WinterGrey's Personal Name List
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: 65% based on 8 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.
Adeline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: A-DU-LEEN(French) AD-ə-lien(English)
Rating: 90% based on 8 votes
French and English form of
Adelina.
Adelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ə-DEHL
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 28% based on 5 votes
Agatha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ἀγαθή(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: AG-ə-thə(English) a-GHA-ta(Dutch)
Rating: 58% based on 5 votes
Latinized form of the Greek name
Ἀγαθή (Agathe), derived from Greek
ἀγαθός (agathos) meaning
"good".
Saint Agatha was a 3rd-century martyr from Sicily who was tortured and killed after spurning the advances of a Roman official. The saint was widely revered in the Middle Ages, and her name has been used throughout Christian Europe (in various spellings). The mystery writer Agatha Christie (1890-1976) was a famous modern bearer of this name.
Agnes
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Estonian, Late Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ἅγνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: AG-nis(English) AK-nəs(German) AHKH-nehs(Dutch) ANG-nehs(Swedish) OW-nes(Danish)
Rating: 65% based on 4 votes
Latinized form of the Greek name
Ἅγνη (Hagne), derived from Greek
ἁγνός (hagnos) meaning
"chaste".
Saint Agnes was a virgin martyred during the persecutions of the Roman emperor Diocletian. The name became associated with Latin
agnus "lamb", resulting in the saint's frequent depiction with a lamb by her side. Due to her renown, the name became common in Christian Europe.
As an English name it was highly popular from the Middle Ages until the 17th century. It was revived in the 19th century and was common into the 20th, but it fell into decline after the 1930s. It last appeared on the American top 1000 rankings in 1972.
Agnessa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian
Other Scripts: Агнесса(Russian)
Pronounced: ug-NYEHS-sə
Rating: 65% based on 4 votes
Akiva
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: עֲקִיבָא(Hebrew)
Pronounced: ah-KEE-vah
Rating: 53% based on 3 votes
From an Aramaic form of
Yaakov. Akiva (or Akiba) ben Joseph was a prominent 1st-century Jewish rabbi.
Alaric
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Gothic (Anglicized)
Other Scripts: 𐌰𐌻𐌰𐍂𐌴𐌹𐌺𐍃(Gothic)
Pronounced: AL-ə-rik(English)
Rating: 60% based on 2 votes
From the Gothic name *
Alareiks meaning
"ruler of all", derived from the element
alls "all" combined with
reiks "ruler, king". This was the name of a king of the Visigoths who sacked Rome in the 5th century.
Alasdair
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish Gaelic [1]
Rating: 53% based on 3 votes
Alastar
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: A-lə-stər
Rating: 60% based on 2 votes
Alban
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, French, Albanian, English (Rare)
Pronounced: AL-ban(German) AL-BAHN(French) AL-bən(English) AWL-bən(English)
Rating: 55% based on 2 votes
From the Roman
cognomen Albanus, which meant
"from Alba". Alba (from Latin
albus "white") was the name of various places within the Roman Empire, including the city Alba Longa. This name was borne by
Saint Alban, the first British martyr (4th century). According to tradition, he sheltered a fugitive priest in his house. When his house was searched, he disguised himself as the priest, was arrested in his stead, and was beheaded. Another 4th-century martyr by this name was Saint Alban of Mainz.
As an English name, Alban was occasionally used in the Middle Ages and was revived in the 18th century, though it is now uncommon.
Alberic
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Germanic [1]
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Alden
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AWL-dən
Rating: 60% based on 2 votes
From a surname that was derived from the Old English given name
Ealdwine.
Aldo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Italian, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: AL-do(Italian)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Originally a short form of Germanic names beginning with the element
alt meaning
"old" (Proto-Germanic *
aldaz), and sometimes also with
adal meaning
"noble" (Proto-Germanic *
aþalaz).
Aldous
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: AWL-dəs
Rating: 55% based on 2 votes
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.
Aldric
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French (Rare), Germanic [1]
Pronounced: AL-DREEK(French)
Rating: 27% based on 3 votes
From a Germanic name, derived from the elements
alt "old" and
rih "ruler, king".
Saint Aldric was a 9th-century bishop of Le Mans.
Alice
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Portuguese, Italian, German, Czech, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Dutch
Pronounced: AL-is(English) A-LEES(French) u-LEE-si(European Portuguese) a-LEE-see(Brazilian Portuguese) a-LEE-cheh(Italian) a-LEES(German) A-li-tseh(Czech)
Rating: 88% based on 5 votes
From the Old French name
Aalis, a short form of
Adelais, itself a short form of the Germanic name
Adalheidis (see
Adelaide). This name became popular in France and England in the 12th century. It was among the most common names in England until the 16th century, when it began to decline. It was revived in the 19th century.
This name was borne by the heroine of Lewis Carroll's novels Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and Through the Looking Glass (1871).
Alister
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish
Pronounced: AL-i-stər(American English) AL-i-stə(British English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 33% based on 4 votes
Alma 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Albanian, Slovene, Croatian
Pronounced: AL-mə(English) AL-ma(Spanish) AHL-ma(Dutch)
Rating: 47% based on 3 votes
This name became popular after the Battle of Alma (1854), which took place near the River Alma in Crimea and ended in a victory for Britain and France. However, the name was in rare use before the battle; it was probably inspired by Latin
almus "nourishing". It also coincides with the Spanish word meaning
"the soul".
Altair
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Astronomy, Portuguese (Brazilian)
Pronounced: al-TEHR(American English) al-TEH(British English)
Rating: 53% based on 4 votes
Means "the flyer" in Arabic. This is the name of a star in the constellation Aquila.
Alton
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AWL-tən
Rating: 67% based on 3 votes
From an English surname that was derived from a place name meaning "town at the source of the river" in Old English.
Amelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Medieval French
Pronounced: ə-MEE-lee-ə(English) ə-MEEL-yə(English) a-MEH-lya(Spanish, Italian, Polish)
Rating: 89% based on 7 votes
Variant of
Amalia, though it is sometimes confused with
Emilia, which has a different origin. The name became popular in England after the German House of Hanover came to the British throne in the 18th century — it was borne by daughters of both George II and George III. The author Henry Fielding used it for the title character in his novel
Amelia (1751). Another famous bearer was Amelia Earhart (1897-1937), the first woman to make a solo flight over the Atlantic Ocean.
This name experienced a rise in popularity at the end of the 20th century. It was the most popular name for girls in England and Wales from 2011 to 2015.
Anneliese
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Dutch
Pronounced: A-nə-lee-zə(German) ah-nə-LEE-sə(Dutch)
Rating: 89% based on 7 votes
Anselm
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, English (Rare), Germanic [1]
Pronounced: AN-zelm(German) AN-selm(English)
Rating: 25% based on 4 votes
Derived from the Old German elements
ansi "god" and
helm "helmet, protection". This name was brought to England in the late 11th century by
Saint Anselm, who was born in northern Italy. He was archbishop of Canterbury and a Doctor of the Church.
Anya
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, English
Other Scripts: Аня(Russian)
Pronounced: A-nyə(Russian) AN-yə(English)
Rating: 66% based on 5 votes
Aoki
Usage: Japanese
Other Scripts: 青木(Japanese Kanji) あおき(Japanese Hiragana)
Pronounced: A-O-KYEE
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
From Japanese
青 (ao) meaning "green, blue" and
木 (ki) meaning "tree, wood".
Archer
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AHR-chər(American English) AH-chə(British English)
Rating: 53% based on 4 votes
From an English surname meaning "bowman, archer", of Old French origin. Although already slowly growing in popularity, this name accelerated its rise after the premiere of the American television series Archer in 2009.
Arden
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AHR-dən(American English) AH-dən(British English)
Rating: 84% based on 5 votes
From an English surname, originally taken from various place names, which were derived from a Celtic word meaning "high".
Arlo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AHR-lo(American English) AH-lo(British English)
Rating: 63% based on 4 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".
Arthur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Welsh Mythology, Arthurian Cycle
Pronounced: AHR-thər(American English) AH-thə(British English) AR-TUYR(French) AR-tuwr(German) AHR-tuyr(Dutch)
Rating: 33% based on 4 votes
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).
Asa
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: אָסָא(Hebrew)
Pronounced: AY-sə(English)
Rating: 20% based on 5 votes
Possibly means
"healer" in Hebrew. This name was borne by the third king of Judah, as told in the
Old Testament.
Auberon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Carolingian Cycle
Pronounced: AW-bə-rahn(American English) O-bə-rahn(American English) AW-bə-rawn(British English) O-bə-rawn(British English)
Rating: 48% based on 4 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.
Auden
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AW-dən
Rating: 57% based on 3 votes
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).
Augustin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French, Romanian, Czech, German (Rare)
Pronounced: O-GUYS-TEHN(French)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 63% based on 3 votes
Form of
Augustinus (see
Augustine 1) in several languages.
Augustine 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AW-gə-steen, aw-GUS-tin
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
From the Roman name
Augustinus, itself derived from the Roman name
Augustus.
Saint Augustine of Hippo was a 5th-century Christian theologian and author from North Africa. For his contributions to Christian philosophy he is known as a Doctor of the Church. Due to his renown, the name came into general use in the Christian world. It became popular in England in the Middle Ages partly because of a second saint by this name, Augustine of Canterbury, a 6th-century Italian monk sent to England to convert the Anglo-Saxons.
