Rosanne's Personal Name List
Zusa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Yiddish (Rare)
Means "sweet" in Yiddish.
Zuleika
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: zoo-LAY-kə(English)
Meaning uncertain, possibly of Arabic origin. According to medieval tradition, notably related by the 15th-century Persian poet Jami, this was the name of the biblical Potiphar's wife. She has been a frequent subject of poems and tales.
Zohar
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: זֹהַר(Hebrew)
Means "light, brilliance" in Hebrew.
Zichri
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: זִכְרִֽי(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: zi-kree(Biblical English)
Means "remembrance, mindful" in Hebrew. This is the name of several characters in the Old Testament.
Zephyr
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Anglicized)
Other Scripts: Ζέφυρος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ZEHF-ər(American English) ZEHF-ə(British English)
From the Greek
Ζέφυρος (Zephyros) meaning
"west wind". Zephyros was the Greek god of the west wind.
Zebulon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: זְבוּלֻן(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: ZEHB-yə-lən(English)
Zebidah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: זְבִידָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Derived from Hebrew
זָבַד (zavaḏ) meaning "to give". In the
Old Testament she is a wife of King
Josiah of Judah and the mother of
Jehoiakim. Her name is spelled as
Zebudah in some translations.
Zalman
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Yiddish
Other Scripts: זלמן(Yiddish)
Zakynthos
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ζάκυνθος(Ancient Greek)
Meaning unknown; appears to be pre-Mycenaean or Pelasgian in origin. In Greek mythology he was the legendary founder of a colony on Zacynthus, an island in the Ionian Sea, which derived its name from him.
Zafeiris
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek
Other Scripts: Ζαφείρης(Greek)
Pronounced: za-FEE-rees
From Greek ζαφείρι
(zafeíri), derived via Italian from Ancient Greek σάπφειρος
(sáppheiros) (see
Sapphire) through Latin (compare
Zafeiro).
Zadok
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: צָדוֹק(Ancient Hebrew)
Means
"righteous" in Hebrew. This is the name of several characters in the
Old Testament, most notably the high priest of Israel during the reigns of
David and
Solomon. Solomon was anointed by Zadok.
Yossi
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: יוסי, יוֹסִי(Hebrew)
Pronounced: yo-SSI
Yocheved
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: יוֹכֶבֶד(Hebrew)
Pronounced: yo-KHEH-vehd(Hebrew)
Yochanan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: יוֹחָנָן(Hebrew)
Yehoshua
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: יְהוֹשֻׁעַ(Hebrew)
Yehosheva'
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: יְהוֹשֶׁבַע(Ancient Hebrew)
Yechezkel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: יְחֶזְקֵאל(Hebrew)
Yair
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew [1], Spanish (Latin American)
Other Scripts: יָאִיר(Hebrew)
Pronounced: GYIER(Spanish)
Hebrew form of
Jair, as well as a Spanish variant.
Watson
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WAHT-sən(American English) WAWT-sən(British English)
From an English surname meaning
"son of Wat". A famous fictional bearer of the surname was Dr. Watson, the assistant to Sherlock Holmes in Arthur Conan Doyle's mystery stories beginning in 1887.
Vox
Gender: Masculine
Usage: American (South, Rare, Archaic)
Transferred use of the surname
Vox.
Vindemiatrix
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Astronomy
Pronounced: vin-dee-mee-AY-triks
Means "(female) grape harvester" in Latin. This is the name of the third brightest star in the constellation Virgo, and is so named because it rises in early autumn, the beginning of the wine harvesting season.
Vincent
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Slovak
Pronounced: VIN-sənt(English, Dutch) VEHN-SAHN(French) VIN-sent(Dutch) VEEN-tsent(Slovak)
From the Roman name
Vincentius, which was derived from Latin
vincere meaning
"to conquer". This name was popular among early Christians, and it was borne by many
saints. As an English name,
Vincent has been in use since the Middle Ages, though it did not become common until the 19th century. Famous bearers include the French priest Saint Vincent de Paul (1581-1660) and the Dutch post-impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890).
Víkingur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic
Pronounced: VEE-kyeeng-kuyr
Vienna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: vee-EHN-ə
From the name of the capital city of Austria,
Vienna.
Veslemøy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian
Means "little girl" from Norwegian vesle "little" and møy "girl". This name was created by Norwegian writer Arne Garborg for the main character in his poem Haugtussa (1895).
Venice
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare), Jamaican Patois
Pronounced: VEHN-is(English)
Perhaps originally a Christianized variant of
Venus, now either an English vernacular form of
Venetia, or else directly from the English name of the city in Italy. The name was revived in the 19th century significantly when the name
Florence was beginning to become fashionable.
Velvet
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: VEHL-vət
From the English word for the soft fabric. It became used as a given name after the main character in Enid Bagnold's book National Velvet (1935) and the movie (1944) and television (1960) adaptations.
Vakur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic
Icelandic younger form of
Vakr.
Vaka
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Icelandic
Úlfur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic
Tzion
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: צִיוֹן(Hebrew)
Tzemach
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: צֶמַח(Hebrew)
"plant"
Trausti
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Old Norse, Icelandic
From Old Norse traustr meaning "trusty, firm, strong".
Tomyris
Gender: Feminine
Usage: History
Other Scripts: Τόμυρις(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: TAHM-ir-is(American English) TAWM-ir-is(British English)
Hellenized form of a Scythian name, possibly from an Iranian root meaning "family". This was the name of a 6th-century BC queen of the Massagetae (a Scythian people) who defeated Cyrus the Great during his invasion of Central Asia.
Tommy
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TAHM-ee(American English) TAWM-ee(British English)
Tomine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian
Timna
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Biblical Hebrew (Rare), German (Austrian)
Other Scripts: תִּמְנָע, תִּמְנָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: TEEM-nah(Biblical Hebrew) teem-NAH(Biblical Hebrew) TIM-na(Austrian German)
From a Biblical place name. In the Bible, this name is borne by a concubine of Eliphaz son of Esau, and mother of Amalek ( Genesis 36:12 ) (it may be presumed that she was the same as Timna sister of Lotan. Ibid. ver. 22, and ( 1 Chronicles 1:39 )) as well as by a duke or phylarch of Edom in the last list in ( Genesis 36:40-43 ; 1 Chronicles 1:51-54 ).
The popularity of this name in Austria was boosted by the jazz singer Timna Brauer (* 1961).
Till
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German
Pronounced: TIL
From
Tielo, a medieval Low German
diminutive of
Dietrich and other names beginning with Old High German
diota or Old Frankish
þeoda meaning "people". Till Eulenspiegel is a trickster in German folklore.
Tiferet
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: תפארת(Hebrew)
Pronounced: TIF-e-RET
Means "glory, magnificence" in Hebrew. The term "Tiferet Yisrael" comes from the Israeli Declaration of Independence, sighed on the 14th of May 1948.
Thursday
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (African), Afro-American (Slavery-era)
Pronounced: THURZ-day(English)
From the name of the day of the week, which ultimately derives from Old English
þunresdæg meaning literally "
Thor's day". A known bearer of this name was Thursday October Christian (1790-1831), the first son of the HMS
Bounty mutineer Fletcher Christian and his Tahitian wife Mauatua, who was born on a Thursday in October.
Thorne
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: THORN
Transferred use of the surname
Thorne. Derived from the Old English word for "thorn." This was the name of a letter in the Old English alphabet, as well as the name of a character from the soap opera "The Bold and the Beautiful."
Te'eina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Jewish, Hebrew
Pronounced: teh-eh-ee-nah
Means "fig" in Hebrew.
Tadeusz
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Polish
Pronounced: ta-DEH-oosh
Polish form of
Thaddeus. This name is borne by Tadeusz Soplica, the title character in Adam Mickiewicz's epic poem
Pan Tadeusz (1834), which is considered to be the national epic of Poland.
Symforian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Polish (Rare)
Polish form of
Symphorianus. A known bearer of this name is Symforian Ducki (1888-1942), a Polish Capuchin friar who was beatified by the Roman Catholic Church in 1999.
Storm
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Modern), Dutch (Modern), Danish (Modern), Norwegian (Modern)
Pronounced: STAWRM(American English, Dutch) STAWM(British English)
From the vocabulary word, ultimately from Old English or Old Dutch storm, or in the case of the Scandinavian name, from Old Norse stormr. It is unisex as an English name, but typically masculine elsewhere.
