Maxine is an English feminine given name created as a feminine version of the name

Max Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (American dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (British dog), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of the OBE) * Max (gorilla) ...

. It has been in regular use since the 1880s. Other names with the

diminutive A diminutive is a word obtained by modifying a root word to convey a slighter degree of its root meaning, either to convey the smallness of the object or quality named, or to convey a sense of intimacy or endearment, and sometimes to belittle s ...

suffix In linguistics, a suffix is an affix which is placed after the stem of a word. Common examples are case endings, which indicate the grammatical case of nouns and adjectives, and verb endings, which form the conjugation of verbs. Suffixes can ca ...

-''een'', ''-ene'', or ''-ine'' were also in fashion during the late 19th century and early 20th century. The increase in usage of the name in the 1890s has been attributed to the popularity of American actress

Maxine Elliott Maxine Elliott (February 5, 1868 – March 5, 1940) also known as Little Jessie, Dettie or by her birth name Jessie Dermott, was an American actress and businesswoman. She managed her own theater and experimented with silent films in the 1910s. ...

, who was born Jessie Dermot. Another early media influence was Maxene Andrews of

The Andrews Sisters The Andrews Sisters were an American close harmony singing group of the swing and boogie-woogie eras. The group consisted of three sisters: contralto LaVerne Sophia Andrews (1911–1967), soprano Maxene Anglyn Andrews (1916–1995), and mezzo ...

singing trio. The influence of the ''

Stranger Things ''Stranger Things'' is an American television series created by the Duffer brothers, Duffer Brothers for Netflix. Produced by Monkey Massacre Productions and 21 Laps Entertainment, the Stranger Things season 1, first season was released on N ...

'' character

Max Mayfield Britt Max Mayfield (born September 19, 1948) is an American meteorologist who served as the director of the National Hurricane Center from 2000 to 2007. As director, Mayfield became a trusted voice in preparing for weather-related disasters, par ...

is partially associated with the increase in popularity of the name since 2017.

Usage

The name first ranked among the top 1,000 names in use for newborn girls in the United States in 1884. It was among the top 1,000 names between 1893 and 1975, in 1978, in 1988, between 1991 and 1994, in 1996, and between 2016 and 2022. It was at the height of popularity between 1915 and 1930, when it ranked among the top 100 names for American girls. It has also been in occasional use elsewhere in the

Anglosphere The Anglosphere, also known as the Anglo-American world, is a Western-led sphere of influence among the Anglophone countries. The core group of this sphere of influence comprises five developed countries that maintain close social, cultura ...

such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. It has been among the top 500 names in use for girls in France since 2010 and among the top 100 names for girls in

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

since 2017.

People

* Maxene Andrews (1916–1995), member of

singing trio *

Maxine Audley Maxine Audley (29 April 1923 – 23 July 1992) was an English theatre and film actress. She made her professional stage debut in July 1940 at the Open Air Theatre. Audley performed with the Old Vic company and the Royal Shakespeare Company many ...

(1923–1992), English actress * Maxine Brown (country singer) (1932–2019), American country music singer *

Maxine Brown (soul singer) Maxine Ella Brown (born August 18, 1939) is an American soul and R&B singer. Background and career Maxine Brown began singing as a child, performing with two New York City based gospel groups called the Angelairs and the Royaltones when she w ...

(born 1939), American soul and R&B singer * Maxine D. Brown, American computer scientist * Maxine Carr, convicted of perverting the course of justice in relation to the

Soham murders The Soham murders were a double child murder committed in Soham, Cambridgeshire, Cambridgeshire, England, on 4 August 2002. The victims were two 10-year-old girls, Holly Marie Wells and Jessica Amiee Chapman, who were lured into the home of a l ...

(not to be confused with Maxine Moore Carr / Maxine Waters) *

Maxine Dexter Maxine Elizabeth Dexter (née Johnson, born December 5, 1972) is an American physician and politician serving as the U.S. representative for Oregon's 3rd congressional district since 2025. The district includes most of Portland east of the Wil ...

(1972), American politician *

(1868–1940), American actress * Maxine Fassberg (born 1953), CEO, Intel Israel *

Maxine Fleming Maxine Fleming is a New Zealand television screenwriter and producer. She was recognised at the Women in Film and Television New Zealand Awards in 2018. Biography Fleming grew up in Thames, New Zealand, Thames, and studied journalism at Auckl ...

, New Zealand television screenwriter and producer * Maxine Funke, New Zealand singer-songwriter *

Maxine Hong Kingston Maxine Hong Kingston (; born Maxine Ting Ting Hong; October 27, 1940) is an American novelist. She is a professor emerita at the University of California, Berkeley, where she graduated with a B.A. in English in 1962. Kingston has written three ...

(born 1940), Chinese American author and Professor Emerita *

Maxine Kumin Maxine Kumin (June 6, 1925 – February 6, 2014) was an American poet and author. She was appointed Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress in 1981–1982. Biography Early years Maxine Kumin was born Maxine Winokur on June ...

(1925–2014), American poet and author * Maxine Mawhinney (born 1957), newsreader on the BBC News 24-hour television channel *

Maxine McKew Maxine Margaret McKew (born 22 July 1953) is an Australian former Labor politician and journalist; she was the Parliamentary Secretary for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government in the First Rudd Ministry and the ...

(born 1953), Australian politician and journalist *

Maxine Medina Maria Mika Maxine Perez Medina-Llana (; born May 10, 1990) is a Filipina designer, actress, model, and beauty pageant titleholder who won Miss Universe Philippines 2016. She represented the Philippines at Miss Universe 2016 and reached the To ...

(born 1990), Filipino model, beauty pageant titleholder, Miss Universe Philippines 2016, and top 6 Miss Universe 2016 * Maxine "Blossom" Miles (1901–1984), British aviator *

Maxine Nightingale Maxine Nightingale (born 2 November 1952) is a British R&B and soul music singer. She is best known for singing hits in the 1970s, with the million seller " Right Back Where We Started From" (1975, UK #8 & 1976, U.S. #2), "Love Hit Me" (1977 ...

(born 1952), British R&B and soul music singer *

Maxine Peake Maxine Peake (born 14 July 1974) is an English actress and narrator. She is known for her roles as Twinkle in ''Dinnerladies (TV series), dinnerladies'', a sitcom on BBC One (1998–2000), as List of Shameless (British TV series) characters#Vero ...

(born 1974), English actress *

Maxine Reiner Maxine Reiner (March 16, 1916 – June 19, 2003) was an American actress. She was more noted for off-screen marital troubles than for her film performances. Early life and education Reiner was born in Tamaqua, Pennsylvania, the daughter of ...

(1916–2003), American actress *

Maxine Sanders Maxine Sanders (born ''Arline Maxine Morris''; 30 December 1946, in Cheshire) is a key figure in the development of modern pagan witchcraft and Wicca and, along with her late husband, Alex Sanders, the co-founder of Alexandrian Wicca. Witchcraf ...

(born 1946), British Wiccan *

Maxine Sullivan Maxine Sullivan (May 13, 1911 – April 7, 1987), born Marietta Williams in Homestead, Pennsylvania, United States, was an American jazz vocalist and performer. As a vocalist, Sullivan was active for half a century, from the mid-1930s to just b ...

(born Marietta Williams, 1911–1987), American jazz vocalist/performer *

Maxine Waters Maxine Moore Waters (née Carr; born August 15, 1938) is an American politician serving as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for since 1991. The district, numbered as the California's 29th congressional district, ...

(born Maxine Moore Carr, born 1938), American politician *

Maxine (wrestler) Karlee Leilani Perez (born April 19, 1986) is an American actress, model and retired professional wrestler. She is best known for her time in WWE under the ring name Maxine. She is also known for her appearances with Lucha Underground under the ...