Augustus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman, Dutch (Rare)
Pronounced: ow-GOOS-toos(Latin) aw-GUS-təs(English) ow-GHUYS-tuys(Dutch)
Rating: 60% based on 2 votes
Means
"exalted, venerable", derived from Latin
augere meaning "to increase". Augustus was the title given to
Octavian, the first Roman emperor. He was an adopted son of Julius Caesar who rose to power through a combination of military skill and political prowess. In 26 BC the senate officially gave him the name
Augustus, and after his death it was used as a title for subsequent emperors. This was also the name of three kings of Poland (called
August in Polish).
Barak 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, Biblical, Biblical Greek, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: בָּרָק(Hebrew) Βαράκ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: BAR-ək(English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Means
"lightning" in Hebrew. According to the
Old Testament, Barak was a military commander under the guidance of the prophetess
Deborah. They defeated the Canaanite army led by Sisera.
Barret
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: BAR-it, BEHR-it
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From a surname that was a variant of
Barrett.
Bayard
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Carolingian Cycle
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Derived from Old French baiart meaning "bay coloured". In medieval French poetry Bayard was a bay horse owned by Renaud de Montauban and his brothers. The horse could magically adjust its size to carry multiple riders.
Beatrix
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Hungarian, Dutch, English, Late Roman
Pronounced: beh-A-triks(German) BEH-a-triks(German, Dutch) BEH-aw-treeks(Hungarian) BEE-ə-triks(English) BEE-triks(English)
Rating: 50% based on 3 votes
Probably from
Viatrix, a feminine form of the Late Latin name
Viator meaning
"voyager, traveller". It was a common name amongst early Christians, and the spelling was altered by association with Latin
beatus "blessed, happy". Viatrix or Beatrix was a 4th-century
saint who was strangled to death during the persecutions of Diocletian.
In England the name became rare after the Middle Ages, but it was revived in the 19th century, more commonly in the spelling Beatrice. Famous bearers include the British author and illustrator Beatrix Potter (1866-1943), the creator of Peter Rabbit, and Beatrix of the Netherlands (1938-), the former queen.
Bertram
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: BUR-trəm(American English) BU-trəm(British English) BEHR-tram(German)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
Means
"bright raven", derived from the Old German element
beraht "bright" combined with
hram "raven". This name has long been conflated with
Bertrand. The
Normans introduced it to England, and Shakespeare used it in his play
All's Well That Ends Well (1603).
Bishop
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BISH-əp
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Either from the English occupational surname, or else directly from the English word. It is ultimately derived from Greek
ἐπίσκοπος (episkopos) meaning "overseer".
Blythe
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: BLIEDH
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
From a surname meaning "cheerful" in Old English.
Booker
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BUWK-ər(American English) BUWK-ə(British English)
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
From an English occupational surname meaning "maker of books". A famous bearer was Booker T. Washington (1856-1915), an African-American leader.
Braith
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Australian, Rare)
Pronounced: BRAYTH
Rating: 95% based on 2 votes
Meaning uncertain, perhaps from Welsh brith, braith meaning "speckled".
Bridie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Rating: 55% based on 2 votes
Brigid
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Irish variant of
Brighid (see
Bridget).
Bronwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: BRAWN-wehn
Rating: 80% based on 4 votes
Seemingly derived from Welsh
bron "breast" and
gwen "white, blessed", though it has sometimes occurred as a variant spelling of the legendary name
Branwen [1]. It has been used as a given name in Wales since the 19th century. It is borne by a character in Richard Llewellyn's 1939 novel
How Green Was My Valley, as well as the 1941 movie adaptation.
Bruce
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: BROOS
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
From a Scottish surname, of Norman origin, which probably originally referred to the town of Brix in France. The surname was borne by Robert the Bruce, a Scottish hero of the 14th century who achieved independence from England and became the king of Scotland. It has been in use as a given name in the English-speaking world since the 19th century, becoming especially popular in the 1940s and 50s. Notable bearers include Chinese-American actor Bruce Lee (1940-1973), American musician Bruce Springsteen (1949-), and American actor Bruce Willis (1955-). It is also the real name of the comic book superheroes Batman (Bruce Wayne), created 1939, and the Hulk (Bruce Banner), created 1962.
Cadfael
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh (Rare)
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
From Old Welsh
Catmail meaning
"battle prince", from
cat "battle" and
mael "prince". This was apparently the birth name of
Saint Cadoc. It was used by the British author Ellis Peters for the main character in her books
The Cadfael Chronicles, first released in 1977.
Caedmon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History (Ecclesiastical)
Pronounced: KAD-mən(English)
Rating: 85% based on 2 votes
Meaning unknown, though the first element is likely connected to Brythonic
kad meaning "battle".
Saint Caedmon was a 7th-century Anglo-Saxon poet who supposedly received his poetic inspiration from a dream. Our only knowledge of him is through the 8th-century writings of the historian Bede.
Calvin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAL-vin
Rating: 85% based on 2 votes
Derived from the French surname
Cauvin, which was derived from
chauve meaning
"bald". The surname was borne by Jean Cauvin (1509-1564), a theologian from France who was one of the leaders of the
Protestant Reformation. His surname was Latinized as
Calvinus (based on Latin
calvus "bald") and he is known as John Calvin in English. It has been used as a given name in his honour since the 19th century.
In modern times, this name is borne by American fashion designer Calvin Klein (1942-), as well as one of the main characters from Bill Watterson's comic strip Calvin and Hobbes (published from 1985 to 1995).
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: 65% based on 2 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).
Camille
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: KA-MEE(French) kə-MEEL(English)
Rating: 93% based on 3 votes
French feminine and masculine form of
Camilla. It is also used in the English-speaking world, where it is generally only feminine.
Casimir
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: KAZ-i-mir(American English) KAZ-i-meey(British English) KA-ZEE-MEER(French)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
English form of the Polish name
Kazimierz, derived from the Slavic element
kaziti "to destroy" combined with
mirŭ "peace, world". Four kings of Poland have borne this name, including Casimir III the Great, who greatly strengthened the Polish state in the 14th century. It was also borne
Saint Casimir, a 15th-century Polish prince and a patron saint of Poland and Lithuania. The name was imported into Western Europe via Germany, where it was borne by some royalty.
Caspian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: KAS-pee-ən(English)
Rating: 55% based on 2 votes
Used by author C. S. Lewis for a character in his Chronicles of Narnia series, first appearing in 1950. Prince Caspian first appears in the fourth book, where he is the rightful king of Narnia driven into exile by his evil uncle Miraz. Lewis probably based the name on the Caspian Sea, which was named for the city of Qazvin, which was itself named for the ancient Cas tribe.
Cassius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman
Pronounced: KAS-see-oos(Latin) KASH-əs(English) KAS-ee-əs(English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
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).
Castor
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Κάστωρ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: KAS-tər(American English) KAS-tə(British English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
From the Greek name
Κάστωρ (Kastor), possibly related to
κέκασμαι (kekasmai) meaning
"to excel, to shine" (pluperfect
κέκαστο). Alternatively it could be derived from the Greek word
κάστωρ (kastor) meaning
"beaver", though the legends about Castor do not mention beavers, which were foreign animals to the Greeks. In Greek
myth Castor was a son of
Zeus and the twin brother of
Pollux. The constellation Gemini, which represents the two brothers, contains a star by this name.
Catcher
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Popular Culture, English (Rare)
Pronounced: kach-er(Popular Culture)
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Catcher.
Cathair
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: KA-hər
Rating: 20% based on 2 votes
Cathal
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Old Irish [1]
Pronounced: KA-həl(Irish)
Rating: 20% based on 2 votes
Derived from Old Irish
cath "battle" and
fal "rule". This was the name of a 7th-century Irish
saint. It was also borne by several Irish kings. It has sometimes been Anglicized as
Charles.
Charles
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: CHAHRLZ(American English) CHAHLZ(British English) SHARL(French)
Rating: 87% based on 3 votes
French and English form of
Carolus, the Latin form of the Germanic name
Karl, which was derived from a word meaning
"man" (Proto-Germanic *
karlaz). However, an alternative theory states that it is derived from the common Germanic name element *
harjaz meaning "army".
The popularity of the name in continental Europe was due to the fame of Charles the Great (742-814), commonly known as Charlemagne, a king of the Franks who came to rule over most of Europe. His grandfather Charles Martel had also been a noted leader of the Franks. It was subsequently the name of several Holy Roman emperors, as well as rulers of France, Spain, Portugal, Sweden and Hungary (in various spellings). After Charlemagne, his name was adopted as a word meaning "king" in many Eastern European languages, for example Czech král, Hungarian király, Russian король (korol), and Turkish kral.
The name did not become common in Britain until the 17th century when it was borne by the Stuart king Charles I. It had been introduced into the Stuart royal family by Mary Queen of Scots, who had been raised in France. Two other kings of the United Kingdom have borne this name, including the current monarch.
Other famous bearers include naturalist Charles Darwin (1809-1882) who revolutionized biology with his theory of evolution, novelist Charles Dickens (1812-1870) who wrote such works as Great Expectations and A Tale of Two Cities, French statesman Charles de Gaulle (1890-1970), and American cartoonist Charles Schulz (1922-2000), the creator of the Peanuts comic strip.
