HumanMouse's Personal Name List

Wren
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: REHN
Rating: 46% based on 8 votes
From the English word for the small songbird. It is ultimately derived from Old English wrenna.
Verity
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: VEHR-i-tee
Rating: 37% based on 6 votes
From the English word meaning "verity, truth", from Latin verus "true, real". This was one of the virtue names adopted by the Puritans in the 17th century.
Tilda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish, Finnish
Pronounced: TIL-də(English) TEEL-dah(Finnish)
Rating: 47% based on 6 votes
Short form of Matilda.
Sylvia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish
Pronounced: SIL-vee-ə(English) SIL-vee-a(Dutch) SUYL-vee-ah(Finnish)
Rating: 53% based on 7 votes
Variant of Silvia. This has been the most common English spelling since the 19th century.
Stephanie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German
Pronounced: STEHF-ə-nee(English) SHTEH-fa-nee(German)
Rating: 49% based on 7 votes
Feminine form of Stephen.
Stella 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Dutch, German
Pronounced: STEHL-ə(English) STEHL-la(Italian) STEH-la(Dutch)
Rating: 53% based on 7 votes
Means "star" in Latin. This name was created by the 16th-century poet Philip Sidney for the subject of his collection of sonnets Astrophel and Stella. It was a nickname of a lover of Jonathan Swift, real name Esther Johnson (1681-1728), though it was not commonly used as a given name until the 19th century. It appears in Tennessee Williams' play A Streetcar Named Desire (1947), belonging to the sister of Blanche DuBois and the wife of Stanley Kowalski.
Sophronia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, Late Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Σωφρονία(Ancient Greek)
Rating: 37% based on 6 votes
Feminine form of Sophronius. Torquato Tasso used it in his epic poem Jerusalem Delivered (1580), in which it is borne by the lover of Olindo.
Sophia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Greek, German, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Σοφία(Greek)
Pronounced: so-FEE-ə(English) sə-FIE-ə(British English) so-FEE-a(Greek) zo-FEE-a(German)
Rating: 44% based on 7 votes
Means "wisdom" in Greek. This was the name of an early, probably mythical, saint who died of grief after her three daughters were martyred during the reign of the emperor Hadrian. Legends about her probably arose as a result of a medieval misunderstanding of the phrase Hagia Sophia "Holy Wisdom", which is the name of a large basilica in Constantinople.

This name was common among continental European royalty during the Middle Ages, and it was popularized in Britain by the German House of Hanover when they inherited the British throne in the 18th century. It was the name of characters in the novels Tom Jones (1749) by Henry Fielding and The Vicar of Wakefield (1766) by Oliver Goldsmith.

In the United States this name was only moderately common until the 1990s when it began rising in popularity, eventually becoming the most popular for girls from 2011 to 2013. A famous bearer is the Italian actress Sophia Loren (1934-).

Rosalind
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAHZ-ə-lind(American English) RAWZ-ə-lind(British English)
Rating: 51% based on 8 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).
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: 38% based on 6 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.
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: 39% based on 7 votes
Feminine form of Peter. This was also the name of an ancient city in the region that is now Jordan.
Peregrine
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: PEHR-ə-grin
Personal remark: GP
Rating: 53% based on 7 votes
From the Late Latin name Peregrinus, which meant "traveller". This was the name of several early saints.
Paige
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PAYJ
Rating: 49% based on 8 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.

Nova
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish (Modern), Dutch (Modern)
Pronounced: NO-və(English) NO-va(Swedish, Dutch)
Rating: 49% based on 8 votes
Derived from Latin novus meaning "new". It was first used as a name in the 19th century.
Matilda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish, Finnish, Slovak, Slovene
Pronounced: mə-TIL-də(English) MAH-teel-dah(Finnish) MA-teel-da(Slovak)
Rating: 51% based on 8 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.

