maya

[ mah-yah, -yuh ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

, Hinduism.

the power, as of a god, to produce illusions.
the production of an illusion.
(in Vedantic philosophy) the illusion of the reality of sensory experience and of the experienced qualities and attributes of oneself.
(initial capital letter) Also called Mahamaya. a goddess personifying the power that creates phenomena.

Maya

[ mah-yuh ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

, plural Ma·yas, (especially collectively) Ma·ya.

a member of a major pre-Columbian civilization of the Yucatán Peninsula that reached its peak in the 9th century a.d. and produced magnificent ceremonial cities with pyramids, a sophisticated mathematical and calendar system, hieroglyphic writing, and fine sculpture, painting, and ceramics.
a member of a modern Indigenous people of southern Mexico, Guatemala, and parts of Honduras who are the descendants of this ancient civilization.
any of the Mayan languages; the historical and modern languages of the Maya.

Maya

/ ˈmaɪə /

Also calledMayan -ya-yas a member of an American Indian people of Yucatan, Belize, and N Guatemala, having an ancient culture once characterized by outstanding achievements in architecture, astronomy, chronology, painting, and pottery
the language of this people See also Mayan

maya

/ ˈmɑːjə; ˈmaɪə; ˈmɑːjɑː /

Maya

/ ˈmɑːjə; ˈmɑːjɑː; ˈmaɪə /

the Hindu goddess of illusion, the personification of the idea that the material world is illusory

Origin of maya¹

Borrowed into English from Sanskrit around 1815–25

Origin of maya²

First recorded in 1810–20; from Spanish, from Yucatec Maya mayab “flat,” a self-designation

Origin of maya¹

C19: from Sanskrit

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