NameCensus.

UK girl's name

Maisie

A diminutive form of the name Margaret or Mary, meaning "pearl".

For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.

Maisie is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Maisie popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #44, with 992 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2010, with 2,930 births.

This profile covers 32,671 England and Wales registrations across 29 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland and NISRA Northern Ireland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.

The latest count is about 34% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 36,006 living people in the UK are called Maisie. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.

Key insights

  • Maisie ranked #44 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 992 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2010, when 2,930 girls were registered as Maisie.
  • Maisie ranks best in Yorkshire and The Humber in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #3 in 2010.
  • About 36,006 living people in the UK are estimated to have Maisie as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.

Latest rank (E&W)

#44

2024

Births in 2024

992

Latest year

Peak year

2010

2,930 births

Estimated living

36,006

2026

Meaning

What does Maisie mean?

The name Maisie is a diminutive form of the name Margaret, which is derived from the Greek name Margarites, meaning "pearl." It is believed to have originated as a pet form of Margaret in the late 19th century, likely in Scotland or England.

Maisie gained popularity as a given name in its own right during the early 20th century, particularly in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries. The name is thought to have been influenced by the Scottish Gaelic word "màisidh," meaning "pearl" or "precious one."

While the name Maisie does not have any direct historical references in ancient texts or religious scriptures, its root name Margaret has been widely used throughout history. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Margaret is in the 12th century, when it was borne by the wife of King Malcolm III of Scotland.

Among the notable historical figures with the name Maisie are Maisie Plant (1904-1986), an English actress known for her roles in films such as "The Prime Minister" and "The Winslow Boy." Maisie Mackenzie (1915-2011) was a Scottish actress who appeared in numerous films and television shows, including "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie."

Maisie Rendić (1900-1982) was a Croatian actress and singer who gained fame in the 1920s and 1930s for her performances in operettas and musicals. Maisie Williams (born in 1997) is a British actress best known for her role as Arya Stark in the HBO series "Game of Thrones."

Maisie Wilkins (1914-2017) was a British dancer and actress who had a successful career on stage and in films during the mid-20th century. She was particularly renowned for her performances in productions of the works of George Bernard Shaw.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Maisie over time

The chart below shows babies named Maisie registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1996 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.

For Maisie, the clearest high point is 2010. The latest England and Wales figure is 992 births in 2024, compared with 2,930 at the peak.

Babies born per year

Maisie
07331K2K3K199620102024

Decades

Maisie by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Maisie was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.

Decade Average rank Total births Years covered
2020s #41 5,426 5
2010s #39 14,930 10
2000s #55 10,400 10
1990s #109 1,915 4

Geography

Where Maisie is most common

The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Maisie. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.

Maisie ranks best in Yorkshire and The Humber in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #3 in 2010.

Yorkshire and The Humber
360
West Midlands
335
Scotland
161
Northern Ireland
59

Across the UK

Maisie in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland (NRS)

#18 in 2024

32 years of NRS records, 2,569 total registered

Northern Ireland (NISRA)

#22 in 2024

21 years of NISRA records, 950 total registered

Notable bearers

Famous people named Maisie

  • Maisie Sly

    actor

    British actress

    2011-

  • Maisie Keyes

    basketball player

    British basketball player (born 2007)

    2007-

  • Maisie Crowley

    basketball player

    British basketball player (born 2006)

    2006-

  • Maisie Kite

    badminton player

    badminton player

    2005-

  • Maisie Davies

    rugby union player

    Welsh rugby union player

    2005-

  • Maisie Harrhy

    basketball player

    Welsh basketball player (born 2003)

    2003-

  • Maisie Symonds

    association football player

    English footballer

    2003-

  • Maisie Summers-Newton

    swimmer

    British para-swimmer

    2002-

Related

Names similar to Maisie

FAQ

Maisie: questions and answers

How popular is the name Maisie in the UK right now?

In 2024, Maisie was ranked #44 for girls in England and Wales, with 992 births registered.

When was Maisie most popular?

The peak year on record was 2010, with 2,930 babies registered as Maisie in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Maisie?

A diminutive form of the name Margaret or Mary, meaning "pearl".

How many people are called Maisie in the UK?

A total of 32,671 babies have been registered as Maisie across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 2,569 more in Scotland and 950 in Northern Ireland.

Where is Maisie most common?

In the latest published local rankings, Maisie ranks best in Yorkshire and The Humber, where it placed #3 in 2010. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.

Which records is this page based on?

The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.