Holding steady.
Popularity of Williemae since 1896
Babies named Williemae per year in U.S. Social Security records. Raw births topped out in 1920, but relative to how few babies were recorded back then, Williemae's real moment was 1906.
Data table (by decade)
| Decade | Girls |
|---|---|
| 1890s | 5 |
| 1900s | 95 |
| 1910s | 285 |
| 1920s | 203 |
| 1930s | 68 |
| 1940s | 26 |
| 1950s | 19 |
| 1960s | 21 |
| 1970s | 0 |
| 1980s | 0 |
| 1990s | 0 |
| 2000s | 0 |
| 2010s | 0 |
| 2020s | 0 |
Meaning & origin
Williemae emerged in the late 19th century as a compound feminine name, first recorded in U.S. data in 1896. Its peak popularity came in 1906, during the height of the double-name trend in the American South, where it was often used as a way to honor both a father (William) and a mother (Mae) or to combine two beloved family names. The name has never returned to widespread use, maintaining a stable and very low frequency ever since. Today, Williemae remains a rare but recognizable choice, rarely appearing outside of historical records or family traditions.
Williemae is a compound feminine name formed by blending Willie (a diminutive of William, from Old French Williame, ultimately from Germanic Wilhelm 'will-helmet', meaning 'resolute protection') and Mae (a variant of May, derived from the month or from the name Mary, sometimes associated with 'pearl'). This type of double-barreled construction was especially popular in the southern United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, reflecting a trend of combining family or parental names.
Nicknames & variants
Nicknames: Willie, Mae, Willa
Variants: Willie Mae, Williemae, Willemaine
Sibling names for Williemae
Names that share Williemae's style, for a brother or sister.
Sisters: Annie Mae, Mary Jane, Lula Bell, Ella Mae, Sarah Lou
Brothers: William, James, John Henry, Robert Lee, Charles