Sosie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Meaning uncertain. Actors Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick used it for their daughter Sosie Bacon (1992-). It was perhaps inspired by French
sosie "lookalike", derived from Latin
Sosia, the name of a character in Plautus' play 'Amphitryon', itself from Greek Σωσίας (
Sosias) meaning "savior" from σως (
sos) "safe, whole, unwounded" (compare
Sostrate,
Sose). Alternatively it may be a variant of
Susie.
Sophron
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Σώφρων(Ancient Greek)
Means "self-controlled, sensible" in Greek. This name was borne by the 5th-century BC writer Sophron of Syracuse.
Soos
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek, Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Σόος(Ancient Greek)
Derived from σόος
(soos), which is the Epic and Ionic Greek form of the adjective σῶς
(sos) meaning "safe, whole, unwounded".
This was the name of a semi-mythological king of Sparta, who is thought to have lived in the 9th century BC.
Snær
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic, Old Norse, Norse Mythology
Means "snow" in Old Norse.
Sindri
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Norse Mythology, Old Norse [1], Icelandic
Means
"sparkle" in Old Norse. In Norse
mythology this was the name of a dwarf, also named Eitri. With his brother
Brokkr he made several magical items for the gods, including
Odin's ring Draupnir and
Thor's hammer Mjölnir.
Sigurður
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic
Pronounced: SI-ghuyr-dhuyr
Shura
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Russian
Other Scripts: Шура(Russian)
Pronounced: SHOO-rə
Shraga
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Jewish
Other Scripts: שְׁרַגָא(Hebrew)
Shomer
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Biblical
Means "keeper, watchman" or "guarded", from the Hebrew verb שמר
(shamar) "to keep, to guard". In the Old Testament this is the name of the mother of
Jehozabad, 2 Kings 12:21 (in 2 Chronicles 24:26 she is called
Shimrith), and the name of a man of
Asher, 1 Chronicles 7:32.
Shir 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: שִׁיר(Hebrew)
Pronounced: SHEER
Means "song" in Hebrew.
Sherlock
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: SHUR-lahk(American English) SHU-lawk(British English)
Used by Scottish author Arthur Conan Doyle for his character Sherlock Holmes, who was a detective in Doyle's mystery stories beginning in 1887. The character's name was from an English surname meaning "shear lock", originally referring to a person with closely cut hair.
Shemesh
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hebrew (Rare)
Other Scripts: שֶׁמֶשׁ(Hebrew)
Pronounced: SHEH-mehsh
Means "sun" in Hebrew.
Shaw
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: SHAW
From a surname. As an English surname it is derived from Old English sceaga meaning "thicket". As a Scottish surname it is derived from the Gaelic byname Sitheach meaning "wolf".
Shaul
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: שָׁאוּל(Hebrew)
Modern Hebrew form of
Saul.
Saturnus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Roman Mythology
Pronounced: sa-TOOR-noos(Latin)
Salka
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Icelandic
Saffron
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: SAF-rən
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".
Rúbý
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Icelandic
Róska
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Icelandic (Modern, Rare)
In the case of Icelandic avant-garde artist Róska (1940-1996), it was apparently a contraction of her real name,
Ragnhildur Óskarsdóttir (i.e. presumably formed from
R, the first letter of her given name, and
Óska, the first four letters of her surname - itself a derivative of the given name
Óskar).
Rosemonde
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Rósar
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic (Rare)
Combination of
Rós and the Old Norse element
herr meaning "army".
Rom
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hebrew (Modern)
Other Scripts: רוֹם, רום(Hebrew)
Pronounced: ROM, RAWM
Means "height, superiority" in Hebrew.
Roi 2
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: רוֹעִי(Hebrew)
Means "my shepherd" in Hebrew.
Robert
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, Finnish, Estonian, Czech, Polish, Russian, Slovene, Croatian, Albanian, Romanian, Catalan, Germanic [1]
Other Scripts: Роберт(Russian)
Pronounced: RAHB-ərt(American English) RAWB-ət(British English) RAW-BEHR(French) RO-beht(Swedish) RO-behrt(German, Finnish, Czech) RO-bərt(Dutch) RAW-bərt(Dutch) RAW-behrt(Polish) RO-byirt(Russian) roo-BEHRT(Catalan)
From the Germanic name
Hrodebert meaning
"bright fame", derived from the elements
hruod "fame" and
beraht "bright". The
Normans introduced this name to Britain, where it replaced the rare Old English
cognate Hreodbeorht. It has been consistently among the most common English names from the 13th to 20th century. In the United States it was the most popular name for boys between 1924 and 1939 (and again in 1953).
This name has been borne by two kings of the Franks, two dukes of Normandy, and three kings of Scotland, including Robert the Bruce who restored the independence of Scotland from England in the 14th century. Several saints have also had the name, the earliest known as Saint Rupert, from an Old German variant. The author Robert Browning (1812-1889) and poets Robert Burns (1759-1796) and Robert Frost (1874-1963) are famous literary namesakes. Other bearers include Robert E. Lee (1807-1870), the commander of the Confederate army during the American Civil War, and American actors Robert Redford (1936-), Robert De Niro (1943-) and Robert Downey Jr. (1965-).
Ró
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Faroese (Modern)
Directly taken from Faroese ró "calm, tranquility; peace; quiet; rest".
Rimmon
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Biblical, Hebrew
Other Scripts: רִמּוֹן, רימון(Hebrew)
Means "pomegranate" in Hebrew. It occurs in the Old Testament belonging to "a man of the tribe of Benjamin at the time of King Saul" as well as two places and a Syrian deity (allegedly known as Ramanu "the Thunderer" in Assyrian).
Riley
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RIE-lee
From a surname that comes from two distinct sources. As an Irish surname it is a variant of
Reilly. As an English surname it is derived from a place name meaning
"rye clearing" in Old English.
Before 1980, this was an uncommon masculine name in America. During the 1980s and 90s this name steadily increased in popularity for both boys and girls, and from 2003 onwards it has been more common for girls in the United States. Elsewhere in the English-speaking world, such as the United Kingdom and Australia, it has remained largely masculine.
Rembrandt
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Dutch (Rare)
Pronounced: REHM-brahnt
From a Germanic name that was composed of the elements
regin "advice, counsel, decision" and
brant "fire, torch, sword". This name belonged to the Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669).
Reef
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern, Rare)
A name given in reference to a reef 'ridge of jagged rock, coral, or sand just above or below the surface of the sea.'
Ran
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: רַן, רָן, רן(Hebrew)
Pronounced: RAHN
Means "singing" or "(he) sang" in Hebrew (being the past tense masculine singular form of the verb לָרֹן laron "to sing, utter joyful sounds").
Ragnar
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Icelandic, Faroese, Estonian
Pronounced: RAHNG-nahr(Swedish) RAK-nar(Icelandic)
Modern Scandinavian form of
Ragnarr.
Rachamim
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Rachamim, Hebrew word for "mercy", which derives from the Hebrew word for womb, (rechem). Also means "compassionate".
It is the name of a song performed by Ofra Haza. A known bearer of this name is Rachamim Talbi (b. 1943), a Bulgarian-Israeli football forward.
Pythagoras
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Πυθαγόρας(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: PUY-TA-GO-RAS(Classical Greek) pi-THAG-ər-əs(English)
Derived from
Pythios, a name of
Apollo, combined with Greek
ἀγορά (agora) meaning "assembly, marketplace". This was the name of a 6th-century BC Greek philosopher and mathematician from Samos. He was the founder of a school of philosophy whose members believed that numbers described the universe.
Providence
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Puritan), English (African), Romani (Archaic)
Derived from the English word denoting "a manifestation of divine care or direction; an instance of divine intervention".
Prosper
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: PRAWS-PEHR(French) PRAHS-pər(American English) PRAWS-pə(British English)
From the Latin name
Prosperus, which meant
"fortunate, successful". This was the name of a 5th-century
saint, a supporter of Saint
Augustine. It has never been common as an English name, though the
Puritans used it, partly because it is identical to the English word
prosper.
