HarderToBreathe's Personal Name List

Aaron
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Finnish, Jewish, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: אַהֲרֹן(Hebrew) Ἀαρών(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: EHR-ən(English) AR-ən(English) A-RAWN(French) A-rawn(German) AH-ron(Finnish)
Rating: 42% based on 11 votes
From the Hebrew name אַהֲרֹן (ʾAharon), which is most likely of unknown Egyptian origin. Other theories claim a Hebrew derivation, and suggest meanings such as "high mountain" or "exalted". In the Old Testament this name is borne by the older brother of Moses. He acted as a spokesman for his brother when they appealed to the pharaoh to release the Israelites from slavery. Aaron's rod produced miracles and plagues to intimidate the pharaoh. After the departure from Egypt and arrival at Mount Sinai, God installed Aaron as the first high priest of the Israelites and promised that his descendants would become the priesthood.

As an English name, Aaron has been in use since the Protestant Reformation. This name was borne by the American politician Aaron Burr (1756-1836), notable for killing Alexander Hamilton in a duel.

Abner
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: אַבְנֵר(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: AB-nər(American English) AB-nə(British English)
Rating: 36% based on 9 votes
From the Hebrew name אַבְנֵר (ʾAvner) meaning "my father is a light", derived from אָב (ʾav) meaning "father" and נֵר (ner) meaning "lamp, light". In the Old Testament, Abner was a cousin of Saul and the commander of his army. After he killed Asahel he was himself slain by Asahel's brother Joab.

A famous bearer was the 14th-century Jewish philosopher Abner of Burgos, called Alfonso of Valladolid after he converted to Christianity. It has been used as an English Christian given name since the Protestant Reformation. It was popular with the Puritans, who brought it to America in the 17th century.

Adam
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Polish, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Czech, Slovak, Russian, Ukrainian, Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian, Romanian, Catalan, Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, Georgian, Malay, Indonesian, Dhivehi, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1], Biblical Hebrew [2]
Other Scripts: Адам(Russian, Ukrainian, Serbian, Macedonian) Αδάμ, Άνταμ(Greek) אָדָם(Hebrew) آدم(Arabic) ადამ(Georgian) އާދަމް(Dhivehi) Ἀδάμ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: AD-əm(English) A-DAHN(French) A-dam(German, Polish, Czech, Arabic, Indonesian) A-dahm(Dutch) AH-dam(Swedish) u-DAM(Russian, Ukrainian) ə-DHAM(Catalan)
Rating: 56% based on 8 votes
This is the Hebrew word for "man". It could be ultimately derived from Hebrew אדם (ʾaḏam) meaning "to be red", referring to the ruddy colour of human skin, or from Akkadian adamu meaning "to make".

According to Genesis in the Old Testament Adam was created from the earth by God (there is a word play on Hebrew אֲדָמָה (ʾaḏama) meaning "earth"). He and Eve were supposedly the first humans, living happily in the Garden of Eden until they ate the forbidden fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. As a result they were expelled from Eden to the lands to the east, where they gave birth to the second generation, including Cain, Abel and Seth.

As an English Christian name, Adam has been common since the Middle Ages, and it received a boost after the Protestant Reformation. A famous bearer was Scottish economist Adam Smith (1723-1790).

Adelaide
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Portuguese
Pronounced: A-də-layd(English) a-deh-LIE-deh(Italian) a-di-LIE-di(European Portuguese) a-di-LIED(European Portuguese) a-deh-LIE-jee(Brazilian Portuguese)
Rating: 56% based on 7 votes
Means "nobleness, nobility", from the French form of the Germanic name Adalheidis, which was composed of adal "noble" and the suffix heit "kind, sort, type". It was borne in the 10th century by Saint Adelaide, the wife of the Holy Roman emperor Otto the Great.

In Britain the parallel form Alice, derived via Old French, has historically been more common than Adelaide, though this form did gain some currency in the 19th century due to the popularity of the German-born wife of King William IV, for whom the city of Adelaide in Australia was named in 1836.

Adelina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Romanian, Bulgarian, Germanic (Latinized) [1]
Other Scripts: Аделина(Bulgarian)
Pronounced: a-deh-LEE-na(Italian) a-dheh-LEE-na(Spanish)
Rating: 70% based on 7 votes
From a Germanic name that was derived from the element adal meaning "noble" (Proto-Germanic *aþalaz).
Adeline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: A-DU-LEEN(French) AD-ə-lien(English)
Rating: 68% based on 9 votes
French and English form of Adelina.
Adria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AY-dree-ə
Rating: 24% based on 8 votes
Short form of Adriana.
Adriana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Polish, Slovak, Czech, Bulgarian, English, Dutch
Other Scripts: Адриана(Bulgarian)
Pronounced: a-dree-A-na(Italian, Dutch) a-DHRYA-na(Spanish) a-DRYA-na(Polish) ay-dree-AN-ə(English) ay-dree-AHN-ə(English)
Rating: 46% based on 7 votes
Feminine form of Adrian. A famous bearer is the Brazilian model Adriana Lima (1981-).
Alasdair
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish Gaelic [1]
Rating: 48% based on 5 votes
Scottish Gaelic form of Alexander.
Alden
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AWL-dən
Rating: 38% based on 6 votes
From a surname that was derived from the Old English given name Ealdwine.
Alistair
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish
Pronounced: AL-i-stər(American English) AL-i-stə(British English)
Rating: 70% based on 6 votes
Anglicized form of Alasdair.
Amabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Rating: 40% based on 8 votes
Medieval feminine form of Amabilis.
Amalia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Italian, Romanian, Greek, Finnish, Swedish, Dutch, German, Germanic (Latinized) [1]
Other Scripts: Αμαλία(Greek)
Pronounced: a-MA-lya(Spanish, Italian, German) a-MA-lee-a(Dutch)
Rating: 69% based on 7 votes
Short form of Germanic names beginning with the element amal. This element means "unceasing, vigorous, brave", or it can refer to the Gothic dynasty of the Amali (derived from the same root).

This was another name for the 7th-century saint Amalberga of Maubeuge.

Anastasia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek, Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, English, Spanish, Italian, Georgian, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Αναστασία(Greek) Анастасия(Russian) Анастасія(Ukrainian, Belarusian) ანასტასია(Georgian) Ἀναστασία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: a-na-sta-SEE-a(Greek) u-nu-stu-SYEE-yə(Russian) u-nu-stu-SYEE-yu(Ukrainian) a-na-sta-SYEE-ya(Belarusian) an-ə-STAY-zhə(English) a-na-STA-sya(Spanish) a-na-STA-zya(Italian) A-NA-STA-SEE-A(Classical Greek)
Rating: 68% based on 8 votes
Feminine form of Anastasius. This was the name of a 4th-century Dalmatian saint who was martyred during the persecutions of the Roman emperor Diocletian. Due to her, the name has been common in Eastern Orthodox Christianity (in various spellings). As an English name it has been in use since the Middle Ages. A famous bearer was the youngest daughter of the last Russian tsar Nicholas II, who was rumoured to have escaped the execution of her family in 1918.
Annabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Dutch
Pronounced: AN-ə-behl(English) ah-na-BEHL(Dutch)
Rating: 52% based on 6 votes
Variant of Amabel, with the spelling altered as if it were a combination of Anna and French belle "beautiful". This name appears to have arisen in Scotland in the Middle Ages.
Arabella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ar-ə-BEHL-ə
Rating: 55% based on 8 votes
Medieval Scottish name, probably a variant of Annabel. It has long been associated with Latin orabilis meaning "invokable, yielding to prayer", and the name was often recorded in forms resembling this.

Unrelated, this was an older name of the city of Irbid in Jordan, from Greek Ἄρβηλα (Arbela).

Araminta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Rating: 55% based on 6 votes
Meaning unknown. This name was (first?) used by William Congreve in his comedy The Old Bachelor (1693) and later by John Vanbrugh in his comedy The Confederacy (1705). This was the original given name of abolitionist Harriet Tubman (1820-1913), who was born Araminta Ross.
Ariella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: ar-ee-EHL-ə, ehr-ee-EHL-ə
Rating: 33% based on 6 votes
Strictly feminine form of Ariel.
Arlo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AHR-lo(American English) AH-lo(British English)
Rating: 38% based on 8 votes
Meaning uncertain. It was perhaps inspired by the fictional place name Arlo Hill from the poem The Faerie Queene (1590) by Edmund Spenser. Spenser probably got Arlo by altering the real Irish place name Aherlow, meaning "between two highlands".
Artemis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, Greek
Other Scripts: Ἄρτεμις(Ancient Greek) Άρτεμις(Greek)
Pronounced: AR-TEH-MEES(Classical Greek) AHR-tə-mis(American English) AH-tə-mis(British English)
Rating: 58% based on 5 votes
Meaning unknown, possibly related either to Greek ἀρτεμής (artemes) meaning "safe" or ἄρταμος (artamos) meaning "a butcher". Artemis was the Greek goddess of the moon and hunting, the twin of Apollo and the daughter of Zeus and Leto. She was known as Diana to the Romans.
Asher
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, English, Biblical, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: אָשֵׁר(Hebrew)
Pronounced: ASH-ər(American English) ASH-ə(British English)
Rating: 41% based on 8 votes
Means "happy, blessed" in Hebrew, derived from אָשַׁר (ʾashar) meaning "to be happy, to be blessed". Asher in the Old Testament is a son of Jacob by Leah's handmaid Zilpah, and the ancestor of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. The meaning of his name is explained in Genesis 30:13.
Audra 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Lithuanian
Pronounced: OW-dru
Rating: 33% based on 7 votes
Means "storm" in Lithuanian.
Audrey
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: AWD-ree(English) O-DREH(French)
Rating: 64% based on 9 votes
Medieval diminutive of Æðelþryð. This was the name of a 7th-century saint, a princess of East Anglia who founded a monastery at Ely. It was also used by William Shakespeare for a character in his comedy As You Like It (1599). At the end of the Middle Ages the name became rare due to association with the word tawdry (which was derived from St. Audrey, the name of a fair where cheap lace was sold), but it was revived in the 19th century. A famous bearer was British actress Audrey Hepburn (1929-1993).
Aurelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Roman, Romanian, Italian, Spanish, Polish
Pronounced: ow-REH-lee-a(Latin) ow-REH-lya(Italian, Spanish, Polish)
Rating: 73% based on 8 votes
Feminine form of Aurelius.
Aureliana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian (Rare), Ancient Roman
Rating: 37% based on 6 votes
Feminine form of Aurelianus.
Aurélie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: O-REH-LEE
Rating: 53% based on 6 votes
French feminine form of Aurelius.
Azalea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: ə-ZAY-lee-ə
Rating: 43% based on 8 votes
From the name of the flower (shrubs of the genus Rhododendron), ultimately derived from Greek ἀζαλέος (azaleos) meaning "dry".
Basil 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BAZ-əl
Rating: 64% based on 7 votes
From the Greek name Βασίλειος (Basileios), which was derived from βασιλεύς (basileus) meaning "king". Saint Basil the Great was a 4th-century bishop of Caesarea and one of the fathers of the early Christian church. Due to him, the name (in various spellings) has come into general use in the Christian world, being especially popular among Eastern Christians. It was also borne by two Byzantine emperors.
Beau
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English, Dutch (Modern)
Pronounced: BO
Rating: 49% based on 7 votes
Means "beautiful, handsome" in French. It has been used as a given name since the middle of the 20th century. In Margaret Mitchell's novel Gone with the Wind (1936) this is the name of Ashley and Melanie's son.

