The gospels of Matthew and Luke in the New Testament describe Mary as a virgin and Christians believe that she conceived her son while a virgin by the Holy Spirit. The miraculous birth took place when she was already betrothed to Joseph and was awaiting the concluding rite of marriage, the formal home-taking ceremony. She married Joseph and accompanied him to Bethlehem, where Jesus was born.
In Christianity, Mary is commonly referred to as the Virgin Mary, in accordance with the belief that she conceived Jesus miraculously through the Holy Spirit without her husband's involvement. Among her many other names and titles are the Blessed Virgin Mary (often abbreviated to "BVM"), Saint Mary (occasionally), the Mother of God (primarily in Western Christianity), the Theotokos (primarily in Eastern Christianity), Our Lady (Medieval Italian: Madonna), and Queen of Heaven (Latin: Regina Coeli). Titles in use vary among Anglicans, Lutherans, Catholics, Orthodox, Protestants, Mormons, and other Christians.
In Islam, she is known as Maryam, mother of Isa. She is often referred to by the honorific title sayyidatuna, meaning "our lady"; this title is in parallel to sayyiduna ("our lord"), used for the prophets. A related term of endearment is Siddiqah, meaning "she who confirms the truth". Another title for Mary is Qānitah,