Last updated: March 2026

Character Name

Mai

Meaning — A Japanese feminine name written as 舞 meaning "dance" or "to dance" — specifically the formal, aestheticized movement of traditional Japanese dance. It can also be written as 麻衣 (hemp garment), 真依 (true + reliance), or 毎 (every). The dancing meaning is the most poetically charged: Mai evokes the slow, deliberate, expressive dance form associated with Noh, Kabuki, and court performance.·Japanese origin·Gender-Neutral·MAH-ee

Mai Mai (舞, dance) names a character through the medium of performed movement — someone whose identity is expressed physically, whose inner world becomes most visible in the discipline of art. Traditional Japanese dance (mai) requires extraordinary control and the subordination of personal expression to form — yet within that form, personality emerges. A character named Mai may embody this tension between rigorous discipline and individual voice, or may be literally a dancer whose art carries the weight of the narrative.

Best genres for Mai

Contemporary FictionLiterary FictionHistorical FictionYoung AdultRomance

Famous characters named Mai

No verified literary characters with this exact given name were found yet. We are continuously expanding this section.


Variations & nicknames

MaiMaiko

Pairs well with

Mai TanakaMai WatanabeMai NakamuraMai SuzukiMai HayashiMai FujitaMai KobayashiMai Yamamoto

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Hina

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