kjk's Personal Name List

Zosia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Polish
Pronounced: ZAW-sha
Rating: 35% based on 4 votes
Diminutive of Zofia.
Zoey
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: ZO-ee
Rating: 46% based on 5 votes
Variant of Zoe.
Zinnia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: ZIN-ee-ə
Rating: 38% based on 5 votes
From the name of the flower, which was itself named for the German botanist Johann Zinn.
Zalea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (American, Rare)
Rating: 30% based on 5 votes
Truncated form of Azalea.
Xanthia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Rating: 26% based on 5 votes
Modern elaborated form of Xanthe.
Xanthe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ξάνθη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: KSAN-TEH(Classical Greek)
Rating: 28% based on 5 votes
Derived from Greek ξανθός (xanthos) meaning "yellow, blond, fair-haired". This was the name of a few minor figures in Greek mythology.
Wren
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: REHN
Rating: 40% based on 5 votes
From the English word for the small songbird. It is ultimately derived from Old English wrenna.
Winry
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Popular Culture, English (Modern)
Pronounced: WIN-ree(English)
Rating: 15% based on 4 votes
Possibly a diminutive of Winifred. Winry Rockbell is a character in the Full Metal Alchemist anime and manga, though in that case, the etymology is unknown.
Vanya
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian
Other Scripts: Ваня(Russian)
Pronounced: VA-nyə
Rating: 33% based on 4 votes
Diminutive of Ivan.
Vanessa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, German, Dutch
Pronounced: və-NEHS-ə(English) VA-NEH-SA(French) va-NEHS-sa(Italian) vu-NEH-su(European Portuguese) va-NEH-su(Brazilian Portuguese) ba-NEH-sa(Spanish) va-NEH-sa(German) vah-NEH-sa(Dutch)
Rating: 48% based on 4 votes
Invented by author Jonathan Swift for his 1726 poem Cadenus and Vanessa [1]. He arrived at it by rearranging the initial syllables of the first name and surname of Esther Vanhomrigh, his close friend. Vanessa was later used as the name of a genus of butterfly. It was a rare given name until the mid-20th century, at which point it became fairly popular.
Valerie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Czech
Pronounced: VAL-ə-ree(English) VA-lə-ree(German)
Rating: 13% based on 4 votes
English and German form of Valeria, as well as a Czech variant of Valérie.
Thalia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized), Greek
Other Scripts: Θάλεια(Greek)
Pronounced: THAY-lee-ə(English) thə-LIE-ə(English)
Rating: 15% based on 4 votes
From the Greek name Θάλεια (Thaleia), derived from θάλλω (thallo) meaning "to blossom". In Greek mythology she was one of the nine Muses, presiding over comedy and pastoral poetry. This was also the name of one of the three Graces or Χάριτες (Charites).
Teal
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: TEEL
Rating: 15% based on 4 votes
From the English word for the type of duck or the greenish-blue colour.
Teagan
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: TEE-gən
Rating: 45% based on 4 votes
Variant of Tegan. It also coincides with a rare Irish surname Teagan. This name rose on the American popularity charts in the 1990s, probably because of its similarity to names like Megan and Reagan.
Tavia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Corsican
Rating: 28% based on 4 votes
Short form of Ottavia.
Tassia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek
Pronounced: tah-SEE-yah
Rating: 18% based on 4 votes
Diminutive of Anastasia. This name belonged to an 8th-century Lombard queen, the Roman wife of Ratchis.

'Commonly found in Greece. It is the main nickname deriving from Anastasia. Today, most women prefer to keep their full name, but in the past, most women named Anastasia would choose to be called Tassia.'

Talya
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: טַלְיָה, טַלְיָא(Hebrew)
Rating: 28% based on 4 votes
Alternate transcription of Hebrew טַלְיָה or טַלְיָא (see Talia 1).
Sylvie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, Czech
Pronounced: SEEL-VEE(French) SIL-vi-yeh(Czech)
Rating: 28% based on 4 votes
French and Czech form of Silvia.
Sophie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English, German, Dutch
Pronounced: SAW-FEE(French) SO-fee(English) zo-FEE(German) so-FEE(Dutch)
Rating: 52% based on 5 votes
French form of Sophia.
Silver
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: SIL-vər(American English) SIL-və(British English)
Rating: 10% based on 4 votes
From the English word for the precious metal or the colour, ultimately derived from Old English seolfor.
Sigrid
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, German, Estonian, Finnish (Archaic)
Pronounced: SEE-grid(Swedish) SEEG-reed(Finnish)
Rating: 13% based on 4 votes
From the Old Norse name Sigríðr, which was derived from the elements sigr "victory" and fríðr "beautiful, beloved".
Sierra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: see-EHR-ə
Rating: 33% based on 4 votes
Means "mountain range" in Spanish, referring specifically to a mountain range with jagged peaks.
Savannah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: sə-VAN-ə
Rating: 25% based on 4 votes
From the English word for the large grassy plain, ultimately deriving from the Taino (Native American) word zabana. It came into use as a given name in America in the 19th century. It was revived in the 1980s by the movie Savannah Smiles (1982).
Sasha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, Ukrainian, English, French
Other Scripts: Саша(Russian, Ukrainian)
Pronounced: SA-shə(Russian) SASH-ə(English) SAH-shə(English) SA-SHA(French)
Rating: 48% based on 4 votes
Russian and Ukrainian diminutive of Aleksandr or Aleksandra.
Sapphire
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: SAF-ie-ər(American English) SAF-ie-ə(British English)
Rating: 36% based on 5 votes
From the name of the gemstone, typically blue, which is the traditional birthstone of September. It is derived from Greek σάπφειρος (sappheiros), ultimately from the Hebrew word סַפִּיר (sappir).
Sapphira
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: Σαπφείρη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: sə-FIE-rə(English)
Rating: 30% based on 5 votes
From the Greek name Σαπφείρη (Sappheire), which was from Greek σάπφειρος (sappheiros) meaning "sapphire" or "lapis lazuli" (ultimately derived from the Hebrew word סַפִּיר (sappir)). Sapphira is a character in Acts in the New Testament who is killed by God for lying.
Sapphia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek (Rare)
Pronounced: sa-phi-aa
Rating: 18% based on 4 votes
Saoirse
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: SEER-shə
Rating: 10% based on 4 votes
Means "freedom" in Irish Gaelic. It was first used as a given name in the 20th century.
Saffron
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: SAF-rən
Rating: 18% based on 4 votes
From the English word that refers either to a spice, the crocus flower from which it is harvested, or the yellow-orange colour of the spice. It is derived via Old French from Arabic زعفران (zaʿfarān), itself probably from Persian meaning "gold leaves".
Sabrina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese
Pronounced: sə-BREEN-ə(English) sa-BREE-na(Italian, Spanish) za-BREE-na(German) SA-BREE-NA(French) su-BREE-nu(European Portuguese) sa-BREE-nu(Brazilian Portuguese)
Rating: 48% based on 5 votes
Latinized form of Habren, the original Welsh name of the River Severn. According to Geoffrey of Monmouth, Sabrina was the name of a princess who was drowned in the Severn. Supposedly the river was named for her, but it is more likely that her name was actually derived from that of the river, which is of unknown meaning. She appears as a water nymph in John Milton's masque Comus (1634).

