hermeline's Personal Name List
Zennor
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Cornish (Rare)
Name of a Cornish village derived from the local saint, St Senara. In current use.
Yowann
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval Cornish
Medieval Cornish variant of
Jowan.
Yorick
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature, English, Dutch
Pronounced: YAWR-ik(English) YO-rik(Dutch)
Possibly an altered form of
Jörg. Shakespeare used this name for a deceased court jester in his play
Hamlet (1600).
Yorath
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh (Rare)
Yester
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Armenian
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
Yeoville
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Rating: 95% based on 2 votes
Xandrie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Australian, Rare)
Pronounced: ZAN-dree(Australian English)
Xandrie is the name of a fiction character, played by Adelaide Clemens, in a 2010 Australian film called "Wasted on the Young."
Wyborough
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Medieval English
Rating: 10% based on 1 vote
Middle English form of the Old English name
Wigburg.
Winnold
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WINN-uhld
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Old English form of Winwaloe, Gunwalloe or Guenole. A
Breton name which means “he who is fair”.
Saint Winnold was a 6th century Cornish saint. He was the son of a prince and a holy woman called Gwen who is supposed to have had three breasts as a sign of God’s favour (almost certainly a confusion with some local pagan deity).
His family fled to Brittany to avoid the Saxons, and this is where he grew up. He founded an abbey, and his Rule was the standard one for monks until Saint Benedict.
His feast day is the 3rd of March. According to English weather folklore, this day of the year is supposed to be especially windy, as seen in this piece of verse:
“First comes David
Next comes Chad
Then comes Winnold, roaring like mad”.
(St David’s Day is the first day of March and St Chad’s Day is the second day).
Wilsie
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (American, Rare), Filipino (Rare)
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
Possibly a feminine diminutive form and masculine diminutive of
Wilson.
Willory
Gender: Feminine
Usage: American (South, Archaic)
Rating: 80% based on 2 votes
Willis
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WIL-is
Rating: 15% based on 2 votes
Willard
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WIL-ərd
Rating: 25% based on 2 votes
From an English surname that was derived from the Old German given name
Willihard (or the Old English
cognate Wilheard).
Wilkin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval English
Rating: 10% based on 1 vote
Wilfred
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WIL-frəd
Rating: 20% based on 1 vote
Means
"desiring peace" from Old English
willa "will, desire" and
friþ "peace".
Saint Wilfrid was a 7th-century Anglo-Saxon bishop. The name was rarely used after the
Norman Conquest, but it was revived in the 19th century.
Wilbur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WIL-bər
From an English surname that was originally derived from the nickname Wildbor meaning "wild boar" in Middle English. This name was borne by Wilbur Wright (1867-1912), one half of the Wright brothers, who together invented the first successful airplane. Wright was named after the Methodist minister Wilbur Fisk (1792-1839). A famous fictional bearer is the main character (a pig) in the children's novel Charlotte's Web (1952) by E. B. White.
Wilbeth
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Germanic Mythology
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
"Sister goddess" of
Embeth and
Borbeth and one of "The Three Bethen" or "Three Virgins", a group of allegedly pre-Christian goddesses who later became "unofficial" saints.
Their cult is somewhat of a mystery: having been known since the Middle Ages, it is only regionally distributed, mainly in Bavaria, Baden, South Tyrol, Alsace (above all Strasbourg) and the Rhineland. If there had ever been antique records of this Triple Goddess cult, those have been lost. The oldest authentic records of Wilbeth date back to the 14th century, when she was quickly linked to Embeth whose veneration had been attested since the 12th century.
Either way, their cult became fairly popular when the "girls" got appointed companions of Saint Ursula in the 15th century.
The origins and meanings of their names have been lost to time. Since the Romantic period, there have been speculations that their names might be corruptions of some not yet identified Ancient Germanic names - a theory which in recent times is being taken more and more seriously. Research on it is being done.
Wilbert
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Dutch
Pronounced: VIL-bərt
Means
"bright will", derived from the Old German elements
willo "will, desire" and
beraht "bright".
Wighelm
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Anglo-Saxon
Pronounced: WEEY-khelm(Old English) WEEY-helm(Old English)
Derived from the Old English elements
wig "war, battle" and
helm "helmet, protection".
Wesley
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WEHS-lee, WEHZ-lee
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
From an English surname that was derived from a place name, itself meaning
"west meadow" from Old English
west "west" and
leah "woodland, clearing". It has been sometimes given in honour of John Wesley (1703-1791), the founder of Methodism.
Wayland
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Anglo-Saxon Mythology
Pronounced: WAY-lənd(English)
From Old English Weland, probably derived from the Germanic root *wīlą meaning "craft, cunning". In Germanic legend Weland (called Vǫlundr in Old Norse) was a master smith and craftsman. He was captured and hamstrung by King Niðhad, but took revenge by killing the king's sons.
Wallace
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Scottish
Pronounced: WAWL-əs(English)
Rating: 0% based on 1 vote
From a Scottish and English surname that was derived from Norman French waleis meaning "foreigner, Celt, Welshman" (of Germanic origin). It was first used as a given name in honour of William Wallace, a Scottish hero who led the fight against the English in the 13th century.
Waleran
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Anglo-Norman, Medieval Flemish, Medieval French
A form of
Walaram. This was the name of two rulers of the medieval county of Ligny-en-Barrois, in present-day Lorraine, France.
Walban
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
A Knight of the Round Table.
Viorel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Romanian
Rating: 40% based on 1 vote
Derived from viorea, the Romanian word for the alpine squill flower (species Scilla bifolia) or the sweet violet flower (species Viola odorata). It is derived from Latin viola "violet".
Valora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Esperanto
Pronounced: va-LO-ra
Rating: 60% based on 3 votes
Means "valuable" in Esperanto.
Valera
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Transferred use of the surname
Valera in honour of Irish statesman
Éamon De Valera, who was born in New York to a Spanish father and an Irish mother.
Ulfin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
An ancient British name which means "little wolf". Most well known in the Arthurian legends of Geoffrey Monmouth, where Sir Ulfin plays a role in Merlin's plot for King Arthur to be born.
Uiginn
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Rating: 40% based on 1 vote
A byname meaning “Viking”.
Torsten
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Swedish, Danish, German
Pronounced: TOSH-tehn(Swedish) TAWRS-tən(German)
Rating: 80% based on 1 vote
From the Old Norse name
Þórsteinn, which meant
"Thor's stone" from the name of the Norse god
Þórr (see
Thor) combined with
steinn "stone".
Torcuil
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish Gaelic
Topher
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TO-fər
Thorley
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: THAWR-lee
From a surname that was derived from a place name meaning "thorn clearing" in Old English.
Thorald
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Old Swedish
Old Swedish form of
Þórvaldr (see
Torvald).
Thera
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch
Pronounced: TEH-ra
Theophan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
English form of
Theophanes. A known bearer of this name was saint Theophan the Recluse (1815-1894).
Thayer
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: THAY-ər
Rating: 80% based on 2 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Thayer.
