Mavis Name Meaning: Origin, Gender, and Song Thrush

The name Mavis traces its roots to the Old French word “mauvis,” meaning song thrush, and entered the English language as a given name through Marie Corelli’s 1895 novel The Sorrows of Satan. This article explores the name’s meaning, its bird connection, gender usage, popularity history, and answers common questions about this uncommon but culturally rich name.

Last checked: 2026-06-29

Meaning: Song thrush (from Old French ‘mauvis’) · Gender association: Feminine · First modern use: 1895 (Marie Corelli’s novel ‘The Sorrows of Satan’) · Bird species: Song thrush (Turdus philomelos)

What does Mavis mean?

Meaning of Mavis

The given name Mavis is derived from the English common noun “mavis,” which itself comes from the Old French “mauvis” – a term for the song thrush. Several baby‑name guides define the name as “songbird” or “song thrush,” tying it to the melodious bird Turdus philomelos (TheBump). A Hebrew–English glossary translates the common noun “mavis” as קיכלי, a thrush‑type bird, and also notes Mavis as a feminine given name, illustrating how the bird meaning carried into personal‑name use (DoitinHebrew).

Origin of the name

While the bird word “mavis” has been in English since the 14th century, its use as a personal name dates to the late 19th century. Etymological summaries describe Mavis as “coined at the end of the 19th century from the existing English word ‘mavis’” (Altervista / Wiktionary mirror). The first widely attested literary appearance came in 1895, when novelist Marie Corelli used the name for a character in The Sorrows of Satan. The same entry notes that Corelli’s character is linked to singing “as sweetly as any thrush,” cementing the bird‑name connection.

Marie Corelli – likely born Caroline Cody in May 1854 (Victorian Popular Fiction Journal) – was a bestselling author of the era, and her choice of Mavis likely influenced the name’s subsequent adoption by English‑speaking parents.

Is Mavis a male or female?

Gender association

In virtually all modern usage, Mavis is classified as a feminine given name. Baby‑name directories and naming guides consistently list it as a girl’s name meaning “songbird” (TheBump). Contemporary usage data from Forebears, a name‑statistics platform, estimates Mavis is held by roughly 291,000 people worldwide, with a strong skew toward female bearers (Forebears). The name’s association with the song thrush – a bird often admired for its gentle song – aligns with a traditionally feminine imagery.

Historical usage for boys

Although extremely rare, Mavis has occasionally been used for males. No major name database records a significant male‑bearer cohort, but isolated instances appear in genealogical records and surname‑based naming. For example, Forebears also suggests Mavis appears as a surname (ranked 148,508th globally), and a small number of men carry it as a first name (Forebears). Discussions on the r/namenerds subreddit note that Mavis “feels similar in style to other bird names like Merle” and that some parents consider it for boys as an unconventional choice (Reddit r/namenerds). However, the name’s overwhelming perception remains feminine.

The pattern: Mavis is a feminine name that has occasionally crossed gender lines, but the historical record shows no period when it was commonly given to boys.

Is there a bird called Mavis?

The song thrush connection

Yes – “mavis” is an alternative, poetic name for the song thrush (Turdus philomelos), a bird celebrated across Europe for its rich, repeated song. The name derives from the Old French “mauvis,” and at least one modern baby‑name guide notes that the bird has long been associated with joy and artistic inspiration (PatPat).

Mavis in ornithology

In formal ornithology, the song thrush is the standard name, but “mavis” survives in dialect and poetry. Dictionary.com records it as a “poetic or dialect word for the song thrush” (Dictionary.com). The bird is native to Europe, the Middle East, and parts of Asia, and it winters in parts of Africa. Its song is often described as loud, clear, and repetitive – qualities that likely made the bird a natural symbol for the name.

Why this matters: The bird origin is the single most important fact about the name – it explains why Mavis sounds melodic and why the name was revived as a literary choice. Without the song thrush, the name would lack its distinctive charm.