Chauncey
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: CHAWN-see
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From a Norman surname of unknown meaning. It was used as a given name in America in honour of Harvard president Charles Chauncey (1592-1672).
Cillian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Probably from Old Irish
cell meaning
"church" combined with a
diminutive suffix. This was the name of a 7th-century Irish
saint who evangelized in Franconia. He was martyred in Würzburg.
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: 100% based on 3 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.
Clémentine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: KLEH-MAHN-TEEN
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
French feminine form of
Clement. This is also the name of a variety of orange (fruit).
Conall
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Old Irish [1], Irish Mythology
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Means
"rule of a wolf", from Old Irish
cú "hound, dog, wolf" (genitive
con) and
fal "rule"
[2]. This is the name of several characters in Irish legend including the hero Conall Cernach ("Conall of the victories"), a member of the Red Branch of Ulster, who avenged
Cúchulainn's death by killing
Lugaid.
Conan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Means
"little wolf" or
"little hound" from Irish
cú "wolf, hound" combined with a
diminutive suffix. This was the name of several early
saints, including a 7th-century bishop of the Isle of Man. It appears in Irish legend as a companion
Fionn mac Cumhaill. A famous bearer of it as a middle name was Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930), the author of the Sherlock Holmes mystery stories. It is also the name of the hero of the
Conan the Barbarian series of books, comics and movies, debuting 1932.
Conrad
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: KAHN-rad(American English) KAWN-rad(British English) KAWN-rat(German)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Means
"brave counsel", derived from the Old German elements
kuoni "brave" and
rat "counsel, advice". This was the name of a 10th-century
saint and bishop of Konstanz, in southern Germany. It was also borne by several medieval German kings and dukes, notably Conrad II, the first of the Holy Roman Emperors from the Salic dynasty. In England it was occasionally used during the Middle Ages, but has only been common since the 19th century when it was reintroduced from Germany.
Constantine
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History
Pronounced: KAHN-stən-teen(American English) KAWN-stən-teen(British English)
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
From the Latin name
Constantinus, a derivative of
Constans. Constantine the Great (272-337), full name Flavius Valerius Constantinus, was the first Roman emperor to adopt Christianity. He moved the capital of the empire from Rome to Byzantium, which he renamed Constantinople (modern Istanbul).
Cora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Κόρη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: KAWR-ə(English) KO-ra(German)
Rating: 50% based on 2 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
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Either a French form of
Koralia, or a derivative of Latin
corallium "coral" (see
Coral).
Cormac
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish Mythology, Irish
Rating: 90% based on 3 votes
From Old Irish
Cormacc or
Corbmac, of uncertain meaning, possibly from
corb "chariot, wagon" or
corbbad "defilement, corruption" combined with
macc "son". This is the name of several characters from Irish legend, including the semi-legendary high king Cormac mac Airt who supposedly ruled in the 3rd century, during the adventures of the hero
Fionn mac Cumhaill. This name was also borne by a few early
saints.
Crispin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: KRIS-pin
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
From the Roman
cognomen Crispinus, which was derived from the name
Crispus.
Saint Crispin was a 3rd-century Roman who was martyred with his twin brother Crispinian in Gaul. They are the patrons of shoemakers. They were popular saints in England during the Middle Ages, and the name has occasionally been used since that time.
Cyprian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Polish, History (Ecclesiastical)
Pronounced: TSI-pryan(Polish) SIP-ree-ən(English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From the Roman family name
Cyprianus, which meant
"from Cyprus".
Saint Cyprian was a 3rd-century bishop of Carthage who was martyred under the Roman emperor Valerian.
Dahlia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: DAL-yə, DAHL-yə, DAYL-yə
Rating: 100% based on 3 votes
From the name of the flower, which was named for the Swedish botanist Anders Dahl.
Daniel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Hebrew, French, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, Romanian, Slovene, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Croatian, Finnish, Estonian, Armenian, Georgian, Biblical, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: דָּנִיֵּאל(Hebrew) Даниел(Bulgarian, Macedonian) Դանիէլ(Armenian) დანიელ(Georgian) Δανιήλ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: DAN-yəl(English) DA-NYEHL(French) DA-nyehl(German) DA-nee-ehl(German, Slovak) DAH-ni-yəl(Norwegian) DA-nyəl(Danish) DA-nyehl(Polish) DA-ni-yehl(Czech) da-NYEHL(Spanish) du-nee-EHL(European Portuguese) du-nee-EW(Brazilian Portuguese) də-nee-EHL(Catalan) da-nee-EHL(Romanian)
Rating: 60% based on 2 votes
From the Hebrew name
דָּנִיֵּאל (Daniyyel) meaning
"God is my judge", from the roots
דִּין (din) meaning "to judge" and
אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God". Daniel was a Hebrew prophet whose story is told in the Book of Daniel in the
Old Testament. He lived during the Jewish captivity in Babylon, where he served in the court of the king, rising to prominence by interpreting the king's dreams. The book also presents Daniel's four visions of the end of the world.
Due to the popularity of the biblical character, the name came into use in England during the Middle Ages. Though it became rare by the 15th century, it was revived after the Protestant Reformation. Famous bearers of this name include English author Daniel Defoe (1660-1731), Swiss mathematician Daniel Bernoulli (1700-1782), and American frontiersman Daniel Boone (1734-1820).
Darby
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAHR-bee(American English) DAH-bee(British English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
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".
Darcy
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAHR-see(American English) DAH-see(British English)
Rating: 87% based on 3 votes
From an English surname that was derived from Norman French d'Arcy, originally denoting one who came from the town of Arcy in La Manche, France. This is the surname of a character, Fitzwilliam Darcy, in Jane Austen's novel Pride and Prejudice (1813).
Darwin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAHR-win(American English) DAH-win(British English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From a surname that was derived from the Old English given name
Deorwine. The surname was borne by the British naturalist Charles Darwin (1809-1882), the man who first proposed the theory of natural selection and subsequently revolutionized biology.
Dashiell
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: də-SHEEL, DASH-il
Rating: 60% based on 2 votes
In the case of American author Dashiell Hammett (1894-1961) it was from his mother's surname, which was possibly an Anglicized form of French de Chiel, of unknown meaning.
Deacon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: DEE-kən
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Either from the occupational surname
Deacon or directly from the vocabulary word
deacon, which refers to a cleric in the Christian church (ultimately from Greek
διάκονος (diakonos) meaning "servant").
Declan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, English
Pronounced: DEHK-lən(English)
Rating: 100% based on 3 votes
Anglicized form of Irish
Deaglán, Old Irish
Declán, which is of unknown meaning.
Saint Declan was a 5th-century missionary to the Déisi peoples of Ireland and the founder of the monastery at Ardmore.
In America, this name received boosts in popularity from main characters in the movies The Jackal (1997) and Leap Year (2010).
Dempsey
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Irish, English
Pronounced: DEMP-see(English)
Rating: 35% based on 2 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Dempsey.
Desmond
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Irish
Pronounced: DEHZ-mənd(English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Anglicized form of Irish Deasmhumhain meaning "south Munster", referring to the region of Desmond in southern Ireland, formerly a kingdom. It can also come from the related surname (an Anglicized form of Ó Deasmhumhnaigh), which indicated a person who came from that region. A famous bearer is the South African archbishop and activist Desmond Tutu (1931-2021).
Dorian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Romanian, Polish
Pronounced: DAWR-ee-ən(English) DAW-RYAHN(French)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
The name was first used by Oscar Wilde in his novel The Picture of Dorian Gray (1891), which tells the story of a man whose portrait ages while he stays young. Wilde may have taken it from the name of the ancient Greek tribe the Dorians.
Dorothea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Dutch, English, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Δωροθέα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: do-ro-TEH-a(German, Dutch) dawr-ə-THEE-ə(English)
Rating: 85% based on 2 votes
Feminine form of the Greek name
Δωρόθεος (Dorotheos), which meant
"gift of god" from Greek
δῶρον (doron) meaning "gift" and
θεός (theos) meaning "god". The name
Theodore is composed of the same elements in reverse order. Dorothea was the name of two early
saints, notably the 4th-century martyr Dorothea of Caesarea. It was also borne by the 14th-century Saint Dorothea of Montau, who was the patron saint of Prussia.
Dulcinea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: dool-thee-NEH-a(European Spanish) dool-see-NEH-a(Latin American Spanish) dul-si-NEE-ə(English)
Rating: 85% based on 2 votes
Derived from Spanish dulce meaning "sweet". This name was (first?) used by Miguel de Cervantes in his novel Don Quixote (1605), where it belongs to the love interest of the main character, though she never actually appears in the story.
Duncan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: DUNG-kən(English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 87% based on 3 votes
Anglicized form of the Scottish Gaelic name
Donnchadh, derived from Old Irish
donn "brown" and
cath "battle". This was the name of two kings of Scotland, including the one who was featured in Shakespeare's play
Macbeth (1606).
Éamonn
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: EH-mən
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Eda 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Turkish
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Means "well-mannered" in Turkish.