Terence
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TEHR-əns
Rating: 77% based on 3 votes
From the Roman family name
Terentius, which is of unknown meaning. Famous bearers include Publius Terentius Afer, a Roman playwright, and Marcus Terentius Varro, a Roman scholar. It was also borne by several early
saints. The name was used in Ireland as an Anglicized form of
Toirdhealbhach, but it was not found as an English name until the late 19th century. It attained only a moderate level of popularity in the 20th century, though it has been common as an African-American name especially since the 1970s.
Tegwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Rating: 65% based on 4 votes
Derived from the Welsh elements
teg "beautiful, pretty" and
gwen "white, blessed". This name was created in the 19th century
[1].
Tarben
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Danish (Rare)
Rating: 95% based on 2 votes
Tamsine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Cornish (Archaic)
Sweeney
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish Mythology
Rating: 80% based on 2 votes
Anglicized form of
Suibhne. In fiction, this name is borne by the murderous barber Sweeney Todd, first appearing in the British serial
The String of Pearls: A Romance (1846-1847).
Stafford
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: STAF-ərd
Rating: 90% based on 1 vote
From a surname that was from a place name meaning "landing-place ford" in Old English.
Siorus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh
Sidwell
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: SID-wel
Transferred use of the surname
Sidwell.
Siboney
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish (Caribbean), Arawak
Pronounced: see-bo-ney(Caribbean Spanish)
Rating: 80% based on 2 votes
Means "people of the precious stone" or "cave dweller" in Arawak, spoken in Cuba.
It is an ethnic name as the Ciboney, or Siboney, were a Taíno people of Cuba, Jamaica and Hispaniola (Haiti and Dominican Republic).
As given name is probably after Siboney a 1929 song written by Ernesto Lecuona, inspired by the village Siboney near Santiago de Cuba.
Siadhal
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish (Rare)
Sgàthach
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Folklore
Seymour
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SEE-mawr
From a Norman surname that originally belonged to a person coming from the French town of
Saint Maur (which means "Saint
Maurus").
Seren
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: SEH-rehn
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
Means "star" in Welsh. This is a recently created Welsh name.
Senna
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Dutch (Modern)
Pronounced: SEH-na
Rating: 95% based on 2 votes
Meaning uncertain. In some cases it is given in honour of the Brazilian racecar driver Ayrton Senna (1960-1994). It could also be inspired by the senna plant.
Sender
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Yiddish
Other Scripts: סענדער(Yiddish) סנדר(Hebrew)
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
Selby
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: SEHL-bee
From an English surname that was from a place name meaning "willow farm" in Old Norse.
Saundrie
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Cornish (Archaic)
Sander
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Dutch, Estonian, Danish, Norwegian
Pronounced: SAHN-dər(Dutch)
Rating: 53% based on 3 votes
Dutch, Estonian, Danish and Norwegian short form of
Alexander.
Sage
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: SAYJ
Rating: 58% based on 4 votes
From the English word sage, which denotes either a type of spice or else a wise person.
Sæmund
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Anglo-Saxon
Pronounced: SA-moond(Old English)
Derived from the Old English elements
sæ "sea" and
mund "protection". Cognate to Old Norse
Sæmundr and Icelandic
Sæmundur.
Sabin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Romanian, Basque, English (Rare), Polish (Rare), French (Rare), Bulgarian (Rare)
Other Scripts: Сабин(Bulgarian)
English, Romanian, Basque, French and Polish form of
Sabinus. Sabin of Bulgaria was the ruler of Bulgaria from 765 to 766.
Ryker
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: RIE-kər
Rating: 10% based on 1 vote
Possibly a variant of the German surname
Riker, a derivative of Low German
rike "rich". As a modern English name, it has become popular because it shares the same trendy sounds found in other names such as
Ryan and
Ryder.
Roswell
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAHZ-wehl
Rating: 10% based on 1 vote
From a surname that was derived from an Old English place name meaning "horse spring".
Rosella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Rosabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: RO-zə-behl
Combination of
Rosa 1 and the common name suffix
bel, inspired by Latin
bella "beautiful". This name was created in the 18th century.
Ronan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Breton, Irish, French, English (Modern)
Pronounced: RO-nahn(Breton) RAW-NAHN(French) RO-nən(English)
Rating: 95% based on 2 votes
Breton and Anglicized form of
Rónán.
Roland
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Swedish, Dutch, Hungarian, Polish, Slovak, Albanian, Georgian, Carolingian Cycle
Other Scripts: როლანდ(Georgian)
Pronounced: RO-lənd(English) RAW-LAHN(French) RO-lant(German) RO-lahnt(Dutch) RO-lawnd(Hungarian) RAW-lant(Polish)
From the Old German elements
hruod meaning "fame" and
lant meaning "land", though some theories hold that the second element was originally
nand meaning "brave"
[1].
Roland was an 8th-century military commander, serving under Charlemagne, who was killed by the Basques at the Battle of Roncevaux. His name was recorded in Latin as Hruodlandus. His tale was greatly embellished in the 11th-century French epic La Chanson de Roland, in which he is a nephew of Charlemagne killed after being ambushed by the Saracens. The Normans introduced the name to England.
Rheta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (American)
Pronounced: REET-ə(English)
Possibly a variant of
Rita, the spelling perhaps influenced by that of
Rhea or Greek ῥήτωρ
(rhetor) "public speaker, orator". This name was borne by American journalist and suffragist Rheta Dorr (1868-1948). It was brought to public attention by the 1933 murder of a 23-year-old Chicago woman named Rheta Wynekoop.
Regana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: ree-GAN-ə
Raymie
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAY-MEE
Diminutive of
Raymond and similar names.
Raven
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAY-vən
Rating: 73% based on 3 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.
Raleigh
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAW-lee, RAH-lee
Rating: 85% based on 2 votes
From an English surname that was derived from a place name meaning either "red clearing" or "roe deer clearing" in Old English. A city in North Carolina bears this name, after the English courtier, poet and explorer Walter Raleigh (1552-1618).
Rainer
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: RIE-nu(German)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Quinevere
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Obscure (Modern)
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Quindoline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Obscure
Rating: 95% based on 2 votes
Quincey
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: KWIN-see
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Quigley
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare), Popular Culture
Rating: 95% based on 2 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Quigley.
Queenie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KWEEN-ee
Rating: 40% based on 1 vote
Quacey
Gender: Masculine
Usage: African American, Caribbean
Rating: 95% based on 2 votes
Presley
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PREHS-lee
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "priest clearing" (Old English preost and leah). This surname was borne by musician Elvis Presley (1935-1977).
Petula
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: pə-TYOO-lə
Meaning unknown, created in the 20th century. The name is borne by the British singer Petula Clark (1932-), whose name was invented by her father.
Oswin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: AHZ-win
From the Old English elements
os "god" and
wine "friend".
Saint Oswin was a 7th-century king of Northumbria. After the
Norman Conquest this name was used less, and it died out after the 14th century. It was briefly revived in the 19th century.
Osprey
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
Osbern
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval Scandinavian, Anglo-Norman, Old Norman
Orwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
The twin sister of King Meriadoc of Wales.