Promise
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (African)
Pronounced: PRAWM-is
From the English word promise, from Latin promissum. It is currently most common in parts of English-influenced Africa.
Primrose
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: PRIM-roz
From the English word for the flower, ultimately deriving from Latin prima rosa "first rose".
Primeveire
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Anglo-Norman (Archaic)
Means "primrose"in French. and It was commonly used in the Middle Ages although now it is practically obsolete.
Prim
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Literature
Pronounced: Prim
Pri
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hebrew (Modern, Rare)
Other Scripts: פְּרִי(Hebrew)
Pronounced: PREE, PE-ree
Means "fruit" in Hebrew.
Polyxo
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Πολυξώ(Ancient Greek)
Etymology unknown, likely related to πολῠ- (polu-) meaning “many”.
Pollux
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Roman Mythology
Pronounced: POL-looks(Latin) PAHL-əks(American English) PAWL-əks(British English)
Roman form of Greek
Πολυδεύκης (Polydeukes) meaning
"very sweet", from Greek
πολύς (polys) meaning "much" and
δευκής (deukes) meaning "sweet". In
mythology he was the twin brother of
Castor and a son of
Zeus. The constellation Gemini, which represents the two brothers, contains a star by this name.
Pip
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PIP
Diminutive of
Philip or
Philippa. This is the name of the main character in
Great Expectations (1860) by Charles Dickens.
Piotr
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Polish, Belarusian
Other Scripts: Пётр(Belarusian)
Pronounced: PYAWTR(Polish)
Polish and Belarusian form of
Peter.
Philomela
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Φιλομήλη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: fil-ə-MEE-lə(English)
From Greek
Φιλομήλη (Philomele), derived from
φίλος (philos) meaning "lover, friend" and
μῆλον (melon) meaning "fruit". The second element has also been interpreted as Greek
μέλος (melos) meaning "song". In Greek
myth Philomela was the sister-in-law of Tereus, who raped her and cut out her tongue. Prokne avenged her sister by killing her son by Tereus, after which Tereus attempted to kill Philomela. However, the gods intervened and transformed her into a nightingale.
Philemon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1], Ancient Greek [2]
Other Scripts: Φιλήμων(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: fi-LEE-mən(English) fie-LEE-mən(English)
Means
"affectionate" in Greek, a derivative of
φίλημα (philema) meaning "kiss". Philemon was the recipient of one of
Paul's epistles in the
New Testament.
Pétur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic
Pronounced: PYEH-tuyr
Peace
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (African)
Pronounced: PEES
From the English word peace, ultimately derived from Latin pax. This name is most common in Nigeria and other parts of Africa.
Patroclus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Πάτροκλος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: pə-TRO-kləs(English)
Latinized form of the Greek
Πάτροκλος (Patroklos) meaning
"glory of the father", derived from
πατήρ (pater) meaning "father" (genitive
πατρός) and
κλέος (kleos) meaning "glory". In Greek legend he was one of the heroes who fought against the Trojans. His death at the hands of
Hector drew his friend
Achilles back into the war.
Pasha
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Russian
Other Scripts: Паша(Russian)
Pronounced: PA-shə
Ozymandias
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature, American (Modern, Rare), Popular Culture
Other Scripts: Ὀσυμανδύας(Greek)
This particular spelling of the name was popularised through the poem 'Ozymandias' by Percy Bysshe Shelley.
It is a variant of the Ancient Greek name for Pharaoh Ramesses II, Osymandyas (Greek: Ὀσυμανδύας).
The recent revival of the name is probably triggered by a villain named Ozymandias in 'Watchmen' (TV series).
Oziel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical Greek
Other Scripts: Ὀζιήλ(Ancient Greek)
Orchard
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Transferred use of the surname
Orchard.
Omer
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: עוֹמֶר(Hebrew)
Pronounced: ‘OM-ehr
Means "sheaf of wheat" in Hebrew.
Ofer
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: עֹפֶר, עוֹפֶר(Hebrew)
Means
"fawn" in Hebrew. This makes it a modern variant of the Classical Hebrew name
Ophrah.
Ofek
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: אוֹפֶק(Hebrew)
Means "horizon" in Hebrew.
Odysseus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ὀδυσσεύς(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: O-DUYS-SEWS(Classical Greek) o-DIS-ee-əs(English)
Perhaps derived from Greek
ὀδύσσομαι (odyssomai) meaning
"to hate". In Greek legend Odysseus was one of the Greek heroes who fought in the Trojan War. In the
Odyssey Homer relates Odysseus's misadventures on his way back to his kingdom and his wife
Penelope.
Oded
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: עוֹדֵד(Ancient Hebrew)
Means
"to restore" in Hebrew. In the
Old Testament this is the name of a prophet from Samaria.
Ocie
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: American (Rare)
Pronounced: OH-see
Unisex name of unknown origin used primarily in the southeastern US.
Océan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French (Rare)
Pronounced: O-SE-AHN
French form of
Okeanos via its latinized form
Oceanus. Also compare the French noun
océan meaning "ocean".
Obsidian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: American (Modern, Rare), Popular Culture
Pronounced: ahb-SID-ee-yən
Derived from
obsidian, the English name for a specific type of volcanic glass. The name is ultimately derived from Latin
obsidianus meaning "of Obsidius", after the Roman (also called Obsius in some instances) who supposedly was the first to discover this type of volcanic glass. The name Obsidius is possibly a corruption of
Opsidius, which is apparently a very obscure Roman nomen gentile.** Etymologically, Opsidius may be a more elaborate form of
Opsius. It could also be Oscan in origin, in which case it may have been derived from Oscan
úpsed meaning "worked, laboured" (which would thus make the name related to
Oppius). Last but not least, if the discoverer's name was Obsius rather than Obsidius, then his name was probably a corruption of
Opsius. In either case the etymology is very similar. Finally, in popular culture, Obsidian is the name of a character in the "Transformers" franchise as well as a character in a comic published by DC Comics.
** Please see page 638 of the book "The Italic Dialects" written by Robert Seymour Conway.
Nyx
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Νύξ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: NUYKS(Classical Greek) NIKS(English)
Means "night" in Greek. This was the name of the Greek goddess of the night, the daughter of Khaos and the wife of Erebos.
Nymphias
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman
Transferred use of the surname
Nymphias.
Nox
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology
Pronounced: NOKS(Latin)
Means
"night" in Latin. Nox is the Roman goddess of the night, the equivalent of the Greek goddess
Nyx.
Notus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Νότος(Ancient Greek)
From the Greek
Νότος (Notos) meaning
"south wind". This was the name of the god of the south wind in Greek
mythology.
Nocturna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, Popular Culture
Derived from Latin nocturnus meaning "of or belonging to the night, nocturnal", from the Latin noctū "by night". This name appeared in the 1979 camp comedy-horror film Nocturna, also as the DC comics character Nocturna, a daughter of Dracula, created by writer Doug Moench and artist Gene Colan in 1983.
Nissim
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: נסים(Hebrew)
Alternate transcription of Hebrew נסים (see
Nisim).
Nim
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English, Literature, Popular Culture
Short form of
Nimrod,
Nimue or other names containing
Nim-.
Used as a female name in the book and movie Nim's Island by Wendy Orr.
Nikita 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian
Other Scripts: Никита(Russian) Нікіта(Ukrainian, Belarusian)
Pronounced: nyi-KYEE-tə(Russian)
Russian form of
Niketas. This form is also used in Ukrainian and Belarusian alongside the more traditional forms
Mykyta and
Mikita. A notable bearer was the Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev (1894-1971).
Nikias
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Νικίας(Ancient Greek)
Derived from Greek
νίκη (nike) meaning
"victory". This was the name of an Athenian general who fought in the Peloponnesian war.
Ner
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Means "lamp" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament Ner is the father of
Abner and uncle of
Saul.
Naum
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Russian, Bulgarian, Macedonian
Other Scripts: Наум(Russian, Bulgarian, Macedonian)
Russian, Bulgarian and Macedonian form of
Nahum.
Myrto
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek, Ancient Greek [1], Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Μυρτώ(Greek)
From Greek
μύρτος (myrtos) meaning
"myrtle". This was the name of a few characters from Greek
mythology, including one of the Maenads.