The name was brought to public attention by Samuel A. Taylor's play Sabrina Fair (1953) and the movie adaptation Sabrina that followed it the next year. This is also the name of a comic book character, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, first introduced 1962 and with television adaptations in 1970-1974 and 1996-2003, both causing minor jumps in popularity. Another jump occurred in 1976, when it was used for a main character on the television series Charlie's Angels.

Ruby
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ROO-bee
Rating: 42% based on 5 votes
Simply from the name of the precious stone (which ultimately derives from Latin ruber "red"), which is the traditional birthstone of July. It came into use as a given name in the 16th century [1].
Rowan
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Irish, English (Modern)
Pronounced: RO-ən(English)
Rating: 43% based on 4 votes
Anglicized form of the Irish name Ruadhán. As an English name, it can also be derived from the surname Rowan, itself derived from the Irish given name. It could also be given in reference to the rowan tree, a word of Old Norse origin (coincidentally sharing the same Indo-European root meaning "red" with the Irish name).
Rosia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Roman, English (Rare)
Rating: 13% based on 4 votes
Feminine form of Rosius.
Rosenwyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Cornish (Modern, Rare)
Pronounced: roz-EN-win
Rating: 33% based on 4 votes
Combination of Rosen and Cornish gwynn "fair, white, blessed". This is a modern Cornish name.
Rosemarijn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch
Rating: 10% based on 4 votes
Dutch form of Rosemary.
Roselore
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German (Rare)
Pronounced: ro-zə-LAW-rə
Rating: 10% based on 4 votes
Contraction of Rose and Eleonore via the short form Lore 1.
Rose
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: ROZ
Rating: 68% based on 6 votes
Originally a Norman French form of the Germanic name Hrodohaidis meaning "famous type", composed of the elements hruod "fame" and heit "kind, sort, type". The Normans introduced it to England in the forms Roese and Rohese. From an early date it was associated with the word for the fragrant flower rose (derived from Latin rosa). When the name was revived in the 19th century, it was probably with the flower in mind.
Rosaria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: ro-ZA-rya
Rating: 13% based on 4 votes
Italian feminine form of Rosario.
Rosamund
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: RO-zə-mənd(English) RAHZ-ə-mənd(American English) RAWZ-ə-mənd(British English)
Rating: 28% based on 4 votes
Derived from the Old German elements hros "horse" and munt "protection". This name was borne by the wife of the Lombard king Alboin in the 6th century. The Normans introduced it to England. It was subsequently interpreted as coming from Latin rosa munda "pure rose" or rosa mundi "rose of the world". This was the name of the mistress of Henry II, the king of England in the 12th century. According to legends she was murdered by his wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine.
Rosamina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Rating: 13% based on 4 votes
Combination of Rosa 1 and the popular suffix -mina.
Rosaline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RO-zə-leen(English) RAHZ-ə-lin(American English) RAHZ-ə-lien(American English) RAWZ-ə-lin(British English) RAWZ-ə-lien(British English)
Rating: 38% based on 5 votes
Medieval variant of Rosalind. This is the name of characters in Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost (1594) and Romeo and Juliet (1596).
Rosalind
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAHZ-ə-lind(American English) RAWZ-ə-lind(British English)
Rating: 43% based on 4 votes
Derived from the Old German elements hros meaning "horse" and lind meaning "soft, flexible, tender". The Normans introduced this name to England, though it was not common. During the Middle Ages its spelling was influenced by the Latin phrase rosa linda "beautiful rose". The name was popularized by Edmund Spencer, who used it in his poetry, and by William Shakespeare, who used it for the heroine in his comedy As You Like It (1599).
Rosalie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, German, Dutch, English
Pronounced: RAW-ZA-LEE(French) ro-za-LEE(German, Dutch) RO-sa-lee(Dutch) ro-sa-LEE(Dutch) RO-za-lee(Dutch) RO-zə-lee(English)
Rating: 58% based on 5 votes
French, German and Dutch form of Rosalia. In the English-speaking this name received a boost after the release of the movie Rosalie (1938), which was based on an earlier musical.
Rosabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: RO-zə-behl
Rating: 52% based on 5 votes
Combination of Rosa 1 and the common name suffix bel, inspired by Latin bella "beautiful". This name was created in the 18th century.
Rosa 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Catalan, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Finnish, Dutch, German, English
Pronounced: RO-sa(Spanish, Dutch) RAW-za(Italian) RAW-zu(European Portuguese) HAW-zu(Brazilian Portuguese) RAW-zə(Catalan) RO-za(German) RO-zə(English)
Rating: 48% based on 5 votes
Generally this can be considered to be from Latin rosa meaning "rose", though originally it may have come from the unrelated Germanic name Roza 2. This was the name of a 13th-century saint from Viterbo in Italy. In the English-speaking world it was first used in the 19th century. Famous bearers include the Polish-German revolutionary Rosa Luxemburg (1871-1919) and the American civil rights activist Rosa Parks (1913-2005).
Rita
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, English, German, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Hungarian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Estonian
Pronounced: REE-ta(Italian, Spanish, German) REET-ə(English) REE-taw(Hungarian) ryi-TU(Lithuanian)
Rating: 15% based on 4 votes
Short form of Margherita and other names ending in rita. Saint Rita (born Margherita Lotti) was a 15th-century nun from Cascia, Italy. Another famous bearer was the American actress Rita Hayworth (1918-1987).
Rio 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Various
Rating: 18% based on 4 votes
Means "river" in Spanish or Portuguese. A city in Brazil bears this name. Its full name is Rio de Janeiro, which means "river of January", so named because the first explorers came to the harbour in January and mistakenly thought it was a river mouth.
Reverie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: REHV-ə-ree
Rating: 10% based on 4 votes
From the English word meaning "daydream, fanciful musing", derived from Old French resverie, itself from resver meaning "to dream, to rave".
Renfri
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Popular Culture
Pronounced: REN-free
Rating: 15% based on 4 votes
Taken from the surname Renfrew.