Orwen’s father, King Caradoc, was murdered by her uncle, Griffin, who then targeted the children for assassination. They were saved by Ivor and Morwen, their foster parents, and taken to hiding in the forest of Fleventan.
In time, Meriadoc was taken to Arthur’s court and Orwen was kidnapped by King Urien of Scotland, whom she later married.
Orlagh
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: AWR-lə(English)
Orison
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare, Archaic)
Directly taken from the archaic word meaning "prayer", which is derived from Anglo-Norman
oreison and ultimately from Latin
oro (via Latin
oratio) "to beg; to beseech".
As a given name, it has found occasional usage from the 19th century onwards. One known bearer is Orison Swett Marden (1850-1924), who wrote books on positive thinking.
Oisín
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: aw-SHEEN(Irish) o-SHEEN(English)
Means
"little deer", derived from Old Irish
oss "deer, stag" combined with a
diminutive suffix. In Irish legend Oisín was a warrior hero and a poet, the son of
Fionn mac Cumhaill and the narrator in many of his tales.
Odus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: O-dis
Norville
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Popular Culture, English (Rare), Jamaican Patois (Rare)
Pronounced: NOHR-vil(Popular Culture)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Norville. The character Shaggy, of Scooby-Doo fame, bears this name.
Norris
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NAWR-is
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Norella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Nonie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Nimueh
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Form of
Nimue. Nimueh appeared as an evil sorceress in the series Merlin.
Myrddin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh Mythology, Welsh
Original Welsh form of
Merlin. It is probably ultimately from the name of the Romano-British settlement
Moridunum, derived from Celtic *
mori "sea" and *
dūnom "rampart, hill fort". Prefixed with Welsh
caer "fort", this town has been called Caerfyrddin (Carmarthen in English) from medieval times. It is thought that
Caerfyrddin may have mistakenly been interpreted as meaning "fort of Myrddin", as if
Myrddin were a personal name instead of a later development of
Moridunum [1].
Myrddin appears in early Welsh poems, as a prophet who lives in the Caledonian Forest after being driven insane witnessing the slaughter of his king Gwenddoleu and his forces at the Battle of Arfderydd. His character seems to be based on the North Brythonic figure Lailoken, and perhaps also the Irish figure Suibhne. Geoffrey of Monmouth adapted him into Merlin in the 12th century.
Mychin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
A knight in the service of Lord Golagros, Arthur’s opponent in the Middle Scots tale of Golagros and Gawain.
Murrell
Gender: Masculine
Usage: American (South, Rare)
George Murrell Smith Jr. is an American politician and the 61st Speaker of the South Carolina House of Representatives.
Muirgen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish Mythology
Means "born of the sea" in Irish. In Irish legend this was the name of a woman (originally named Lí Ban) who was transformed into a mermaid. After 300 years she was brought to shore, baptized, and transformed back into a woman.
Morvyth
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh Mythology, Arthurian Cycle
Other Scripts: Morvudd, Morfudd
Morna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish
Anglicized form of
Muirne used by James Macpherson in his poem
Fingal (1761), in which it is borne by the mother of the hero
Fingal.
Morholt
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
In the Arthurian legend, this name belongs to the brother or uncle of
Isolde.
Morgelyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Cornish (Rare)
Derived from Cornish morgelyn "sea holly".
Mollina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle, Literature
Tristan’s granddaughter.
She was the daughter of King Kalegras of England and Queen Lilja.
Molanna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Molanna is the nymph who helps Faunus spy on Diana in the Cantos of Mutability.
Minta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MIN-tə
Milfred
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (American, Rare)
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
Mian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Manx
Probably originally a diminutive of
Matthew via
Matthias, this name has since become the regular Manx form of
Matthew.
Merrin
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Cornish
Rating: 100% based on 1 vote
Although the exact origin and meaning of this name are unknown, many modern-day academics believe this name to be the (possibly Anglicized) Cornish form of
Morien.
Its variant Merryn was the name of a Cornish saint.
In the English-speaking world, all forms have been occasionally used from the 19th century onwards.
Melly
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MEL-ee, MAL-ee
Rating: 50% based on 3 votes
Diminutive of names beginning with Mel.
Meilyg
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle, Literature
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Son of Caw, one of twenty brothers, and one of Arthur’s warriors.
Megory
Gender: Feminine
Usage: American
Rating: 10% based on 1 vote
Margilia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Medieval Breton, Breton (Archaic)
Of uncertain origin and meaning. One - debatable - theory connects this name with the Vulgar Latin term
margella.
Either way, from the early 1600s onwards, when every given name "had to" be associated with a Catholic saint, up to its disappearance in the late 1700s, Margilia and its variant Margilie were used as quasi-equivalents of
Marguerite (due to phonetic similarities to
Margarit, one of the Breton variants of this name).
Marcy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAHR-see
Rating: 63% based on 4 votes
Marbella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish (Mexican), English (Rare)
Possibly from the name of a resort town in southern Spain, which likely derives from Arabic مربلة
(Marbal·la) and resembles Spanish
mar bella "beautiful sea" (also compare
Mar). As an English name, this might be a contracted form of
Mariabella.
Mansel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
From an English surname that originally referred to a person who came from the French city of Le Mans.
Máirín
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: MA-ryeen
Maewyn
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Folklore
Maeva
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Tahitian, French
Pronounced: MA-EH-VA(French)
Means "welcome" in Tahitian. It gained popularity in France during the 1980s.
Maelgwyn
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Maelgwyn means Prince of Hounds. It was also the name of a 6th century king of Gwynedd, Maelgwyn Gwynedd.
Maegor
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature
Created by author George R. R. Martin for a character in his series "A Song of Ice and Fire". In the series, Maegor Targaryen is the third Targaryen monarch and one of the most tyrannical rulers of Westeros.
Macklin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAK-lihn
Transferred use of the surname
Macklin.
Mackey
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: MAH-KEE
Rating: 77% based on 3 votes
Transferred from the surname "Mackey". A short version for any name starting with Mac-.
Lorna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LAWR-nə
Created by the author R. D. Blackmore for the title character in his novel
Lorna Doone (1869), set in southern England, which describes the dangerous love between John Ridd and Lorna Doone. Blackmore may have based the name on the Scottish place name
Lorne or on the title
Marquis of Lorne (see
Lorne).
Lochie
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Lillis
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: LIL-is
Transferred use of the surname
Lillis.
Lillis was Bing Crosby's middle name. (He was born Harold Lillis Crosby.)
Lalia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Kilda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Probably derived from the name of the island
St. Kilda.
Note that there wasn't any saint named Kilda. The name of the island is derived from corrupted information used by cartographers.
Kestrel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: KEHS-trəl
From the name of the bird of prey, ultimately derived from Old French crecelle "rattle", which refers to the sound of its cry.
Kestra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare), Popular Culture
Pronounced: KEHS-trə(English)
Kensa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Cornish (Modern)
Derived from Cornish kensa "first". This is a modern Cornish name.
Kennard
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: KEHN-ərd
Kaourintin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Breton
Judhael
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval Breton
Pronounced: joo-da-EHL
Medieval Breton form of
Ithel.