Lyra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Astronomy
Pronounced: LIE-rə(English)
Rating: 52% based on 6 votes
The name of the constellation in the northern sky containing the star Vega. It is said to be shaped after the lyre of Orpheus. This is the name of the main character in the His Dark Materials series of books by Philip Pullman (beginning 1995).
Luna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, English
Pronounced: LOO-na(Latin, Spanish, Italian) LOO-nə(English)
Rating: 50% based on 8 votes
Means "the moon" in Latin (as well as Italian, Spanish and other Romance languages). Luna was the Roman goddess of the moon, frequently depicted driving a white chariot through the sky.
Laura
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Catalan, French, Finnish, Estonian, Hungarian, Polish, Slovene, Croatian, Czech, Slovak, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, Lithuanian, Latvian, Late Roman
Pronounced: LAWR-ə(English) LOW-ra(Spanish, Italian, Romanian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, German, Dutch) LOW-ru(Portuguese) LOW-rə(Catalan) LAW-RA(French) LOW-rah(Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish) LAW-oo-raw(Hungarian)
Rating: 53% based on 7 votes
Feminine form of the Late Latin name Laurus, which meant "laurel". This meaning was favourable, since in ancient Rome the leaves of laurel trees were used to create victors' garlands. The name was borne by the 9th-century Spanish martyr Saint Laura, who was a nun thrown into a vat of molten lead by the Moors. It was also the name of the subject of poems by the 14th-century Italian poet Petrarch.

As an English name, Laura has been used since the 13th century. Famous bearers include Laura Secord (1775-1868), a Canadian heroine during the War of 1812, and Laura Ingalls Wilder (1867-1957), an American author who wrote the Little House on the Prairie series of novels.

Kestrel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: KEHS-trəl
Personal remark: GP
Rating: 43% based on 6 votes
From the name of the bird of prey, ultimately derived from Old French crecelle "rattle", which refers to the sound of its cry.
Kerensa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Cornish
Rating: 40% based on 6 votes
Means "love" in Cornish.
Jennifer
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Spanish
Pronounced: JEHN-i-fər(American English) JEHN-i-fə(British English) JEH-ni-fu(German) GYEH-nee-fehr(Spanish)
Rating: 49% based on 8 votes
From a Cornish form of the Welsh name Gwenhwyfar (see Guinevere). This name has only been common outside of Cornwall since the beginning of the 20th century, after it was featured in George Bernard Shaw's play The Doctor's Dilemma (1906). It barely ranked in the United until the late 1930s, when it began steadily growing in popularity, accelerating into the early 1970s. It was the most popular name for girls in America between 1970 and 1984, though it was not as common in the United Kingdom.

Famous bearers include the American actresses Jennifer Aniston (1969-), Jennifer Garner (1972-) and Jennifer Lawrence (1990-), as well as the singer/actress Jennifer Lopez (1969-).

Hypatia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ὑπατία(Ancient Greek)
Rating: 40% based on 6 votes
Derived from Greek ὕπατος (hypatos) meaning "highest, supreme". Hypatia of Alexandria was a 5th-century philosopher and mathematician, daughter of the mathematician Theon.
Hester
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Dutch, Biblical Latin
Pronounced: HEHS-tər(American English, Dutch) HEHS-tə(British English)
Rating: 40% based on 6 votes
Latin form of Esther. Like Esther, it has been used in England since the Protestant Reformation. Nathaniel Hawthorne used it for the heroine of his novel The Scarlet Letter (1850), Hester Prynne, a Puritan woman forced to wear a red letter A on her chest after giving birth to a child out of wedlock.
Harriet
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAR-ee-it, HEHR-ee-it
Rating: 59% based on 8 votes
English form of Henriette, and thus a feminine form of Harry. It was first used in the 17th century, becoming very common in the English-speaking world by the 18th century. Famous bearers include the Americans Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896), the author of Uncle Tom's Cabin, and the abolitionist Harriet Tubman (1820-1913).
Freida
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FREE-də
Rating: 45% based on 6 votes
Variant of Frieda.
Frances
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FRAN-sis
Rating: 49% based on 7 votes
Feminine form of Francis. The distinction between Francis as a masculine name and Frances as a feminine name did not arise until the 17th century [1]. A notable bearer was Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini (1850-1917), a social worker and the first American to be canonized.
Feliciana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Italian, Late Roman
Pronounced: feh-lee-THYA-na(European Spanish) feh-lee-SYA-na(Latin American Spanish) feh-lee-CHA-na(Italian)
Rating: 38% based on 6 votes
Feminine form of Felicianus (see Feliciano).
Eseld
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Cornish
Rating: 34% based on 5 votes
Cornish form of Iseult.
Éowyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: AY-ə-win(English)
Rating: 30% based on 6 votes
Means "horse joy" in Old English. This name was invented by J. R. R. Tolkien who used Old English to represent the Rohirric language. In his novel The Lord of the Rings (1954) Eowyn is the niece of King Theoden of Rohan. She slays the Lord of the Nazgul in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields.
Daisy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAY-zee
Rating: 58% based on 8 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.