In the book series The Witcher, as well as the television adaptation, Renfri is an exiled princess who was born during a solar eclipse, and thus allegedly filled a prophecy along with many other girls who would bring about the end of the world. Because of this she was pursued by the obsessed sorcerer Stregobor and vilified by her stepmother, who sent thugs to kill her in the forest. Eventually she became the leader of a band of thieves and vowed vengeance on Stregobor, and Geralt of Rivia attempted to persuade her to abandon this quest.

Regina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Lithuanian, Estonian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Russian, Hungarian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Late Roman
Other Scripts: Регина(Russian)
Pronounced: ri-JEE-nə(English) ri-JIE-nə(English) reh-GEE-na(German, Polish) reh-JEE-na(Italian) reh-KHEE-na(Spanish) ryeh-gyi-NU(Lithuanian) REH-gi-na(Czech) REH-gee-naw(Hungarian)
Rating: 18% based on 4 votes
Means "queen" in Latin (or Italian). It was in use as a Christian name from early times, and was borne by a 2nd-century saint. In England it was used during the Middle Ages in honour of the Virgin Mary, and it was later revived in the 19th century. A city in Canada bears this name, in honour of Queen Victoria.
Rebecca
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Swedish, German, Dutch, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: רִבְקָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: rə-BEHK-ə(English) reh-BEHK-ka(Italian) rə-BEH-ka(Dutch)
Rating: 30% based on 4 votes
From the Hebrew name רִבְקָה (Rivqa), probably from a Semitic root meaning "join, tie, snare". This is the name of the wife of Isaac and the mother of Esau and Jacob in the Old Testament. It came into use as an English Christian name after the Protestant Reformation, and it was popular with the Puritans in the 17th century. It has been consistently used since then, becoming especially common in the second half of the 20th century.

This name is borne by a Jewish woman in Walter Scott's novel Ivanhoe (1819), as well as the title character (who is deceased and unseen) in Daphne du Maurier's novel Rebecca (1938).

Raven
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAY-vən
Rating: 13% based on 4 votes
From the name of the bird, ultimately from Old English hræfn. The raven is revered by several Native American groups of the west coast. It is also associated with the Norse god Odin.
Rachel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Hebrew, French, Dutch, German, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: רָחֵל(Hebrew)
Pronounced: RAY-chəl(English) RA-SHEHL(French) RAH-khəl(Dutch) RA-khəl(German)
Rating: 44% based on 5 votes
From the Hebrew name רָחֵל (Raḥel) meaning "ewe". In the Old Testament this is the name of the favourite wife of Jacob. Her father Laban tricked Jacob into marrying her older sister Leah first, though in exchange for seven years of work Laban allowed Jacob to marry Rachel too. Initially barren and facing her husband's anger, she offered her handmaid Bilhah to Jacob to bear him children. Eventually she was herself able to conceive, becoming the mother of Joseph and Benjamin.

The name was common among Jews in the Middle Ages, but it was not generally used as a Christian name in the English-speaking world until after the Protestant Reformation. It was moderately popular in the first half of the 20th century, but starting in the 1960s it steadily rose, reaching highs in the 1980s and 90s. The character Rachel Green on the American sitcom Friends (1994-2004) may have only helped delay its downswing.

Notable bearers include American conservationist Rachel Carson (1907-1964), British actress Rachel Weisz (1970-), and Canadian actress Rachel McAdams (1978-).

Petra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Dutch, Spanish, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Croatian, Bulgarian, Hungarian, Swedish, Finnish, English
Other Scripts: Петра(Bulgarian) Πέτρα(Greek)
Pronounced: PEH-tra(German, Dutch, Spanish, Czech, Slovak) PEH-traw(Hungarian) PEHT-rah(Finnish) PEHT-rə(English)
Rating: 8% based on 4 votes
Feminine form of Peter. This was also the name of an ancient city in the region that is now Jordan.
Paige
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PAYJ
Rating: 38% based on 5 votes
From an English surname meaning "servant, page" in Middle English. It is ultimately derived (via Old French and Italian) from Greek παιδίον (paidion) meaning "little boy".

As a given name for girls, it received some public attention from a character in the 1958 novel Parrish and the 1961 movie adaptation [1]. It experienced a larger surge in popularity in the 1980s, probably due to the character Paige Matheson from the American soap opera Knots Landing.