Edda 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: EHD-da
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Edith
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch
Pronounced: EE-dith(English) EH-dit(German, Swedish, Dutch)
Rating: 60% based on 3 votes
From the Old English name
Eadgyð, derived from the elements
ead "wealth, fortune" and
guð "battle". It was popular among Anglo-Saxon royalty, being borne for example by
Saint Eadgyeth;, the daughter of King Edgar the Peaceful. It was also borne by the Anglo-Saxon wife of the Holy Roman Emperor Otto I. The name remained common after the
Norman Conquest. It became rare after the 15th century, but was revived in the 19th century.
Edmund
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Polish
Pronounced: EHD-mənd(English) EHT-muwnt(German) EHD-moont(Polish)
Rating: 55% based on 2 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.
Edric
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: EHD-rik
Rating: 35% based on 2 votes
From the Old English elements
ead "wealth, fortune" and
ric "ruler, king". After the
Norman Conquest this Old English name was not commonly used. It has occasionally been revived in modern times.
Egon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German
Pronounced: EH-gawn
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
From the Old German name
Egino, derived from the element
agin meaning
"edge, blade" (from Proto-Germanic *
agjō).
Saint Egino was a 12th-century abbot from Augsburg.
Eldon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHL-dən
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
From a surname that was from a place name meaning "Ella's hill" in Old English.
Eleanor
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHL-ə-nawr(American English) EHL-ə-naw(British English)
Rating: 100% based on 5 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
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 70% based on 4 votes
Elior
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: אֱלִיאוֹר(Hebrew)
Rating: 65% based on 2 votes
Means "my God is my light" in Hebrew.
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: 60% based on 4 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).
Ellar
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Anglicized form of
Ealar.
Ellen 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Estonian
Pronounced: EHL-ən(English) EHL-lehn(Finnish)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 57% based on 3 votes
Medieval English form of
Helen. This was the usual spelling of the name until the 19th century, when the form
Helen also became common.
Ellil
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Semitic Mythology
Other Scripts: 𒀭𒂗𒆤(Akkadian Cuneiform)
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
Elliott
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHL-ee-ət
Rating: 65% based on 2 votes
From an English surname that was derived from a
diminutive of the medieval name
Elias.
Elmer
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHL-mər(American English) EHL-mə(British English)
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
From a surname that was derived from the Old English name
Æðelmær. In the United States it is sometimes given in honour of brothers Jonathan (1745-1817) and Ebenezer Elmer (1752-1843), who were active in early American politics.
Eloise
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHL-o-eez, ehl-o-EEZ
Rating: 67% based on 3 votes
From the Old French name
Héloïse, which was probably from the Germanic name
Helewidis, composed of the elements
heil meaning "healthy, whole" and
wit meaning "wide". It is sometimes associated with the Greek word
ἥλιος (helios) meaning "sun" or the name
Louise, though there is no etymological connection. This name was borne by the 12th-century French scholar and philosopher Héloïse. Secretly marrying the theologian Peter Abelard at a young age, she became a nun (and eventually an abbess) after Abelard was violently castrated by order of her uncle Fulbert.
There was a medieval English form of this name, Helewis, though it died out after the 13th century. In the 19th century it was revived in the English-speaking world in the form Eloise.
Elon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: אֵילוֹן(Ancient Hebrew)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Means
"oak tree" in Hebrew. According to the
Old Testament this was the name of one of the ruling judges of the Israelites. A notable modern bearer is the entrepreneur Elon Musk (1971-), who was born in South Africa and also holds Canadian and American citizenship (he is not Jewish).
Eloy
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: eh-LOI
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Elric
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Medieval English
Pronounced: EHL-rik(English)
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Elsdon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: ELZ-dən
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From a surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "Elli's valley" in Old English.
Elspeth
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish
Pronounced: EHLS-peth
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Elwyn
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHL-win
Rating: 90% based on 3 votes
Émeric
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: EHM-REEK
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Emmerich
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: EH-mə-rikh(German)
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Germanic name, in which the second element is
rih "ruler, king". The first element may be
irmin "whole, great" (making it a relative of
Ermenrich),
amal "unceasing, vigorous, brave" (making it a relative of
Amalric) or
heim "home" (making it a relative of
Henry). It is likely that several forms merged into a single name.
Emmett
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHM-it
Rating: 95% based on 2 votes
From an English surname that was derived from a
diminutive of the feminine given name
Emma.
Emrys
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: EHM-ris
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Welsh form of
Ambrose. Emrys Wledig (or Ambrosius Aurelianus) was a Romano-British military leader who fought against the invading Anglo-Saxons in the 5th century. Tales of his life were used by the 12th-century chronicler Geoffrey of Monmouth to help shape the early character of
Merlin, whom he called Merlinus Ambrosius in Latin.
Enid
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, English, Arthurian Cycle
Pronounced: EH-nid(Welsh) EE-nid(English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Probably derived from Welsh
enaid meaning
"soul, spirit, life". In Arthurian tales she first appears in the 12th-century French poem
Erec and Enide by Chrétien de Troyes, where she is the wife of Erec. In later adaptations she is typically the wife of
Geraint. The name became more commonly used after the publication of Alfred Tennyson's Arthurian poem
Enid in 1859, and it was fairly popular in Britain in the first half of the 20th century.
Ennis
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
From an Irish surname that was derived from inis meaning "island".
Ernest
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Catalan, Polish, Slovak, Slovene
Pronounced: UR-nist(American English) U-nist(British English) EHR-NEST(French) ər-NEST(Catalan) EHR-nest(Polish)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Derived from Old High German
ernust meaning
"serious, earnest". It was introduced to England by the German House of Hanover when they inherited the British throne in the 18th century, though it did not become common until the following century. The American author and adventurer Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961) was a famous bearer of the name. It was also used by Oscar Wilde for a character in his comedy
The Importance of Being Earnest (1895).
Esmé
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHZ-may, EHZ-mee
Rating: 87% based on 3 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.
Estelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: ehs-TEHL(English) EHS-TEHL(French)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From an Old French name meaning
"star", ultimately derived from Latin
stella. It was rare in the English-speaking world in the Middle Ages, but it was revived in the 19th century, perhaps due to the character Estella Havisham in Charles Dickens' novel
Great Expectations (1860).
Esther
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Spanish, Dutch, German, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Jewish, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek
Other Scripts: אֶסְתֵר(Hebrew) Ἐσθήρ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: EHS-tər(American English, Dutch) EHS-tə(British English) EHS-TEHR(French) ehs-TEHR(Spanish) EHS-tu(German)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From the Hebrew name
אֶסְתֵר (ʾEsṯer), which possibly means
"star" in Persian. Alternatively it could be a derivative of the name of the Near Eastern goddess
Ishtar. The Book of Esther in the
Old Testament tells the story of Queen Esther, the Jewish wife of the king of Persia. The king's advisor
Haman persuaded the king to exterminate all the Jews in the realm. Warned of this plot by her cousin
Mordecai, Esther revealed her Jewish ancestry and convinced the king to execute Haman instead. Her original Hebrew name was
Hadassah.
This name has been used in the English-speaking world since the Protestant Reformation. In America it received a boost in popularity after the birth of Esther Cleveland (1893-1980), the daughter of President Grover Cleveland [1].
Ethel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ETH-əl
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
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).
Eula
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: YOO-lə
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
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: 53% based on 3 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.
Eve
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Estonian, Biblical
Other Scripts: חַוָּה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: EEV(English)
Rating: 53% based on 3 votes
From the Hebrew name
חַוָּה (Ḥawwa), which was derived from the Hebrew word
חָוָה (ḥawa) meaning
"to breathe" or the related word
חָיָה (ḥaya) meaning
"to live". According to the
Old Testament Book of Genesis, Eve and
Adam were the first humans. God created her from one of Adam's ribs to be his companion. At the urging of a serpent she ate the forbidden fruit and shared some with Adam, causing their expulsion from the Garden of
Eden.
Despite this potentially negative association, the name was occasionally used by Christians during the Middle Ages. In the English-speaking world both Eve and the Latin form Eva were revived in the 19th century, with the latter being more common.
Ezekiel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, English
Other Scripts: יְחֶזְקֵאל(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: i-ZEE-kee-əl(English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From the Hebrew name
יְחֶזְקֵאל (Yeḥezqel) meaning
"God will strengthen", from the roots
חָזַק (ḥazaq) meaning "to strengthen" and
אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God". Ezekiel is a major prophet of the
Old Testament, the author of the Book of Ezekiel. He lived in Jerusalem until the Babylonian conquest and captivity of Israel, at which time he was taken to Babylon. The Book of Ezekiel describes his vivid symbolic visions that predict the restoration of the kingdom of Israel. As an English given name,
Ezekiel has been used since the
Protestant Reformation.
Ezra
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Hebrew, Biblical
Other Scripts: עֶזְרָא(Hebrew)
Pronounced: EHZ-rə(English)
Rating: 83% based on 3 votes
Means
"help" in Hebrew. Ezra is a prophet of the
Old Testament and the author of the Book of Ezra. It has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since the
Protestant Reformation. The American poet Ezra Pound (1885-1972) was a famous bearer.
Fabian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Dutch, Polish, Romanian, English
Pronounced: FA-bee-an(German) FA-bee-ahn(Dutch) FA-byan(Polish) FAY-bee-ən(English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From the Roman
cognomen Fabianus, which was derived from
Fabius.