Although this is a grammatically masculine adjective in French, it is given to girls as well as boys in Britain and the Netherlands. In America it is more exclusively masculine. It is not commonly used as a name in France itself.

Benjamin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Slovene, Croatian, Biblical
Other Scripts: בִּנְיָמִין(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: BEHN-jə-min(English) BEHN-ZHA-MEHN(French) BEHN-ya-meen(German) BEHN-ya-min(Dutch)
Rating: 45% based on 6 votes
From the Hebrew name בִּנְיָמִין (Binyamin) meaning "son of the south" or "son of the right hand", from the roots בֵּן (ben) meaning "son" and יָמִין (yamin) meaning "right hand, south". Benjamin in the Old Testament was the twelfth and youngest son of Jacob and the founder of one of the southern tribes of the Hebrews. He was originally named בֶּן־אוֹנִי (Ben-ʾoni) meaning "son of my sorrow" by his mother Rachel, who died shortly after childbirth, but it was later changed by his father (see Genesis 35:18).

As an English name, Benjamin came into general use after the Protestant Reformation. A famous bearer was Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), an American statesman, inventor, scientist and philosopher.

Bianca
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Romanian
Pronounced: BYANG-ka(Italian, Romanian) bee-AHNG-kə(English) bee-ANG-kə(English)
Rating: 47% based on 7 votes
Italian cognate of Blanche. Shakespeare had characters named Bianca in The Taming of the Shrew (1593) and Othello (1603). The German singer Freddy Breck's 1973 song Bianca boosted the name's popularity elsewhere in Europe.
Blaise
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: BLEHZ
Rating: 39% based on 7 votes
From the Roman name Blasius, which was derived from Latin blaesus meaning "lisping". Saint Blaise was a 4th-century Armenian martyr. A famous bearer was the French mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal (1623-1662).
Bram
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Dutch
Pronounced: BRAM(English) BRAHM(Dutch)
Rating: 36% based on 5 votes
Short form of Abraham. This name was borne by Bram Stoker (1847-1912), the Irish author who wrote Dracula.
Bramwell
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Rating: 36% based on 5 votes
Transferred use of the surname Bramwell.
Cade
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAYD
Rating: 34% based on 7 votes
From an English surname that was originally derived from a nickname meaning "round" in Old English.
Calder
Gender: Masculine
Usage: American
Rating: 40% based on 6 votes
Transferred use of the surname Calder.
Callen
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Rating: 13% based on 6 votes
Variant of Callan.
Callum
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish
Pronounced: KAL-əm
Rating: 37% based on 7 votes
Variant of Calum.
Cambria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various (Rare)
Pronounced: KAM-bree-ə(English)
Rating: 30% based on 7 votes
Latin form of the Welsh Cymru, the Welsh name for the country of Wales, derived from cymry meaning "the people". It is occasionally used as a given name in modern times.
Camilla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, German, Ancient Roman, Roman Mythology
Pronounced: kə-MIL-ə(English) ka-MEEL-la(Italian) kah-MEEL-lah(Danish) KAH-meel-lah(Finnish) ka-MI-la(German)
Rating: 32% based on 6 votes
Feminine form of Camillus. This was the name of a legendary warrior maiden of the Volsci, as told by Virgil in the Aeneid. It was popularized in the English-speaking world by Fanny Burney's novel Camilla (1796).
Carter
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAHR-tər(American English) KAH-tə(British English)
Rating: 42% based on 5 votes
From an English surname that meant "one who uses a cart". A famous bearer of the surname is former American president Jimmy Carter (1924-).
Casey
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAY-see
Rating: 41% based on 7 votes
From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Ó Cathasaigh, a patronymic derived from the given name Cathassach. This name can be given in honour of Casey Jones (1863-1900), a train engineer who sacrificed his life to save his passengers. In his case, Casey was a nickname acquired because he was raised in the town of Cayce, Kentucky.
Cassia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Roman
Pronounced: KAS-see-a(Latin) KA-shə(English) KAS-ee-ə(English)
Rating: 30% based on 6 votes
Feminine form of Cassius.
Cassius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman
Pronounced: KAS-see-oos(Latin) KASH-əs(English) KAS-ee-əs(English)
Rating: 18% based on 5 votes
Roman family name that was possibly derived from Latin cassus meaning "empty, vain". This name was borne by several early saints. In modern times, it was the original first name of boxer Muhammad Ali (1942-2016), who was named after his father Cassius Clay, who was himself named after the American abolitionist Cassius Clay (1810-1903).
Cecelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: seh-SEE-lee-ə, seh-SEEL-yə
Rating: 56% based on 7 votes
Variant of Cecilia.
Cecil
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SEE-səl, SEHS-əl
Rating: 48% based on 6 votes
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.
Cecilia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Dutch, Romanian, Finnish
Pronounced: seh-SEE-lee-ə(English) seh-SEEL-yə(English) cheh-CHEE-lya(Italian) theh-THEE-lya(European Spanish) seh-SEE-lya(Latin American Spanish) seh-SEEL-yah(Danish, Norwegian) sə-SEE-lee-a(Dutch)
Rating: 63% based on 7 votes
Latinate feminine form of the Roman family name Caecilius, which was derived from Latin caecus meaning "blind". Saint Cecilia was a semi-legendary 2nd or 3rd-century martyr who was sentenced to die because she refused to worship the Roman gods. After attempts to suffocate her failed, she was beheaded. She was later regarded as the patron saint of music and musicians.

Due to the popularity of the saint, the name became common in the Christian world during the Middle Ages. The Normans brought it to England, where it was commonly spelled Cecily — the Latinate form Cecilia came into use in the 18th century.

Cecily
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SEHS-ə-lee
Rating: 69% based on 7 votes
English form of Cecilia. This was the usual English form during the Middle Ages.
Célie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, French (Belgian)
Rating: 36% based on 5 votes
French form of Celia.
Celie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish (Rare), Danish (Rare), Literature
Pronounced: SEE-lee(English)
Rating: 34% based on 5 votes
Adoption of French Célie outside the francophone world. This form of the name was used in Alice Walker's 1982 epistolary novel The Color Purple.
Clara
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, Catalan, Romanian, English, Swedish, Danish, Late Roman
Pronounced: KLA-ra(German, Spanish, Italian) KLA-ru(Portuguese) KLA-RA(French) KLEHR-ə(American English) KLAR-ə(American English) KLAH-rə(British English)
Rating: 81% based on 9 votes
Feminine form of the Late Latin name Clarus, which meant "clear, bright, famous". The name Clarus was borne by a few early saints. The feminine form was popularized by the 13th-century Saint Clare of Assisi (called Chiara in Italian), a friend and follower of Saint Francis, who left her wealthy family to found the order of nuns known as the Poor Clares.

As an English name it has been in use since the Middle Ages, originally in the form Clare, though the Latinate spelling Clara overtook it in the 19th century and became very popular. It declined through most of the 20th century (being eclipsed by the French form Claire in English-speaking countries), though it has since recovered somewhat.

Clare
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KLEHR(American English) KLEH(British English)
Rating: 37% based on 6 votes
Medieval English form of Clara. The preferred spelling in the English-speaking world is now the French form Claire, though Clare has been fairly popular in the United Kingdom and Australia.

This is also the name of an Irish county, which was itself probably derived from Irish clár meaning "plank, level surface".

