Month of May Trivia
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207 free Month of May trivia questions with answers — trivia quiz, new questions added Oct 2026.
42 free month of May trivia questions with answers. Forty questions on the month of May, spring in the north and autumn in the south. The first round is the month itself: the goddess Maia behind its name, Ovid's rival theory, the emerald birthstone, the poisonous lily of the valley, the Taurus and Gemini signs, and how May bookends the American summer with Labor Day. Then come the days people actually mark: May Day and Beltane, Cinco de Mayo, Mother's Day, Memorial Day, the Kentucky Derby, the Indy 500 and its bottle of milk, Star Wars Day, Eurovision, Victoria Day and Golden Week. A run of famous May events closes it out, from Lindbergh's flight and the Golden Gate Bridge to Everest, the Lusitania, Napoleon's death and Sgt. Pepper. It suits a classroom, a quiz night or a monthly newsletter. Every answer was checked against Wikipedia's articles on the month, the holidays and the events involved, and the sentence that establishes it is shown under each explanation.
30 of 207 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01The month of May is generally thought to be named after which Greek goddess?
Maia
May is generally named for Maia, one of the Pleiades in Greek myth, identified with the Roman fertility goddess Maia Maiestas, whose festival fell on 1 May.
Q 02In Ovid's etymology May honours the 'maiores'; what does that word mean?
Elders
Maiores means 'elders' or ancestors; in the Fasti, Ovid suggests May honours the maiores and June the iuniores, the young.
Q 03How many days does May have?
31
May always has 31 days, one of the seven 31-day months alongside January, March, July, August, October and December.
Q 04May's birthstone is which green gem?
Emerald
It is a variety of the mineral beryl, coloured green by traces of chromium or vanadium.
Q 05One of May's birth flowers, the lily of the valley, is notable for being what?
Highly poisonous
Lily of the valley is highly poisonous: every part of the plant contains toxins that can disrupt heart rhythm if eaten, despite its sweet scent.
Q 06May's later sign is the twins; which zodiac sign covers the first three weeks of the month?
Taurus
Taurus, the bull, runs from about 20 April to 20 May, so it covers the first three weeks of May before Gemini begins.
Q 07Which zodiac sign, beginning around 21 May, is represented by twins?
Gemini
Gemini, the twins, begins around 21 May; the twins are Castor and Pollux, the Dioscuri of Greek myth.
Q 08In the Southern Hemisphere, May is the seasonal equivalent of which Northern Hemisphere month?
November
November is the Southern Hemisphere's late-spring month, matching May in the north; in the south, May is late autumn, like November up north.
Q 09May Day traditions include dancing around what?
A maypole
Dancing around a maypole, often weaving ribbons, is the classic May Day custom, alongside gathering greenery and crowning a May Queen.
Q 10International Workers' Day shares its 1 May date with May Day but is rooted in what?
The labour movement
International Workers' Day is rooted in the labour movement; the Second International proclaimed 1 May a workers' holiday in 1889, long after the older spring festival.
Q 11Cinco de Mayo, on 5 May, celebrates Mexico's 1862 victory over French forces near which city?
Puebla
Cinco de Mayo marks the Battle of Puebla on 5 May 1862, when an outnumbered Mexican army defeated French invaders outside the city of Puebla.
Q 12Mother's Day in the United States, on the second Sunday of May, was largely founded by whom?
Anna Jarvis
Anna Jarvis organised the first Mother's Day service in 1908 in memory of her mother, and later campaigned against the holiday's commercialisation.
Q 13President Woodrow Wilson made Mother's Day a national holiday in which year?
1914
Wilson signed the proclamation on 9 May 1914, after Congress passed a joint resolution, fixing Mother's Day on the second Sunday in May.
Q 21The first Eurovision Song Contest was held in which year?
1956
1956 was the first; it is the longest-running international music competition on television.
Q 22As of the 2025 contest, which two countries held the Eurovision record of seven wins each?
Ireland and Sweden
Ireland and Sweden each had seven wins as of 2025; Sweden's seventh came with Loreen's 'Tattoo' in 2023, matching Ireland's tally from 1970 to 1996.
Q 23Which monarch, called the 'Mother of Confederation', is honoured by a Canadian holiday each May?
Queen Victoria
Queen Victoria, who reigned when Canada confederated in 1867, is honoured on Victoria Day, the Monday preceding 25 May; Canadians call her the 'Mother of Confederation'.
Q 14Memorial Day, the unofficial start of the US summer, falls on which day of May?
The last Monday
Memorial Day falls on the last Monday of May; Congress moved it there from the fixed 30 May date by a 1968 law that took effect in 1971.
Q 15Memorial Day began in 1868 under what earlier name?
Decoration Day
It was called Decoration Day: an 1868 Grand Army of the Republic order set 30 May for decorating the graves of Civil War dead with flowers.
Q 16Which flower completes the Kentucky Derby's nickname, 'The Run for the ___'?
Roses
The winning horse is draped in a blanket of roses; the race lasts only about two minutes.
Q 17The first Kentucky Derby, in May 1875, was run at which track?
Churchill Downs
Churchill Downs in Louisville hosted the first Derby on 17 May 1875, when Aristides won before a crowd of about 10,000.
Q 18What does the Indianapolis 500 winner traditionally drink in victory lane?
Milk
The Indy 500 winner drinks a bottle of milk, a tradition dating from the 1930s when a winner fond of buttermilk was photographed drinking it after the race.
Q 19Why is the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, home of the Indy 500 each May, nicknamed the 'Brickyard'?
It was first paved in brick
It was first paved in brick in the fall of 1909, and a strip of the original bricks survives at the start-finish line.
Q 20Star Wars Day is celebrated on 4 May because of a pun on which catchphrase?
May the Force be with you
'May the Force be with you' is the Jedi blessing from the original 1977 Star Wars; fans pun it as 'May the Fourth be with you', and Lucasfilm now promotes the day officially.
Q 24International Nurses Day is observed on 12 May because it is the birthday of whom?
Florence Nightingale
Florence Nightingale, 'The Lady with the Lamp', was born on 12 May 1820; the International Council of Nurses fixed her birthday as the date in 1974.
Q 25The Kent State shootings took place on 4 May of which year?
1970
On 4 May 1970, Ohio National Guardsmen fired on students protesting the Cambodia campaign at Kent State University, killing four.
Q 26Japan's spring 'Golden Week' cluster of public holidays runs from 29 April to which May date?
5 May
Golden Week ends on 5 May, Children's Day, the last of the cluster of public holidays that begins with Showa Day on 29 April.
Q 27The Christian feast of the Ascension is traditionally held on a Thursday how many days after Easter?
40
It commemorates the belief that the risen Jesus appeared for 40 days before ascending to heaven.
Q 28Charles Lindbergh flew solo nonstop from New York to Paris in May 1927 aboard which aircraft?
The Spirit of St. Louis
Lindbergh's Ryan monoplane, the Spirit of St. Louis, made the 33½-hour flight on 20–21 May 1927, winning the $25,000 Orteig Prize.
Q 29The Golden Gate Bridge opened in May 1937 painted in which distinctive colour?
International Orange
The bridge was painted International Orange, chosen by consulting architect Irving Morrow; the US Navy had lobbied for black with yellow stripes for visibility.
Q 30When it opened in May 1883, the Brooklyn crossing was the world's longest span of which kind?
Suspension bridge
The Brooklyn Bridge was the world's longest suspension bridge at its 24 May 1883 opening, with a 1,595-foot main span, and the first fixed East River crossing.