Maxine is an English feminine given name created as a feminine version of the name Max.
It has been in regular use since the 1880s. Other names with the diminutive suffix -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, who was born Jessie Dermot. Another early media influence was Maxene Andrews of The Andrews Sisters singing trio. The influence of the Stranger Things character Max Mayfield is partially associated with the increase in popularity of the name since 2017.
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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 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 since 2017.
People
Maxene Andrews (1916–1995), member of The Andrews Sisters singing trio
Maxine Audley (1923–1992), English actress
Maxine Brown (country singer) (1932–2019), American country music singer
Maxine Brown (soul singer) (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 (not to be confused with Maxine Moore Carr / Maxine Waters)
Maxine Dexter (1972), American politician
Maxine Elliott (1868–1940), American actress
Maxine Fassberg (born 1953), CEO, Intel Israel
Maxine Fleming, New Zealand television screenwriter and producer
Maxine Funke, New Zealand singer-songwriter
Maxine Hong Kingston (born 1940), Chinese American author and Professor Emerita
Maxine Jones (born 1962), American singer, member of girl group En Vogue
Maxine Kumin (1925–2014), American poet and author
Maxine Mawhinney (born 1957), newsreader on the BBC News 24-hour television channel
Maxine McKew (born 1953), Australian politician and journalist
Maxine Medina (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 (born 1952), British R&B and soul music singer
Maxine Peake (born 1974), English actress
Maxine Reiner (1916–2003), American actress
Maxine Sanders (born 1946), British Wiccan
Maxine Sullivan (born Marietta Williams, 1911–1987), American jazz vocalist/performer
Maxine Waters (born Maxine Moore Carr, born 1938), American politician
Maxine (wrestler) (born 1986), stage name of American former professional wrestler, model, and former WWE Diva Karlee Pérez
Fictional characters
Maxine Baker, daughter of Animal Man (Buddy Baker) in DC Comics
Maxine Baker, from the American comedy-drama series Ginny & Georgia
Maxine Barlow, from the British drama series Waterloo Road
Maxine Black, "Max", titular protagonist of the American television sitcom 2 broke girls
Max Caulfield, or Maxine, main character in the video game Life Is Strange
Maxine Chadway, from the television series Soul Food
Maxine Conway, from the Australian drama series, Wentworth
Maxine Gray, from the American television series, Judging Amy
Maxine Guevara, main character of the American TV series Dark Angel
Maxine Mayfield, "Max" or "Madmax", on the Netflix series Stranger Things
Maxine Minniver, from the British soap opera, Hollyoaks
Maxine Minx, from the horror films X and MaXXXine
Maxine Peacock, from the British soap opera, Coronation Street
Maxine Shaw, from the American television sitcom Living Single
Maxine Tarnow, main character in Thomas Pynchon's novel Bleeding Edge