Myrtle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MUR-təl(American English) MU-təl(British English)
Simply from the English word
myrtle for the evergreen shrub, ultimately from Greek
μύρτος (myrtos). It was first used as a given name in the 19th century, at the same time many other plant and flower names were coined.
Mýrkjartan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Old Norse, Icelandic
Muir
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish
From a Scottish surname, derived from Scots muir meaning "moor, fen". This name could also be inspired by Scottish Gaelic muir meaning "sea".
Monday
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (African)
Pronounced: MUN-day
From the English word for the day of the week, which was derived from Old English mona "moon" and dæg "day". This can be given to children born on Monday, especially in Nigeria.
Móey
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Icelandic
Derived from Old Norse
móðr meaning "wrath" combined with
ey meaning "island" or
ey meaning "good fortune". Also compare
Móeiður.
Modest
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Russian (Archaic)
Other Scripts: Модест(Russian)
Mist
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norse Mythology, Icelandic
From Old Norse
mistr meaning "cloud, mist".
In Norse mythology, Mist is a Valkyrie, appearing in the Valkyrie list in the Poetic Edda poem Grímnismál, and in both of the Nafnaþulur valkyrie lists.
Minthe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Μινθη(Ancient Greek)
Means "mint" in Greek. In Greek mythology Minthe was a nymph was was transformed into an herb by
Persephone after attempting to seduce
Hades.
Mikołaj
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Polish
Pronounced: mee-KAW-wie
Mies
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Dutch
Pronounced: MEES
Metuka
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew (Rare)
Other Scripts: מְתוּקָה(Hebrew)
Pronounced: meh-too-kah
Means "sweet" in Hebrew.
Menophilos
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek
Other Scripts: Μηνόφιλος(Ancient Greek)
Means "friend of the moon", from Greek μήνη
(mene) meaning "moon" and φίλος
(philos) meaning "friend". This was the name of an Ancient Greek sculptor from Ephesus.
Melchior
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Judeo-Christian-Islamic Legend, French (Rare), Dutch (Rare)
Pronounced: MEHL-kee-awr(American English) MEHL-kee-aw(British English) MEHL-KYAWR(French) MEHL-khee-awr(Dutch)
Possibly from the Hebrew roots
מֶלֶךְ (meleḵ) meaning "king" and
אוֹר (ʾor) meaning "light". This was a name traditionally assigned to one of the wise men (also known as the Magi, or three kings) who were said to have visited the newborn
Jesus. According to medieval tradition he was a king of Persia.
Mehetabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: מְהֵיטַבְאֵל(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: mə-HEHT-ə-behl(English)
From the Hebrew name
מְהֵיטַבְאֵל (Meheṭavʾel) meaning
"God makes happy", derived from the roots
יָטַב (yaṭav) meaning "to be happy" and
אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God". This name is mentioned briefly in the
Old Testament.
Medusa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Μέδουσα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: meh-DOO-sə(English)
From the Greek
Μέδουσα (Medousa), which was derived from
μέδω (medo) meaning
"to protect, to rule over". In Greek
myth this was the name of one of the three Gorgons, ugly women who had snakes for hair. She was so hideous that anyone who gazed upon her was turned to stone, so the hero
Perseus had to look using the reflection in his shield in order to slay her.
Maxwell
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAKS-wehl
From a Scottish surname meaning
"Mack's stream", from the name
Mack, a short form of the Scandinavian name
Magnus, combined with Old English
wille "well, stream". A famous bearer of the surname was James Maxwell (1831-1879), a Scottish physicist who studied gases and electromagnetism.
As a given name it has increased in popularity starting from the 1980s, likely because it is viewed as a full form of Max [1].
Maxfield
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Transferred use of the surname
Maxfield.
Marjolein
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch
Pronounced: MAHR-yo-layn
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)
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.
Magnús
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic
Magdalena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Polish, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Lithuanian, Spanish, Catalan, Occitan, Slovene, Czech, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Croatian, Serbian, Romanian, English
Other Scripts: Магдалена(Bulgarian, Macedonian, Serbian)
Pronounced: mag-da-LEH-na(Polish) mak-da-LEH-na(German) mahgh-da-LEH-na(Dutch) magh-dha-LEH-na(Spanish) məg-də-LEH-nə(Catalan) MAG-da-leh-na(Czech) mag-də-LAY-nə(English)
Maccabee
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Aramaic (Anglicized), Mormon
The name of an ancient Jewish warrior, Judah Maccabee, meaning "the hammer".
His deeds are described in the deuterocanonical books 1 Maccabees to 4 Maccabees (which are considered canonical to more or less extent in some Christian denominitions).
Lyle
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIEL, LIE-əl
From an English surname that was derived from Norman French l'isle meaning "island".
Lundi
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic (Modern, Rare)
Means "puffin" in Icelandic.
Louison
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: French
Lotta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish, Finnish
Pronounced: LOT-tah(Finnish)
Loreto
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Spanish, Italian
Pronounced: lo-REH-to
From the name of a town in Italy, originally called
Lauretum in Latin, meaning "laurel grove". Supposedly in the 13th century the house of the Virgin
Mary was miraculously carried by angels from Nazareth to the town. In Spain it is a feminine name, from the Marian title
Nuestra Señora de Loreto, while in Italy it is mostly masculine.
Llyr
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh Mythology
Unaccented variant of
Llŷr.
Leonid
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Russian, Ukrainian
Other Scripts: Леонид(Russian) Леонід(Ukrainian)
Pronounced: lyi-u-NYEET(Russian)
Lauchlan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish
Laertes
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Λαέρτης(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: LA-EHR-TEHS(Classical Greek) lay-UR-teez(American English) lay-U-teez(British English)
Means
"gatherer of the people" in Greek. This is the name of the father of
Odysseus in Greek
mythology. It was later utilized by Shakespeare for a character in his tragedy
Hamlet (1600), in which he is the son of
Polonius. His ultimate duel with
Hamlet leads to both of their deaths.
Konstantyn
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Polish (Rare)
Pronounced: kawn-STAN-tin
Kjartan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Danish, Icelandic, Norwegian, Faroese, Swedish (Rare)
Pronounced: KYAR-tan(Icelandic) KHAHR-tan(Norwegian) CHAR-tan(Faroese)
Kitty
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KIT-ee
Kineret
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: כִּנֶּרֶת(Hebrew)
From the name of a large lake in northern Israel, usually called the Sea of Galilee in English. Its name is derived from Hebrew
כִּנּוֹר (kinnor) meaning "harp"
[1] because of its shape.
Kessem
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Hebrew (Modern)
Other Scripts: קסם(Hebrew)
Pronounced: KEH-sehm
Means "magic" in Hebrew.
Keshet
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: קֶשֶׁת(Hebrew)
Means "rainbow" in Hebrew.
Kerem
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hebrew (Rare)
Other Scripts: כרם(Hebrew)
Pronounced: KE-rem
Means "vineyard" in Hebrew.
Kepler
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Transferred use of the surname
Kepler.
Rose in prominence as a first name following the rise of German mathematician, astronomer, and astrologer Johannes Kepler.
Karolína
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Czech, Slovak
Pronounced: KA-ro-lee-na(Czech) KA-raw-lee-na(Slovak)
Czech and Slovak feminine form of
Carolus.
Jozabad
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: יוֹזָבָד(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: JAH-zə-bad(Biblical English)
Contracted form of
Jehozabad. Jozabad is a very common name in the Bible.
Josefa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Portuguese
Pronounced: kho-SEH-fa(Spanish)
Spanish and Portuguese feminine form of
Joseph.
Josaphat
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Johannes
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Late Roman
Pronounced: yo-HA-nəs(German) yo-HAH-nəs(Dutch) yo-HAN-əs(Danish) YO-hahn-nehs(Finnish)
Latin form of Greek
Ioannes (see
John). Notable bearers include the inventor of the printing press Johannes Gutenberg (1398-1468), astronomer Johannes Kepler (1571-1630), painter Johannes Vermeer (1632-1675), and composer Johannes Brahms (1833-1897).
Jocosa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Medieval English
Medieval variant of
Joyce, influenced by the Latin word
iocosus or
jocosus "merry, playful".