Claude
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: KLOD(French) KLAWD(English)
Rating: 46% based on 5 votes
French masculine and feminine form of Claudius. In France the masculine name has been common since the Middle Ages due to the 7th-century Saint Claude of Besançon. It was imported to Britain in the 16th century by the aristocratic Hamilton family, who had French connections. A famous bearer of this name was the French impressionist painter Claude Monet (1840-1926).
Claudia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Italian, Spanish, Romanian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Ancient Roman
Pronounced: KLAW-dee-ə(English) KLOW-dya(German, Italian, Romanian) KLOW-dee-a(Dutch, Latin) KLOW-dhya(Spanish)
Rating: 45% based on 6 votes
Feminine form of Claudius. It is mentioned briefly in the New Testament. As a Christian name it was very rare until the 16th century.
Clive
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KLIEV
Rating: 38% based on 5 votes
From an English surname derived from Old English clif meaning "cliff", originally belonging to a person who lived near a cliff.
Colette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: KAW-LEHT
Rating: 59% based on 7 votes
Short form of Nicolette. Saint Colette was a 15th-century French nun who gave her money to the poor. This was also the pen name of the French author Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette (1873-1954).
Colter
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KOL-tər(American English) KOL-tə(British English)
Rating: 32% based on 6 votes
From an English surname that was originally given to a keeper of horses, derived from Middle English colt.
Connor
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, English (Modern)
Pronounced: KAHN-ər(American English) KAWN-ə(British English)
Rating: 53% based on 8 votes
Variant of Conor, based on the usual spelling of the surname that is derived from the name. This is currently the most common way of spelling it in the English-speaking world, apart from Ireland.
Cora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Κόρη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: KAWR-ə(English) KO-ra(German)
Rating: 34% based on 8 votes
Latinized form of Kore. It was not used as a given name in the English-speaking world until after it was employed by James Fenimore Cooper for a character in his novel The Last of the Mohicans (1826). In some cases it may be a short form of Cordula, Corinna and other names beginning with a similar sound.
Coralie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: KAW-RA-LEE
Rating: 48% based on 6 votes
Either a French form of Koralia, or a derivative of Latin corallium "coral" (see Coral).
Cordelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, English
Pronounced: kawr-DEEL-ee-ə(American English) kaw-DEE-lee-ə(British English)
Rating: 79% based on 8 votes
From Cordeilla, a name appearing in the 12th-century chronicles [1] of Geoffrey of Monmouth, borne by the youngest of the three daughters of King Leir and the only one to remain loyal to her father. Geoffrey possibly based her name on that of Creiddylad, a character from Welsh legend.

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

Cosima
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: KAW-zee-ma
Rating: 50% based on 5 votes
Italian feminine form of Cosimo.
Damian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Polish, Romanian, Dutch (Modern)
Pronounced: DAY-mee-ən(English) DA-myan(Polish)
Rating: 47% based on 6 votes
From the Greek name Δαμιανός (Damianos), which was derived from Greek δαμάζω (damazo) meaning "to tame". Saint Damian was martyred with his twin brother Cosmas in Syria early in the 4th century. They are the patron saints of physicians. Due to his renown, the name came into general use in Christian Europe. Another saint by this name was Peter Damian, an 11th-century cardinal and theologian from Italy.
Darby
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAHR-bee(American English) DAH-bee(British English)
Rating: 37% based on 7 votes
From an English surname, which was derived from the name of the town of Derby, itself from Old Norse djúr "animal" and býr "farm, settlement".
Daria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Polish, Romanian, English, Croatian, Russian, Late Roman
Other Scripts: Дарья(Russian) Δαρεία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: DA-rya(Italian, Polish, Romanian) DAHR-ee-ə(English) DAR-ee-ə(English)
Rating: 50% based on 6 votes
Feminine form of Darius. Saint Daria was a 3rd-century woman who was martyred with her husband Chrysanthus under the Roman emperor Numerian. It has never been a particularly common English given name. As a Russian name, it is more commonly transcribed Darya.
Darren
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAR-ən
Rating: 37% based on 6 votes
The meaning of this name is not known for certain. In the spelling Daren, it was used by the novelist Zane Grey for the central character in his novel The Day of the Beast (1922) [1]. Grey may have based it on a rare Irish surname, or perhaps created it as a variant of Darrell. It was brought to public attention in the late 1950s by the American actor Darren McGavin (1922-2006; born as William Lyle Richardson). It was further popularized in the 1960s by the character Darrin Stephens from the television show Bewitched.
Delilah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, English
Other Scripts: דְּלִילָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: di-LIE-lə(English)
Rating: 67% based on 7 votes
Means "delicate, weak, languishing" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament she is the lover of Samson, whom she betrays to the Philistines by cutting his hair, which is the source of his power. Despite her character flaws, the name began to be used by the Puritans in the 17th century. It has been used occasionally in the English-speaking world since that time.
Demetrius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Δημήτριος(Ancient Greek)
Rating: 44% based on 5 votes
Latinized form of the Greek name Δημήτριος (Demetrios), which was derived from the name of the Greek goddess Demeter 1. Kings of Macedon and the Seleucid kingdom have had this name. This was also the name of several early saints including Demetrius of Thessalonica, a martyr of the 4th century who is regarded as a warrior.
Dominic
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAHM-i-nik(American English) DAWM-i-nik(British English)
Rating: 59% based on 11 votes
From the Late Latin name Dominicus meaning "of the Lord". This name was traditionally given to a child born on Sunday. Several saints have borne this name, including the 13th-century founder of the Dominican order of friars. It was in this saint's honour that the name was first used in England, starting around the 13th century. It has historically seen more use among Catholics.
Dorothy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAWR-ə-thee(American English, British English) DAWR-thee(American English)
Rating: 42% based on 5 votes
Usual English form of Dorothea. It has been in use since the 16th century. The author L. Frank Baum used it for the central character, Dorothy Gale, in his fantasy novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) and several of its sequels.
Edmund
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Polish
Pronounced: EHD-mənd(English) EHT-muwnt(German) EHD-moont(Polish)
Rating: 79% based on 8 votes
Means "rich protection", from the Old English elements ead "wealth, fortune" and mund "protection". This was the name of two Anglo-Saxon kings of England. It was also borne by two saints, including a 9th-century king of East Anglia who, according to tradition, was shot to death with arrows after refusing to divide his Christian kingdom with an invading pagan Danish leader. This Old English name remained in use after the Norman Conquest (even being used by King Henry III for one of his sons), though it became less common after the 15th century.

Famous bearers of the name include the English poet Edmund Spenser (1552-1599), the German-Czech philosopher Edmund Husserl (1859-1938) and New Zealand mountaineer Edmund Hillary (1919-2008), the first person to climb Mount Everest.

Edwin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Dutch
Pronounced: EHD-win(English) EHT-vin(Dutch)
Rating: 57% based on 6 votes
Means "rich friend", from the Old English elements ead "wealth, fortune" and wine "friend". This was the name of a 7th-century Northumbrian king, regarded as a saint. After the Norman Conquest the name was not popular, but it was eventually revived in the 19th century. A notable bearer was the astronaut Edwin Aldrin (1930-), also known as Buzz, the second man to walk on the moon.
Eleanor
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHL-ə-nawr(American English) EHL-ə-naw(British English)
Rating: 91% based on 7 votes
From the Old French form of the Occitan name Alienòr. Among the name's earliest bearers was the influential Eleanor of Aquitaine (12th century), who was the queen of Louis VII, the king of France, and later Henry II, the king of England. She was named Aenor after her mother, and was called by the Occitan phrase alia Aenor "the other Aenor" in order to distinguish her from her mother. However, there appear to be examples of bearers prior to Eleanor of Aquitaine. It is not clear whether they were in fact Aenors who were retroactively recorded as having the name Eleanor, or whether there is an alternative explanation for the name's origin.

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

Eleanora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ehl-ə-NAWR-ə
Rating: 52% based on 6 votes
Latinate form of Eleanor.
Eliana 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, English (Modern)
Pronounced: eh-LYA-na(Italian, Spanish) ehl-lee-AN-ə(English) ehl-lee-AHN-ə(English)
Rating: 42% based on 6 votes
Italian, Spanish and Portuguese form of Éliane.
Eliana 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: אֶלִיעַנָה(Hebrew)
Rating: 42% based on 6 votes
Means "my God has answered" in Hebrew.
Elinor
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHL-ə-nawr(American English) EHL-ə-naw(British English)
Rating: 72% based on 6 votes
Variant of Eleanor.
Eliza
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Polish, Portuguese (Brazilian), Romanian, Hungarian, Georgian
Other Scripts: ელიზა(Georgian)
Pronounced: i-LIE-zə(English) eh-LEE-za(Polish) EH-lee-zaw(Hungarian)
Rating: 63% based on 7 votes
Short form of Elizabeth. It was borne by the character Eliza Doolittle in George Bernard Shaw's play Pygmalion (1913) and the subsequent musical adaptation My Fair Lady (1956).
Elspeth
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish
Pronounced: EHLS-peth
Rating: 52% based on 6 votes
Scottish form of Elizabeth.
Emerson
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHM-ər-sən(American English) EHM-ə-sən(British English)
Rating: 20% based on 7 votes
From an English surname meaning "son of Emery". The surname was borne by Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), an American writer and philosopher who wrote about transcendentalism.
Esmé
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHZ-may, EHZ-mee
Rating: 63% based on 8 votes
Means "esteemed" or "loved" in Old French. It was first recorded in Scotland, being borne by the first Duke of Lennox in the 16th century. It is now more common as a feminine name.
Eudora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Εὐδώρα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: yoo-DAWR-ə(English)
Rating: 45% based on 6 votes
Means "good gift" in Greek, from the elements εὖ (eu) meaning "good" and δῶρον (doron) meaning "gift". This was the name of a nymph, one of the Hyades, in Greek mythology.
Eulalia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Italian, Polish, English, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Εὐλαλία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ew-LA-lya(Spanish, Italian) yoo-LAY-lee-ə(English)
Rating: 55% based on 6 votes
Derived from Greek εὔλαλος (eulalos) meaning "sweetly-speaking", itself from εὖ (eu) meaning "good" and λαλέω (laleo) meaning "to talk". This was the name of an early 4th-century saint and martyr from Mérida in Spain. Another martyr by this name, living at the same time, is a patron saint of Barcelona. These two saints might be the same person.
Faye
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FAY
Rating: 22% based on 6 votes
Variant of Fay.
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)
Rating: 66% based on 9 votes
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).

