Mary
[ˈmɛəri]Meaning
English form of Maria, from Hebrew Miryam; the meaning is uncertain, possibly from Egyptian mry, "beloved".
Background Story
Mary is the usual English form of Maria, the Latin form of the New Testament Greek names Mariam and Maria, which come from the Hebrew Miryam, a name borne by the sister of Moses in the Old Testament. The meaning is not known for certain, though theories include "sea of bitterness", "rebelliousness" and "wished for child"; it was most likely originally an Egyptian name, perhaps derived in part from mry, "beloved", or mr, "love". It is the name of several New Testament figures, most importantly Mary the mother of Jesus, and it has been used in England since the 12th century.
Variations
Marie, Maria, Maren
Related Names
Aliz
The Hungarian form of Alice, from the Old German for 'of noble kind'.
Anja
Form of Anya in several languages
Anna
Form of Hannah used in the Greek and Latin Old Testament
Asya
Diminutive of Anastasiya or Aleksandra; Turkish for "Asia (continent)"
Bena
The name Bena can mean 'blessed' or 'favored'.
Cara
From Italian cara, "beloved", or Irish cara, "friend"
Cher
Short form of Cheryl; for the musician Cher, short for Cherilyn.
Damy
Dana
Feminine form of Daniel or Dan; also a short form of Bogdana, Yordana or Gordana