Edda vs Maia

Edda and Maiacompared on official birth-registration statistics and Namewise's recorded data. This page states what each name's record shows — it never picks a winner or scores one name against the other.

Head to head

Ranks are only compared within one published list and one year. Two ranks from different years, from a boys' and a girls' list, or from different registrars are not comparable, so they are not placed side by side.

Norway · Girls
In 2025, Edda was ranked #261 and Maia #131 among girls in Norway.
England and Wales · Girls
In 2021, Edda was ranked #5581 and Maia #210 among girls in England and Wales.

Edda and Maia over time

Edda and Maia appear together in 1 published list, across 29 years of shared records. Maia held the stronger position in more years in 1 of them, Edda in 0.

The order between them changed and held in one of those lists — a change in that published list, never a claim that one name displaced the other.

Maia reached its own highest recorded position earlier in 1 of those lists, and Edda in none. Each position is a place inside its own list, so this compares when they peaked and never how high.

Counted list by list. Two names in the same published list are measured on the same scale in the same year, so those comparisons are real — but positions from different lists are not, so nothing here is combined into an overall standing.

List by list

Norway · Girls29 shared years, 1991–2025
Edda held the stronger position in 1 of those years, Maia in 28.
Highest recorded here: Edda #243 in 2023, Maia #95 in 2020.
The order changed in 1992: Maia moved ahead. In 1991 they stood at #640 and #659; by 1992 that had become #586 and #413.
Most recent shared year, 2025: Edda #261, Maia #131.

Two names moving past each other in a ranking is a fact about the ranking. Namewise does not claim one name displaced the other, that families chose between them, or that either influenced the other — none of that is in this data.

Where to go next

Comparisons that share a name, a rule or a published list with this one. Each is an existing comparison page with its own evidence — nothing here says these pairs are alike.

Other comparisons involving Maia

Pairs where Maia shares a published list with another name, each measured inside one registrar's own list.

Maia vs Hedvig
Maia and Hedvig changed places 17 times in Norway · Girls between 1979 and 2025, ending at #131 and #19.
Maia · Hedvig · 42 shared years, 1979–2025 · Repeatedly exchanged positions
See the 2025 Norway ranking
Charlotte vs Maia
Both reached their highest recorded position in New Zealand · Girls within 2 years — Charlotte #1 in 2006, Maia #15 in 2005.
Charlotte · Maia · 25 shared years, 1999–2023 · Peaked in the same years
See the 2006 New Zealand ranking
Ella vs Maia
Both reached their highest recorded position in New Zealand · Girls within 2 years — Ella #1 in 2007, Maia #15 in 2005.
Ella · Maia · 25 shared years, 1999–2023 · Peaked in the same years
See the 2007 New Zealand ranking
Emma vs Maia
Both reached their highest recorded position in New Zealand · Girls within 2 years — Emma #1 in 2003, Maia #15 in 2005.
Emma · Maia · 25 shared years, 1999–2023 · Peaked in the same years
See the 2005 New Zealand ranking

Side by side

Side-by-side comparison of Edda, Maia
Field	Edda	Maia
Record type	Official statistical record (evidence-only)	Editorially researched profile
Gender usage	female	female
Meaning	Not yet recorded	A genuinely multi-origin name rather than one shared etymology. In Maori, maia (usually written with a macron, maia) is an adjective/noun meaning 'brave, bold, confident' — Te Aka also separately lists Maia as an alternate name for Waiti, a star in the Pleiades cluster. In Greek and Roman mythology, Maia was the eldest of the seven Pleiades, mother of Hermes by Zeus, with a proposed meaning of 'good mother', possibly a nursery-form of the word for 'mother'. It is also used as a form of Maria in Estonian and Basque.
Origin	Not yet recorded	Genuinely multiple, independent origins — Maori, Greek/Roman mythology, and Estonian/Basque
Pronunciation	Not yet recorded	/ˈmai̯a/
Syllables	2	1
Common variants / nicknames	Not yet recorded	Not yet recorded
Recorded regional usage	GB-ENW, NO	GB-ENW, GB-NIR, GB-SCT, IE, NO, NZ
Most recent popularity observation	Norway · Girls #261 (2025)	Norway · Girls #131 (2025)
Pronunciation clarity (demonstration score)	Not yet recorded	90/100
Spelling simplicity (demonstration score)	95/100	95/100
International familiarity (demonstration score)	60/100	100/100
Data Confidence	medium	medium

What the data shows

Maia has a recorded origin (Genuinely multiple, independent origins — Maori, Greek/Roman mythology, and Estonian/Basque); Edda does not have one recorded yet.
Edda has 2 syllables, compared with 1 for Maia.
A meaning is recorded for Maia; Edda doesn't have one written yet.
Both names have recorded usage in GB-ENW, NO.

How each name got here

Edda

Popularity journey

First recorded1975
First recorded at #589 among girls in Norway in 1975 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Girls
Highest recorded1975–2025
Highest recorded position: #243 among girls in Norway, in 2023 (recorded 1975–2025).
Norway · Girls
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #261 among girls in Norway, in 2025.
Norway · Girls

Maia

Popularity journey

First recorded1979
First recorded at #584 among girls in Norway in 1979 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Girls
Highest recorded1999–2023
Highest recorded position: #15 among girls in New Zealand, in 2005 (recorded 1999–2023).
New Zealand · Girls
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #131 among girls in Norway, in 2025.
Norway · Girls