Mayan

American  

[mah-yuhn] / ˈmɑ yən /

adjective

1. of or relating to the Maya, their culture, or their languages.

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noun

1. a member of the Mayan tribe.

2. a group of languages spoken by the Mayas in southern Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize, including Yucatec, Quiché, and Huastec.

Mayan British  

/ ˈmaɪən /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of the Maya or any of their languages

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noun

1. a family of Central American Indian languages, including Maya, possibly a member of the Penutian phylum

2. another name for a Maya 2

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• pseudo-Mayan
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of Mayan

First recorded in 1885–90; May(a) + -an

Example Sentences

Once-common literary references to Shakespeare or Dickens have now become as obscure in the common culture as so many Mayan inscriptions.

From Salon • Apr. 19, 2026

Absent any contextual identity, the names and dates Mayan inscriptions reveal are simply that: names and dates.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026

Until recently, Mayan script was indecipherable; Mr. Stuart is among the few who helped to unlock it.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026

Plan Kukulkan, named after the serpent deity of the Mayan civilization, covers the host cities as well as nearby tourist destinations.

From Barron's • Mar. 6, 2026

The Mayan people were governed by a system in which the priesthood and the nobility shared the power to make and enforce laws that affected all of Mayan society.

From "An Indigenous People’s History of the United States" by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz