Mavis
An English feminine name of uncertain origin, possibly derived from the French name Avis.
Name Census estimates that about 8,971 living Americans carry the first name Mavis. It is a predominantly female name (99.4% of registrations). The average person named Mavis today is around 41 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Mavis births was 1927 (603 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Mavis. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Mavis with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Although Mavis is used almost entirely for girls, the SSA data does show 135 boys registered with the name since 1880.
People living today
9.0K
~ 1 in 38,207 Americans
Peak year
1927
603 babies that year
Average age
41
years old
1964 SSA rank
#566
Tracked since 1893
Census
Mavis in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 11,619 people with the first name Mavis, which placed it at #2,242 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#2,242
National first-name rank
People counted
12K
11,619 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
3.8
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
59.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mavis
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mavis is White at 59.6%. The next largest groups are Black (25.3%) and Hispanic (6.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Mavis described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Mavis at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White59.6% · 6,924
- Black or African American25.3% · 2,945
- Hispanic or Latino6.9% · 801
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.0% · 464
- Two or more races2.9% · 336
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 149
Gender
Gender distribution for Mavis
Out of the 22,608 babies given the name Mavis since 1880, 99.4% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Mavis as a male name
- Ranked #4,423 in 1964
- 5 male births in 1964
- Peak: 1920 (13 births)
Mavis as a female name
- Ranked #566 in 2024
- 532 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1927 (603 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Mavis appears almost entirely female. Of the 11,616 people counted with this name, 99.2% were female and only a very small share were male.
Popularity
Mavis: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Mavis from the 1890s through to the 2020s, spanning 14 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 5,597 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1920s peak, Mavis remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Mavis by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Mavis during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Mavis' live
The SSA's state-level files cover 46 states and territories. Minnesota, Texas, Alabama recorded the most babies named Mavis, while Maryland, Connecticut, Alaska recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 395 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Mavis
The name Mavis is of English origin, deriving from the French word "mauvis," which means "song thrush." The name was originally given to girls born in springtime, as the song thrush was seen as a herald of the season. It gained popularity during the Middle Ages, particularly in rural areas where people had a close connection to nature.
In medieval England, Mavis was a common name among peasants and serfs. It was often associated with simplicity, humility, and a love for the outdoors. Some scholars believe that the name may have been inspired by the biblical verse from the Song of Songs, which compares the beloved's voice to the sweet song of a turtle dove.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Mavis can be found in the Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, written in the 14th century. Chaucer's character, the Wife of Bath, mentions a woman named Mavis in her prologue. This suggests that the name was already in use during that time period.
In the 16th century, the name Mavis gained some popularity among the upper classes, particularly in Scotland. One notable bearer of the name was Mavis Spencer (1605-1677), a Scottish noblewoman and courtier to King Charles I. Her life and influence at the royal court were documented in various historical records.
Another famous Mavis from history was Mavis Batey (1924-2013), a British code-breaker during World War II. She worked at Bletchley Park, the site of Britain's codebreaking efforts, and played a vital role in deciphering German communications. Her contributions were recognized with several honors, including an MBE.
In the realm of literature, the name Mavis is associated with the Scottish author Mavis Gallant (1922-2014), known for her short stories and novels. Her works often explored themes of exile, displacement, and the complexities of human relationships.
Mavis Staples (born 1939) is a renowned American singer and civil rights activist. As a member of the famous Staple Singers, she played a significant role in the music of the African-American civil rights movement. Her powerful voice and heartfelt performances have earned her numerous accolades, including a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
While the name Mavis has declined in popularity in recent decades, it remains a charming and evocative name with a rich history tied to nature, literature, and significant historical figures. Its enduring appeal lies in its connection to the sweet song of a bird and the promise of springtime.
People
Mavis + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Mavis as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Mavis: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Mavis?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 8,971 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Mavis going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 38,207 US residents.
Is Mavis a common name?
We classify Mavis as "Rare". It ranks above 97.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 22,608 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Mavis most popular?
The single biggest year for Mavis was 1927, when 603 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Mavis is about 41 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Mavis in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 11,619 people with the name Mavis, or 3.85 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #2,242 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Mavis in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Mavis?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Mavis appears almost entirely female. Of the 11,616 people counted with this name, 99.2% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Mavis?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mavis is White at 59.6%. The next largest groups are Black (25.3%) and Hispanic (6.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Mavis most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Mavis in the 2020 Census, accounting for 59.6% (6,924 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Mavis in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Mavis a female name?
Yes, 99.4% of people registered as Mavis in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Mavis still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Mavis in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Mavis can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many Americans are named Mavis?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.