Jolaine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: jol-AYN
Jessimond
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Of uncertain origin and meaning. Theories include a feminine form of
Gismund (compare
Jesmonda) and a variant of
Jessamine via now obsolete variants like
Jessema and
Jessima.
Isobel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish
Isla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: IE-lə
Rating: 53% based on 3 votes
Variant of
Islay, typically used as a feminine name. It also coincides with the Spanish word
isla meaning "island".
Indrid
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Popular Culture, Folklore
Indrid Cold is the name of a being originating in North American folklore, whose appearance usually coincides with sightings of UFOs or other cryptids.
Iden
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: IE-DEN
Masculine form of "Idena".
Hretha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Anglo-Saxon Mythology (Anglicized)
Hobey
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Dutch
Pronounced: HO-bee
Hindley
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Literature
Pronounced: HIND-lee
Transferred use of the surname
Hindley.
Hendry
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scots
Helewise
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Medieval English
Medieval English form of
Eloise.
Harris
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAR-is, HEHR-is
Rating: 80% based on 1 vote
From an English surname that was derived from the given name
Harry.
Hannora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Gwyneira
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: gwi-NAY-ra
Rating: 90% 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.
Gwylon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh
Gwenora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Cornish
Gwendoline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, English (British), French
Pronounced: GWEHN-də-lin(British English) GWEHN-DAW-LEEN(French)
Gwaine
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh, Arthurian Cycle
Rating: 5% based on 2 votes
Variant of
Gawain. Gwaine is a character on the BBC television series 'Merlin', meant to represent the Gawain of Arthurian legend.
Guion
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval Breton, French (Rare), Medieval English
Guingras
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
The good and kind King of Wales in Renaut’s Le Bel Inconnu.
His daughter, Esmeree the Blonde, inherited his kingdom and married Gawain’s son, Guinglain.
Guinglain
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Guillo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval Breton
Guilla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Frankish
Guilla (or Willa) of Provence or Burgundy (873-924) was an early medieval Frankish queen consort in the Rhone valley.
Guilder
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Spanish (Latin American)
Rating: 93% based on 4 votes
Guffin
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: GUF-in
Rating: 88% based on 4 votes
Guérin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French (Rare), French (Belgian, Rare), Guernésiais
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Guénolé
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Breton (Gallicized), History (Ecclesiastical, Gallicized)
Gallicized form of Breton Gwenole, which was derived from Breton uuin, uuen, Middle Welsh guin, gwynn, guen meaning "sacred, pure, blessed; white" and Old Breton uual meaning "valor". This was the name of a legendary Breton saint who was inspired to found an abbey by a dream he had of Saint Patrick.
Guendolen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Rating: 60% based on 2 votes
Variant of
Gwendolen, used by Walter Scott in his poem
The Bridal of Triermain (1813) for a queen who became the mother of
Gyneth by King
Arthur.
Grimonia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Medieval Irish
The daughter of a pagan chieftain in 4th century Ireland. She converted to Christianity when she was aged about 12 and dedicated her life to Christ. When she reached the age to marry, her father wanted her to wed one of the noblest and wealthiest chiefs in Ireland. She ran away, but was brought back and imprisoned. She escaped through a miracle, took a ship to France, and landed on the coast of Gaul-Belgium where the Roman Emperor Valentinian I protected the Christians. She settled deep in the forest of Thiérache in Dorunum (now La Capelle), where she spent her days in prayer, meditation, and penance.
Her father sent soldiers to find her and bring her back, alive or dead. They followed her traces and eventually found her in the forest. They tried to persuade her to return to her country where a lavish wedding awaited her. Unable to convince her, they cut off her head, hid her mutilated body under a heap of dirt, and then returned to Ireland. After several years a chapel was erected over her grave, which became the nucleus of the town of La Capelle. The relics were thought to have miraculous properties and were moved several times in the years that followed, with different portions held in different places.
Goffrey
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Old Norman
Glewin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval English
Possibly derived from an Old English name meaning "wise friend", from Old English
glēaw "prudent, wise" and
wine "friend".
Glendora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Glady
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Rating: 85% based on 2 votes
Possibly a masculine form of
Gladys.
Gilton
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Brazilian
Gilton Ribiero is a Brazilian football defender.
Gilmore
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Manx (Archaic)
Rating: 43% based on 3 votes
Derived from Manx
guilley "servant; boy, lad" and the given name
More with the intended meaning of "servant of the Virgin
Mary" (since the names of saints were considered too holy for everyday use, they were usually prefixed until the 17th century).
Gilla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Sardinian
Sardinian form of
Cecilia, originally derived from a contraction of this name.
Gilfred
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Filipino
Rating: 47% based on 3 votes
Geiléis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Garwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle, Welsh Mythology
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Means "fair leg" from Welsh
gar "leg" and
gwen "white, fair, blessed". According to the Welsh Triads (Triad 57), this name belonged to one of
Arthur's three mistresses. She was the daughter of Henin the Old.
Gamelin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval Scottish, Anglo-Scandinavian
Galen
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: GAY-lən
Modern form of the Greek name
Γαληνός (Galenos), which meant
"calm" from Greek
γαλήνη (galene). It was borne by a 2nd-century BC Greco-Roman physician who contributed to anatomy and medicine. In modern times the name is occasionally given in his honour.
Galdric
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Catalan (Rare)
Pronounced: gald-reek
Gaheris
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle, Welsh Mythology
Pronounced: gə-HE-ris
This is the name of a character in Arthurian tales, a brother of
Gawain (as well as
Gareth, Mordred and Agravain), and the son of King Lot and either
Belisent or
Morgause. 'The earliest form of his name is so similar to the earliest form of Gareth (
Gahariet) that the two brothers may have originally been the same character.' First mentioned by the 12th-century French poet Chrétien de Troyes, although scholars have suggested a derivation from the Welsh name
Gweir, which belongs to a number of warriors in Welsh legends and can mean "hay", "collar", "circle", "loop" or "bend".
Friam
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
A duke and an ally or vassal of Gawaine’s wife, Orgeluse (Orguelleuse).
Frewin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval English
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Freda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FREE-də
Flory
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare, Archaic)
Florrie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FLAWR-ee
Florie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Medieval French, French (Rare), French (Belgian, Rare), Judeo-French
Rating: 60% based on 5 votes
Florice
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Medieval English
Pronounced: flaw-REES(English) FLAW-ris(English, Middle English)
Medieval English feminine form of Late Latin Floritia, derived from
Flora. Compare
Clarice and
Lettice.
Flanna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Means “red haired” in Irish.
Fírinne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: FEE-rin-yeh
Invented during the Gaelic revival, taken from Irish fírinne meaning "truth".
Fione
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Scottish
Fingal
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature
Means
"white stranger", derived from the Old Irish elements
finn "white, blessed" and
gall "foreigner, stranger". This was the name of the hero in the Scottish author James Macpherson's 1761 poem
Fingal [1], which he claimed to have based on early Gaelic legends about
Fionn mac Cumhaill.