Jocasta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Anglicized)
Other Scripts: Ἰοκάστη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: jo-KAS-tə(English)
From the Greek name
Ἰοκάστη (Iokaste), which is of unknown meaning. In Greek
mythology she was the mother
Oedipus by the Theban king
Laius. In a case of tragic mistaken identity, she married her own son.
Job
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, Biblical French, Dutch
Other Scripts: אִיּוֹב(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: JOB(English) ZHAWB(French) YAWP(Dutch)
From the Hebrew name
אִיּוֹב (ʾIyyov), which means
"persecuted, hated". In the Book of Job in the
Old Testament he is a righteous man who is tested by God, enduring many tragedies and hardships while struggling to remain faithful.
Jerusalem
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Rare), Romani (Archaic)
Pronounced: jə-ROO-sə-ləm(English)
Jan 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Czech, Polish, Slovene, German, Catalan, Sorbian
Pronounced: YAHN(Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian) YAN(Czech, Polish, German, Sorbian) ZHAN(Catalan)
Form of
Johannes used in various languages. This name was borne by the Czech church reformer Jan Hus (1370-1415), the Flemish painter Jan van Eyck (1390-1441), and the Dutch painters Jan Steen (1626-1679) and Jan Vermeer (1632-1675).
Jakoba
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German (Rare), Medieval Basque
Pronounced: yah-KO-ba(German)
Jakob
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Dutch, Slovene
Pronounced: YA-kawp(German, Icelandic, Dutch) YAH-kawp(Swedish, Norwegian) YAH-kob(Danish)
Form of
Jacob (or
James) used in several languages.
Jack
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JAK
Derived from
Jackin (earlier
Jankin), a medieval
diminutive of
John [1]. There could be some early influence from the unrelated French name
Jacques [2]. It is often regarded as an independent name. During the Middle Ages it was very common, and it became a slang word meaning "man", as seen in the terms
jack-o'-lantern,
jack-in-the-box,
lumberjack and so on. It was frequently used in fairy tales and nursery rhymes, such as
Jack and the Beanstalk,
Jack and Jill,
Little Jack Horner, and
Jack Sprat.
American writers Jack London (1876-1916) and Jack Kerouac (1922-1969) were two famous bearers of this name. It is also borne by the actor Jack Nicholson (1937-) and the golfer Jack Nicklaus (1940-). Apart from Nicklaus, none of these famous bearers were given the name Jack at birth.
In the United Kingdom this form has been bestowed more frequently than John since the 1990s, being the most popular name for boys from 1996 to 2008.
Ísrún
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Icelandic
Combination of the Old Norse name elements íss "ice" (compare Icelandic ís) and rún "secret; secret lore".
Ishmerai
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: יִשְׁמְרַי(Ancient Hebrew)
Means
"he guards me" in Hebrew, derived from
שָׁמַר (shamar) meaning "to guard". This name is mentioned briefly in the
Old Testament.
Irial
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish Mythology, Irish (Rare)
Irial Fáid was a legendary High King of Ireland.
Húni
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Old Norse, Icelandic, Faroese
Originally a diminutive of names beginning with the Old Norse element
húnn meaning "child, (bear) cub", such as
Húnbogi or
Húnulfr. (Alternatively this element may be derived from Primitive Scandinavian *
hun "high".)
Hrafn
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic, Old Norse [1]
Pronounced: RAPN(Icelandic)
Means "raven" in Old Norse.
Hlynur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic
Means "maple" in Icelandic.
Hjörtur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic
Pronounced: KHUUR-tuyr
Means "deer" in Icelandic.
Hizkiah
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: חִזְקִיָהוּ(Ancient Hebrew)
Alternate form of the Hebrew name
Ḥizqiyahu (see
Hezekiah).
Hevel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: הֶבֶל(Hebrew)
Pronounced: HEH-vehl(Hebrew)
Hershel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: American, Yiddish
Other Scripts: הירשל(Yiddish) הירשׁל(Hebrew)
Yiddish
diminutive of
Hirsh. As a non-Jewish American name (somewhat common around the end of the 19th century), it was likely inspired by the German surname
Herschel, borne for instance by the British-German astronomer William Herschel (1738-1822).
Havilah
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: חֲוִילָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: HAV-i-lə(English)
Probably means
"to dance, to circle, to twist" in Hebrew. In the
Old Testament this is both a place name and a masculine personal name.
Haskel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Yiddish (Rare)
Other Scripts: האַסקל(Yiddish)
Harel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: הַרְאֵל(Hebrew)
Means
"altar, mountain of God" in Hebrew. In the Hebrew Bible this word is applied to the altar in the temple in Jerusalem (
Ezekiel 43:15).
Hanno
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval German, German (Rare)
Pronounced: HAN-o
A short form of German names containing the name element han. The name element is explained as "cock" (modern German Hahn) or as "Singer".
Grímur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic, Faroese
Icelandic and Faroese form of
Grímr.
Goldie 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Yiddish
Glory
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: GLAWR-ee
Simply from the English word glory, ultimately from Latin gloria.
Gló
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Icelandic (Modern, Rare)
Derived from the Old Norse verb
glóa meaning "to glow, to glisten, to shine". Also compare
Glóa and the masculine
Glói (the name of a dwarf in
Vǫluspá).
Glimmer
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: GLIM-ər
From the English word meaning "to shine". This name was used in Suzanne Collins' popular book, 'The Hunger Games'.
Geshem
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Hebrew (Modern, Rare), Biblical Hebrew
Other Scripts: גֶשֶׁם, גשם(Hebrew)
Pronounced: GE-shem(Hebrew) gesh-em(Biblical Hebrew)
The Hebrew word גֶּשֶׁם (géshem) means "rain".
Geshem the Arab is a biblical figure occurring in the book of Nehemiah.
>>GESHEM THE ARABIAN:
>>Ally of Sanballat and Tobiah and adversary of Nehemiah (Neh. ii. 19, vi. 1). In Neh. vi. 6 he is called "Gashmu," which is probably more correct, as an Arab tribe named "Gushamu" is known (Cook, "Aramaic Glossary," s.v. ). When Nehemiah proceeded to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, the Samaritans and the Arabs made efforts to hinder him. Geshem or Gashmu, who probably was the chief of the Arabs, joined the Samaritans and accused Nehemiah of conspiracy against the Persian king.
(Quoted from the 1906 edition of The Jewish Encyclopedia)
Georgie
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JAWR-jee(American English) JAW-jee(British English)
Geir
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Norwegian, Icelandic
Pronounced: GAYR(Norwegian)
Derived from the Old Norse element
geirr meaning
"spear".
Gefen
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: גֶּפֶן(Hebrew)
Means "grape vine" in Hebrew.
Gavi
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: גבי(Hebrew)
Pronounced: gah-vee
Gaudence
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: French (Archaic), French (African), French (Belgian, Rare)
Ganymede
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Anglicized)
Other Scripts: Γανυμήδης(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: GAN-i-meed(English)
From Greek
Γανυμήδης (Ganymedes), which was possibly derived from
γάνυμαι (ganymai) meaning "to be glad" and
μήδεα (medea) meaning "plans, counsel, cunning". In Greek
mythology this was the name of a beautiful boy who was abducted by
Zeus to become the cupbearer to the gods, the successor of
Hebe. A moon of Jupiter is named after him.
Gabriel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Catalan, English, Romanian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Georgian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: გაბრიელ(Georgian) גַּבְרִיאֵל(Ancient Hebrew) Γαβριήλ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: GA-BREE-YEHL(French) ga-BRYEHL(Spanish) ga-bree-EHL(European Portuguese, Romanian) ga-bree-EW(Brazilian Portuguese) GA-bree-ehl(German, Slovak, Latin) GAH-bri-ehl(Swedish) GAH-bree-ehl(Finnish) gə-bree-EHL(Catalan) GAY-bree-əl(English) GAB-ryehl(Polish) GA-bri-yehl(Czech)
From the Hebrew name
גַבְרִיאֵל (Ḡavriʾel) meaning
"God is my strong man", derived from
גֶּבֶר (gever) meaning "strong man, hero" and
אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God". Gabriel is an archangel in Hebrew tradition, often appearing as a messenger of God. In the
Old Testament he is sent to interpret the visions of the prophet
Daniel, while in the
New Testament he serves as the announcer of the births of
John to
Zechariah and
Jesus to
Mary. According to Islamic tradition he was the angel who dictated the
Quran to
Muhammad.