Ottavia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: ot-TA-vya
Personal remark: NN- O, Tavia
Rating: 10% based on 4 votes
Italian form of Octavia.
Ophelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Literature, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ὠφελία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: o-FEEL-ee-ə(English) o-FEEL-yə(English)
Rating: 40% based on 4 votes
Derived from Greek ὠφέλεια (opheleia) meaning "help, advantage". This was a rare ancient Greek name, which was either rediscovered or recreated by the poet Jacopo Sannazaro for a character in his poem Arcadia (1480). It was borrowed by Shakespeare for his play Hamlet (1600), in which it belongs to the daughter of Polonius and the potential love interest of Hamlet. She eventually goes insane and drowns herself after Hamlet kills her father. In spite of this negative association, the name has been in use since the 19th century.
Opal
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: O-pəl
Rating: 25% based on 4 votes
From the English word opal for the iridescent gemstone, the birthstone of October. The word ultimately derives from Sanskrit उपल (upala) meaning "jewel".
Odette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: AW-DEHT
Rating: 10% based on 4 votes
French diminutive of Oda or Odilia. This is the name of a princess who has been transformed into a swan in the ballet Swan Lake (1877) by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.
Octavia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Romanian, Ancient Roman
Pronounced: ahk-TAY-vee-ə(American English) awk-TAY-vee-ə(British English) ok-TA-bya(Spanish) ok-TA-wee-a(Latin)
Rating: 15% based on 4 votes
Feminine form of Octavius. Octavia was the wife of Mark Antony and the sister of the Roman emperor Augustus. In 19th-century England it was sometimes given to the eighth-born child.
Niobe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Νιόβη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: NEE-O-BEH(Classical Greek) NIE-o-bee(English)
Rating: 13% based on 3 votes
Meaning unknown. In Greek mythology Niobe was the daughter of Tantalos, a king of Asia Minor. Because she boasted that she was superior to Leto, Leto's children Apollo and Artemis killed her 14 children with poison arrows. In grief, Niobe was turned to stone by Zeus.
Nerissa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: nə-RIS-ə(English)
Rating: 8% based on 4 votes
Created by Shakespeare for a character in his play The Merchant of Venice (1596). He possibly took it from Greek Νηρηΐς (Nereis) meaning "nymph, sea sprite", ultimately derived from the name of the Greek sea god Nereus, who supposedly fathered them.
Nerina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Rating: 20% based on 4 votes
Probably from Greek Νηρηΐδες (see Nereida). This name was used by Torquato Tasso for a character in his play Aminta (1573), and subsequently by Giacomo Leopardi in his poem Le Ricordanze (1829).
Nelda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NEHL-də
Rating: 20% based on 4 votes
Possibly an elaboration of Nell using the popular phonetic suffix da.
Nadine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, German, English, Dutch
Pronounced: NA-DEEN(French) na-DEE-nə(German, Dutch) na-DEEN(German, Dutch) nay-DEEN(English)
Rating: 25% based on 4 votes
French diminutive of Nadia 1.
Nadia 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, Italian, Spanish, Polish, English, Russian, Bulgarian, Ukrainian
Other Scripts: Надя(Russian, Bulgarian) Надія(Ukrainian)
Pronounced: NA-DYA(French) NA-dya(Italian, Polish) NA-dhya(Spanish) NAD-ee-ə(English) NAHD-ee-ə(English) NA-dyə(Russian)
Rating: 30% based on 4 votes
Variant of Nadya 1 used in Western Europe, as well as an alternate transcription of the Slavic name. It began to be used in France in the 19th century [1]. The name received a boost in popularity from the Romanian gymnast Nadia Comăneci (1961-) [2].
Miriam
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Italian, Portuguese, Czech, Slovak, Polish, Biblical
Other Scripts: מִרְיָם(Hebrew)
Pronounced: MIR-ee-əm(English) MI-ryam(German) MI-ri-yam(Czech) MEE-ree-am(Slovak)
Rating: 15% based on 4 votes
Form of Mary used in the Old Testament, where it belongs to the elder sister of Moses and Aaron. She watched over the infant Moses as the pharaoh's daughter drew him from the Nile. The name has long been popular among Jews, and it has been used as an English Christian name (alongside Mary) since the Protestant Reformation.
Minea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Finnish
Pronounced: MEE-neh-ah
Rating: 15% based on 4 votes
Created by the Finnish writer Mika Waltari for a character in his historical novel The Egyptian (1945). He may have based it on the name Minos, as the character is herself of Cretan origin.
Miel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew (Modern, Rare)
Rating: 26% based on 5 votes
Mia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, German, Italian, Slovene, Croatian, English
Pronounced: MEE-ah(Swedish, Norwegian, Danish) MEE-a(Dutch, German, Italian) MEE-ə(English)
Rating: 42% based on 6 votes
Diminutive of Maria. It coincides with the Italian word mia meaning "mine".

This name was common in Sweden and Denmark in the 1970s [1]. It rose in popularity in the English-speaking world in the 1990s, entering the top ten for girls in the United States in 2009. It was also popular in many other countries at that time. Famous bearers include American actress Mia Farrow (1945-) and American soccer player Mia Hamm (1972-), birth names Maria and Mariel respectively.

Meadow
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: MEHD-o
Rating: 40% based on 5 votes
From the English word meadow, ultimately from Old English mædwe. Previously very rare, it rose in popularity after it was used as the name of Tony Soprano's daughter on the television series The Sopranos (1999-2007).
Maven
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English, Irish (Anglicized)
Rating: 30% based on 5 votes
Anglicized form of Meidhbhín.
Mattea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: mat-TEH-a
Rating: 10% based on 4 votes
Italian feminine form of Matthew.
Matilda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish, Finnish, Slovak, Slovene
Pronounced: mə-TIL-də(English) MAH-teel-dah(Finnish) MA-teel-da(Slovak)
Rating: 33% based on 4 votes
From the Germanic name Mahthilt meaning "strength in battle", from the elements maht "might, strength" and hilt "battle". Saint Matilda was the wife of the 10th-century German king Henry I the Fowler. The name was common in many branches of European royalty in the Middle Ages. It was brought to England by the Normans, being borne by the wife of William the Conqueror himself. Another notable royal by this name was a 12th-century daughter of Henry I of England, known as the Empress Matilda because of her first marriage to the Holy Roman emperor Henry V. She later invaded England, laying the foundations for the reign of her son Henry II.

The name was very popular until the 15th century in England, usually in the vernacular form Maud. Both forms were revived by the 19th century. This name appears in the popular Australian folk song Waltzing Matilda, written in 1895.

Marina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, English, Greek, Finnish, Estonian, Russian, Romanian, Czech, Bulgarian, Croatian, Serbian, Slovene, Macedonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Georgian, Ancient Roman
Other Scripts: Μαρίνα(Greek) Марина(Russian, Bulgarian, Serbian, Macedonian) მარინა(Georgian)
Pronounced: ma-REE-na(Italian, Spanish, German, Dutch, Macedonian) mə-REE-nə(Catalan) mə-REEN-ə(English) mu-RYEE-nə(Russian) MA-ri-na(Czech)
Rating: 23% based on 4 votes
Feminine form of Marinus. This name was borne by a few early saints. This is also the name by which Saint Margaret of Antioch is known in the Eastern Orthodox Church.
Marigold
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: MAR-i-gold, MEHR-i-gold
Rating: 25% based on 4 votes
From the name of the flower, which comes from a combination of Mary and the English word gold.
Maria
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Italian, Portuguese, Catalan, Occitan, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Faroese, Dutch, Frisian, Greek, Polish, Romanian, English, Finnish, Estonian, Corsican, Sardinian, Basque, Armenian, Russian, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Biblical Greek [1], Biblical Latin, Old Church Slavic
Other Scripts: Μαρία(Greek) Մարիա(Armenian) Мария(Russian, Bulgarian) Марія(Ukrainian) Маріа(Church Slavic)
Pronounced: ma-REE-a(Italian, German, Swedish, Dutch, Greek, Romanian, Basque) mu-REE-u(European Portuguese) ma-REE-u(Brazilian Portuguese) mə-REE-ə(Catalan, English) mah-REE-ah(Norwegian, Danish) MAR-ya(Polish) MAH-ree-ah(Finnish) mu-RYEE-yə(Russian) mu-RYEE-yu(Ukrainian)
Rating: 52% based on 5 votes
Latin form of Greek Μαρία, from Hebrew מִרְיָם (see Mary). Maria is the usual form of the name in many European languages, as well as a secondary form in other languages such as English (where the common spelling is Mary). In some countries, for example Germany, Poland and Italy, Maria is occasionally used as a masculine middle name.

This was the name of two ruling queens of Portugal. It was also borne by the Habsburg queen Maria Theresa (1717-1780), whose inheritance of the domains of her father, the Holy Roman emperor Charles VI, began the War of the Austrian Succession.