Saint Fabian was a 3rd-century pope.
Faulkner
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FAWK-nər
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Faulkner. A famous bearer of the surname was William Faulkner (1897–1962), Nobel Prize-winning American author and poet.
Fay
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FAY
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
In part from the English word
fay meaning
"fairy", derived from Middle English
faie meaning "magical, enchanted", ultimately (via Old French) from Latin
fata meaning "the Fates". It appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's chronicles in the name of
Morgan le Fay. In some cases it may be used as a short form of
Faith. It has been used as a feminine given name since the 19th century.
As a rarer (but older) masculine name it is probably derived from a surname: see Fay 1 or Fay 2.
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: 63% based on 4 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).
Fern
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FURN(American English) FUN(British English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From the English word for the plant, ultimately from Old English fearn. It has been used as a given name since the late 19th century.
Finlay
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: FIN-lee(English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Anglicized form of
Fionnlagh. This spelling is more common in Scotland, though in England and Wales the variant
Finley has been more popular since 2007.
Finnegan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: FIN-ə-gən
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of
Ó Fionnagáin, itself derived from the given name
Fionnagán, a
diminutive of
Fionn. This is the surname of a relatively minor character in James Joyce's novel
Finnegans Wake (1939), the title of which was based on a 19th-century Irish ballad called
Finnegan's Wake.
Finnian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Derived from Old Irish
finn "white, blessed". This was the name of several Irish
saints, including the founders of monasteries at Clonard and Movilla (both 6th century).
Flanagan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: FLAN-ə-gən
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From an Irish surname, the Anglicized form of
Ó Flannagáin, itself from the given name
Flannagán, which was derived from Irish
flann "blood red" and a
diminutive suffix.
Flannery
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: FLAN-ə-ree
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Ó Flannghaile, derived from the given name Flannghal meaning "red valour". A famous bearer was American author Flannery O'Connor (1925-1964).
Fletcher
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FLECH-ər(American English) FLECH-ə(British English)
Rating: 95% based on 2 votes
From a surname meaning "maker of arrows" in Middle English, ultimately from Old French flechier.
Flynn
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FLIN
Rating: 100% based on 3 votes
From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of
Ó Floinn, which was derived from the given name or byname
Flann. A famous bearer of the surname was American actor Errol Flynn (1909-1959). As a given name, it grew in popularity after it was featured as a character in the Disney movie
Tangled in 2010.
Forbes
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
From a Scottish surname that was originally taken from the name of a village in Aberdeenshire, which means "field, area of land" in Gaelic.
Foster 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FAWS-tər(American English) FAWS-tə(British English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Friedrich
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German
Pronounced: FREE-drikh
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
German form of
Frederick. This was the name of several rulers of the Holy Roman Empire, Austria and Prussia. The philosophers Friedrich Engels (1820-1895) and Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) are two other famous bearers of this name.
Gable
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: GAY-bəl
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Transferred use of the surname
Gable.
Gabriel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Catalan, English, Romanian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Georgian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: გაბრიელ(Georgian) גַּבְרִיאֵל(Ancient Hebrew) Γαβριήλ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: GA-BREE-YEHL(French) ga-BRYEHL(Spanish) ga-bree-EHL(European Portuguese, Romanian) ga-bree-EW(Brazilian Portuguese) GA-bree-ehl(German, Slovak, Latin) GAH-bri-ehl(Swedish) GAH-bree-ehl(Finnish) gə-bree-EHL(Catalan) GAY-bree-əl(English) GAB-ryehl(Polish) GA-bri-yehl(Czech)
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
From the Hebrew name
גַבְרִיאֵל (Ḡavriʾel) meaning
"God is my strong man", derived from
גֶּבֶר (gever) meaning "strong man, hero" and
אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God". Gabriel is an archangel in Hebrew tradition, often appearing as a messenger of God. In the
Old Testament he is sent to interpret the visions of the prophet
Daniel, while in the
New Testament he serves as the announcer of the births of
John to
Zechariah and
Jesus to
Mary. According to Islamic tradition he was the angel who dictated the
Quran to
Muhammad.
This name has been used occasionally in England since the 12th century. It was not common in the English-speaking world until the end of the 20th century.
Gaia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, Italian
Other Scripts: Γαῖα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: GIE-A(Classical Greek) GIE-ə(English) GAY-ə(English) GA-ya(Italian)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
From the Greek word
γαῖα (gaia), a parallel form of
γῆ (ge) meaning
"earth". In Greek
mythology Gaia was the mother goddess who presided over the earth. She was the mate of
Uranus and the mother of the Titans and the Cyclopes.
Gail
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: GAYL
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Gannon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: American
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Gannon.
Gemma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Catalan, English (British), Dutch
Pronounced: JEHM-ma(Italian) ZHEHM-mə(Catalan) JEHM-ə(British English) GHEH-ma(Dutch)
Rating: 100% based on 4 votes
Medieval Italian nickname meaning "gem, precious stone". It was borne by the wife of the 13th-century Italian poet Dante Alighieri.
Georgia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Greek
Other Scripts: Γεωργία(Greek)
Pronounced: JAWR-jə(American English) JAW-jə(British English) yeh-or-YEE-a(Greek)
Rating: 83% based on 4 votes
Latinate feminine form of
George. This is the name of an American state, which was named after the British king George II. The country of Georgia has an unrelated etymology. A famous bearer was the American painter Georgia O'Keeffe (1887-1986).
Gerda 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Dutch
Pronounced: GEHR-da(German) GHEHR-da(Dutch)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Gertrude
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, German
Pronounced: GUR-trood(American English) GU-trood(British English) ZHEHR-TRUYD(French) gehr-TROO-də(German)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Means
"spear of strength", derived from the Old German elements
ger "spear" and
drud "strength".
Saint Gertrude the Great was a 13th-century nun and mystic writer from Thuringia. It was probably introduced to England by settlers from the Low Countries in the 15th century. Shakespeare used the name in his play
Hamlet (1600) for the mother of
Hamlet. Another famous bearer was the American writer Gertrude Stein (1874-1946).
Gideon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, Hebrew, English, Dutch
Other Scripts: גִּדְעוֹן(Hebrew)
Pronounced: GID-ee-ən(English) GHEE-deh-awn(Dutch)
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
From the Hebrew name
גִּדְעוֹן (Giḏʿon) meaning
"feller, hewer", derived from
גָּדַע (gaḏaʿ) meaning "to cut, to hew"
[1]. Gideon is a hero and judge of the
Old Testament. He led the vastly outnumbered Israelites against the Midianites, defeated them, and killed their two kings. In the English-speaking world,
Gideon has been used as a given name since the
Protestant Reformation, and it was popular among the
Puritans.
Gilbert
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Dutch, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: GIL-bərt(American English) GIL-bət(British English) ZHEEL-BEHR(French) GHIL-bərt(Dutch)
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Means
"bright pledge", derived from the Old German elements
gisal "pledge, hostage" and
beraht "bright". The
Normans introduced this name to England, where it was common during the Middle Ages. It was borne by a 12th-century English
saint, the founder of the religious order known as the Gilbertines.
Gordon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: GAWR-dən(American English) GAW-dən(British English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From a Scottish surname that was originally derived from a place in Berwickshire, itself derived from Brythonic elements meaning
"spacious fort". It was originally used in honour of Charles George Gordon (1833-1885), a British general who died defending the city of Khartoum in Sudan.
This was a fairly popular name throughout the English-speaking world during the 20th century, especially in Scotland and Canada. It peaked in both the United Kingdom and United States in the 1930s and has since disappeared from most of the popularity charts.
Graham
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: GRAY-əm(English) GRAM(English)
Rating: 97% based on 3 votes
From a Scottish surname, originally derived from the English place name
Grantham, which probably meant
"gravelly homestead" in Old English. The surname was first taken to Scotland in the 12th century by the Norman baron William de Graham
[1]. A famous bearer of the surname was Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922), the Scottish-Canadian-American inventor who devised the telephone. A famous bearer of the given name was the British author Graham Greene (1904-1991).
During the 20th century, Graham was more common in the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada than it was in the United States. However, it has been rising on the American charts since around 2006.
Granger
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: GRAIN-jər
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Transferred use of the surname
Granger.
Grant
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Scottish
Pronounced: GRANT(English)
Rating: 93% based on 3 votes
From an English and Scottish surname that was derived from Norman French grand meaning "great, large". A famous bearer of the surname was Ulysses Grant (1822-1885), the commander of the Union forces during the American Civil War who later served as president. In America the name has often been given in his honour.
Gray
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: GRAY
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
From an English surname meaning "grey", originally given to a person who had grey hair or clothing.
Gretchen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, English
Pronounced: GREHT-khən(German) GRECH-ən(English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 100% based on 3 votes
Hadley
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAD-lee
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From an English surname that was derived from a place name meaning "heather field" in Old English.
Hadrian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History
Pronounced: HAY-dree-ən(English)
Rating: 60% based on 3 votes
From the Roman
cognomen Hadrianus, which meant
"from Hadria" in Latin. Hadria was the name of two Roman settlements. The first (modern Adria) is in northern Italy and was an important Etruscan port town. The second (modern Atri) is in central Italy and was named after the northern town. The Adriatic Sea is also named after the northern town.
