Origin and history of Maria

fem. proper name, Old English Maria, Marie, name of the mother of Jesus, from Latin Maria, from Greek Mariam, Maria, from Aramaic Maryam, from Hebrew Miryam, name of the sister of Moses (Exodus xv), a word of unknown origin, said to mean literally "rebellion."

The nursery rhyme "Mary had a Little Lamb" was written early 1830 by Sarah Josepha Hale of Boston and published September 1830 in "Juvenile Miscellany," a popular magazine for children. Mary Jane is 1921 as the proprietary name of a kind of low-heeled shoe worn chiefly by young girls, 1928 as slang for marijuana.

Mary Sue as a type of ludicrously idealized fictional character, originally in fanfiction based on the Star Trek television series, is attested by 1992, from the name of a character in the 1973 parody story A Trekkie's Tale. Attested in reference to other types of fiction by 1999. The male counterpart is a Gary Stu (2005) or a Marty Stu (2003).

Mary Sue is often easy to spot because she's impossible to miss. Put simply, Mary Sue is more: more charming, more belligerent, more understanding, more beautiful, more graceful, more eccentric, more spiritual, more klutzy. She has better hair, better clothes, better weapons, better brains, better sex, and better karma than anyone else. [Pat Pflieger, "Too Good to Be True: 150 Years of Mary Sue." 2001.]

modified form of the angelic salutation to the Virgin (Luke i.28) used as a devotional recitation, early 13c., from the opening words ("Ave [Maria] gratia plena"). See ave + Maria.