Mara 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, Biblical Hebrew [1], Italian, Spanish, Portuguese
Other Scripts: מָרָא(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: MAHR-ə(English) MAR-ə(English) MEHR-ə(English) MA-ra(Spanish)
Rating: 18% based on 4 votes
Means "bitter" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this is a name that Naomi calls herself after the death of her husband and sons (see Ruth 1:20).
Maeve
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, English, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: MAYV(English)
Rating: 15% based on 4 votes
Anglicized form of the Irish name Medb meaning "intoxicating". In Irish legend this was the name of a warrior queen of Connacht. She and her husband Ailill fought against the Ulster king Conchobar and the hero Cúchulainn, as told in the Irish epic The Cattle Raid of Cooley.
Lucy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LOO-see
Rating: 45% based on 4 votes
English form of Lucia, in use since the Middle Ages.
Lorraine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: lə-RAYN
Rating: 28% based on 4 votes
From the name of a region in eastern France, originally meaning "kingdom of Lothar". Lothar was a Frankish king, the great-grandson of Charlemagne, whose realm was in the part of France that is now called Lorraine, or in German Lothringen (from Latin Lothari regnum). As a given name, it has been used in the English-speaking world since the late 19th century, perhaps due to its similar sound with Laura. It became popular after World War I when the region was in the news, as it was contested between Germany and France.
Lisa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Italian
Pronounced: LEE-sə(English) LEE-za(German, Italian) LEE-sa(Dutch)
Rating: 43% based on 4 votes
Short form of Elizabeth (though often used independently) and its cognates in other languages. This is the name of the subject of one of the world's most famous paintings, the Mona Lisa, the portrait of Lisa del Giocondo by Leonardo da Vinci.

In the United States this form was more popular than the full form Elizabeth from 1958 to 1978, and was in fact the top ranked American name between 1962 and 1969.

Liora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: לִיאוֹרָה(Hebrew)
Rating: 13% based on 4 votes
Strictly feminine form of Lior.
Lily
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIL-ee
Rating: 54% based on 5 votes
From the name of the flower, a symbol of purity. The word is ultimately derived from Latin lilium. This is the name of the main character, Lily Bart, in the novel The House of Mirth (1905) by Edith Wharton. A famous bearer is the American actress Lily Tomlin (1939-).
Leigh
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LEE
Rating: 25% based on 4 votes
From a surname that was a variant of Lee.
Lavender
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: LAV-ən-dər(American English) LAV-ən-də(British English)
Rating: 20% based on 4 votes
From the English word for the aromatic flower or the pale purple colour.
Laurel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LAWR-əl
Rating: 28% based on 4 votes
From the name of the laurel tree, ultimately from Latin laurus.
Lane
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LAYN
Rating: 18% based on 4 votes
From an English surname, meaning "lane, path", which originally belonged to a person who lived near a lane.
Lake
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: LAYK
Rating: 40% based on 4 votes
From the English word lake, for the inland body of water. It is ultimately derived from Latin lacus.
Kieran
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, English
Pronounced: KIR-ən(English) KIR-awn(English)
Rating: 30% based on 4 votes
Anglicized form of Ciarán.
Kate
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Croatian
Pronounced: KAYT(English)
Rating: 58% based on 5 votes
Short form of Katherine, often used independently. It is short for Katherina in Shakespeare's play The Taming of the Shrew (1593). It has been used in England since the Middle Ages. A famous bearer is the British actress Kate Winslet (1975-).
Juno
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology
Pronounced: YOO-no(Latin) JOO-no(English)
Rating: 38% based on 4 votes
Meaning unknown, possibly related to an Indo-European root meaning "young", or possibly of Etruscan origin. In Roman mythology Juno was the wife of Jupiter and the queen of the heavens. She was the protectress of marriage and women, and was also the goddess of finance.
Jescha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical
Rating: 18% based on 4 votes
Form of Iscah found in the medieval Wycliffe Bible. This name was probably the basis for Shakespeare's created name Jessica.
Jasmine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: JAZ-min(English) ZHAS-MEEN(French)
Rating: 3% based on 3 votes
From the English word for the climbing plant with fragrant flowers that is used for making perfumes. It is derived via Arabic from Persian یاسمین (yāsamīn), which is also a Persian name. In the United States this name steadily grew in popularity from the 1970s, especially among African Americans [1]. It reached a peak in the early 1990s shortly after the release of the animated Disney movie Aladdin (1992), which featured a princess by this name.
Jane
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JAYN
Rating: 53% based on 4 votes
Medieval English form of Jehanne, an Old French feminine form of Iohannes (see John). This became the most common feminine form of John in the 17th century, surpassing Joan. In the first half of the 20th century Joan once again overtook Jane for a few decades in both the United States and the United Kingdom.

Famous bearers include the uncrowned English queen Lady Jane Grey (1536-1554), who ruled for only nine days, British novelist Jane Austen (1775-1817), who wrote Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice, British primatologist Jane Goodall (1934-), and American actress Jane Fonda (1937-). This is also the name of the central character in Charlotte Brontë's novel Jane Eyre (1847), which tells of Jane's sad childhood and her relationship with Edward Rochester.

