The May family (also spelled Maj) was a prominent Danish family that belonged to the
clergy
Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...
and thus the legally privileged elite in Denmark-Norway. It was descended from the priest
Søren Nielsen May
Søren Nielsen May (born in Helsingborg, died 16 September 1679 in Holbæk), also spelled Søren Nielsen Maj, was a Danish priest, who was parish priest and provost in Holbæk. He was an uncle of the statesman Peder Griffenfeld
Count Peder Gr ...
(died 1679), a native of then-Danish
Helsingborg
Helsingborg (, , ), is a Urban areas in Sweden, city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Scania County, Scania (Skåne), Sweden. It is the second-largest city in Scania (after Malmö) and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, ninth ...
in
Scania
Scania ( ), also known by its native name of Skåne (), is the southernmost of the historical provinces of Sweden, provinces () of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous w ...
noble
A noble is a member of the nobility.
Noble may also refer to:
Places Antarctica
* Noble Glacier, King George Island
* Noble Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land
* Noble Peak, Wiencke Island
* Noble Rocks, Graham Land
Australia
* Noble Island, Gr ...
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
wine merchant
Peter Motzfeldt
Peter Motzfeldt (3 August 1777 – 1 April 1854) was a Norwegian military officer and government minister. He served as a member of the Constitutional Assembly at Eidsvoll Manor in 1814.
Background
Motzfeldt was born in Orkdal in Søndre Trondh ...
. Catharina Motzfeldt's sister was the mother of
Peder Griffenfeld
Count Peder Griffenfeld (before nobility, ennoblement Peder Schumacher) (24 August 1635 – 12 March 1699) was a Danish statesman and royal favourite. He became the principal adviser to King Christian V of Denmark from 1670 and the ''de facto'' ...
, the de facto ruler of Denmark-Norway in the early 1670s, and the May family, along with Griffenfeld's other close relatives, thus rose to significant prominence with their nephew's rise to power.
Søren May and Catharina Motzfeldt had ten children. Their daughter Maren May was married to the Bishop of ChristianssandLudvig Stoud; Else May was married to the priest Poul Munkgaard; Gundel May was married to the priest Herman Arentsen, a son of
Arent Berntsen
Arent Berntsen (12 May 1610 in Bergen – 29 December 1680 in Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situa ...
; Cathrine Marie May was married to the priest Rasmus Andersen Montoppidan; Ellen May was married to the judge Poul Pedersen Fabritius; Bertel Sørensen May (died 1711) was priest in Tystrup and Haldagerlille.
The Søren May House in
Holbæk
Holbæk () is a town in Denmark and the County seat, seat of Holbæk municipality with a population of 30,903 (1 January 2025).Satans mønter i Holbæk sn.dk