This name has been used occasionally in England since the 12th century. It was not common in the English-speaking world until the end of the 20th century.
Gable
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: GAY-bəl
Transferred use of the surname
Gable.
Gabin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: GA-BEHN
French form of
Gabinus (see
Gavino).
Foss
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Dutch
Fortuné
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French (Archaic)
Fólki
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Old Norse [1]
Flóvent
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic, Faroese
Possibly a Icelandic and Faroese form of
Flavius.
Florie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Medieval French, French (Rare), French (Belgian, Rare), Judeo-French
Floen
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Norwegian (Archaic)
Fig
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English, Literature
Fig is the name of Hannah's cousin in Curtis Sittenfield's 'The Man of My Dreams'.
-------------------------------------
Nature name referring to the tree which is cultivated for its fruit. In Christian symbolism, the fig symbolises chastity and humility, since fig leaves were said to be used by Adam and Eve to cover their genitals in The Book of Genesis.
Fifer
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: American (Rare)
Pronounced: FIEF-er
Transferred use of the surname
Fifer.
Fife
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish (Rare)
From a Scottish place name that was formerly the name of a kingdom in Scotland. It is said to be named for a Pictish kingdom called Fib.
Felix
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, English, Romanian, Ancient Roman, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Pronounced: FEH-liks(German, Dutch, Swedish) FEE-liks(English) FEH-leeks(Latin)
From a Roman
cognomen meaning
"lucky, successful" in Latin. It was acquired as an
agnomen, or nickname, by the 1st-century BC Roman general Sulla. It also appears in the
New Testament belonging to the governor of Judea who imprisoned
Saint Paul.
Due to its favourable meaning, this name was popular among early Christians, being borne by many early saints and four popes. It has been used in England since the Middle Ages, though it has been more popular in continental Europe. A notable bearer was the German composer Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847).
Feardorcha
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish (Rare)
Means
"dark man" from Old Irish
fer "man" and
dorchae "dark".
Ezri
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Pronounced: ez-ree
Means "my helper" in Hebrew. In the Bible Ezri was an overseer during King David's reign.
Eygló
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Icelandic
Icelandic combination of ey "good fortune" or "island" and glóa "to shine, glitter".
Euthymius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Εὐθύμιος(Ancient Greek)
Latinized form of the Greek name
Εὐθύμιος (Euthymios) meaning
"in good spirits, generous", derived from the word
εὔθυμος (euthymos), which was composed of the elements
εὖ (eu) meaning "good" and
θυμός (thymos) meaning "soul, spirit". This was the name of several early
saints.
Eurydice
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Εὐρυδίκη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ew-RUY-dee-keh(Latin) yuw-RID-i-see(English)
From the Greek
Εὐρυδίκη (Eurydike) meaning
"wide justice", derived from
εὐρύς (eurys) meaning "wide" and
δίκη (dike) meaning "justice, custom, order". In Greek
myth she was the wife of Orpheus. Her husband tried to rescue her from Hades, but he failed when he disobeyed the condition that he not look back upon her on their way out.
Eurus
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Εὖρος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: Ear-ous
Eurus was the god of the east wind, one of the four directional Anemoi (Wind-Gods). He was associated with the season of autumn and dwelt near the palace of the sun-god Helios in the far east.
Europa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Εὐρώπη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: yuw-RO-pə(English)
Latinized form of Greek
Εὐρώπη (Europe), which meant
"wide face" from
εὐρύς (eurys) meaning "wide" and
ὄψ (ops) meaning "face, eye". In Greek
mythology Europa was a Phoenician princess who was abducted and taken to Crete by
Zeus in the guise of a bull. She became the first queen of Crete, and later fathered
Minos by Zeus. The continent of Europe said to be named for her, though it is more likely her name is from that of the continent. This is also the name of a moon of Jupiter.
Eshkol
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew
Other Scripts: אשכול(Hebrew)
Means "grape cluster" in Hebrew.
Esclarmonde
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Medieval French, Medieval Occitan, Arthurian Cycle
Pronounced: ehs-klar-mawnd(Old French)
Probably a medieval Provençal form of
Claremonde. According to a folk etymology it means "light of the world" from Old French
esclair "light" and
monde "world". In medieval legend Esclarmonde was a Muslim princess, lover of the Christian knight Huon de Bordeaux. It was borne by Esclarmonde de Foix (1151-1215), a princess and Cathar Perfecta from Occitania.
Eos
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἠώς(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: EH-AWS(Classical Greek) EE-ahs(American English) EE-aws(British English)
Means "dawn" in Greek. This was the name of the Greek goddess of the dawn.
Enola
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: i-NO-lə
Meaning unknown. This name first appeared in the late 19th century. It is the name of the main character in the novel Enola; or, her Fatal Mistake (1886) by Mary Young Ridenbaugh. The aircraft that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima was named Enola Gay after the mother of the pilot, who was herself named for the book character.
Endymion
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἐνδυμίων(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: EHN-DUY-MEE-AWN(Classical Greek) ehn-DIM-ee-ən(English)
Derived from Greek
ἐνδύω (endyo) meaning
"to dive into, to enter". In Greek
mythology he was an Aeolian mortal loved by the moon goddess
Selene, who asked
Zeus to grant him eternal life. Zeus complied by putting him into an eternal sleep in a cave on Mount Latmos.
Emmanuel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, French, English
Other Scripts: עִמָּנוּאֵל(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: EH-MA-NWEHL(French) i-MAN-yoo-ehl(English)
From the Hebrew name
עִמָּנוּאֵל (ʿImmanuʾel) meaning
"God is with us", from the roots
עִם (ʿim) meaning "with" and
אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God". This was the foretold name of the Messiah in the
Old Testament. It has been used in England since the 16th century in the spellings
Emmanuel and
Immanuel, though it has not been widespread
[1]. The name has been more common in continental Europe, especially in Spain and Portugal (in the spellings
Manuel and
Manoel).
Émerence
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Rare), French (Belgian)
Émeraude
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Modern), French (Belgian, Modern, Rare)
Pronounced: EHM-RAWD(French, Belgian French)
Derived from French émeraude "emerald".
Ellisif
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Icelandic, Medieval Scandinavian
Icelandic form of
Elizabeth. It originated as a "Nordicized" form of
Yelizaveta, the original Russian name of the 11th-century Rus' princess (daughter of the Kievan ruler Yaroslav) who married King Haraldr III of Norway.
Ellis
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English, Welsh
Pronounced: EHL-is(English)
From an English surname that was derived from the given name
Elis, a medieval vernacular form of
Elias. This name has also functioned as an Anglicized form of Welsh
Elisedd.
Elizaveta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian
Other Scripts: Елизавета(Russian)
Pronounced: yi-lyi-zu-VYEH-tə, i-lyi-zu-VYEH-tə
Elisheva
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: אֱלִישֶׁבַע(Hebrew)
Eidel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Yiddish (Rare)
Other Scripts: איידל(Yiddish)
Means "delicate" in Yiddish.
Efraim
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: אֶפְרָיִם(Hebrew)
Edelweiss
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various
Pronounced: AY-dəl-vies(English) EH-DEHL-VIES(French) EH-DEHL-VEHS(French) eh-dehl-VIES(Italian) EH-dehl-vies(Italian)
From the name of the edelweiss flower (species Leontopodium alpinum). It is derived from the German elements edel "noble" and weiß "white." The name of the flower is spelled Edelweiß in German; Edelweiss is an Anglicized spelling.
Edda 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Icelandic, Old Norse [1]
Possibly from Old Norse meaning "great-grandmother". This was the name of two 13th-century Icelandic literary works: the Poetic Edda and the Prose Edda. This is also the name of a character in the Poetic Edda, though it is unclear if her name is connected to the name of the collection.
Echo
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἠχώ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: EH-ko(English)
From the Greek word
ἠχώ (echo) meaning
"echo, reflected sound", related to
ἠχή (eche) meaning "sound". In Greek
mythology Echo was a nymph given a speech impediment by
Hera, so that she could only repeat what others said. She fell in love with
Narcissus, but her love was not returned, and she pined away until nothing remained of her except her voice.