Jade
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: JAYD(English) ZHAD(French)
Rating: 48% based on 6 votes
From the name of the precious stone that is often used in carvings. It is derived from Spanish (piedra de la) ijada meaning "(stone of the) flank", relating to the belief that jade could cure renal colic. As a given name, it came into general use during the 1970s. It was initially unisex, though it is now mostly feminine.
Ione
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, English
Other Scripts: Ἰόνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ie-O-nee(English)
Rating: 13% based on 4 votes
From Ancient Greek ἴον (ion) meaning "violet flower". This was the name of a sea nymph in Greek mythology. It has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since the 19th century, though perhaps based on the Greek place name Ionia, a region on the west coast of Asia Minor.
Io
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἰώ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: EE-AW(Classical Greek) IE-o(English)
Rating: 15% based on 4 votes
Meaning unknown. In Greek mythology Io was a princess loved by Zeus, who changed her into a heifer in order to hide her from Hera. A moon of Jupiter bears this name in her honour.
Innogen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Rating: 13% based on 4 votes
Probably derived from Old Irish ingen meaning "daughter" or "girl" (see Imogen).
This was the form of Ignoge used by Milton. (According to Geoffrey of Monmouth, Ignoge was the name of a princess who was given in marriage by her father, King Pandrasus of Greece, to the Trojan exile Brutus in exchange for Pandrasus' freedom. In Britain, she became the mother of Locrine, Albanact and Humber.)
The spelling Inogen was used by Richard Hole in his prose Arthur (1789), where the name belonged to the daughter of Merlin, later the wife of Arthur.
Ingrid
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Estonian, German, Dutch
Pronounced: ING-rid(Swedish) ING-ri(Norwegian) ING-grit(German) ING-greet(German) ING-ghrit(Dutch)
Rating: 40% based on 5 votes
From the Old Norse name Ingríðr meaning "Ing is beautiful", derived from the name of the Germanic god Ing combined with fríðr "beautiful, beloved". A famous bearer was the Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman (1915-1982).
Inessa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, Ukrainian
Other Scripts: Инесса(Russian) Інесса(Ukrainian)
Pronounced: i-NEHS-sə(Russian)
Rating: 20% based on 4 votes
Russian and Ukrainian form of Inés.
Indigo
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: IN-di-go
Rating: 42% based on 6 votes
From the English word indigo for the purplish-blue dye or the colour. It is ultimately derived from Greek Ἰνδικόν (Indikon) meaning "Indic, from India".
Inara
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern, Rare)
Pronounced: i-NA-rə
Rating: 25% based on 4 votes
Variant of Inaara. This name was popularized in the United States by character Inara Serra on the space Western TV show Firefly (2002).
Imogen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (British)
Pronounced: IM-ə-jehn
Rating: 10% based on 4 votes
The name of the daughter of King Cymbeline in the play Cymbeline (1609) by William Shakespeare. He based her on a legendary character named Innogen, but it was printed incorrectly and never emended. Innogen is probably derived from Gaelic inghean meaning "maiden". As a given name it is chiefly British and Australian.
Hilary
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HIL-ə-ree
Rating: 28% based on 4 votes
Medieval English form of Hilarius or Hilaria. During the Middle Ages it was primarily a masculine name. It was revived in Britain at the beginning of the 20th century as a predominantly feminine name. In America, this name and the variant Hillary seemed to drop in popularity after Hillary Clinton (1947-) became the first lady in 1993. Famous bearers include American actresses Hilary Swank (1974-) and Hilary Duff (1987-).
Heather
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HEDH-ər(American English) HEDH-ə(British English)
Rating: 30% based on 5 votes
From the English word heather for the variety of small shrubs with pink or white flowers, which commonly grow in rocky areas. It is derived from Middle English hather. It was first used as a given name in the late 19th century, though it did not become popular until the last half of the 20th century.
Haley
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: HAY-lee
Rating: 38% based on 4 votes
Variant of Hayley. This spelling gained some popularity in the United States in 1977, possibly due to the author Alex Haley, whose book Roots was adapted into a popular miniseries that year. This was the most common American spelling from then to 2001, when it was eclipsed by Hailey.
Hadley
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAD-lee
Rating: 18% based on 4 votes
From an English surname that was derived from a place name meaning "heather field" in Old English.
Gwyneira
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: gwi-NAY-ra
Rating: 15% based on 4 votes
Means "white snow" from the Welsh element gwyn meaning "white, blessed" combined with eira meaning "snow". This is a recently created Welsh name.
Gwenllian
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: gwehn-SHEE-an
Rating: 10% based on 4 votes
Derived from the Welsh elements gwen meaning "white, blessed" and possibly lliain meaning "flaxen, made of linen" or lliant meaning "flow, flood". This name was used by medieval Welsh royalty, notably by a 12th-century princess of Deheubarth who died in battle with the Normans. It was also borne by the 13th-century daughter of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, the last prince of Gwynedd.
Guinevere
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Pronounced: GWIN-ə-vir(American English) GWIN-ə-veey(British English)
Rating: 20% based on 4 votes
From the Norman French form of the Welsh name Gwenhwyfar meaning "white phantom", ultimately from the old Celtic roots *windos meaning "white" (modern Welsh gwen) and *sēbros meaning "phantom, magical being" [1]. In Arthurian legend she was the beautiful wife of King Arthur. According to the 12th-century chronicler Geoffrey of Monmouth, she was seduced by Mordred before the battle of Camlann, which led to the deaths of both Mordred and Arthur. According to the 12th-century French poet Chrétien de Troyes, she engaged in an adulterous affair with Sir Lancelot.

The Cornish form of this name, Jennifer, has become popular in the English-speaking world.

Georgina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Hungarian
Pronounced: jawr-JEE-nə(American English) jaw-JEE-nə(British English) kheh-or-KHEE-na(Spanish) GEH-or-gee-naw(Hungarian)
Rating: 25% based on 4 votes
Feminine form of George.
Georgia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Greek
Other Scripts: Γεωργία(Greek)
Pronounced: JAWR-jə(American English) JAW-jə(British English) yeh-or-YEE-a(Greek)
Rating: 28% based on 4 votes
Latinate feminine form of George. This is the name of an American state, which was named after the British king George II. The country of Georgia has an unrelated etymology. A famous bearer was the American painter Georgia O'Keeffe (1887-1986).
Genevieve
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JEHN-ə-veev
Rating: 30% based on 5 votes
English form of Geneviève.
Genevie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (American, Archaic), Filipino
Pronounced: JEN-a-vee(Filipino)
Rating: 10% based on 4 votes
Short form of Genevieve.
Genessa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: jen-nes-a
Rating: 3% based on 3 votes
Variant of Janessa perhaps influenced by Genevieve.
Gaia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, Italian
Other Scripts: Γαῖα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: GIE-A(Classical Greek) GIE-ə(English) GAY-ə(English) GA-ya(Italian)
Rating: 28% based on 4 votes
From the Greek word γαῖα (gaia), a parallel form of γῆ (ge) meaning "earth". In Greek mythology Gaia was the mother goddess who presided over the earth. She was the mate of Uranus and the mother of the Titans and the Cyclopes.
Fiona
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: fee-O-nə(English)
Rating: 45% based on 4 votes
Feminine form of Fionn. This name was (first?) used by the Scottish poet James Macpherson in his poem Fingal (1761), in which it is spelled as Fióna.
Evadne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Εὐάδνη(Ancient Greek)
Rating: 18% based on 4 votes
From Greek Εὐάδνη (Euadne), from εὖ (eu) meaning "good" possibly combined with Cretan Greek ἀδνός (adnos) meaning "holy". This name was borne by several characters in Greek legend, including the wife of Capaneus. After Capaneus was killed by a lightning bolt sent from Zeus she committed suicide by throwing herself onto his burning body.
Ethelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: Eh-thee-Leah
Rating: 18% based on 4 votes
Ethelda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Rating: 23% based on 4 votes
Variant of Ethel.
Esmina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Bosnian (Rare), South American (Rare)
Rating: 15% based on 4 votes
Bosnian elaboration of Esma.
Emma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Italian, Spanish, Catalan, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, Latvian, Dutch, German, Hungarian, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: EHM-ə(English) EH-MA(French) EHM-ma(Spanish) EHM-mah(Finnish) EH-ma(Dutch, German) EHM-maw(Hungarian)
Rating: 40% based on 5 votes
Originally a short form of Germanic names that began with the element irmin meaning "whole" or "great" (Proto-Germanic *ermunaz). It was introduced to England by Emma of Normandy, who was the wife both of King Ethelred II (and by him the mother of Edward the Confessor) and later of King Canute. It was also borne by an 11th-century Austrian saint, who is sometimes called Hemma.