A famous bearer of the name was Publius Aelius Hadrianus, better known as Hadrian, a 2nd-century Roman emperor who built a wall across northern Britain. His family came from the town of Atri in central Italy.
Harding
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAHR-ding(American English) HAH-ding(British English)
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
From an English surname that was derived from the Old English given name
Heard. A famous bearer of the surname was American president Warren G. Harding (1865-1923).
Hardy 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAHR-dee(American English) HAH-dee(British English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From a surname that was derived from Middle English hardi "bold, hardy".
Harley
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAHR-lee(American English) HAH-lee(British English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From an English surname that was derived from a place name, itself from Old English
hara "hare" or
hær "rock, heap of stones" and
leah "woodland, clearing". An American name for boys since the 19th century, it began to be used for girls after a character with the name began appearing on the soap opera
Guiding Light in 1987.
Harriet
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAR-ee-it, HEHR-ee-it
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
English form of
Henriette, and thus a feminine form of
Harry. It was first used in the 17th century, becoming very common in the English-speaking world by the 18th century. Famous bearers include the Americans Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896), the author of
Uncle Tom's Cabin, and the abolitionist Harriet Tubman (1820-1913).
Hartley
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: HAHRT-lee(American English) HAHT-lee(British English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From an English surname that was derived from a place name, itself from Old English
heorot "hart, male deer" and
leah "woodland, clearing".
Hattie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAT-ee
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Hazel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAY-zəl
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
From the English word hazel for the tree or the light brown colour, derived ultimately from Old English hæsel. It was coined as a given name in the 19th century and quickly became popular, reaching the 18th place for girls in the United States by 1897. It fell out of fashion in the second half of the 20th century, but has since recovered.
Heath
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HEETH
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
From an English surname that denoted one who lived on a heath. It was popularized as a given name by the character Heath Barkley from the 1960s television series
The Big Valley [1].
Hector
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Greek Mythology (Latinized), Arthurian Cycle
Other Scripts: Ἕκτωρ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: HEHK-tər(American English) HEHK-tə(British English) EHK-TAWR(French)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Latinized form of Greek
Ἕκτωρ (Hektor), which was derived from
ἕκτωρ (hektor) meaning
"holding fast", ultimately from
ἔχω (echo) meaning "to hold, to possess". In Greek legend Hector was one of the Trojan champions who fought against the Greeks. After he killed
Achilles' friend
Patroclus in battle, he was himself brutally slain by Achilles, who proceeded to tie his dead body to a chariot and drag it about. This name also appears in Arthurian legends where it belongs to King
Arthur's foster father.
Hector has occasionally been used as a given name since the Middle Ages, probably because of the noble character of the classical hero. It has been historically common in Scotland, where it was used as an Anglicized form of Eachann.
Hedda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian, Swedish
Pronounced: HEHD-dah
Rating: 95% based on 2 votes
Diminutive of
Hedvig. This is the name of the heroine of the play
Hedda Gabler (1890) by the Norwegian dramatist Henrik Ibsen.
Helen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Estonian, Greek Mythology (Anglicized)
Other Scripts: Ἑλένη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: HEHL-ən(English)
Rating: 100% based on 3 votes
English form of the Greek
Ἑλένη (Helene), probably from Greek
ἑλένη (helene) meaning
"torch" or
"corposant", or possibly related to
σελήνη (selene) meaning
"moon". In Greek
mythology Helen was the daughter of
Zeus and
Leda, whose kidnapping by
Paris was the cause of the Trojan War. The name was also borne by the 4th-century
Saint Helena, mother of the Roman emperor
Constantine, who supposedly found the True Cross during a trip to Jerusalem.
The name was originally used among early Christians in honour of the saint, as opposed to the classical character. In England it was commonly spelled Ellen during the Middle Ages, and the spelling Helen was not regularly used until after the Renaissance. A famous bearer was Helen Keller (1880-1968), an American author and lecturer who was both blind and deaf.
Helena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Icelandic, Portuguese, Catalan, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Finnish, Estonian, Slovene, Croatian, Sorbian, English, Ancient Greek (Latinized), Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ἑλένη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: HEH-leh-na(German, Czech) heh-LEH-na(German, Dutch) heh-LEH-nah(Swedish, Danish, Norwegian) i-LEH-nu(European Portuguese) eh-LEH-nu(Brazilian Portuguese) ə-LEH-nə(Catalan) kheh-LEH-na(Polish) HEH-leh-nah(Finnish) HEHL-ə-nə(English) hə-LAYN-ə(English) hə-LEEN-ə(English)
Rating: 100% based on 4 votes
Latinate form of
Helen. This is the name of the heroine of William Shakespeare's play
All's Well That Ends Well (1603).
Henrietta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Hungarian, Finnish, Swedish
Pronounced: hehn-ree-EHT-ə(English) HEHN-ree-eht-taw(Hungarian) HEHN-ree-eht-tah(Finnish)
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
Latinate form of
Henriette. It was introduced to England by Henriette Marie, the wife of the 17th-century English king Charles I. The name
Henriette was also Anglicized as
Harriet, a form that was initially more popular.
Hero 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἡρώ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: HIR-o(English)
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
Derived from Greek
ἥρως (heros) meaning
"hero". In Greek legend she was the lover of
Leander, who would swim across the Hellespont each night to meet her. He was killed on one such occasion when he got caught in a storm while in the water, and when Hero saw his dead body she drowned herself. This is also the name of a character in Shakespeare's play
Much Ado About Nothing (1599).
Hilda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Spanish, Hungarian, Anglo-Saxon (Latinized), Germanic [1]
Pronounced: HIL-də(English) HIL-da(German, Dutch) EEL-da(Spanish) HEEL-daw(Hungarian)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 95% based on 2 votes
Originally a short form of names containing the Old Frankish element
hildi, Old High German
hilt, Old English
hild meaning
"battle" (Proto-Germanic *
hildiz). The short form was used for both Old English and continental Germanic names.
Saint Hilda (or Hild) of Whitby was a 7th-century English saint and abbess. The name became rare in England during the later Middle Ages, but was revived in the 19th century.
Howell
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Anglicized form of
Hywel.
Hugo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Spanish, Portuguese, English, Dutch, German, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: OO-gho(Spanish) OO-goo(Portuguese) HYOO-go(English) HUY-gho(Dutch) HOO-go(German) UY-GO(French)
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Old German form of
Hugh. As a surname it has belonged to the French author Victor Hugo (1802-1885), the writer of
The Hunchback of Notre-Dame and
Les Misérables.
Hywel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: HUW-ehl
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From Old Welsh Higuel meaning "eminent, prominent" (literally "well-seen"). This was the name of a few Welsh kings, including the 10th-century Hywel the Good who was known for establishing laws.
Indigo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: IN-di-go
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From the English word
indigo for the purplish-blue dye or the colour. It is ultimately derived from Greek
Ἰνδικόν (Indikon) meaning "Indic, from India".
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: 100% based on 2 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.
Ivy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: IE-vee
Rating: 95% based on 4 votes
From the English word for the climbing plant that has small yellow flowers. It is ultimately derived from Old English ifig.
James
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical
Pronounced: JAYMZ(English)
Rating: 100% based on 3 votes
English form of the Late Latin name
Iacomus, a variant of the Biblical Latin form
Iacobus, from the Hebrew name
Yaʿaqov (see
Jacob). This was the name of two apostles in the
New Testament. The first was
Saint James the Greater, the apostle
John's brother, who was beheaded under Herod Agrippa in the Book of Acts. The second was James the Lesser, son of
Alphaeus. Another James (known as James the Just) is also mentioned in the Bible as being the brother of
Jesus.
This name has been used in England since the 13th century, though it became more common in Scotland where it was borne by several kings. In the 17th century the Scottish king James VI inherited the English throne, becoming the first ruler of all Britain, and the name grew much more popular. In American name statistics (recorded since 1880) this name has never been out of the top 20, making it arguably the era's most consistently popular name. It was the top ranked name for boys in the United States from 1940 to 1952.
Famous bearers include the English explorer James Cook (1728-1779), the Scottish inventor James Watt (1736-1819), and the Irish novelist and poet James Joyce (1882-1941). This name has also been borne by six American presidents. A notable fictional bearer is the British spy James Bond, created by author Ian Fleming in 1953.
Jasper
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Dutch, Judeo-Christian-Islamic Legend
Pronounced: JAS-pər(American English) JAS-pə(British English) YAHS-pər(Dutch)
Rating: 65% based on 4 votes
From Latin
Gaspar, perhaps from the Biblical Hebrew word
גִּזְבָּר (gizbar) meaning
"treasurer" [1], derived from Old Persian
ganzabarah. This name was traditionally assigned to one of the wise men (also known as the Magi, or three kings) who were said to have visited the newborn
Jesus. It has occasionally been used in the English-speaking world since the Middle Ages. The name can also be given in reference to the English word for the gemstone.
Jeremiah
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical
Other Scripts: יִרְמְיָהוּ(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: jehr-i-MIE-ə(English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From the Hebrew name
יִרְמְיָהוּ (Yirmeyahu) meaning
"Yahweh will exalt", from the roots
רוּם (rum) meaning "to exalt" and
יָהּ (yah) referring to the Hebrew God. This is the name of one of the major prophets of the
Old Testament, the author of the Book of Jeremiah and the Book of Lamentations (supposedly). He lived to see the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem in the 6th century BC.