Filimer
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Gothic
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Filimer was an early Gothic king, according to Jordanes. He was the son of Gadareiks and the fifth generation since Berig settled with his people in Gothiscandza. When the Gothic nation had multiplied Filimer decided to move his people to Scythia where they defeated the Sarmatians. They then named their new territory Oium, meaning "in the waterlands". This migration would have allegedly taken place about 2030 years before Jordanes wrote his "Origin of the Goths".
Fianna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish (Modern)
Pronounced: FYEE-nə
Rating: 87% based on 3 votes
From Irish fiann meaning "band of warriors".
Fernie
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FER-nee
Fergus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Scottish, Irish Mythology, Old Irish [1]
Pronounced: FUR-gəs(English)
Means
"man of vigour", derived from the Old Irish elements
fer "man" and
guss "vigour, strength, force". This was the name of several early rulers of Ireland and Dál Riata, as well as many characters from Irish legend. Notably it was borne by the hero Fergus mac Róich, who was tricked into giving up the kingship of Ulster to
Conchobar. However, he remained loyal to the new king until Conchobar betrayed
Deirdre and
Naoise, at which point he defected to Connacht in anger. The name was also borne by an 8th-century
saint, a missionary to Scotland.
This is the Old Irish form of the name, as well as the usual Anglicized form of Modern Irish Fearghas or Fearghus.
Faron
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French (Archaic), English
French form of
Faro. As an English name, it is probably from a French surname that was derived from the given name.
Farley
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: FAHR-lee
From a surname that was originally from a place name meaning "fern clearing" in Old English. A notable bearer of this name was Canadian author Farley Mowat (1921-2014).
Fáelán
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Old Irish [1]
Evrain
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
A sorcerer who, with his brother Mabon, entered Wales and laid waste to the city of Snowdon, ruled by Queen Esmeree the Blonde, whom they turned into a snake. He was defeated in combat and was put to flight by Gawaine’s son Guinglain.
Everard
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
From
Everardus, the Latinized form of
Eberhard. The
Normans introduced it to England, where it joined the Old English
cognate Eoforheard. It has only been rarely used since the Middle Ages. Modern use of the name may be inspired by the surname
Everard, itself derived from the medieval name.
Evaine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
In Arthurian tales, Evaine is the sister of Lancelot's mother
Elaine, wife of King Bors of Gaul and mother of Sir Lionel and Sir Bors the Younger. Her character first appears in the Old French prose
Lancelot of the Lake (c.1215–20), which was incorporated into the Vulgate
Lancelot.
The name suffix -vain appears in this and other Arthurian names such as Yvain and Agravain.
Eudon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval French, Judeo-Anglo-Norman, History (Ecclesiastical)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Variant of
Eudes (compare
Odon). Saint Eudon of Le Puy was a monk and then abbot in the area of Le Puy, Aquitaine (in modern France).
Ethel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ETH-əl
Short form of names beginning with the Old English element
æðele meaning
"noble". It was coined in the 19th century, when many Old English names were revived. It was popularized by the novels
The Newcomes (1855) by William Makepeace Thackeray and
The Daisy Chain (1856) by C. M. Yonge. A famous bearer was American actress and singer Ethel Merman (1908-1984).
Esmie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ez-mee
Erneis
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval English
Eremon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish Mythology
In Irish mythology Eremon (also known as
Heremon) participated in the Milesian conquest of Ireland.
Eostre
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Anglo-Saxon Mythology
Pronounced: E-ostra, Oostra, Esther, Yestr
Rating: 5% based on 2 votes
Eostre, or Ostara; Anglo-Saxon goddess of fertility. Foundation of the name Easter.
Engel
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Germanic [1], German (Rare)
Rating: 35% based on 2 votes
Originally this may have been a short form of Germanic names beginning with the element
angil, referring to the Germanic tribe known in English as the Angles. However, from early times it has been strongly associated with the Old German word
engil meaning
"angel" (of Latin and Greek origin).
Emyr
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: EH-mir
Means "king, lord" in Welsh.
Emmeline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHM-ə-leen, EHM-ə-lien
From Old French
Emeline, a
diminutive of Germanic names beginning with the element
amal meaning
"unceasing, vigorous, brave". The
Normans introduced this name to England.
Emeric
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Romanian (Rare)
Emera
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Eavie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
alternative spelling of
Evie
Eagan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Transferred use of the surname
Eagan.
Durand
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Judeo-Provençal
Dristan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Dovie
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Jewish
Possibly an anglicized variant of
Dovi. See also
Dov.
Dougie
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Rating: 60% based on 3 votes
Dorin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Romanian
Pronounced: DO-reen
Rating: 78% based on 4 votes
Dorcha
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Irish
Means "dark", from Irish and Scottish Gaelic (
dorcha) meaning “dark, dusky, enigmatic”, from Old Irish (
dorchae) "dark, gloomy, obscure". Compare to
Feardorcha.
Doran
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of
Ó Deoradháin, from the byname
Deoradhán, derived from Irish
deoradh meaning "exile, wanderer" combined with a
diminutive suffix.
Dorald
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Danish (Archaic), Dutch (Rare), English (American, Rare)
Pronounced: DO-rahlt(Dutch) DAWR-əld(American English)
Possibly a variant spelling of
Thorald in Denmark, but elsewhere (especially in the anglophone world), this name is most likely a combination of a name that contains the Greek element δῶρον
(doron) meaning "gift" (such as
Dorus and
Theodore) with a name that ends in
-ald (such as
Archibald,
Gerald and
Ronald).
Also compare the names Darold and Derald, which look similar and can be partially related in some cases.
A notable bearer of this name is the Dutch news presenter Dorald Megens.
Dolphus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Archaic), Romani (Archaic)
Dillard
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Rating: 30% based on 2 votes
Meaning and origin uncertain with various opinions relating to English "dull" plus the suffix
ard, Old English
dol meaning "conceited or proud" and
ard meaning "hard", the French "d'Illard", or a variation of similar English names like
Tilliard or
Tilyard. Whatever the origin, it is likely that the use as a first name is taken from either one of several places in the U.S. called Dillard, or the surname for which most were named. Dillard, Georgia is named after early settler John Dillard (1760-1842); Dillard University is named after educator James H. Dillard (1856-1940), and Dillard's department store is named after founder William T. Dillard (1914-2002). American rapper Flo Rida (1979-) was born Tramar Dillard.
Diggory
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: DIG-ə-ree
Rating: 53% based on 3 votes
Probably an Anglicized form of Degaré. Sir Degaré was the subject of a medieval poem set in Brittany. The name may mean "lost one" from French égaré.
Dewey
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DYOO-ee, DOO-ee
Rating: 40% based on 3 votes
Derwin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Dutch (Rare), African American
Pronounced: DER-win(English)
Rating: 30% based on 1 vote
Derrien
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval Breton (Gallicized)
Delyth
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
From an elaboration of Welsh
del "pretty". This is a recently created name.
Delmus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (American)
Pronounced: DEL-mas(American English)
Delma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DEHL-mə
Possibly a short form of
Adelma.
