Meaning: Its source is Myron, a Greek name meaning "Myrrh."

Popularity: The name Mayra ranked 490th in popularity for females of all ages in a sample of 2000-2003 Social Security Administration statistics and 635th in popularity for females of all ages in a sample of the 1990 US Census.

Though this name has fluctuated in use, it has been quietly present throughout the last century.

Narrative: Myra was invented by the English poet Fulke Greville (1554-1618) to name the object of his love poems. It has been suggested that he did not intend to create a female form of Myron, but rather rearranged Mary to fashion this name.

He also might have intended the name to suggest the word ''admiration,'' after the fashion of Shakespeare's creation, Miranda.