Finn 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish Mythology, Old Irish [1], Irish, English, Dutch, German
Pronounced: FIN(English, Dutch, German)
Rating: 49% based on 7 votes
Old Irish form of Fionn, as well as the usual Anglicized spelling (with the Irish hero's name Anglicized as Finn McCool). As a surname it is borne by Huckleberry Finn, a character in Mark Twain's novels.
Flora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Dutch, French, Greek, Albanian, Roman Mythology
Other Scripts: Φλώρα(Greek)
Pronounced: FLAWR-ə(English) FLAW-ra(Italian) FLO-ra(Spanish, German, Dutch, Latin) FLAW-ru(Portuguese) FLAW-RA(French)
Rating: 55% based on 6 votes
Derived from Latin flos meaning "flower" (genitive case floris). Flora was the Roman goddess of flowers and spring, the wife of Zephyr the west wind. It has been used as a given name since the Renaissance, starting in France. In Scotland it was sometimes used as an Anglicized form of Fionnghuala.
Ford
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FAWRD(American English) FAWD(British English)
Rating: 50% based on 6 votes
From an English surname that was derived from a place name meaning "ford" in Old English. A famous bearer of the surname was the American industrialist Henry Ford (1863-1947).
Frederick
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FREHD-ə-rik, FREHD-rik
Rating: 64% based on 7 votes
English form of an Old German name meaning "peaceful ruler", derived from fridu "peace" and rih "ruler, king". This name has long been common in continental Germanic-speaking regions, being borne by rulers of the Holy Roman Empire, Germany, Austria, Scandinavia, and Prussia. Notables among these rulers include the 12th-century Holy Roman emperor and crusader Frederick I Barbarossa, the 13th-century emperor and patron of the arts Frederick II, and the 18th-century Frederick II of Prussia, known as Frederick the Great.

The Normans brought the name to England in the 11th century but it quickly died out. It was reintroduced by the German House of Hanover when they inherited the British throne in the 18th century. A famous bearer was Frederick Douglass (1818-1895), an American ex-slave who became a leading advocate of abolition.

Gemma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Catalan, English (British), Dutch
Pronounced: JEHM-ma(Italian) ZHEHM-mə(Catalan) JEHM-ə(British English) GHEH-ma(Dutch)
Rating: 50% based on 6 votes
Medieval Italian nickname meaning "gem, precious stone". It was borne by the wife of the 13th-century Italian poet Dante Alighieri.
Genevieve
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JEHN-ə-veev
Rating: 65% based on 8 votes
English form of Geneviève.
Georgiana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Romanian
Pronounced: jawr-JAY-nə(American English) jawr-jee-AN-ə(American English) jaw-JAY-nə(British English) jaw-jee-AN-ə(British English)
Rating: 40% based on 6 votes
Feminine form of George. This form of the name has been in use in the English-speaking world since the 18th century.
Greer
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: GRIR(American English) GREEY(British English)
Rating: 54% based on 8 votes
From a Scottish surname that was derived from the given name Gregor.
Gwendolyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: GWEHN-də-lin
Rating: 63% based on 7 votes
Variant of Gwendolen. This is the usual spelling in the United States.
Hali
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hawaiian
Rating: 33% based on 6 votes
Hawaiian form of Holly.
Harvey
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAHR-vee(American English) HAH-vee(British English)
Rating: 32% based on 6 votes
From the Breton given name Haerviu, which meant "battle worthy", from haer "battle" and viu "worthy". This was the name of a 6th-century Breton hermit who is the patron saint of the blind. Settlers from Brittany introduced it to England after the Norman Conquest. During the later Middle Ages it became rare, but it was revived in the 19th century.
Hattie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAT-ee
Rating: 38% based on 6 votes
Diminutive of Harriet.
Henry
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HEHN-ree
Rating: 73% based on 7 votes
From the Germanic name Heimirich meaning "home ruler", composed of the elements heim "home" and rih "ruler". It was later commonly spelled Heinrich, with the spelling altered due to the influence of other Germanic names like Haganrich, in which the first element is hag "enclosure".

Heinrich was popular among continental royalty, being the name of seven German kings, starting with the 10th-century Henry I the Fowler (the first of the Saxon kings), and four French kings. In France it was usually rendered Henri from the Latin form Henricus.

The Normans introduced the French form to England, and it was subsequently used by eight kings, ending with the infamous Henry VIII in the 16th century. During the later Middle Ages it was fairly popular, and was generally rendered as Harry or Herry in English pronunciation. Notable bearers include arctic naval explorer Henry Hudson (1570-1611), American-British novelist Henry James (1843-1916), American automobile manufacturer Henry Ford (1863-1947), and American actor Henry Fonda (1905-1982).

Horace
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: HAWR-əs(English) AW-RAS(French)
Rating: 32% based on 6 votes
English and French form of Horatius, and the name by which the Roman poet Quintus Horatius Flaccus is commonly known those languages. In the modern era it has been used as a given name since the Renaissance, in honour of the poet.
Ines
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Italian, Slovene, Croatian, Swedish
Rating: 60% based on 4 votes
Variant of Inés.
Irena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Polish, Czech, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Albanian, Bulgarian, Slovak, Lithuanian
Other Scripts: Ирена(Serbian, Bulgarian)
Pronounced: ee-REH-na(Polish) I-reh-na(Czech) EE-reh-na(Slovak) i-ryeh-NU(Lithuanian)
Rating: 54% based on 7 votes
Form of Irene in several languages.
Irina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Romanian, Georgian, Finnish, Estonian
Other Scripts: Ирина(Russian, Bulgarian, Macedonian) ირინა(Georgian)
Pronounced: i-RYEE-nə(Russian) EE-ree-nah(Finnish)
Rating: 47% based on 7 votes
Form of Irene in several languages.
Iris
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, French, Spanish, Catalan, Italian, Slovene, Croatian, Greek
Other Scripts: Ἶρις(Ancient Greek) Ίρις(Greek)
Pronounced: IE-ris(English) EE-ris(German, Dutch) EE-rees(Finnish, Spanish, Catalan, Italian) EE-REES(French)
Rating: 76% based on 17 votes
Means "rainbow" in Greek. Iris was the name of the Greek goddess of the rainbow, also serving as a messenger to the gods. This name can also be given in reference to the word (which derives from the same Greek source) for the iris flower or the coloured part of the eye.
Isaac
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, French, Jewish, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: יִצְחָק(Hebrew)
Pronounced: IE-zək(English) ee-sa-AK(Spanish) EE-ZAK(French) EE-ZA-AK(French)
Rating: 57% based on 6 votes
From the Hebrew name יִצְחָק (Yitsḥaq) meaning "he will laugh, he will rejoice", derived from צָחַק (tsaḥaq) meaning "to laugh". The Old Testament explains this meaning, by recounting that Abraham laughed when God told him that his aged wife Sarah would become pregnant with Isaac (see Genesis 17:17), and later Sarah laughed when overhearing the same prophecy (see Genesis 18:12). When Isaac was a boy, God tested Abraham's faith by ordering him to sacrifice his son, though an angel prevented the act at the last moment. Isaac went on to become the father of Esau and Jacob with his wife Rebecca.

As an English Christian name, Isaac was occasionally used during the Middle Ages, though it was more common among Jews. It became more widespread after the Protestant Reformation. Famous bearers include the physicist and mathematician Isaac Newton (1643-1727) and the science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov (1920-1992).

Isla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: IE-lə
Rating: 69% based on 7 votes
Variant of Islay, typically used as a feminine name. It also coincides with the Spanish word isla meaning "island".
Ivy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: IE-vee
Rating: 68% based on 6 votes
From the English word for the climbing plant that has small yellow flowers. It is ultimately derived from Old English ifig.
Jane
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JAYN
Rating: 60% based on 6 votes
Medieval English form of Jehanne, an Old French feminine form of Iohannes (see John). This became the most common feminine form of John in the 17th century, surpassing Joan. In the first half of the 20th century Joan once again overtook Jane for a few decades in both the United States and the United Kingdom.