Dellan
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: DELL-en
Rating: 60% based on 4 votes
Combination of the given names
Dell and
Allan
Dawson
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAW-sən
Rating: 24% based on 5 votes
From an English surname meaning
"son of David". As a given name, it was popularized in the late 1990s by the central character on the television drama
Dawson's Creek (1998-2003). In the United States the number of boys receiving the name increased tenfold between 1997 and 1999. It got another boost in 2014 after it was used for a main character in the movie
The Best of Me.
Dawkin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval English
Rating: 7% based on 3 votes
Darley
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Portuguese (Brazilian, Rare)
Darlan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Brazilian, English
Unknown meaning.
Darina 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Danyon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: Dan-yin
Rating: 10% based on 1 vote
First known from Olympic gold medallist swimmer Danyon Loader of New Zealand. Now becoming more popular in New Zealand.
Dannon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (American, Modern)
Pronounced: DAN-un(American English)
Rating: 20% based on 1 vote
Of unknown origin and meaning. Possibly a variant of
Daniel or
Dane, or perhaps a diminutive of either with 'dan' plus the suffix 'non' to give it a Celtic or French sound.
It is also the name of a popular brand of yogurt established in the US in 1942. Dannon is a subsidiary of the French company Danone founded in 1919. The founder of the company, Isaac Carasso, named the company after his son Daniel Carasso, with Danon being his nickname.
Dane
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAYN
Rating: 55% based on 2 votes
From an English surname that was either a variant of the surname
Dean or else an ethnic name referring to a person from Denmark.
Dalvin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: American
Rating: 40% based on 3 votes
Dáirine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Possibly derived from
Dáire. This was the name of the daughter of the legendary Irish king
Túathal Techtmar.
Cyrilla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Cundrie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Rating: 40% based on 1 vote
The name of two women in the 'Parzifal' by Wolfram von Eschenbach.
Cullen
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KUL-ən
Rating: 30% based on 1 vote
From a surname, either
Cullen 1 or
Cullen 2. It jumped a little in popularity as a given name after Stephenie Meyer's novel
Twilight (2005), featuring a vampire named Edward Cullen, was adapted into a movie in 2008.
Culbert
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Cuimín
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Old Irish
Rating: 30% based on 2 votes
Probably from Old Irish
camm meaning
"bent, crooked" [1]. This was the name of a 6th-century Irish
saint.
Cuby
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History (Ecclesiastical)
Cornish form of
Cybi. Saint Cuby was a 6th-century Cornish bishop, saint and, briefly, king, who worked largely in North Wales.
Cormoran
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Folklore, Literature
Pronounced: KAWR-mə-rən
Name of a legendary giant in Cornish folklore; he appears in the fairy tale 'Jack the Giant Killer'. The name was also used for the main character, Cormoran Strike, in 'The Cuckoo's Calling' (2013) by Robert Galbraith (J. K. Rowling).
Colban
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval Scottish
Rating: 55% based on 2 votes
Clovis
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History, French
Pronounced: KLO-vis(English) KLAW-VEES(French)
Rating: 32% based on 5 votes
Contemporary spelling, via the Latinized form
Clodovicus, of the Germanic name
Hludwig (see
Ludwig). Clovis was a Frankish king who united the Franks under his rule in the 5th century. The name was subsequently borne by two further Merovingian kings.
Cintha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (American, Archaic)
Ciaron
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish (Rare)
The name "Ciaron" is a variant of the Irish name "Ciarán," which is derived from the Gaelic word "ciar," meaning "black" or "dark," and the diminutive suffix "-án," which implies smallness or endearment. Therefore, "Ciarán" translates to "little dark one" or "little dark-haired one"
This name has been popular for over 1500 years and is associated with at least 26 saints, including notable figures such as Ciarán the Elder and Ciarán the Younger, who were among the Twelve Apostles of Ireland
The name is traditionally masculine and has various anglicized forms, including Kieran, Keiran, Keiron, and others.
It is also connected to Irish mythology and history, with links to the son of Fergus mac Róich, who gave his name to the Ciarraige tribe and County Kerry.
The name Ciaron, while less common, shares the same origins and meaning as Ciarán.
Chriselda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Afrikaans, South African, Filipino
Presumably a variant of
Griselda, influenced by names beginning with "Chris-", such as
Christine.
Chester
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: CHEHS-tər
From an English surname that originally belonged to a person who came from Chester, an old Roman settlement in Britain. The name of the settlement came from Latin castrum "camp, fortress".
Chesera
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern, Rare)
Pronounced: KAY-sar-ra, kay-SAR-a
Cedric
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SEHD-rik
Invented by Walter Scott for a character in his novel
Ivanhoe (1819). Apparently he based it on the actual name
Cerdic, the name of the semi-legendary founder of the kingdom of Wessex in the 6th century. The meaning of
Cerdic is uncertain, but it does not appear to be Old English in origin. It could be connected to the Brythonic name
Caratācos. The name was also used by Frances Hodgson Burnett for the main character in her novel
Little Lord Fauntleroy (1886).
Cecil
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SEE-səl, SEHS-əl
From the Roman name
Caecilius. Though it was in use during the Middle Ages in England, it did not become common until the 19th century when it was given in honour of the noble Cecil family, who had been prominent since the 16th century. Their surname was derived from the Welsh given name
Seisyll, which was derived from the Roman name
Sextilius, a derivative of
Sextus.
Cathan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History (Ecclesiastical)
Scottish form of
Cathán. The name coincides with Scottish Gaelic
cathan "barnacle goose".
Saint Cathan was a 6th-century Irish monk revered as a saint in parts of the Scottish Hebrides of whom very little is known. He appears in the
Aberdeen Breviary, Walter Bower's
Scotichronicon, and the
Acta Sanctorum, and a number of placenames in western Scotland are associated with him.
Caswell
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: CAZ-well
Rating: 20% based on 1 vote
Transferred use of the surname
Caswell.
Casper
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
Pronounced: KAHS-pər(Dutch) KAHS-pehr(Swedish) KAS-bu(Danish)
Rating: 92% based on 6 votes
Dutch and Scandinavian form of
Jasper. This is the name of a friendly ghost in an American series of cartoons and comic books (beginning 1945).
Casmere
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare, Archaic)
Pronounced: KAZ-meer, KAS-meer
Carrick
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: KA-rik
Rating: 10% based on 2 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Carrick.
Carden
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Modern, Rare)
Pronounced: KAHR-dən, KAR-dən
Transferred use of the surname
Carden.
Camry
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern, Rare)
Pronounced: KAM-ree
Rating: 95% based on 4 votes
From the name of a car model, made by Toyota, which derives from Japanese
kanmuri meaning "crown" and may be an anagram of the English phrase
my car. It could also be used as a diminutive of
Camryn.
Camber
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History, Anglo-Saxon Mythology
Rating: 25% based on 2 votes
Camber, or
Kamber, was the legendary first king of Cambria, according to
Geoffrey of Monmouth in the first part of his influential 12th-century pseudohistory Historia Regum Britanniae. According to Geoffrey,
Cambria, the classical name for Wales, was named for him.
