English word origin

Etymology of Mays

* As an English surname, variant of Mayes. * As a German surname, variant of Mais. * As a Dutch surname, from a short form of Thomas.

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗

name

A surname

name

plural of May

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

* As an English surname, variant of Mayes. * As a German surname, variant of Mais. * As a Dutch surname, from a short form of Thomas.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "de",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "German"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "nl",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "Mayes",
      "Mayes#English"
    ],
    [
      "Mais",
      "Mais#English"
    ],
    [
      "Thomas",
      "Thomas#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "A surname"
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "6f7b6885ec46897338061b5077ff3f96c30f9cd0f0a8dddf1d26bf596c26d66b",
      "rawRecordSha256": "1c95503e735430da992a86e35e2c899ef5cd46ab81d473215293fe6effaa5988",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 1597686
    },
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "plural of May"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "form-of",
        "plural"
      ],
      "recordId": "7253b44538a90a3eaa78104e93c409712c8be73eeb4774bc71c88df259ab75e6",
      "rawRecordSha256": "1d0f6f522630425cdc2e0bae4cc1b83cb528667965aa713091510fab00829d44",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 1597685
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for Mays →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-TWF5cw