Ebba 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish, Danish
Pronounced: EHB-ba(Swedish)
Eagle
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EE-gul, EE-gəl
From the English word
eagle, ultimately from Latin
aquila. Also from the surname
Eagle, originally a nickname for a lordly or sharp-eyed man.
Dúnn
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic (Modern, Rare)
From Old Norse dúnn meaning "(eider)-down".
Dover
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, Yiddish
Other Scripts: דובער(Hebrew, Yiddish)
Combination of the Hebrew name Dov (דוב) and the Yiddish name Ber (בער).
Dovber
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Jewish
Combination of Hebrew Dov and Yiddish Ber, both meaning "bear"
Dov
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: דּוֹב(Hebrew)
Pronounced: DOV
Means "bear" in Hebrew.
Doron
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: דּוֹרוֹן(Hebrew)
David
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Hebrew, French, Scottish, Welsh, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Czech, Slovene, Russian, Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian, Romanian, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: דָּוִד(Hebrew) Давид(Russian, Serbian, Macedonian)
Pronounced: DAY-vid(English) da-VEED(Hebrew, Brazilian Portuguese) DA-VEED(French) da-BEEDH(Spanish) du-VEED(European Portuguese) də-BEET(Catalan) DA-vit(German, Dutch, Czech) DAH-vid(Swedish, Norwegian) du-VYEET(Russian)
From the Hebrew name
דָּוִד (Dawiḏ), which was derived from
דּוֹד (doḏ) meaning
"beloved" or
"uncle". David was the second and greatest of the kings of Israel, ruling in the 10th century BC. Several stories about him are told in the
Old Testament, including his defeat of
Goliath, a giant Philistine. According to the
New Testament,
Jesus was descended from him.
This name has been used in Britain since the Middle Ages. It has been especially popular in Wales, where it is used in honour of the 5th-century patron saint of Wales (also called Dewi), as well as in Scotland, where it was borne by two kings. Over the last century it has been one of the English-speaking world's most consistently popular names, never leaving the top 30 names for boys in the United States, and reaching the top rank in England and Wales during the 1950s and 60s. In Spain it was the most popular name for boys during the 1970s and 80s.
Famous bearers include empiricist philosopher David Hume (1711-1776), explorer David Livingstone (1813-1873), musician David Bowie (1947-2016), and soccer player David Beckham (1975-). This is also the name of the hero of Charles Dickens' semi-autobiographical novel David Copperfield (1850).
Daedalus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Δαίδαλος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: DEHD-ə-ləs(English) DEED-ə-ləs(English)
Latinized form of the Greek
Δαίδαλος (Daidalos), which was derived from
δαιδάλλω (daidallo) meaning
"to work cunningly". In Greek
myth Daedalus was an Athenian inventor who was banished to Crete. There he designed the Labyrinth for King
Minos, but he and his son
Icarus were eventually imprisoned inside it because he had aided
Theseus in his quest against the Minotaur. Daedalus and Icarus escaped using wings fashioned from wax, but Icarus fell from the sky to his death.
Cross
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (American, Modern, Rare)
Pronounced: KRAWS(American English)
Transferred use of the surname
Cross or simply from the word
cross.
Chrysalis
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare), Filipino (Rare)
Pronounced: KRIS-ə-lis(English)
From the word referring to the pupa of a butterfly or moth or the cocoon where the pupa is enclosed inside, derived via Latin from Ancient Greek χρυσαλλίς
(khrusallís), from χρυσός
(khrusós) meaning "gold."
A My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic villain bears this name.
Chodesh
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical Hebrew
Other Scripts: חֹדֶשׁ(Ancient Hebrew)
Chizqiyahu
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: חִזְקִיָהוּ(Ancient Hebrew)
Chanokh
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: חֲנוֹך(Ancient Hebrew)
Chanina
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, Yiddish
Other Scripts: חַנִינָא(Hebrew, Yiddish)
Chanina has the same meaning of the name Hannah, from ancient Hebrew through out medieval Yiddish meaning “Gracious, god is gracious.
Chaim
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: חַיִּים(Hebrew)
Pronounced: KHA-yeem
Derived from the Hebrew word
חַיִּים (chayim) meaning
"life". It has been used since medieval times.
Bright
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Brialdur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Faroese
Breki
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic
From Old Norse breki ''breaker''.
Boreas
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Βορέας(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: BO-REH-AS(Classical Greek) BAWR-ee-əs(English)
Means "north wind" in Greek. Boreas was the Greek god of the north wind.
Bobby
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BAHB-ee(American English) BAWB-ee(British English)
Diminutive of
Bob. Hockey greats Bobby Hull (1939-2023) and Bobby Orr (1948-) have borne this name.
Blima
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Yiddish
Pronounced: BLEE-mah
Birkir
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic
From Icelandic birki meaning "birch", specifically the downy birch (species Betula pubescens).
Binyamin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, Arabic, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: בִּנְיָמִין(Hebrew) بنيامين(Arabic)
Pronounced: been-ya-MEEN(Hebrew, Arabic)
Betzalel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Jewish
Pronounced: beh-tzahl-el
Means "in God's shadow" in Hebrew.
Bethshalom
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
beth is the hebrew word for house, while shalom is the hebrew for peace. meaning house of peace.
Bethel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Other Scripts: בֵּית־אֵל(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: BETH-əl
From an
Old Testament place name meaning
"house of God" in Hebrew. This was a town north of Jerusalem, where
Jacob saw his vision of the stairway. It is occasionally used as a given name.
Bersi
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval English, Old Norse, Icelandic (Rare)
Old Norse diminutive of
Björn.
Beresh
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew (Rare, Archaic)
Other Scripts: בראש(Hebrew)
Pronounced: be-RESH
Benzion
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew (Rare)
Other Scripts: בנציון, בן-ציון(Hebrew)
Pronounced: ben-TZI-on, ben-tzee-YON
Means "son of
Zion" in Hebrew.
Benía
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Icelandic (Rare)
Benesh
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Yiddish (Rare)
Other Scripts: בענעש(Yiddish)
Benaya
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: בְּנָיָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Bellerophon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Βελλεροφῶν(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: bi-LEHR-ə-fən(English)
From
Βελλεροφόντης (Bellerophontes), possibly from Greek
βέλος (belos) meaning "dart" and the suffix
φόντης (phontes) meaning "slayer of". Alternatively the first element might come from a defeated foe named Belleros, who is otherwise unattested. In Greek legend Bellerophon or Bellerophontes was a hero who tamed
Pegasus and killed the monstrous Chimera. He was killed by
Zeus when he attempted to ride Pegasus to Mount Olympus.
Beeri
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew, Biblical
Other Scripts: בְּאֵרִי, בארי(Hebrew)
Pronounced: beh-eh-REE(Hebrew) bə-eh REE(Biblical Hebrew)
Hebrew name deriving from בְּאֵר
be'er "well", "fountain" with suffix, meaning "my well".
In the Old Testament the father of the Prophet
Hoshea and the father-in-law of
Esau bear this Name. In modern Israel it is occasionally used as a female name as well.
Beattie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scots, English
Pronounced: BEE-tee(Scots) BEH-teh(Scots)
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)
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.
Bathshua
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, English (Puritan)
Other Scripts: בַּתשֿׁוּעַ(Ancient Hebrew)
Means "daughter of salvation" or "daughter of prosperity" in Hebrew. The first element is Hebrew בַּת
(bat 2) meaning "daughter"; the second element could be derived from the verb יָשַׁע
(yasha') "to save, to deliver", which is related to the verb שוע
(shawa') meaning "to cry out (for salvation)" and the nouns שוע
(shua'), שוע
(shoa') and שועה
(shawa) all of which mean "a cry (for salvation)", or it could be derived from a noun שוע which has been interpreted as meaning "riches, wealth".
According to George R. Stewart (1979): 'In the biblical text this name is sometimes only another form for Bathsheba, though at least once it is the name of another person. It occurs rarely among names in early New England. It may represent an attempt to provide a substitute for Bathsheba, without that name's evil suggestions. Bathshua, however, failed to become established.' A bearer of the variant Bathsua was the great 17th-century scholar Bathsua Makin.