In England, though the vernacular form Jeremy had been occasionally used since the 13th century, the form Jeremiah was not common until after the Protestant Reformation.
Judah
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: יְהוּדָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: JOO-də(English)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
From the Hebrew name
יְהוּדָה (Yehuḏa), probably derived from
יָדָה (yaḏa) meaning
"praise". In the
Old Testament Judah is the fourth of the twelve sons of
Jacob by
Leah, and the ancestor of the tribe of Judah. An explanation for his name is given in
Genesis 29:35. His tribe eventually formed the Kingdom of Judah in the south of Israel. King
David and
Jesus were among the descendants of him and his wife
Tamar. This name was also borne by Judah Maccabee, the Jewish priest who revolted against Seleucid rule in the 2nd century BC, as told in the deuterocanonical Books of Maccabees.
The name appears in the New Testament with the spellings Judas and Jude.
Jude 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical
Pronounced: JOOD(English)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Variant of
Judas. It is used in many English versions of the
New Testament to denote the second apostle named Judas, in order to distinguish him from Judas Iscariot. He was supposedly the author of the Epistle of Jude. In the English-speaking world,
Jude has occasionally been used as a given name since the time of the
Protestant Reformation.
Julian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Polish, German
Pronounced: JOO-lee-ən(English) JOOL-yən(English) YOO-lyan(Polish) YOO-lee-an(German)
Rating: 90% based on 2 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).
Julius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman, English, German, Finnish, Lithuanian, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Dutch, Czech
Pronounced: YOO-lee-oos(Latin, Swedish) JOO-lee-əs(English) YOO-lee-uws(German) YOO-leews(Finnish) YUW-lyuws(Lithuanian) YOO-lyoos(Danish) YUY-lee-uys(Dutch) YOO-li-yuws(Czech)
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
From a Roman family name that was possibly derived from Greek
ἴουλος (ioulos) meaning
"downy-bearded". Alternatively, it could be related to the name of the Roman god
Jupiter. This was a prominent patrician family of Rome, who claimed descent from the mythological Julus, son of
Aeneas. Its most notable member was Gaius Julius Caesar, who gained renown as a military leader for his clever conquest of Gaul. After a civil war he became the dictator of the Roman Republic, but was eventually stabbed to death in the senate.
Although this name was borne by several early saints, including a pope, it was rare during the Middle Ages. It was revived in Italy and France during the Renaissance, and was subsequently imported to England.
Juno
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology
Pronounced: YOO-no(Latin) JOO-no(English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 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.
Kalliope
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Καλλιόπη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: KAL-LEE-O-PEH(Classical Greek)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Means
"beautiful voice" from Greek
κάλλος (kallos) meaning "beauty" and
ὄψ (ops) meaning "voice". In Greek
mythology she was a goddess of epic poetry and eloquence, one of the nine Muses.
Keziah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: קְצִיעָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: kə-ZIE-ə(English)
Rating: 100% based on 3 votes
From the Hebrew name
קְצִיעָה (Qetsiʿa) meaning
"cassia, cinnamon", from the name of the spice tree. In the
Old Testament she is a daughter of
Job.
Kingsley
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KINGZ-lee
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "king's wood" in Old English. This name may have received a minor boost in popularity after the release of the 2007 movie Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, featuring the character Kingsley Shacklebolt.
Langdon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: LANG-dən
Rating: 83% based on 3 votes
From a surname that was a variant of the surname
Landon.
Laurel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LAWR-əl
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From the name of the laurel tree, ultimately from Latin laurus.
Layton
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LAY-tən
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
From a surname that was originally derived from the name of English towns meaning
"town with a leek garden" in Old English. Like similar-sounding names such as
Peyton and
Dayton, this name began rising in popularity in the 1990s.
Leah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Hebrew, Biblical
Other Scripts: לֵאָה(Hebrew)
Pronounced: LEE-ə(English)
Rating: 93% based on 3 votes
From the Hebrew name
לֵאָה (Leʾa), which was probably derived from the Hebrew word
לָאָה (laʾa) meaning
"weary, grieved" [1]. Alternatively it might be related to Akkadian
littu meaning
"cow". In the
Old Testament Leah is the first wife of
Jacob and the mother of seven of his children. Jacob's other wife was Leah's younger sister
Rachel, whom he preferred. Leah later offered Jacob her handmaid
Zilpah in order for him to conceive more children.
Although this name was used by Jews in the Middle Ages, it was not typical as an English Christian name until after the Protestant Reformation, being common among the Puritans.
Leander
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Λέανδρος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: lee-AN-dər(American English) lee-AN-də(British English)
Rating: 55% based on 2 votes
Latinized form of the Greek name
Λέανδρος (Leandros), derived from
λέων (leon) meaning "lion" and
ἀνήρ (aner) meaning "man" (genitive
ἀνδρός). In Greek legend Leander was the lover of Hero. Every night he swam across the Hellespont to meet her, but on one occasion he was drowned when a storm arose. When Hero saw his dead body she threw herself into the waters and perished.
Leda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, Italian
Other Scripts: Λήδα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: LEH-DA(Classical Greek) LEE-də(English) LAY-də(English) LEH-da(Italian)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Leif
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
Pronounced: LAYF
Rating: 50% based on 3 votes
From the Old Norse name Leifr meaning "descendant, heir". Leif Eriksson was a Norse explorer who reached North America in the early 11th century. He was the son of Erik the Red.
Leighton
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LAY-tən
Rating: 87% based on 3 votes
Variant of
Layton. It jumped in popularity as a feminine name after 2007, when actress Leighton Meester (1986-) began appearing on the television series
Gossip Girl.
Leith
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: LEETH
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
From a surname, originally from the name of a Scottish town (now a district of Edinburgh), which is derived from Gaelic lìte "wet, damp". It is also the name of the river that flows though Edinburgh.
Leo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, English, Croatian, Armenian, Late Roman
Other Scripts: Լեո(Armenian)
Pronounced: LEH-o(German, Dutch, Danish, Finnish) LEE-o(English)
Rating: 60% based on 3 votes
Derived from Latin
leo meaning
"lion", a
cognate of
Leon. It was popular among early Christians and was the name of 13 popes, including
Saint Leo the Great who asserted the dominance of the Roman bishops (the popes) over all others in the 5th century. It was also borne by six Byzantine emperors and five Armenian kings. Another famous bearer was the Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910), name spelled
Лев in Russian, whose works include
War and Peace and
Anna Karenina. Leo is also a constellation and the fifth sign of the zodiac.
In some cases this name can be a short form of longer names that start with Leo, such as Leonard.
Leonard
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Dutch, German, Polish, Romanian, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: LEHN-ərd(American English) LEHN-əd(British English) LEH-o-nahrt(Dutch) LEH-o-nart(German) leh-AW-nart(Polish)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Means
"brave lion", derived from the Old German elements
lewo "lion" (of Latin origin) and
hart "hard, firm, brave, hardy". This was the name of a 6th-century Frankish
saint from Noblac who is the patron of prisoners and horses. The
Normans brought this name to England, where it was used steadily through the Middle Ages, becoming even more common in the 20th century.
Levi
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, English, Dutch, German, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: לֵוִי(Hebrew)
Pronounced: LEE-vie(English) LEH-vee(Dutch)
Rating: 100% based on 3 votes
Possibly means
"joined, attached" in Hebrew. As told in the
Old Testament, Levi was the third son of
Jacob and
Leah, and the ancestor of one of the twelve tribes of the Israelites, known as the Levites. This was the tribe that formed the priestly class of the Israelites. The brothers
Moses and
Aaron were members. This name also occurs in the
New Testament, where it is borne by a son of
Alphaeus. He might be the same person as the apostle
Matthew.
As an English Christian name, Levi came into use after the Protestant Reformation.
Líadan
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish (Rare)
Pronounced: LYEEY-dən
Rating: 93% based on 3 votes
Possibly from Old Irish
líath meaning
"grey". According to an Irish tale this was the name of a poet who became a nun, but then missed her lover Cuirithir so much that she died of grief. The name was also borne by a 5th-century
saint, the mother of Saint Ciarán the Elder.
Lincoln
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LING-kən
Rating: 93% based on 4 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.
Linden
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIN-dən
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
From a German and Dutch surname that was derived from Old High German
linta meaning
"linden tree".
Link
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Short form of
Lincoln. This is the name of the hero in the
Legend of Zelda video game series (first appearing in 1986), derived from the English word
link meaning
"link, connection". He is called
リンク (Rinku) in Japanese.
Linnéa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish
Pronounced: lin-NEH-a
Rating: 95% based on 2 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.
Linton
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIN-tən
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From a surname that was originally from place names meaning either "flax town" or "linden tree town" in Old English.
Liv 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIV
Rating: 27% based on 3 votes
Lorelei
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, English
Pronounced: LAWR-ə-lie(English)
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
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).
