Her first name, Maya, was given to her by her older brother who was two years older than her. He had a lisp, and stuttered, and could not pronounce her given name, Marguerite.
When he was 9 years old, he read about how proud and beautiful the the Mayan Indians were, so he named her Maya, and refused to let her answer to any other name.
She obtained the last name Angelou when she married a man with the last Angelou. The marriage did not last, but she liked the sound of the name Maya Angelou, so she kept the last name. That is how she became Maya Angelou!
You can hear her tell the story in her own words in the video below:
- netpressionist answered 10 months ago
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