Save Gender Feminine Usage Soviet, Russian (Rare) Scripts Мая(Russian) Pronounced Pron. /ˈma.ɪ̯ə/(Russian) [key·simplify] Meaning & History From Russian май (may), meaning "May". It was used by communist parents wanting to reject traditional names as a reference to International Worker's Day on May 1st. The name is written as Maya (Мая) because it is feminine.