living Mavis is about 55 years old. Half of all living Maviss are between 6 and 78 years old.

How many people named Mavis are alive today?

An estimated 11 thousand people named Mavis are alive in the United States, based on 23,150 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Mavis mean?

Coined at the end of the 19th century from mavis, a poetical name for the song thrush.

How popular is the name Mavis in 2025?

Mavis ranked #561 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 537 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Mavis?

23,150 babies have been named Mavis in the United States since 1893, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Mavis most popular?

Mavis peaked in 1927, when 603 newborns received the name.

Is Mavis a boy or girl name?

Mavis is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 99% of babies with the name.

Is the name Mavis rising or falling?

Mavis is on the rise, noticeably more popular now than a decade ago.

Will Mavis become more popular?

Mavis is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 740 girls named Mavis in 2030, which would rank around #423. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Mavis?

Well-known people named Mavis include Mavis Staples (singer).

Names like Mavis

Names that sound and feel close to Mavis: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Mavis with similar names → More names starting with M →