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

Jessamine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: JEHS-ə-min
Rating: 37% based on 7 votes
From a variant spelling of the English word jasmine (see Jasmine), used also to refer to flowering plants in the cestrum family.
Jessamy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare), Romani
Pronounced: JEH-sə-mi(English)
Rating: 37% based on 7 votes
While in modern times this name is sometimes considered a blend of Jessa and Amy, it is actually an old form of Jasmine which was used from the late 1700s onwards.
Joanna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Polish, Biblical
Pronounced: jo-AN-ə(English) yaw-AN-na(Polish)
Rating: 52% based on 6 votes
English and Polish form of Latin Iohanna, which was derived from Greek Ἰωάννα (Ioanna), the feminine form of Ioannes (see John). This is the spelling used in the English New Testament, where it belongs to a follower of Jesus who is regarded as a saint. In the Middle Ages in England it was used as a Latinized form of Joan (the usual feminine form of John) and it became common as a given name in the 19th century.
Jocelyn
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: JAHS-lin(American English) JAHS-ə-lin(American English) JAWS-lin(British English) JAWS-ə-lin(British English) ZHO-SEH-LEHN(French)
Rating: 39% based on 8 votes
From a Frankish masculine name, variously written as Gautselin, Gauzlin, along with many other spellings. It was derived from the Germanic element *gautaz, which was from the name of the Germanic tribe the Geats, combined with a Latin diminutive suffix. The Normans brought this name to England in the form Goscelin or Joscelin, and it was common until the 14th century. It was revived in the 20th century primarily as a feminine name, perhaps an adaptation of the surname Jocelyn (a medieval derivative of the given name). In France this is a masculine name only.
Johanna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Hungarian, Finnish, Estonian, English, Late Roman
Pronounced: yo-HA-na(German) yuw-HAN-na(Swedish) yo-HAHN-nah(Danish) yo-HAH-na(Dutch) YO-hawn-naw(Hungarian) YO-hahn-nah(Finnish) jo-HAN-ə(English) jo-AN-ə(English)
Rating: 48% based on 6 votes
Latinate form of Greek Ioanna (see Joanna).
Jordana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Portuguese, Macedonian, Serbian, English (Rare)
Other Scripts: Јордана(Macedonian, Serbian)
Pronounced: khor-DHA-na(Spanish) jawr-DAN-ə(American English) jaw-DAN-ə(British English)
Rating: 30% based on 6 votes
Feminine form of Jordan.
Jules 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: ZHUYL
Rating: 60% based on 6 votes
French form of Julius. A notable bearer of this name was the French novelist Jules Verne (1828-1905), author of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and other works of science fiction.
Julian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Polish, German
Pronounced: JOO-lee-ən(English) JOOL-yən(English) YOO-lyan(Polish) YOO-lee-an(German)
Rating: 57% based on 6 votes
From the Roman name Iulianus, which was derived from Julius. This was the name of the last pagan Roman emperor, Julian the Apostate (4th century). It was also borne by several early saints, including the legendary Saint Julian the Hospitaller. This name has been used in England since the Middle Ages, at which time it was also a feminine name (from Juliana, eventually becoming Gillian).
Juno
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology
Pronounced: YOO-no(Latin) JOO-no(English)
Rating: 81% based on 8 votes
Meaning unknown, possibly related to an Indo-European root meaning "young", or possibly of Etruscan origin. In Roman mythology Juno was the wife of Jupiter and the queen of the heavens. She was the protectress of marriage and women, and was also the goddess of finance.
Kalina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Bulgarian, Macedonian, Polish
Other Scripts: Калина(Bulgarian, Macedonian)
Pronounced: ka-LEE-na(Polish)
Rating: 39% based on 7 votes
Means "viburnum tree" in Bulgarian, Macedonian and Polish.
Kane
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KAYN
Rating: 40% based on 5 votes
From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Ó Catháin, derived from the given name Cathán.
Keira
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KIR-ə
Rating: 63% based on 7 votes
Variant of Ciara 1. This spelling was popularized by British actress Keira Knightley (1985-).
Kieran
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, English
Pronounced: KIR-ən(English) KIR-awn(English)
Rating: 69% based on 7 votes
Anglicized form of Ciarán.
Klaus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Danish, Norwegian, Finnish
Pronounced: KLOWS(German, Finnish)
Rating: 30% based on 5 votes
German short form of Nicholas, now used independently.
Lachlan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: LAKH-lən(Scottish) LAWK-lən(British English) LAK-lən(American English)
Rating: 55% based on 6 votes
Anglicized form of Lachlann, the Scottish Gaelic form of Lochlainn. In the English-speaking world, this name was especially popular in Australia towards the end of the 20th century.
Layla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arabic, English
Other Scripts: ليلى(Arabic)
Pronounced: LIE-la(Arabic) LAY-lə(English)
Rating: 37% based on 6 votes
Means "night" in Arabic. Layla was the love interest of the poet Qays (called Majnun) in an old Arab tale, notably retold by the 12th-century Persian poet Nizami Ganjavi in his poem Layla and Majnun. This story was a popular romance in medieval Arabia and Persia. The name became used in the English-speaking world after the 1970 release of the song Layla by Derek and the Dominos, the title of which was inspired by the medieval story.
Leila
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Persian, Arabic, Kurdish, English, French, Georgian
Other Scripts: لیلا(Persian) ليلى(Arabic) لەیلا(Kurdish Sorani) ლეილა(Georgian)
Pronounced: lay-LAW(Persian) LIE-la(Arabic) LAY-lə(English) LEE-lə(English) LIE-lə(English) LAY-LA(French)
Rating: 66% based on 7 votes
Variant of Layla, and the usual Persian transcription.

This spelling was used by Lord Byron for characters in The Giaour (1813) and Don Juan (1819), and it is through him that the name was introduced to the English-speaking world.

Leland
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Rating: 44% based on 7 votes
From a surname, originally from an English place name, which meant "fallow land" in Old English. A famous bearer was the politician, businessman and Stanford University founder Leland Stanford (1824-1893).
Lena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, Polish, Finnish, Russian, Ukrainian, English, Italian, Portuguese, Greek, Georgian, Armenian
Other Scripts: Лена(Russian, Ukrainian) Λένα(Greek) ლენა(Georgian) Լենա(Armenian)
Pronounced: LEH-na(Swedish, German, Dutch, Polish, Italian) LYEH-nə(Russian) LEE-nə(English) LEH-NA(Georgian) leh-NAH(Armenian)
Rating: 47% based on 6 votes
Short form of names ending in lena, such as Helena, Magdalena or Yelena. It is often used independently.
Lenora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Rating: 45% based on 6 votes
Short form of Elenora.
Lilia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Italian, Polish, Russian, Ukrainian
Other Scripts: Лилия(Russian) Лілія(Ukrainian)
Pronounced: LEE-lya(Spanish) LYEE-lyi-yə(Russian)
Rating: 44% based on 5 votes
Latinate form of Lily, as well as an alternate transcription of Russian Лилия or Ukrainian Лілія (see Liliya).
Lincoln
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LING-kən
Rating: 57% based on 6 votes
From an English surname that was originally from the name of an English city, called Lindum Colonia by the Romans, derived from Brythonic lindo "lake, pool" and Latin colonia "colony". This name is usually given in honour of Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865), president of the United States during the American Civil War.
Linnéa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish
Pronounced: lin-NEH-a
Rating: 65% based on 8 votes
From the name of a flower, also known as the twinflower. The Swedish botanist Carolus Linnaeus named it after himself, it being his favourite flower.
Liora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: לִיאוֹרָה(Hebrew)
Rating: 47% based on 6 votes
Strictly feminine form of Lior.
Logan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LO-gən
Rating: 46% based on 7 votes
From a Scottish surname that was originally derived from a place in Ayrshire meaning "little hollow" (from Gaelic lag "hollow, pit" combined with a diminutive suffix). This name started slowly rising on the American popularity charts in the mid-1970s, perhaps partly inspired by the movie Logan's Run (1976). The comic book character Wolverine, alias Logan, was also introduced around the same time.

The name has been very common throughout the English-speaking world since end of the 20th century. In the United States it reached a high point in 2017, when it ranked as the fifth most popular name for boys.

Lorelei
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, English
Pronounced: LAWR-ə-lie(English)
Rating: 58% based on 6 votes
From German Loreley, the name of a rock headland on the Rhine River. It is of uncertain meaning, though the second element is probably old German ley meaning "rock" (of Celtic origin). German romantic poets and songwriters, beginning with Clemens Brentano in 1801, tell that a maiden named the Lorelei lives on the rock and lures boaters to their death with her song.

In the English-speaking world this name has been occasionally given since the early 20th century. It started rising in America after the variant Lorelai was used for the main character (and her daughter, nicknamed Rory) on the television series Gilmore Girls (2000-2007).

Louisa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch
Pronounced: loo-EEZ-ə(English) loo-EE-za(German)
Rating: 60% based on 5 votes
Latinate feminine form of Louis. A famous bearer was the American novelist Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888), the author of Little Women.
Luca 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Italian, Romanian
Pronounced: LOO-ka
Rating: 53% based on 8 votes
Italian and Romanian form of Lucas (see Luke). This name was borne by Luca della Robbia, a Renaissance sculptor from Florence.
Lyle
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIEL, LIE-əl
Rating: 24% based on 7 votes
From an English surname that was derived from Norman French l'isle meaning "island".
Lyndon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIN-dən
Rating: 38% based on 6 votes
From an English surname that was derived from a place name meaning "linden tree hill" in Old English. A famous bearer was American president Lyndon B. Johnson (1908-1973).
Mabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAY-bəl
Rating: 60% based on 7 votes
Medieval feminine form of Amabilis. This spelling and Amabel were common during the Middle Ages, though they became rare after the 15th century. It was revived in the 19th century after the publication of C. M. Yonge's 1854 novel The Heir of Redclyffe [1], which featured a character named Mabel (as well as one named Amabel).
Macsen
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh Mythology
Pronounced: MAK-sehn(Welsh)
Rating: 13% based on 6 votes
Welsh form of Maximus. Magnus Maximus (known as Macsen Wledig in Welsh) was a 4th-century co-ruler of the Western Roman Empire. In Wales he was regarded as the founder of several royal lineages. He appears in the medieval Welsh tale The Dream of Macsen.
Madden
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Irish
Rating: 37% based on 7 votes
Transferred use of the surname Madden.
Madeline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAD-ə-lin, MAD-lin, MAD-ə-lien
Rating: 56% based on 5 votes
English form of Madeleine. This is the name of the heroine in a series of children's books by the Austrian-American author Ludwig Bemelmans, first published 1939.
Madigan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (American), Literature
Pronounced: MAD-i-gən(American English)
Rating: 40% based on 6 votes
Transferred use of the Irish surname Madigan or from the Gaelic given name Madagán or Madadhán means "little dog".

It is the name of a primary character, Madigan "Maddie" Kinnick in Lauren Myracle's 'ttyl' series of young adult novels.

