| Mahi | Kavya | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | the earth; the great one | poetry, a poem |
| Origin | sanskrit | sanskrit |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | MAH-hee | KAAV-yah |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 0 | 1987 |
| Peak year | 2009 (100) | 2012 (106) |
| In 2025 | 0 | 75 |
| Trend | Declining | Steady |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Mahi | Kavya |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 198 | 425 |
| 2010s | 600 | 968 |
| 2000s | 438 | 614 |
| 1990s | 0 | 133 |
| 1980s | 0 | 6 |
From Sanskrit mahi (मही), 'the earth, the world; great'. Note a homophone from a different root: Persian/Urdu mahi means 'fish'.
From Sanskrit kavya (काव्य), 'poetry, a poem, poetic composition', related to kavi 'poet, seer'. Well established.
Kavya is more popular than Mahi today: about 75 US babies were given the name Kavya in 2025, compared with 0 named Mahi.
Mahi means the earth; the great one (sanskrit origin), while Kavya means poetry, a poem (sanskrit origin).
In US records, Mahi first appears in 0 and Kavya in 1987, so Mahi has the longer recorded history.