While parents generally find names for their child by looking at the meaning or within a specific culture, some parents like to choose names starting with a particular letter. It might be appealing for everyone in the family, or even just the children, to have names that all start with the same letter, or for their name to start with the same letter as their surname.
Whether or not this is the case for you, there are some lovely names starting with the letter ‘M.’ They come from a variety of cultures and languages, and many have interesting meanings.
Matthew is a commonly used boy’s name meaning ‘gift of God.’ It has Hebrew origins and is the name of one of Jesus’s closest disciples who wrote one of the gospels.
If you would prefer a name with fewer religious connotations, Madison or Mackenzie would work for either gender or as a gender-neutral name. Madison is an English name meaning ‘son of the mighty warrior’ but is often used as a girl’s name in recent times. Mackenzie, an Irish name meaning ‘fire-born’ is typically used as a boy’s name in the UK, but more commonly used as a girl’s name in the US.
For girls, Mia, a Scandinavian name meaning ‘beloved,’ or Maya, a Spanish name meaning ‘dream’ are both lovely options to consider.
Mabel
Meaning: Diminutive of Amabel: Lovable
Origin: English
Gender: Girl
Mabon
Meaning: Mythical god of youth
Origin: Celtic
Gender: Boy
Macaire
Meaning: Blessed
Origin: Greek
Gender: Boy
Macario
Meaning: Happy
Origin: Spanish
Gender: Boy
Mackenzie
Meaning: Fire-born
Origin: Irish
Gender: Unisex
Maccus
Meaning: Hammer
Origin: Celtic
Gender: Boy
Macha
Meaning: Plain
Origin: Celtic
Gender: Girl
Machum
Meaning: Comfort
Origin: Hebrew
Gender: Boy
Mada
Meaning: Bitter
Origin: Polish
Gender: Boy
Madalen
Meaning: From the tower
Origin: Hebrew
Gender: Girl
Maddock
Meaning: Beneficent
Origin: Celtic
Gender: Girl
Madelhari
Meaning: War counselor
Origin: German
Gender: Unisex
Madison
Meaning: Son of the mighty warrior
Origin: English
Gender: Unisex
Madhava
Meaning: God of spring
Origin: Indian
Gender: Boy
Madra
Meaning: Mother
Origin: English
Gender: Girl
Maeko
Meaning: Truth child
Origin: Japanese
Gender: Girl
Mael
Meaning: Legendary son of Roycol
Origin: Welsh
Gender: Boy
Maelisa
Meaning: Serves Christ
Origin: Irish
Gender: Boy
Maemi
Meaning: Smile of truth
Origin: Japanese
Gender: Girl
Maeveen
Meaning: Nimble
Origin: Celtic
Gender: Girl
Magda
Meaning: From the tower
Origin: Hebrew
Gender: Girl
Maghnus
Meaning: Greatest
Origin: Latin
Gender: Boy
Magna
Meaning: Strong
Origin: Norse
Gender: Girl
Magnor
Meaning: Fighter
Origin: Norse
Gender: Boy
Magnus
Meaning: Strong warrior
Origin: Swedish
Gender: Boy
Malak
Meaning: Angel
Origin: Muslim
Gender: Boy
Malcolm
Meaning: Servant/disciple of Columba
Origin: Gaelic
Gender: Boy
Malva
Meaning: Soft
Origin: Greek
Gender: Boy
Mannis
Meaning: Great
Origin: Gaelic
Gender: Boy
Maola
Meaning: Handmaiden
Origin: Irish
Gender: Girl
Mara
Meaning: Bitter
Origin: English
Gender: Girl
Marcel
Meaning: Form of the Latin Marcellus meaning hammer
Origin: French
Gender: Boy
Marcus
Meaning: Hammer
Origin: Gaelic
Gender: Boy
Margaret
Meaning: A pearl
Origin: English
Gender: Girl
Maria
Meaning: Bitter
Origin: German
Gender: Girl
Marica
Meaning: A nymph
Origin: Latin
Gender: Girl
Maricruz
Meaning: Mary of the Cross
Origin: Latin
Gender: Girl
Mariko
Meaning: Ball; circle
Origin: Japanese
Gender: Girl
Marina
Meaning: Of the sea
Origin: Latin
Gender: Girl
Mario
Meaning: Bitter
Origin: Italian
Gender: Boy
Marit
Meaning: Lady
Origin: Aramaic
Gender: Girl
Marjan
Meaning: Small pearls. Corals
Origin: Muslim
Gender: Girl
Mark
Meaning: Polite; shining
Origin: Biblical
Gender: Boy
Markus
Meaning: Of Mars; the god of war
Origin: Scandinavian
Gender: Boy
Martin
Meaning: Warrior of Mars
Origin: English
Gender: Boy
Matthew
Meaning: Gift of God
Origin: Hebrew
Gender: Boy
Maya
Meaning: Dream
Origin: Spanish
Gender: Girl
Melena
Meaning: Yellow as a canary
Origin: Greek
Gender: Girl
Mia
Meaning: Beloved
Origin: Scandinavian
Gender: Girl
Michael
Meaning: Poor; humble
Origin: Biblical
Gender: Girl