Maeve
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, English, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: MAYV(English)
Rating: 54% based on 7 votes
Anglicized form of the Irish name Medb meaning "intoxicating". In Irish legend this was the name of a warrior queen of Connacht. She and her husband Ailill fought against the Ulster king Conchobar and the hero Cúchulainn, as told in the Irish epic The Cattle Raid of Cooley.
Malcolm
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: MAL-kəm(English)
Rating: 65% based on 6 votes
Anglicized form of Scottish Gaelic Máel Coluim, which means "disciple of Saint Columba". This was the name of four kings of Scotland starting in the 10th century, including Malcolm III, who became king after killing Macbeth, the usurper who had defeated his father Duncan. The character Malcolm in Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth (1606) is loosely based on him. Another famous bearer was Malcolm X (1925-1965), an American civil rights leader.
Marcella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, German, Ancient Roman
Pronounced: mar-CHEHL-la(Italian) mar-KEHL-la(Latin)
Rating: 37% based on 7 votes
Feminine form of Marcellus.
Margaux
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: MAR-GO
Rating: 48% based on 6 votes
Variant of Margot influenced by the name of the wine-producing French town. It was borne by Margaux Hemingway (1954-1996), granddaughter of author Ernest Hemingway, who had it changed from Margot.
Mariana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Portuguese, Spanish, Romanian, Czech, Bulgarian, Ancient Roman
Other Scripts: Мариана, Марияна(Bulgarian)
Pronounced: mu-RYU-nu(European Portuguese) ma-RYU-nu(Brazilian Portuguese) ma-RYA-na(Spanish)
Rating: 42% based on 6 votes
Roman feminine form of Marianus. After the classical era it was sometimes interpreted as a combination of Maria and Ana. In Portuguese it is further used as a form of Mariamne.
Matthias
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, French, Dutch, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ματθίας, Μαθθίας(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ma-TEE-as(German) MA-TYAS(French) mah-TEE-ahs(Dutch) mə-THIE-əs(English) MAT-tee-as(Latin)
Rating: 60% based on 5 votes
From Greek Ματθίας (Matthias), a variant of Ματθαῖος (see Matthew). This form appears in the New Testament as the name of the apostle chosen to replace the traitor Judas Iscariot. This was also the name of kings of Hungary (spelled Mátyás in Hungarian), including Matthias I who made important reforms to the kingdom in the 15th century.
Maxim
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Czech
Other Scripts: Максим(Russian, Ukrainian) Максім(Belarusian)
Pronounced: muk-SYEEM(Russian) MAK-sim(Czech)
Rating: 33% based on 4 votes
Alternate transcription of Russian Максим or Belarusian Максім (see Maksim) or Ukrainian Максим (see Maksym). This is also the Czech form.
Mercer
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Rating: 30% based on 5 votes
Transferred use of the surname Mercer.
Milo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: MIE-lo(English)
Rating: 36% based on 5 votes
Old German form of Miles, as well as the Latinized form. This form was revived as an English name in the 19th century [2].
Miriam
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Italian, Portuguese, Czech, Slovak, Polish, Biblical
Other Scripts: מִרְיָם(Hebrew)
Pronounced: MIR-ee-əm(English) MI-ryam(German) MI-ri-yam(Czech) MEE-ree-am(Slovak)
Rating: 78% based on 8 votes
Form of Mary used in the Old Testament, where it belongs to the elder sister of Moses and Aaron. She watched over the infant Moses as the pharaoh's daughter drew him from the Nile. The name has long been popular among Jews, and it has been used as an English Christian name (alongside Mary) since the Protestant Reformation.
Monroe
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: mən-RO
Rating: 34% based on 8 votes
From a Scottish surname meaning "from the mouth of the Roe". The Roe is a river in Northern Ireland. Two famous bearers of the surname were American president James Monroe (1758-1831) and American actress Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962).

As a given name it was mostly masculine in America until around 2009. It was already rising in popularity for girls when singer Mariah Carey gave it to her daughter born 2011 (though this probably helped accelerate it).

Morgan 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh, English, French
Pronounced: MAWR-gən(American English) MAW-gən(British English) MAWR-GAN(French)
Rating: 64% based on 8 votes
From the Old Welsh masculine name Morcant, which was possibly derived from Welsh mor "sea" and cant "circle". Since the 1980s in America Morgan has been more common for girls than boys, perhaps due to stories of Morgan le Fay or the fame of actress Morgan Fairchild (1950-).
Natalia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Polish, Italian, Spanish, Romanian, English, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Greek, Georgian, Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Late Roman
Other Scripts: Ναταλία(Greek) ნატალია(Georgian) Наталия(Russian, Bulgarian) Наталія(Ukrainian)
Pronounced: na-TA-lya(Polish, Italian, Spanish) na-ta-LEE-a(Italian) na-TA-lee-a(Romanian) nə-TAHL-ee-ə(English)
Rating: 54% based on 5 votes
Latinate form of Natalia (see Natalie).
Natalie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian
Pronounced: NAT-ə-lee(English) NA-ta-lee(German, Dutch)
Rating: 60% based on 7 votes
From the Late Latin name Natalia, which meant "Christmas Day" from Latin natale domini. This was the name of the wife of the 4th-century martyr Saint Adrian of Nicomedia. She is venerated as a saint in the Orthodox Church, and the name has traditionally been more common among Eastern Christians than those in the West. It was popularized in America by actress Natalie Wood (1938-1981), who was born to Russian immigrants.
Nicholas
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NIK-ə-ləs, NIK-ləs
Rating: 57% based on 6 votes
From the Greek name Νικόλαος (Nikolaos) meaning "victory of the people", derived from Greek νίκη (nike) meaning "victory" and λαός (laos) meaning "people". Saint Nicholas was a 4th-century bishop from Anatolia who, according to legend, saved the daughters of a poor man from lives of prostitution. He is the patron saint of children, sailors and merchants, as well as Greece and Russia. He formed the basis for the figure known as Santa Claus (created in the 19th century from Dutch Sinterklaas), the bringer of Christmas presents.

Due to the renown of the saint, this name has been widely used in the Christian world. It has been common in England since the 12th century, though it became a bit less popular after the Protestant Reformation. The name has been borne by five popes and two tsars of Russia.

Nico
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Italian, Dutch, German, Spanish, Portuguese
Pronounced: NEE-ko(Italian, Dutch, Spanish)
Rating: 58% based on 8 votes
Short form of Nicholas (or sometimes Nicodemus).
Nikolai
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Russian, Bulgarian
Other Scripts: Николай(Russian, Bulgarian)
Pronounced: nyi-ku-LIE(Russian)
Rating: 43% based on 6 votes
Alternate transcription of Russian/Bulgarian Николай (see Nikolay).
Noah 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Dutch (Modern), French (Modern), Biblical
Other Scripts: נֹחַ, נוֹחַ(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: NO-ə(English) NO-a(German)
Rating: 49% based on 7 votes
From the Hebrew name נֹחַ (Noaḥ) meaning "rest, repose", derived from the root נוּחַ (nuaḥ). According to the Old Testament, Noah was the builder of the Ark that allowed him, his family, and animals of each species to survive the Great Flood. After the flood he received the sign of the rainbow as a covenant from God. He was the father of Shem, Ham and Japheth.

As an English Christian name, Noah has been used since the Protestant Reformation, being common among the Puritans. In the United States it was not overly popular in the 19th and 20th centuries, but it began slowly growing in the 1970s. Starting 1994 it increased rapidly — this was when actor Noah Wyle (1971-) began starring on the television series ER. A further boost in 2004 from the main character in the movie The Notebook helped it eventually become the most popular name for boys in America between 2013 and 2016. At the same time it has also been heavily used in other English-speaking countries, as well as Germany, the Netherlands, Scandinavia and France.

A famous bearer was the American lexicographer Noah Webster (1758-1843).

Nolan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French (Modern)
Pronounced: NO-lən(English)
Rating: 52% based on 6 votes
From an Irish surname, the Anglicized form of Ó Nualláin, itself derived from the given name Nuallán. The baseball player Nolan Ryan (1947-) is a famous bearer. This name has climbed steadily in popularity since the 1970s.
Nora 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Irish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Latvian, German, Dutch, Italian, Spanish
Pronounced: NAWR-ə(English) NO-ra(German, Dutch, Spanish)
Rating: 71% based on 7 votes
Short form of Honora or Eleanor. Henrik Ibsen used it for a character in his play A Doll's House (1879).
Oliver
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Catalan, Serbian, Croatian, Macedonian, Czech, Slovak, Carolingian Cycle
Other Scripts: Оливер(Serbian, Macedonian)
Pronounced: AHL-i-vər(American English) AWL-i-və(British English) O-lee-vu(German) O-lee-vehr(Finnish) oo-lee-BEH(Catalan) O-li-vehr(Czech) AW-lee-vehr(Slovak)
Rating: 62% based on 6 votes
From Old French Olivier, which was possibly derived from Latin oliva "olive tree" [1]. Alternatively there could be an underlying Germanic name, such as Old Norse Áleifr (see Olaf) or Frankish Alawar (see Álvaro), with the spelling altered by association with the Latin word. In the Middle Ages the name became well-known in Western Europe because of the French epic La Chanson de Roland, in which Olivier is a friend and advisor to the hero Roland.

In England Oliver was a common medieval name, however it became rare after the 17th century because of the military commander Oliver Cromwell, who ruled the country following the civil war. The name was revived in the 19th century, perhaps due in part to the title character in Charles Dickens' novel Oliver Twist (1838), about a poor orphan living on the streets of London. It became very popular at the beginning of the 21st century, reaching the top rank for boys in England and Wales in 2009 and entering the top ten in the United States in 2017.