Callan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAL-ən
Rating: 98% based on 5 votes
From an Irish surname, the Anglicized form of
Ó Cathaláin, derived from the given name
Cathalán.
Caislín
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish (Modern), English (Modern)
Pronounced: KUSH-leen
Supposed to mean "little castle" from Irish caiseal meaning "castle" combined with the Irish diminutive of ín. It also coincides with the rare Irish word caislín meaning "chat" (a type of bird). This is a modern name, most likely invented by English speakers, with no (or hardly any) usage in Ireland or Northern Ireland.
Caffrey
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern, Rare)
Rating: 43% based on 3 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Caffrey.
Cadrieth
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Rating: 80% based on 1 vote
Meaning ‘Fair Speech,’ or ‘Fine Speech’.
Cadhan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Old Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: KIEN
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
Gaelic byname meaning "barnacle goose". In Irish legend Cadhan was a hero who slayed a monster with the help of his hound.
Cadel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Australian)
Pronounced: ka-DEL(Australian English)
Rating: 95% based on 4 votes
Variant of
Cadell. A famous namesake is Australian champion cyclist Cadel Evans.
Brynie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (American)
Rating: 63% based on 3 votes
Brychan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Old Welsh
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Derived from Welsh
brych meaning
"speckled, freckled" combined with a
diminutive suffix. Brychan Brycheiniog was a legendary Welsh king, said to be Irish by birth, the founder of the kingdom of Brycheiniog in central Wales. He reputedly fathered dozens of children, many of whom are regarded as
saints.
Brunor
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Likely derived from the Germanic element
brunna "armour, protection" or
brun "brown". This is the name of several characters in Arthurian tales, including the father of Sir
Galehaut and the Knight of the Ill-Fitting Coat.
Bruin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Dutch (Rare), English (Rare, ?), Folklore
Dutch form of
Bruno. It coincides with the Dutch word for "brown". This was also the name of the bear in medieval fables of Reynard the Fox.
Brithael
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval Breton, Medieval Cornish
Derived from either Old Breton brit "mind, spirit" or Old Breton Britto "Briton" and hael "generous; noble".
Brielen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Brazilian (Modern, Rare)
Rating: 65% based on 4 votes
Briega
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Breton
Bridger
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: BRIJ-ər
Rating: 40% based on 3 votes
From an English surname that originally indicated a person who lived near or worked on a bridge.
Breya
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (American, Rare)
Rating: 84% based on 7 votes
Bretel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval English
Breslin
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Modern, Rare)
Rating: 55% based on 2 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Breslin.
Brenya
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (American)
Pronounced: Bren-ya(American English)
Rating: 60% based on 2 votes
Brenna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BREHN-ə
Rating: 86% based on 5 votes
Breda 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Brawley
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Rating: 88% based on 4 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Brawley. A known bearer of this name is American actor Brawley Nolte (b. 1986), the son of American actor Nick Nolte (b. 1941).
Brander
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Theatre
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
A character in "La damnation de Faust", a légende dramatique by the French composer Hector Berlioz.
Bradwen
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
Son of Iaen; brother of Sulyen, Teregud, Moren, Siawn, and Caradawg; and one of Arthur’s warriors from Caer Dathal.
He was related to Arthur through Uther.
Bower
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: BOW-wər
Transferred use of the surname
Bower. It was the middle name of
John Bower "
Bouse"
Hutton (1877-1962), a Canadian ice hockey goaltender and member of the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Bowen
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: BO-ən
Rating: 88% based on 6 votes
From a Welsh surname, derived from
ap Owain meaning
"son of Owain".
Boden
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: BO-dən
Rating: 53% based on 4 votes
Likely an invented name based on the popular name syllable
Bode, from names such as
Bodhi or
Bode. Alternatively it may be a transferred use of the surname
Boden, or a variant of
Beauden.
Blakeney
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BLAYK-nee
Rating: 74% based on 5 votes
From Old English blæc meaning "black, dark" or blac meaning "pale" combined with Old English eg meaning "island" or hæg meaning "enclosure".
Blaes
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
on of the Earl of Llychlyn and one of the Three Just Knights of Arthur’s Court. He was dedicated to preserving justice through “earthly Law”, in contrast to his fellow knights, who followed the Law of the Church and the Law of Arms.
He’s also said to have been among the Twenty-Four Knights of Arthur’s Court.
There may be a relation between this knight and Merlin’s foster-father Blaise.
Bilfrid
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval English
Betheline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Berrick
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: BER-rick
Transferred use of the surname
Berrick which was originally taken from various locational names in Kent, Shropshire, Oxfordshire, Yorkshire and Norfolk.
The name itself is derived from Old English
bere "barley" and
wic "outlying farm".
Bernon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History (Ecclesiastical)
Benzelin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Anglo-Norman
Variant of
Bencelin, a diminutive of
Bando.
Bennon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History (Ecclesiastical)
French form of
Benno, this name refers to Saint Benno of Metz (927–940).
Bellis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Danish
It can also be inspired by the Latin word bellis "daisy".
Bellamy
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Rating: 92% based on 9 votes
From an English surname derived from Old French bel ami meaning "beautiful friend".
Beigis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scots (Archaic), Medieval Scottish
Bécuma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish Mythology
Means "troubled lady", from Old Irish bé "woman" and a second element, perhaps chuma, meaning "grief, sorrow, wound". In Irish legend she was a woman who 'dwelt in the Land of Promise and had an affair with Gaiar, a son of Manannán mac Lir, the sea-god. Because of this she was banished to the human world where she persuaded Conn of the Hundred Battles, the High King, to take her as his wife or concubine. She grew jealous of his son Art and tried to get him banished' (Peter Berresford Ellis, 1987).
Baylen
Gender: Masculine
Usage: American (Modern, Rare)
Rating: 78% based on 4 votes
Barron
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: BAR-ən
Transferred use of the surname
Barron.
Known bearers of Barron as a given name include the American business magnate Barron Hilton (b. 1927), his grandson Barron Hilton II (b. 1989) and Barron Trump (b. 2006), the youngest son of the American businessman and president Donald Trump (b. 1946).
Barlow
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (American, Rare)
Transferred use of the surname
Barlow.
Barden
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: BAR-den
Transferred use of the surname
Barden.
August
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Polish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Catalan, English
Pronounced: OW-guwst(German) OW-goost(Polish, Norwegian) OW-guyst(Swedish) AW-gəst(English)
German, Polish, Scandinavian and Catalan form of
Augustus. This was the name of three Polish kings.
As an English name it can also derive from the month of August, which was named for the Roman emperor Augustus.
Audren
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Breton Legend, Medieval Breton, Breton (Modern)
Medieval Breton form of
Aodren which was revived in the 1970s. While this name was strictly masculine in medieval times, in modern times it is used on men and women alike.
In Breton legend, this name was borne by Saint Audren, a son of the legendary Breton king Salomon I.
Audra 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AWD-rə
Variant of
Audrey, used since the 19th century. It jumped in popularity in the United States after the debut of the television series
The Big Valley (1965-1969), which featured the character Audra Barkley.