Celeste
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, English
Pronounced: cheh-LEH-steh(Italian) theh-LEHS-teh(European Spanish) seh-LEHS-teh(Latin American Spanish) sə-LEST(English)
Rating: 50% based on 6 votes
Italian feminine and masculine form of Caelestis. It is also the Portuguese, Spanish and English feminine form.
Beatrice
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, English, Swedish, Romanian
Pronounced: beh-a-TREE-cheh(Italian) BEE-ə-tris(English) BEET-ris(English) BEH-ah-trees(Swedish) beh-ah-TREES(Swedish)
Rating: 65% based on 8 votes
Italian form of Beatrix. Beatrice Portinari (1266-1290) was the woman who was loved by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri. She serves as Dante's guide through paradise in his epic poem the Divine Comedy (1321). This is also the name of a character in Shakespeare's comedy Much Ado About Nothing (1599), in which Beatrice and Benedick are fooled into confessing their love for one another.
Autumn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AW-təm
Rating: 59% based on 8 votes
From the name of the season, ultimately from Latin autumnus. This name has been in general use since the 1960s.
Artula
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Old Celtic
Rating: 40% based on 6 votes
Artula is a diminutive from the Gaulish word artos "bear". It is probably the source of the Latin name Ursula---in an inscription from Trier a woman called Artula with her daughter Ursula is recorded.
Ariadne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἀριάδνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: A-REE-AD-NEH(Classical Greek) ar-ee-AD-nee(English)
Rating: 54% based on 8 votes
Means "most holy", composed of the Greek prefix ἀρι (ari) meaning "most" combined with Cretan Greek ἀδνός (adnos) meaning "holy". In Greek mythology, Ariadne was the daughter of King Minos. She fell in love with Theseus and helped him to escape the Labyrinth and the Minotaur, but was later abandoned by him. Eventually she married the god Dionysus.
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: 51% based on 7 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).

Alethea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: al-ə-THEE-ə, ə-LEE-thee-ə
Rating: 40% based on 6 votes
Derived from Greek ἀλήθεια (aletheia) meaning "truth". This name was coined in the 16th century.
Aisling
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: ASH-lyən
Rating: 62% based on 9 votes
Means "dream" or "vision" in Irish. This name was created in the 20th century.
Ada 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Polish, Finnish, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: AY-də(English) A-dha(Spanish) A-da(Dutch, Polish) AH-dah(Finnish)
Rating: 46% based on 9 votes
Originally a short form of Germanic names such as Adelaide or Adelina that begin with the element adal meaning "noble". Saint Ada was a 7th-century Frankish abbess at Le Mans. This name was also borne by Augusta Ada King (1815-1852), the Countess of Lovelace (known as Ada Lovelace), a daughter of Lord Byron. She was an assistant to Charles Babbage, the inventor of an early mechanical computer.
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