Olympia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek, Slovak
Other Scripts: Ολυμπία(Greek)
Rating: 63% based on 6 votes
Feminine form of Olympos.
Orion
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ὠρίων(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: AW-REE-AWN(Classical Greek) o-RIE-ən(English)
Rating: 44% based on 5 votes
Meaning uncertain, but possibly related to Greek ὅριον (horion) meaning "boundary, limit". Alternatively it may be derived from Akkadian Uru-anna meaning "light of the heavens". This is the name of a constellation, which gets its name from a legendary Greek hunter who was killed by a scorpion sent by the earth goddess Gaia.
Oscar
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Irish, Portuguese (Brazilian), Italian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, French, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: AHS-kər(American English) AWS-kə(British English) AWS-kar(Italian, Swedish) AWS-kahr(Dutch) AWS-KAR(French)
Rating: 38% based on 5 votes
Possibly means "deer friend", derived from Old Irish oss "deer" and carae "friend". Alternatively, it may derive from the Old English name Osgar or its Old Norse cognate Ásgeirr, which may have been brought to Ireland by Viking invaders and settlers. In Irish legend Oscar was the son of the poet Oisín and the grandson of the hero Fionn mac Cumhaill.

This name was popularized in continental Europe by the works of the 18th-century Scottish poet James Macpherson [1]. Napoleon was an admirer of Macpherson, and he suggested Oscar as the second middle name of his godson, who eventually became king of Sweden as Oscar I. Other notable bearers include the Irish writer and humorist Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) and the Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer (1907-2012).

Owen 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh, English
Pronounced: O-in(English)
Rating: 41% based on 7 votes
Anglicized form of Owain.
Paige
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PAYJ
Rating: 29% based on 7 votes
From an English surname meaning "servant, page" in Middle English. It is ultimately derived (via Old French and Italian) from Greek παιδίον (paidion) meaning "little boy".

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

Penelope
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, English
Other Scripts: Πηνελόπη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: PEH-NEH-LO-PEH(Classical Greek) pə-NEHL-ə-pee(English)
Rating: 67% based on 11 votes
Probably derived from Greek πηνέλοψ (penelops), a type of duck. Alternatively it could be from πήνη (pene) meaning "threads, weft" and ὄψ (ops) meaning "face, eye". In Homer's epic the Odyssey this is the name of the wife of Odysseus, forced to fend off suitors while her husband is away fighting at Troy.

It has occasionally been used as an English given name since the 16th century. It was moderately popular in the 1940s, but had a more notable upswing in the early 2000s. This may have been inspired by the Spanish actress Penélope Cruz (1974-), who gained prominence in English-language movies at that time. It was already rapidly rising when celebrities Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick gave it to their baby daughter in 2012.

Philomena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Φιλουμένη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: fil-ə-MEE-nə(English)
Rating: 77% based on 7 votes
From Greek Φιλουμένη (Philoumene) meaning "to be loved", an inflection of φιλέω (phileo) meaning "to love". This was the name of an obscure early saint and martyr. The name came to public attention in 1802 after a tomb seemingly marked with the name Filumena was found in Rome, supposedly belonging to another martyr named Philomena. This may have in fact been a representation of the Greek word φιλουμένη, not a name.
Phoebe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Greek Mythology (Latinized), Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: Φοίβη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: FEE-bee(English)
Rating: 81% based on 7 votes
Latinized form of the Greek name Φοίβη (Phoibe), which meant "bright, pure" from Greek φοῖβος (phoibos). In Greek mythology Phoibe was a Titan associated with the moon. This was also an epithet of her granddaughter, the moon goddess Artemis. The name appears in Paul's epistle to the Romans in the New Testament, where it belongs to a female minister in the church at Cenchreae.

In England, it began to be used as a given name after the Protestant Reformation. It was moderately common in the 19th century. It began to rise in popularity again in the late 1980s, probably helped along by characters on the American television shows Friends (1994-2004) and Charmed (1998-2006). It is currently much more common in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand than the United States.

A moon of Saturn bears this name, in honour of the Titan.

Pia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, German, Slovene, Late Roman
Pronounced: PEE-a(Italian, Danish, Swedish, German)
Rating: 30% based on 6 votes
Feminine form of Pius.
Poppy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PAHP-ee(American English) PAWP-ee(British English)
Rating: 52% based on 5 votes
From the word for the red flower, derived from Old English popæg.
Porter
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PAWR-tər(American English) PAW-tə(British English)
Rating: 36% based on 7 votes
From an occupational English surname meaning "doorkeeper", ultimately from Old French porte "door", from Latin porta.
Raphaela
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German
Pronounced: ra-fa-EH-la
Rating: 50% based on 6 votes
Feminine form of Raphael.
Reagan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: RAY-gən
Rating: 44% based on 5 votes
From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Ó Riagáin, derived from the given name Riagán. This surname was borne by American actor and president Ronald Reagan (1911-2004).

As a given name, it took off in popularity during the 1990s. It has been more common for girls in the United States probably because of its similarity to other names such as Megan, Morgan and Regan.

Rhea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, Roman Mythology
Other Scripts: Ῥέα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: REH-A(Classical Greek) REE-ə(English) REH-a(Latin)
Rating: 35% based on 4 votes
Meaning unknown, perhaps related to ῥέω (rheo) meaning "to flow" or ἔρα (era) meaning "ground". In Greek mythology Rhea was a Titan, the wife of Cronus, and the mother of the Olympian gods Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Hera, Demeter and Hestia. Also, in Roman mythology a woman named Rhea Silvia was the mother of Romulus and Remus, the legendary founders of Rome.
Rhys
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh, English
Pronounced: REES
Rating: 40% based on 6 votes
From Old Welsh Ris, probably meaning "ardour, enthusiasm". Several Welsh rulers have borne this name, including the 12th-century Rhys ap Gruffydd who fought against the invading Normans.
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)
Rating: 58% based on 6 votes
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.

Romilly
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (British, Rare)
Rating: 35% based on 6 votes
From an English surname that was derived from the name of various Norman towns, themselves from the given name Romilius.
Rónán
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Old Irish [1]
Pronounced: RO-nan(Irish)
Rating: 52% based on 5 votes
Means "little seal", derived from Old Irish rón "seal" combined with a diminutive suffix. This was the name of several early Irish saints, including a pilgrim to Brittany who founded the hermitage at Locronan in the 6th century.
Rory
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Irish, Scottish, English
Pronounced: RAWR-ee(English)
Rating: 69% based on 7 votes
Anglicized form of Ruaidhrí. Typically a masculine name, it gained some popularity for girls in the United States after it was used on the television series Gilmore Girls (2000-2007), in this case as a nickname for Lorelai. Despite this, the name has grown more common for boys in America, especially after 2011, perhaps due to Northern Irish golfer Rory McIlroy (1989-).
Rosalind
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAHZ-ə-lind(American English) RAWZ-ə-lind(British English)
Rating: 62% based on 6 votes
Derived from the Old German elements hros meaning "horse" and lind meaning "soft, flexible, tender". The Normans introduced this name to England, though it was not common. During the Middle Ages its spelling was influenced by the Latin phrase rosa linda "beautiful rose". The name was popularized by Edmund Spencer, who used it in his poetry, and by William Shakespeare, who used it for the heroine in his comedy As You Like It (1599).
Rosaline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RO-zə-leen(English) RAHZ-ə-lin(American English) RAHZ-ə-lien(American English) RAWZ-ə-lin(British English) RAWZ-ə-lien(British English)
Rating: 47% based on 6 votes
Medieval variant of Rosalind. This is the name of characters in Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost (1594) and Romeo and Juliet (1596).
Rosamund
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: RO-zə-mənd(English) RAHZ-ə-mənd(American English) RAWZ-ə-mənd(British English)
Rating: 63% based on 7 votes
Derived from the Old German elements hros "horse" and munt "protection". This name was borne by the wife of the Lombard king Alboin in the 6th century. The Normans introduced it to England. It was subsequently interpreted as coming from Latin rosa munda "pure rose" or rosa mundi "rose of the world". This was the name of the mistress of Henry II, the king of England in the 12th century. According to legends she was murdered by his wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine.
Rowan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, English (Modern)
Pronounced: RO-ən(English)
Rating: 69% based on 8 votes
Anglicized form of the Irish name Ruadhán. As an English name, it can also be derived from the surname Rowan, itself derived from the Irish given name. It could also be given in reference to the rowan tree, a word of Old Norse origin (coincidentally sharing the same Indo-European root meaning "red" with the Irish name).
Ruth 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Estonian, Spanish, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: רוּת(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: ROOTH(English) ROOT(German, Spanish)
Rating: 62% based on 5 votes
From the Hebrew name רוּת (Ruṯ), probably derived from the word רְעוּת (reʿuṯ) meaning "female friend". This is the name of the central character in the Book of Ruth in the Old Testament. She was a Moabite woman who accompanied her mother-in-law Naomi back to Bethlehem after Ruth's husband died. There she met and married Boaz. She was an ancestor of King David.

As a Christian name, Ruth has been in use since the Protestant Reformation. In England it was associated with the archaic word ruth meaning "pity, compassion" (now only commonly seen in the word ruthless). The name became very popular in America following the birth of "Baby" Ruth Cleveland (1891-1904), the daughter of President Grover Cleveland.

Sabella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: sə-BEHL-ə
Rating: 26% based on 7 votes
Short form of Isabella.
Schuyler
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SKIE-lər(American English) SKIE-lə(British English)
Rating: 35% based on 8 votes
From a Dutch surname meaning "scholar". Dutch settlers brought the surname to America, where it was subsequently adopted as a given name in honour of the American general and senator Philip Schuyler (1733-1804) [1].
Sherman
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SHUR-mən(American English) SHU-mən(British English)
Rating: 21% based on 7 votes
From an English surname meaning "shear man", originally denoting a person who cut cloth. Famous bearers of the surname include American politician Roger Sherman (1721-1793) and American Civil War general William Tecumseh Sherman (1820-1891).
Silas
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Greek, Danish, German, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Σίλας(Greek)
Pronounced: SIE-ləs(English)
Rating: 41% based on 7 votes
The name of a companion of Saint Paul in the New Testament. It is probably a short form of Silvanus, a name that Paul calls him by in the epistles. It is possible that Silvanus and Silas were Latin and Greek forms of the Hebrew name Saul (via Aramaic).