Auden
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AW-dən
Transferred use of the surname
Auden, which is derived from the Germanic given name
Aldwin (its Old English equivalent is
Ealdwine). Also compare
Alden, which is a surname-turned-given name that has the same etymological origins. The surname Auden was probably formed during the time of the Norman French occupation of England, as Germanic names containing
-al- usually became
-au- in Norman French. Examples of this are
Auberon and
Aubrey (both of which came from
Alberich), but also the medieval French names
Baudry (ultimately from
Baldric) and
Gaudry (ultimately from
Walderic).
The use of Auden as a given name probably started in the 20th century, in honour of the famous English poet W. H. Auden (1907-1973). A known bearer of Auden as a given name is the American climate activist and businessman Auden Schendler (probably born sometime in the 1970s).
Aubert
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: O-BEHR
Auberon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Carolingian Cycle
Pronounced: AW-bər-ahn(English) O-bər-ahn(English)
Rating: 82% based on 6 votes
From a
diminutive form of
Auberi, an Old French form of
Alberich. It is the name of the fairy king in the 13th-century epic
Huon de Bordeaux.
Aster
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: AS-tər
From the name of the flower, which is derived via Latin from Greek
ἀστήρ (aster) meaning "star".
Asley
Gender: Masculine
Usage: South American
Arthwys
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval Welsh
Derived from the Old Welsh arth meaning “bear” and *uis meaning "knowledge".
Arthur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Welsh Mythology, Arthurian Cycle
Pronounced: AHR-thər(English) AR-TUYR(French) AR-tuwr(German) AHR-tuyr(Dutch)
The meaning of this name is unknown. It could be derived from the Celtic elements *
artos "bear" (Old Welsh
arth) combined with *
wiros "man" (Old Welsh
gur) or *
rīxs "king" (Old Welsh
ri). Alternatively it could be related to an obscure Roman family name
Artorius.
Arthur is the name of the central character in Arthurian legend, a 6th-century king of the Britons who resisted Saxon invaders. He may or may not have been based on a real person. He first appears in Welsh poems and chronicles (perhaps briefly in the 7th-century poem Y Gododdin and more definitively and extensively in the 9th-century History of the Britons [1]). However, his character was not developed until the chronicles of the 12th-century Geoffrey of Monmouth [2]. His tales were later taken up and expanded by French and English writers.
The name came into general use in England in the Middle Ages due to the prevalence of Arthurian romances, and it enjoyed a surge of popularity in the 19th century. Famous bearers include German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860), mystery author and Sherlock Holmes creator Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930), and science-fiction author Arthur C. Clarke (1917-2008).
Arlan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AHR-lən
Rating: 87% based on 6 votes
Areida
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
This name was used for a character in Gail Carson Levine's 1997 book "Ella Enchanted". The book won a Newbery Medal and a movie adaptation was released in 2004 starring Anne Hathaway.
Arden
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AHR-dən
From an English surname, originally taken from various place names, which were derived from a Celtic word meaning "high".
Archy
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature
Rating: 73% based on 3 votes
Variant of
Archie.
Famous fictional Archy is the cockroach in Don Marquis' stories “archy and mehitabel” (1916).
Arabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, Medieval English, English (British), Scottish
Variant of
Arabella.
In medieval German literature, Arabel is the name of a character from the epic poem Willehalm (13th century) written by the German poet Wolfram von Eschenbach (died around 1220). She is the daughter of king Terramer and the wife of king Tybalt, who is wooed and won and eventually taken to wife by the protagonist Willehalm.
In her case, the name might possibly be a reference to Arabia, as she and her family are all Saracens. This would also add more significance to the fact that she changed her name to Gyburc (see Gyburg) after converting to Christianity for Willehalm.
Antaine
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Possibly meaning "flower" and deriving from the Greek ἄνθος
(anthos).
Annora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Medieval English variant of
Honora.
Anise
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: AN-is, a-NEES
From the English word for the herb, also called aniseed.
Angusel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle, Literature
King of Scotland, first named by Geoffrey of Monmouth.
The numerous variations of his name may include Anguish of Ireland. Geoffrey tells us that he was the brother of Uriens and Lot, but the Vulgate Merlin calls him the son of King Caradoc and one of Arthur’s unnamed half-sisters (and therefore Arthur’s nephew). In a Welsh adaptation of Geoffrey, his counterpart is Arawn. His name suggests the common Scottish Angus, which belonged to an earl of Moray in the early twelfth century.
In Geoffrey’s version, Arthur restores him to his position as king of Scotland after the country was reclaimed from the Saxons. In later works, however, he is portrayed as an early enemy of Arthur. He was one of the kings who rebelled against Arthur’s ascension to the throne. Arthur defeated the confederation at the battle of Bedegraine, after which the Saxons invaded Scotland, and Angusel had to return to fortify his city of Caranges. Joined by Kings Urien and Nentres, he successfully fought off the invaders, led by King Oriel. Eventually, Angusel and the other rebelling kings reached a truce with Arthur and together crushed the Saxons at Clarence. He later joined Arthur’s wars against Rome, Galehaut, and Claudas.
Angus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, Irish, English
Pronounced: ANG-gəs(English)
Rating: 43% based on 3 votes
Angrod
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature
Andora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian (Rare), Swedish (Rare), Greenlandic (Rare)
Rating: 63% based on 6 votes
Amory
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Literature, English (Rare)
Pronounced: AM-ə-ree
Rating: 93% based on 7 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Amory.
Ames
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Ames.
Ambrie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Meaning unknown, possibly a rhyming variant of
Cambrie.
Allard
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Dutch
Pronounced: AH-lahrt
Alise 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: ə-LEES, AL-is
Aldus
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Medieval English
Aldous
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: AWL-dəs
Probably a
diminutive of names beginning with the Old English element
eald "old". It has been in use as an English given name since the Middle Ages, mainly in East Anglia
[1]. The British author Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) was a famous bearer of this name.
Albrea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Medieval English (Latinized)
Albin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Swedish, French, English, Slovene, Polish
Pronounced: AL-bin(Swedish, English) AL-BEHN(French) AL-been(Polish)
Rating: 53% based on 3 votes
Form of
Albinus in several languages.
Albea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Medieval Irish (Latinized)
Airlie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Australian, Modern)
Transferred use of the surname
Airlie.
Airald
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History (Ecclesiastical)
Aidus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Given name of Saint Macartan
Aerie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern, Rare)
Pronounced: ER-ee, EE-ree
Diminutive of names beginning with Aer, coinciding with the English word aerie, "a bird of prey's nest".
Aefie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch (Archaic)
Adrey
Gender: Feminine
Usage: American (South, Rare), English (African, Rare)
Adley
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (American, Modern)
Pronounced: AD-lee(American English)
Rating: 20% based on 1 vote
Adler
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: AD-lər
From a German surname meaning "eagle".
Adicia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Adelie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare), Medieval English
Pronounced: AD-ə-lee(English)
Anglicized form of
Adélie and medieval English short form of
Adelicia.
Adair
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: ə-DEHR
From an English surname that was derived from the given name
Edgar.
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