Bashemath
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: בָּשְׂמַת(Ancient Hebrew)
Barzillai
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: בַּרְזִלָּי(Ancient Hebrew)
From the Hebrew name
בַּרְזִלָּי (Barzillai), derived from
בַּרְזֶל (barzel) meaning
"iron" [2]. This is the name of three different characters in the
Old Testament, including Barzillai the Gileadite.
Bartlett
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: BART-lett
Transferred use of the surname
Bartlett.
Alternatively, one documentend usage was on the nephew of Charlemagne. He was christened by the name of Berthaelot, a diminutive of Bertha, the name of his mother and grandmother.
Barnabas
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German (Rare), English (Rare), Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Βαρναβᾶς(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: BAR-na-bas(German) BAHR-nə-bəs(American English) BAH-nə-bəs(British English)
Greek form of an Aramaic name. In Acts in the
New Testament the byname Barnabas was given to a man named
Joseph, a Jew from Cyprus who was a companion of
Paul on his missionary journeys. The original Aramaic form is unattested, but it may be from
בּר נביא (bar navi) meaning
"son of the prophet", though in
Acts 4:36 it is claimed that the name means
"son of encouragement".
As an English name, Barnabas came into occasional use after the 12th century. It is now rare, though the variant Barnaby is still moderately common in Britain.
Baltasar
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Spanish, Biblical Greek
Other Scripts: Βαλτάσαρ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: bal-ta-SAR(Spanish)
Baldur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Icelandic
Pronounced: BAL-duwr(German)
German and Icelandic form of
Balder.
Athens
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (American)
From Greek
Athenai (plural because the city had several distinct parts), traditionally derived from
Athena, but probably assimilated from a lost name in a pre-Hellenic language.
Athen
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ath-en
Transferred use of the surname
Athen.
Astrophel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature
Probably intended to mean "star lover", from Greek
ἀστήρ (aster) meaning "star" and
φίλος (philos) meaning "lover, friend". This name was first used by the 16th-century poet Philip Sidney in his collection of sonnets
Astrophel and Stella.
Askur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic, Faroese
Icelandic and Faroese form of
Askr.
Ashtoreth
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, Semitic Mythology
Other Scripts: עַשְׁתֹרֶת(Ancient Hebrew) 𐤏𐤔𐤕𐤓𐤕(Phoenician)
From
עַשְׁתֹרֶת (ʿAshṯoreṯ), the Hebrew form of the name of a Phoenician goddess of love, war and fertility. Her name is
cognate to that of the East Semitic goddess
Ishtar.
Ashbel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: אשבל(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: ash-BAYL(English)
Possibly means "flowing" from a prosthetic aleph (Hebrew: א) and the Hebrew verb שבל
(shobel) "to flow forth" (the source of
Shobal), or possibly derived from the noun אֵשׁ
('esh) "fire" and the verb בעל
(ba'al) "to be lord (over), to own, to control". In the Old Testament this name belonged to the second son of
Benjamin. A known bearer was American pioneer physician Ashbel Smith (1805-1886), a leader in the development of Texas.
Ásgeir
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Icelandic
Pronounced: OWS-kyayr
Artavasdes
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Armenian (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Արտավազդ(Armenian)
Aristodemos
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1], Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἀριστόδημος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: A-REES-TO-DEH-MOS(Classical Greek)
Derived from the Greek elements
ἄριστος (aristos) meaning "best" and
δῆμος (demos) meaning "the people". This was the name of a descendant of
Herakles in Greek legend.
Arcturus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Astronomy
Other Scripts: Ἀρκτοῦρος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ahrk-TYUWR-əs(American English) ahk-TYUWR-əs(British English) ark-TOO-roos(Latin)
From Ancient Greek
Ἀρκτοῦρος (Arktouros), the name of the fourth brightest star in the sky, part of the constellation Boötes. It means
"guardian of the bear", derived from
ἄρκτος (arktos) meaning "bear" and
οὖρος (ouros) meaning "guardian", referring to the star's position close to the constellations Ursa Minor and Ursa Major.
Archimedes
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ἀρχιμήδης(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: AR-KEE-MEH-DEHS(Classical Greek) ahr-ki-MEE-deez(American English) ah-ki-MEE-deez(British English)
Derived from the Greek elements
ἀρχός (archos) meaning "master" and
μήδεα (medea) meaning "plans, counsel, cunning". This was the name of a 3rd-century BC Greek mathematician, astronomer and inventor.
Arcas
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἀρκάς(Ancient Greek)
In Greek mythology he was a son of
Zeus and
Callisto. He was remembered for having taught people the art of weaving and baking bread. Hera became jealous of his birth, and in anger, transformed Callisto into a bear. She would have done the same or worse to her son, had Zeus not hidden Arcas in an area of Greece that would come to be called
Arcadia, in his honor. There Arcas safely lived until one day, during one of the court feasts held by king
Lycaon (Arcas' maternal grandfather), Lycaon tried to kill him and Zeus, in retaliation turned him in the first werewolf.
After this occurrence, Arcas became the new king of Arcadia, and the country's greatest hunter. One day when Arcas went hunting in the woods, he came across his mother. Seeing her son after so long, she went forth to embrace him. Not knowing that the bear was his mother, he went to kill her with an arrow. Zeus, taking pity upon the two, decided to avert the tragedy and put them both up in the heavens, and their constellations are now referred to as Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, the big and little bears. When Hera heard of this, she became so angry that she asked Tethys to keep them in a certain place, so that the constellations would never sink below the horizon and receive water.
Anthime
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French, French (Belgian)
Pronounced: AHN-TEEM(French)
Amynthe
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: French (Archaic), Louisiana Creole
Pronounced: A-MINTH(French) a-MINTH(Louisiana Creole)
French feminine and masculine form of
Amyntas.
Amphiro
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
The name of one of the Okeanides and a minor goddess of the rising tide.
Alyosha
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Russian
Other Scripts: Алёша(Russian)
Pronounced: u-LYUY-shə
Aldebaran
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Astronomy, Judeo-Christian-Islamic Legend
Pronounced: ahl-DEB-ə-rahn, ahl-DEB-ə-rən, Ahl-deb-ren
Derived from Arabic الدبران (al-Dabarān) meaning "follower" (from دبر (dábar) "to turn one's back"). This is the name of the brightest star in the constellation Taurus, presumably so named because it appears to follow the Pleiades rightward across the night sky. The apocryphal Book of Enoch describes Aldebaran as a fallen angel, who attempted to seduce an Assyrian queen in the form of a bull.
Akiva
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: עֲקִיבָא(Hebrew)
Pronounced: ah-KEE-vah
From an Aramaic form of
Yaakov. Akiva (or Akiba) ben Joseph was a prominent 1st-century Jewish rabbi.
Akim
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Russian
Other Scripts: Аким(Russian)
Pronounced: u-KYEEM
Agnes
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Estonian, Late Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ἅγνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: AG-nis(English) AK-nəs(German) AHKH-nehs(Dutch) ANG-nehs(Swedish) OW-nes(Danish)
Latinized form of the Greek name
Ἅγνη (Hagne), derived from Greek
ἁγνός (hagnos) meaning
"chaste".
Saint Agnes was a virgin martyred during the persecutions of the Roman emperor Diocletian. The name became associated with Latin
agnus "lamb", resulting in the saint's frequent depiction with a lamb by her side. Due to her renown, the name became common in Christian Europe.
As an English name it was highly popular from the Middle Ages until the 17th century. It was revived in the 19th century and was common into the 20th, but it fell into decline after the 1930s. It last appeared on the American top 1000 rankings in 1972.
Agathe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, German, Norwegian (Rare), Danish (Rare), Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ἀγάθη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: A-GAT(French) a-GA-tə(German) A-GA-TEH(Classical Greek)
Form of
Agatha in several languages.
Abiathar
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: אֶבְיָתָר(Ancient Hebrew)
From the Hebrew name
אֶבְיָתָר (ʾEvyaṯar) meaning
"my father abounds" or
"my father excels", derived from
אָב (ʾav) meaning "father" and
יָתַר (yaṯar) meaning "to abound, to excel". According to the
Old Testament Abiathar was a high priest during the reign of King
David.
Aberdeen
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ab-ə-deen
Means "mouth of the Don (river)" in Scottish Gaelic. This is the name of the name of a city in northern Scotland, as well as several other cities worldwide named after the Scottish city.
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