As an English name it was not used until after the Protestant Reformation. It was utilized by George Eliot for the title character in her novel Silas Marner (1861).

Sinclair
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: sin-KLEHR(American English) sin-KLEH(British English)
Rating: 41% based on 7 votes
From a Scottish surname that was derived from a Norman French town called "Saint Clair". A notable bearer was the American author Sinclair Lewis (1885-1951).
Sophia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Greek, German, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Σοφία(Greek)
Pronounced: so-FEE-ə(English) sə-FIE-ə(British English) so-FEE-a(Greek) zo-FEE-a(German)
Rating: 48% based on 6 votes
Means "wisdom" in Greek. This was the name of an early, probably mythical, saint who died of grief after her three daughters were martyred during the reign of the emperor Hadrian. Legends about her probably arose as a result of a medieval misunderstanding of the phrase Hagia Sophia "Holy Wisdom", which is the name of a large basilica in Constantinople.

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

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

Stella 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Dutch, German
Pronounced: STEHL-ə(English) STEHL-la(Italian) STEH-la(Dutch)
Rating: 57% based on 7 votes
Means "star" in Latin. This name was created by the 16th-century poet Philip Sidney for the subject of his collection of sonnets Astrophel and Stella. It was a nickname of a lover of Jonathan Swift, real name Esther Johnson (1681-1728), though it was not commonly used as a given name until the 19th century. It appears in Tennessee Williams' play A Streetcar Named Desire (1947), belonging to the sister of Blanche DuBois and the wife of Stanley Kowalski.
Sylvia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish
Pronounced: SIL-vee-ə(English) SIL-vee-a(Dutch) SUYL-vee-ah(Finnish)
Rating: 43% based on 7 votes
Variant of Silvia. This has been the most common English spelling since the 19th century.
Sylvie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, Czech
Pronounced: SEEL-VEE(French) SIL-vi-yeh(Czech)
Rating: 66% based on 7 votes
French and Czech form of Silvia.
Tallulah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: tə-LOO-lə
Rating: 38% based on 6 votes
This is the name of waterfalls in Georgia. Popularly claimed to mean "leaping waters" in the Choctaw language, it may actually mean "town" in the Creek language. It was borne by American actress Tallulah Bankhead (1902-1968), who was named after her grandmother, who may have been named after the waterfalls.
Thaddeus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: Θαδδαῖος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: THAD-ee-əs(English) tha-DEE-əs(English)
Rating: 68% based on 4 votes
From Θαδδαῖος (Thaddaios), the Greek form of the Aramaic name תַדַּי (Ṯaddai). It is possibly derived from Aramaic תַּד (taḏ) meaning "heart, breast", but it may in fact be an Aramaic form of a Greek name such as Θεόδωρος (see Theodore). In the Gospel of Matthew, Thaddaeus is listed as one of the twelve apostles, though elsewhere in the New Testament his name is omitted and Jude's appears instead. It is likely that the two names refer to the same person.
Theo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Dutch
Pronounced: THEE-o(English) TEH-o(German, Dutch)
Rating: 84% based on 8 votes
Short form of Theodore, Theobald and other names that begin with Theo.
Theodora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Greek, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Θεοδώρα(Greek)
Pronounced: thee-ə-DAWR-ə(English)
Rating: 71% based on 7 votes
Feminine form of Theodore. This name was common in the Byzantine Empire, being borne by several empresses including the influential wife of Justinian in the 6th century.
Thessaly
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Rating: 33% based on 6 votes
Thessaly is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. This name is borne by Thessaly Lerner, American stage, film and voice actress.
Tobias
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, German, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, English, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek
Other Scripts: Τωβίας(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: to-BEE-as(German) tuw-BEE-as(Swedish) tə-BIE-əs(English)
Rating: 36% based on 5 votes
Greek form of Tobiah. This is the name of the hero of the apocryphal Book of Tobit, which appears in many English versions of the Old Testament. It relates how Tobit's son Tobias, with the help of the angel Raphael, is able to drive away a demon who has plagued Sarah, who subsequently becomes his wife. This story was popular in the Middle Ages, and the name came into occasional use in parts of Europe at that time. In England it became common after the Protestant Reformation.
Tobin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TO-bin
Rating: 37% based on 7 votes
From an English surname that was itself derived from the given name Tobias.
Tristan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Arthurian Cycle
Pronounced: TRIS-tən(English) TREES-TAHN(French)
Rating: 70% based on 6 votes
Probably from the Celtic name Drustan, a diminutive of Drust, which occurs as Drystan in a few Welsh sources. As Tristan, it first appears in 12th-century French tales, probably altered by association with Old French triste "sad". According to the tales Tristan was sent to Ireland by his uncle King Mark of Cornwall in order to fetch Iseult, who was to be the king's bride. On the way back, Tristan and Iseult accidentally drink a potion that makes them fall in love. Later versions of the tale make Tristan one of King Arthur's knights. His tragic story was very popular in the Middle Ages, and the name has occasionally been used since then.
Truman
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TROO-mən
Rating: 47% based on 6 votes
From a surname that meant "trusty man" in Middle English. A famous bearer of the surname was American president Harry S. Truman (1884-1972). It was also borne by American writer Truman Capote (1924-1984).
Ulysses
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Roman Mythology, English
Pronounced: yoo-LI-seez(Latin) yoo-LIS-eez(American English, British English) YOOL-i-seez(British English)
Rating: 54% based on 7 votes
Latin form of Odysseus. It was borne by Ulysses S. Grant (1822-1885), the commander of the Union forces during the American Civil War, who went on to become an American president. Irish author James Joyce used it as the title of his book Ulysses (1922), which loosely parallels Homer's epic the Odyssey.
Verona
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various
Rating: 43% based on 6 votes
From the name of the city in Italy, which is itself of unknown meaning.
Viola
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Swedish, Danish, Finnish, German, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak
Pronounced: vie-O-lə(English) vi-O-lə(English) VIE-ə-lə(English) VYAW-la(Italian) vi-OO-la(Swedish) VEE-o-la(German) vee-O-la(German) VEE-o-law(Hungarian) VI-o-la(Czech) VEE-aw-la(Slovak)
Rating: 37% based on 6 votes
Means "violet" in Latin. This is the name of the heroine of William Shakespeare's comedy Twelfth Night (1602). In the play she is the survivor of a shipwreck who disguises herself as a man named Cesario. Working as a messenger for Duke Orsino, she attempts to convince Olivia to marry him. Instead Viola falls in love with the duke.
Violet
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: VIE-lit, VIE-ə-lit
Rating: 86% based on 10 votes
From the English word violet for the purple flower, ultimately derived from Latin viola. It was common in Scotland from the 16th century, and it came into general use as an English given name during the 19th century.
Violette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: VYAW-LEHT
Rating: 67% based on 7 votes
French form of Violet.
Vladimir
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Russian, Serbian, Croatian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Slovene, Albanian
Other Scripts: Владимир(Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Macedonian)
Pronounced: vlu-DYEE-myir(Russian) VLA-dee-meer(Serbian, Croatian, Macedonian)
Rating: 43% based on 8 votes
From the Old Slavic name *Voldiměrŭ, derived from the elements volděti meaning "to rule" and měrŭ meaning "great, famous". The second element has also been associated with mirŭ meaning "peace, world".

This was the name of a 9th-century ruler of Bulgaria. It was also borne by an 11th-century grand prince of Kyiv, Vladimir the Great, who is venerated as a saint because of his efforts to Christianize his realm. Other notable bearers include the revolutionary and first leader of the Soviet state Vladimir Lenin (1870-1924), the Russian author Vladimir Nabokov (1899-1977), and the Russian president and prime minister Vladimir Putin (1952-).

Weston
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WEHS-tən
Rating: 54% based on 8 votes
From an English surname that was derived from a place name, itself from Old English west "west" and tun "enclosure, yard, town".
Wilhelmina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch, German (Rare), English
Pronounced: vil-hehl-MEE-na(Dutch, German) wil-ə-MEEN-ə(English) wil-hehl-MEEN-ə(English)
Rating: 48% based on 8 votes
Dutch and German feminine form of Wilhelm. This name was borne by a queen of the Netherlands (1880-1962).
Ysabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish (Archaic)
Pronounced: ee-sa-BEHL
Rating: 43% based on 6 votes
Medieval Spanish form of Isabel.
Zabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Armenian
Other Scripts: Զաբել(Armenian)
Pronounced: zah-BEHL(Eastern Armenian) zah-PEHL(Western Armenian)
Rating: 29% based on 7 votes
Armenian form of Isabel. A 13th-century ruling queen of Cilician Armenia bore this name.
Zachary
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical
Pronounced: ZAK-ə-ree(English)
Rating: 61% based on 8 votes
Usual English form of Zacharias, used in some English versions of the New Testament. This form has been in use since the Middle Ages, though it did not become common until after the Protestant Reformation. It was borne by American military commander and president Zachary Taylor (1784-1850).
Zara 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, English
Pronounced: ZAHR-ə(English)
Rating: 57% based on 7 votes
Used by William Congreve for a character in his tragedy The Mourning Bride (1697), where it belongs to a captive North African queen. Congreve may have based it on the Arabic name Zahra 1. In 1736 the English writer Aaron Hill used it to translate Zaïre for his popular adaptation of Voltaire's French play Zaïre (1732).

In England the name was popularized when Princess Anne gave it to her daughter in 1981. Use of the name may also be influenced by the trendy Spanish clothing retailer Zara.

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