Maria is a Latin form of the biblical name Mary used in many European languages. It derived from the name Mirjam (מִרְיָם), which is of Hebrew and Egypt origin. In some countries, e.g. Germany, Italy and Poland, Maria is also used as a masculine middle name.
What does the name Maria mean?
Maria means “beloved” (from Egyptian “mry”), but as well “sea of bitterness” or “drop of the sea” (from Hebrew “mar/מַר” = drop or “mará/מָרָה” = bitterness + “yam/יָם” = sea) and “star of the sea” (from Hebrew “maor/מאור” = star/light). Besides, Maria means “exalted one” (from Hebrew “róm/רוֹם” = height), “rebelliousness” (from Hebrew “meri/מְרִי”) or “wished for child”.
Other variants
In Hungary and Slovakia, Maria is spelled Mária, in Island and Spain it’s spelled María, in Irish it is spelled Máire or Muire and in Cyrillic it’s spelled Marya or Marija. In English, Maria is Mary and in French it is Marie. In Finland, Maria can also be spelled Maaria. In the US, there is the variant Mariah, which rose in popularity due to the singer Mariah Carey (born 1969).
In many other languages, the Virgin Mary is known as Maria, the mother of Jesus.
On of the most recognized educators is Italian Maria Montessori (1870 - 1952). She was the first woman in Italy to attend medical school. Her education theories and methods a part of various schools world wide. In recent years Montessori has become a popular method among parents to raise their children to be independent from a young age.
Former first Lady of California and ex-wife of Arnold Schwarzenegger, Maria Shriver (born 1955), is a part of the Kennedy family. She is also a journalist and founder of the nonprofit organization “The Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement”.
Russian tennis pro player Maria Sharapova (born 1987) has won multiple international tournaments including Wimbledon and the US Open. After 19 years of pro play she retired in 2020.
There were various royal women named Maria Theresa such as Queen Maria Theresa of France (1638 - 1683), Maria Theresa of Austria (1801 - 1855), Queen of Sardinia, Maria Theresa of Austria (1767 - 1827), Queen of Saxony, or Maria Teresa (born 1956), Grand Duchess of Luxembourg.
Fictional characters named Maria
In the musical “West Side Story”, Maria Nunez is the main female character.
Maria von Trapp is the female lead in the musical “The Sound of Music”.
The mother of marvels Iron Man, aka Tony Stark, was named Maria Stark.
In the Netflix show “Orange is the new black”, Maria Ruiz is played by Jessica Pimentel (born 1982).
Songs with the name Maria
“Maria” by Blondie was released in 1999 and the song was part of the album “The Female Touch 2”.
The probably most famous song by Santana is named “Maria Maria” from 1999.
The song*”Ave Maria” is one the most famous songs with Maria in the title. It was sung by various artists around the world.
The song “Maria” from the musical and popular movie “West Side Story” was sung by famous Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli (born 1958).
American country singer Willie Nelson (born 1933) released the song “Maria (Shut Up And Kiss Me)” in 2002.
In 2020, K-Pop-Artist “Hwa Sa”, real name Ahn Hye-jin (born 1995), released her solo single “Maria”. Hwa Sa is a member of the K-Pop girl band “Mamamoo”.
Based on the frequency of positive ratings, we can analyze how popular names are in different countries. The name Maria is currently ranked #1167 on the name leaderboard.
Curious about more trends? Find out which names are most popular in the USA, Canada, Australia, and worldwide.