After the Norman Conquest this name became common in England. It was revived in the 18th century, perhaps in part due to Matthew Prior's 1709 poem Henry and Emma [2]. It was also used by Jane Austen for the central character, the matchmaker Emma Woodhouse, in her novel Emma (1816).

In the United States, it was third in rank in 1880 (behind only the ubiquitous Mary and Anna). It declined steadily over the next century, beginning another rise in the 1980s and eventually becoming the most popular name for girls in 2008. At this time it also experienced similar levels of popularity elsewhere, including the United Kingdom (where it began rising a decade earlier), Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Scandinavia and the Netherlands. Famous bearers include the actresses Emma Thompson (1959-), Emma Stone (1988-) and Emma Watson (1990-).

Emerald
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: EHM-ə-rəld
Rating: 10% based on 4 votes
From the word for the green precious stone, which is the traditional birthstone of May. The emerald supposedly imparts love to the bearer. The word is ultimately from Greek σμάραγδος (smaragdos).
Émelise
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Louisiana Creole
Personal remark: Emelise, Emeline, Emelind
Rating: 25% based on 4 votes
18th and 19th-century elaboration of Émelia and Émelie with the then-popular feminine name suffix -lise.
Emeline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Belgian), Flemish, Dutch (Antillean), Dutch (Surinamese), English, Medieval English
Rating: 30% based on 4 votes
Variant of Émeline.
Elowen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Cornish
Rating: 18% based on 4 votes
Means "elm tree" in Cornish. This is a recently coined Cornish name.
Eloise
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHL-o-eez, ehl-o-EEZ
Rating: 54% based on 5 votes
From the Old French name Héloïse, which was probably from the Germanic name Helewidis, composed of the elements heil meaning "healthy, whole" and wit meaning "wide". It is sometimes associated with the Greek word ἥλιος (helios) meaning "sun" or the name Louise, though there is no etymological connection. This name was borne by the 12th-century French scholar and philosopher Héloïse. Secretly marrying the theologian Peter Abelard at a young age, she became a nun (and eventually an abbess) after Abelard was violently castrated by order of her uncle Fulbert.

There was a medieval English form of this name, Helewis, though it died out after the 13th century. In the 19th century it was revived in the English-speaking world in the form Eloise.

Elizabeth
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Biblical
Pronounced: i-LIZ-ə-bəth(English)
Rating: 72% based on 5 votes
From Ἐλισάβετ (Elisabet), the Greek form of the Hebrew name אֱלִישֶׁבַע (ʾElishevaʿ) meaning "my God is an oath", derived from the roots אֵל (ʾel) referring to the Hebrew God and שָׁבַע (shavaʿ) meaning "oath". The Hebrew form appears in the Old Testament where Elisheba is the wife of Aaron, while the Greek form appears in the New Testament where Elizabeth is the mother of John the Baptist.

Among Christians, this name was originally more common in Eastern Europe. It was borne in the 12th century by Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, a daughter of King Andrew II who used her wealth to help the poor. In medieval England it was occasionally used in honour of the saint, though the form Isabel (from Occitan and Spanish) was more common. It has been very popular in England since the reign of Queen Elizabeth I in the 16th century. In American name statistics (as recorded since 1880) it has never ranked lower than 30, making it the most consistently popular name for girls in the United States.

Besides Elizabeth I, this name has been borne (in various spellings) by many other European royals, including a ruling empress of Russia in the 18th century. Famous modern bearers include the British queen Elizabeth II (1926-2022) and actress Elizabeth Taylor (1932-2011).

Elise
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Finnish, Dutch, English
Pronounced: eh-LEE-zə(German) eh-LEE-seh(Norwegian, Danish, Swedish) i-LEES(English) EE-lees(English)
Rating: 50% based on 5 votes
Short form of Elizabeth.
Eliora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: אֱלִיאוֹרָה(Hebrew)
Rating: 25% based on 4 votes
Feminine form of Elior.
Eleanor
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHL-ə-nawr(American English) EHL-ə-naw(British English)
Rating: 48% based on 4 votes
From the Old French form of the Occitan name Alienòr. Among the name's earliest bearers was the influential Eleanor of Aquitaine (12th century), who was the queen of Louis VII, the king of France, and later Henry II, the king of England. She was named Aenor after her mother, and was called by the Occitan phrase alia Aenor "the other Aenor" in order to distinguish her from her mother. However, there appear to be examples of bearers prior to Eleanor of Aquitaine. It is not clear whether they were in fact Aenors who were retroactively recorded as having the name Eleanor, or whether there is an alternative explanation for the name's origin.

The popularity of the name Eleanor in England during the Middle Ages was due to the fame of Eleanor of Aquitaine, as well as two queens of the following century: Eleanor of Provence, the wife of Henry III, and Eleanor of Castile, the wife of Edward I. More recently, it was borne by first lady Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962), the wife of American president Franklin Roosevelt.

Eden
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew, English (Modern), French (Modern)
Other Scripts: עֵדֶן(Hebrew)
Pronounced: EE-dən(English)
Rating: 23% based on 4 votes
From the biblical place name, itself possibly from Hebrew עֵדֶן (ʿeḏen) meaning "pleasure, delight" [1], or perhaps derived from Sumerian 𒂔 (edin) meaning "plain". According to the Old Testament the Garden of Eden was the place where the first people, Adam and Eve, lived before they were expelled.
Daphne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, English, Dutch
Other Scripts: Δάφνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: DA-PNEH(Classical Greek) DAF-nee(English) DAHF-nə(Dutch)
Rating: 25% based on 4 votes
Means "laurel" in Greek. In Greek mythology she was a nymph turned into a laurel tree by her father in order that she might escape the pursuit of Apollo. It has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since the end of the 19th century.
Daisy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAY-zee
Rating: 48% based on 4 votes
Simply from the English word for the white flower, ultimately derived from Old English dægeseage meaning "day eye". It was first used as a given name in the 19th century, at the same time many other plant and flower names were coined.