(born 1986), stage name of American former professional wrestler, model, and former WWE Diva Karlee Pérez

Fictional characters

* Maxine Baker, daughter of

Animal Man Animal Man (Bernhard "Buddy" Baker) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. As a result of being in proximity to an exploding extraterrestrial spaceship, Buddy Baker acquires the ability to temporarily "borrow" t ...

(Buddy Baker) in DC Comics * Maxine Baker, from the American comedy-drama series ''

Ginny & Georgia ''Ginny & Georgia'' is an American comedy-drama television series created by Sarah Lampert that was released on Netflix on February 24, 2021. In April 2021, the series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on January 5, 2023. In May ...

'' *

Maxine Barlow This article lists the characters and the actors who portray them from the BBC television series '' Waterloo Road''. The series utilises an ensemble cast, led by the staff members of the eponymous school. It also has a high turnover rate of char ...

, from the British drama series ''Waterloo Road'' * Maxine Black, "Max", titular protagonist of the American television sitcom ''2 broke girls'' *

Max Caulfield Maxine "Max" Caulfield is a fictional character from the ''Life Is Strange'' video game series published by Square Enix. Created by French developer Dontnod Entertainment, she is the player character in ''Life Is Strange (video game), Life Is St ...

, or Maxine, main character in the video game ''Life Is Strange'' *

Maxine Chadway ''Soul Food'' is an American drama television series that aired on Showtime from June 28, 2000, to May 26, 2004. Developed for television by Felicia D. Henderson, the series was an adaptation of George Tillman Jr.'s 1997 film of the same nam ...

, from the television series ''Soul Food'' *

Maxine Conway Maxine Conway (formerly Max) is a recurring character from '' Wentworth'', portrayed by actor Socratis Otto. Maxine is notable for being Bea Smith's ( Danielle Cormack) bodyguard and also for being transgender within the series. She was dating ...

, from the Australian drama series, ''Wentworth'' * Maxine Gray, from the American television series, ''

Judging Amy ''Judging Amy'' is an American legal drama television series that was telecast from September 19, 1999, through May 3, 2005, on CBS. This television series starred Amy Brenneman and Tyne Daly. Its main character (Brenneman) is a judge who serves ...

'' * Maxine Guevara, main character of the American TV series '' Dark Angel'' * Maxine Mayfield, "Max" or "Madmax", on the Netflix series ''Stranger Things'' *

Maxine Minniver Maxine Minniver (also Blake, Donovan and Kinsella) is a fictional character from the British soap opera ''Hollyoaks'', played by Nikki Sanderson. The character made her first on-screen appearance on 6 November 2012. Maxine's storylines have inclu ...

, from the British soap opera, ''Hollyoaks'' * Maxine Minx, from the horror films '' X'' and ''

MaXXXine ''MaXXXine'' is a 2024 American horror film written, directed, produced, and edited by Ti West. It is the third and final installment in West's ''X'' trilogy and a direct sequel to '' X'' (2022). Mia Goth reprises her role as Maxine Minx, sta ...

'' *

Maxine Peacock Maxine Peacock (also Heavey) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', portrayed by Tracy Shaw. She made her first on-screen appearance on 2 May 1995 and left in 2003. The hairdresser Maxine works for Deni ...

, from the British soap opera, ''Coronation Street'' * Maxine Shaw, from the American television sitcom ''

Living Single ''Living Single'' is an American television sitcom created by Yvette Denise Lee that aired for five seasons on the Fox network, from August 22, 1993, to January 1, 1998. The show centers on the lives of six New York City friends who share perso ...

'' * Maxine Tarnow, main character in Thomas Pynchon's novel ''

Bleeding Edge Emerging technologies are technologies whose development, practical applications, or both are still largely unrealized. These technologies are generally new but also include old technologies finding new applications. Emerging technologies are o ...

'' * Maxine (Hallmark), character in greeting card images

Notes

{{given name English feminine given names Feminine given names