This name was fairly popular at the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th. The American author F. Scott Fitzgerald used it for the character of Daisy Buchanan in The Great Gatsby (1925). The Walt Disney cartoon character Daisy Duck was created in 1940 as the girlfriend of Donald Duck. It was at a low in popularity in the United States in the 1970s when it got a small boost from a character on the television series The Dukes of Hazzard in 1979.

Dahlia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: DAL-yə, DAHL-yə, DAYL-yə
Rating: 23% based on 4 votes
From the name of the flower, which was named for the Swedish botanist Anders Dahl.
Cynthia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Κυνθία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: SIN-thee-ə(English) SEEN-TYA(French)
Rating: 15% based on 4 votes
Latinized form of Greek Κυνθία (Kynthia), which means "woman from Cynthus". This was an epithet of the Greek moon goddess Artemis, given because Cynthus was the mountain on Delos on which she and her twin brother Apollo were born. It was not used as a given name until the Renaissance, and it did not become common in the English-speaking world until the 19th century. It reached a peak of popularity in the United States in 1957 and has declined steadily since then.
Cordelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, English
Pronounced: kawr-DEEL-ee-ə(American English) kaw-DEE-lee-ə(British English)
Rating: 32% based on 5 votes
From Cordeilla, a name appearing in the 12th-century chronicles [1] of Geoffrey of Monmouth, borne by the youngest of the three daughters of King Leir and the only one to remain loyal to her father. Geoffrey possibly based her name on that of Creiddylad, a character from Welsh legend.

The spelling was later altered to Cordelia when Geoffrey's story was adapted by others, including Edmund Spenser in his poem The Faerie Queene (1590) and Shakespeare in his tragedy King Lear (1606).

Clover
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KLO-vər(American English) KLO-və(British English)
Rating: 45% based on 6 votes
From the English word for the wild flower, ultimately deriving from Old English clafre.
Chelsea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: CHEHL-see
Rating: 47% based on 6 votes
From the name of a district in London, originally derived from Old English and meaning "landing place for chalk or limestone". It has been in general use as an English given name since the 1970s.
Cato 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman
Pronounced: KA-to(Latin) KAY-to(English)
Rating: 13% based on 4 votes
Roman cognomen meaning "wise" in Latin. This name was bestowed upon Cato the Elder (Marcus Porcius Cato), a 2nd-century BC Roman statesman, author and censor, and was subsequently inherited by his descendants, including his great-grandson Cato the Younger (Marcus Porcius Cato Uticencis), a politician and philosopher who opposed Julius Caesar.
Camille
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: KA-MEE(French) kə-MEEL(English)
Rating: 42% based on 6 votes
French feminine and masculine form of Camilla. It is also used in the English-speaking world, where it is generally only feminine.
Calliope
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Καλλιόπη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: kə-LIE-ə-pee(English)
Personal remark: NN- Callie
Rating: 32% based on 5 votes
Latinized form of Kalliope.
Bridget
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, English
Pronounced: BRIJ-it(English)
Rating: 44% based on 5 votes
Anglicized form of the Irish name Brighid, Old Irish Brigit, from old Celtic *Brigantī meaning "the exalted one". In Irish mythology this was the name of the goddess of fire, poetry and wisdom, the daughter of the god Dagda. In the 5th century it was borne by Saint Brigid, the founder of a monastery at Kildare and a patron saint of Ireland. Because of the saint, the name was considered sacred in Ireland, and it did not come into general use there until the 17th century. In the form Birgitta this name has been common in Scandinavia, made popular by the 14th-century Saint Birgitta of Sweden, patron saint of Europe.
Benji
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BEHN-jee
Rating: 20% based on 4 votes
Diminutive of Benjamin.
Azalea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: ə-ZAY-lee-ə
Rating: 25% based on 4 votes
From the name of the flower (shrubs of the genus Rhododendron), ultimately derived from Greek ἀζαλέος (azaleos) meaning "dry".
Astrid
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, French, English
Pronounced: AS-strid(Swedish) AHS-tri(Norwegian) AS-trit(German) AS-TREED(French) AS-trid(English)
Rating: 26% based on 5 votes
Modern Scandinavian form of Ástríðr. This name was borne by the Swedish writer Astrid Lindgren (1907-2002), the author of Pippi Longstocking. It was also borne by a Swedish princess (1905-1935) who became the queen of Belgium as the wife of Leopold III.
Annora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Rating: 38% based on 4 votes
Medieval English variant of Honora.
Amelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Medieval French
Pronounced: ə-MEE-lee-ə(English) ə-MEEL-yə(English) a-MEH-lya(Spanish, Italian, Polish)
Rating: 47% based on 6 votes
Variant of Amalia, though it is sometimes confused with Emilia, which has a different origin. The name became popular in England after the German House of Hanover came to the British throne in the 18th century — it was borne by daughters of both George II and George III. The author Henry Fielding used it for the title character in his novel Amelia (1751). Another famous bearer was Amelia Earhart (1897-1937), the first woman to make a solo flight over the Atlantic Ocean.

This name experienced a rise in popularity at the end of the 20th century. It was the most popular name for girls in England and Wales from 2011 to 2015.

Alice
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Portuguese, Italian, German, Czech, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Dutch
Pronounced: AL-is(English) A-LEES(French) u-LEE-si(European Portuguese) a-LEE-see(Brazilian Portuguese) a-LEE-cheh(Italian) a-LEES(German) A-li-tseh(Czech)
Rating: 64% based on 5 votes
From the Old French name Aalis, a short form of Adelais, itself a short form of the Germanic name Adalheidis (see Adelaide). This name became popular in France and England in the 12th century. It was among the most common names in England until the 16th century, when it began to decline. It was revived in the 19th century.

This name was borne by the heroine of Lewis Carroll's novels Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and Through the Looking Glass (1871).

Adeline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: A-DU-LEEN(French) AD-ə-lien(English)
Rating: 48% based on 4 votes
French and English form of Adelina.
Abigail
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Biblical, Biblical German, Biblical Italian, Biblical Portuguese, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: אֲבִיגַיִל(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: AB-i-gayl(English)
Rating: 46% based on 5 votes
From the Hebrew name אֲבִיגָיִל (ʾAviḡayil) meaning "my father is joy", derived from the roots אָב (ʾav) meaning "father" and גִּיל (gil) meaning "joy". In the Old Testament this is the name of Nabal's wife. After Nabal's death she became the third wife of King David.

As an English name, Abigail first became common after the Protestant Reformation, and it was popular among the Puritans. The biblical Abigail refers to herself as a servant, and beginning in the 17th century the name became a slang term for a servant, especially after the release of the play The Scornful Lady (1616), which featured a character named Abigail. The name went out of fashion at that point, but it was revived in the 20th century.

behindthename.com   ·   Copyright © 1996-2024