Lorenzo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Italian, Spanish
Pronounced: lo-REHN-tso(Italian) lo-REHN-tho(European Spanish) lo-REHN-so(Latin American Spanish)
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Italian and Spanish form of
Laurentius (see
Laurence 1). Lorenzo de' Medici (1449-1492), known as the Magnificent, was a ruler of Florence during the Renaissance. He was also a great patron of the arts who employed Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Botticelli and other famous artists.
Louisa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch
Pronounced: loo-EEZ-ə(English) loo-EE-za(German)
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
Latinate feminine form of
Louis. A famous bearer was the American novelist Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888), the author of
Little Women.
Lucian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Romanian, English
Pronounced: LOO-chyan(Romanian) LOO-shən(English)
Rating: 87% based on 3 votes
Romanian and English form of
Lucianus. Lucian is the usual name of Lucianus of Samosata in English.
Lucifer
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Judeo-Christian-Islamic Legend
Pronounced: LOO-si-fər(American English) LOO-si-fə(British English)
Rating: 53% based on 3 votes
Means
"bringing light", derived from Latin
lux "light" and
ferre "to bring". In Latin this name originally referred to the morning star, Venus, but later became associated with the chief angel who rebelled against God's rule in heaven (see
Isaiah 14:12). In later literature, such as the
Divine Comedy (1321) by Dante and
Paradise Lost (1667) by John Milton, Lucifer became associated with Satan himself.
Lucius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman, Biblical, English
Pronounced: LOO-kee-oos(Latin) LOO-shəs(English) LOO-si-əs(English)
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Roman
praenomen, or given name, which was derived from Latin
lux "light". This was the most popular of the praenomina. Two Etruscan kings of early Rome had this name as well as several prominent later Romans, including Lucius Annaeus Seneca (known simply as Seneca), a statesman, philosopher, orator and tragedian. The name is mentioned briefly in the
New Testament belonging to a Christian in Antioch. It was also borne by three popes, including the 3rd-century
Saint Lucius. Despite this, the name was not regularly used in the Christian world until after the Renaissance.
Luther
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LOOTH-ər(American English) LOO-thə(British English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 23% based on 3 votes
From a German surname, itself derived from the Old German given name
Leuthar. The surname was borne by Martin Luther (1483-1546), a monk and theologian who started the
Protestant Reformation by nailing his famous 95 theses to a church door. It has since been used as a given name in his honour, especially among Protestants. A notable bearer from the modern era was the American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968).
Lydia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Λυδία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: LID-ee-ə(English) LUY-dya(German) LEE-dee-a(Dutch)
Rating: 85% based on 4 votes
Means
"from Lydia" in Greek. Lydia was a region on the west coast of Asia Minor, said to be named for the legendary king
Lydos. In the
New Testament this is the name of a woman converted to Christianity by
Saint Paul. In the modern era the name has been in use since the
Protestant Reformation.
Lyndon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIN-dən
Rating: 40% based on 2 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).
Lysander
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Λύσανδρος(Ancient Greek)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Latinized form of the Greek name
Λύσανδρος (Lysandros), derived from Greek
λύσις (lysis) meaning "a release, loosening" and
ἀνήρ (aner) meaning "man" (genitive
ἀνδρός). This was the name of a notable 5th-century BC Spartan general and naval commander.
Mabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAY-bəl
Rating: 100% based on 2 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).
Maddox
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: MAD-əks
Rating: 90% based on 3 votes
From a Welsh surname meaning
"son of Madoc". It was brought to public attention when the actress Angelina Jolie gave this name to her adopted son in 2002.
Madoc
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh (Rare)
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
From the Old Welsh name
Matauc, derived from
mad meaning
"good, fortunate" combined with a
diminutive suffix. This is the name of a warrior mentioned in the 7th-century Welsh poem
Y Gododdin. It was also borne by several medieval rulers, including the 12th-century Madoc ap Maredudd, the last prince of Powys. Another bearer, according to later folklore, was a son of the 12th-century
Owain the Great who sailed to the Americas.
Maeve
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, English, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: MAYV(English)
Rating: 88% based on 5 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.
Magda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Czech, Slovak, Polish, Hungarian, Croatian, Slovene, Romanian, Portuguese, Greek
Other Scripts: Μάγδα(Greek)
Pronounced: MAK-da(German) MAHKH-da(Dutch) MAG-da(Czech, Slovak, Polish) MAWG-daw(Hungarian)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Magnus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Late Roman
Pronounced: MANG-nuys(Swedish) MAHNG-noos(Norwegian) MOW-noos(Danish) MAG-nəs(English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Late Latin name meaning
"great". It was borne by a 7th-century
saint who was a missionary in Germany. It became popular in Scandinavia after the time of the 11th-century Norwegian king Magnus I, who was said to have been named after
Charlemagne, or Carolus Magnus in Latin (however there was also a Norse name
Magni). The name was borne by six subsequent kings of Norway as well as three kings of Sweden. It was imported to Scotland and Ireland during the Middle Ages.
Maia 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology
Pronounced: MIE-ya(Latin) MAY-ə(English) MIE-ə(English)
Rating: 90% based on 3 votes
Probably from Latin
maior meaning
"greater". This was the name of a Roman goddess of spring, a companion (sometimes wife) of
Vulcan. She was later conflated with the Greek goddess
Maia. The month of May is named for her.
Máirín
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: MA-ryeen
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Mannix
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Margaret
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAHR-grit(American English) MAHR-gə-rit(American English) MAH-grit(British English) MAH-gə-rit(British English)
Rating: 97% based on 3 votes
Derived from Latin
Margarita, which was from Greek
μαργαρίτης (margarites) meaning
"pearl", a word that was probably ultimately a borrowing from an Indo-Iranian language.
Saint Margaret, the patron of expectant mothers, was martyred at Antioch in the 4th century. Later legends told of her escape from a dragon, with which she was often depicted in medieval art. The saint was popular during the Middle Ages, and her name has been widely used in the Christian world.
As an English name it has been very popular since the Middle Ages. It was the top name for girls in England and Wales in the 1920s, 30s and 40s, but it declined in the latter half of the 20th century.
Other saints by this name include a queen of Scotland and a princess of Hungary. It was also borne by Queen Margaret I of Denmark, who united Denmark, Sweden, and Norway in the 14th century. Famous literary bearers include American writer Margaret Mitchell (1900-1949), the author of Gone with the Wind, and Canadian writer Margaret Atwood (1939-). Others include American anthropologist Margaret Mead (1901-1978) and British prime minister Margaret Thatcher (1925-2013).
Martha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, German, Greek, Biblical, Biblical Greek [1], Biblical Latin, Old Church Slavic
Other Scripts: Μάρθα(Greek) Марѳа(Church Slavic)
Pronounced: MAHR-thə(American English) MAH-thə(British English) MAHR-ta(Dutch) MAR-ta(German)
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
From Aramaic
מַרְתָּא (marta) meaning
"the lady, the mistress", feminine form of
מַר (mar) meaning "master". In the
New Testament this is the name of the sister of
Lazarus and
Mary of Bethany (who is sometimes identified with Mary Magdalene). She was a witness to
Jesus restoring her dead brother to life.
The name was not used in England until after the Protestant Reformation. A notable bearer was Martha Washington (1731-1802), the wife of the first American president George Washington. It is also borne by the media personality Martha Stewart (1941-).
Matilda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish, Finnish, Slovak, Slovene
Pronounced: mə-TIL-də(English) MAH-teel-dah(Finnish) MA-teel-da(Slovak)
Rating: 98% based on 4 votes
From the Germanic name
Mahthilt meaning
"strength in battle", from the elements
maht "might, strength" and
hilt "battle".
Saint Matilda was the wife of the 10th-century German king Henry I the Fowler. The name was common in many branches of European royalty in the Middle Ages. It was brought to England by the
Normans, being borne by the wife of William the Conqueror himself. Another notable royal by this name was a 12th-century daughter of Henry I of England, known as the Empress Matilda because of her first marriage to the Holy Roman emperor Henry V. She later invaded England, laying the foundations for the reign of her son Henry II.
The name was very popular until the 15th century in England, usually in the vernacular form Maud. Both forms were revived by the 19th century. This name appears in the popular Australian folk song Waltzing Matilda, written in 1895.
Maud
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Dutch, Swedish
Pronounced: MAWD(English) MOD(French) MOWT(Dutch)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Medieval English and French form of
Matilda. Though it became rare after the 14th century, it was revived and once more grew popular in the 19th century, perhaps due to Alfred Tennyson's 1855 poem
Maud [1].
Mavis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAY-vis
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
From the name of the type of bird, also called the song thrush, derived from Old French mauvis, of uncertain origin. It was first used as a given name by the British author Marie Corelli, who used it for a character in her novel The Sorrows of Satan (1895).
Maynard
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAY-nərd(American English) MAY-nəd(British English)
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
From an English surname that was derived from the Old German given name
Meginhard.
Mercer
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Mercer.
Merrick
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: MEHR-ik
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From a Welsh surname that was originally derived from the given name
Meurig.
Merrill
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MEHR-əl
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From an English surname that was derived either from the given name
Muriel or from place names meaning "pleasant hill".
Meyer
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: מֵאִיר(Hebrew)
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
Alternate transcription of Hebrew
מֵאִיר (see
Meir). It also coincides with a German surname meaning "mayor, leader".
Micah
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, English
Other Scripts: מִיכָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: MIE-kə(English)
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Contracted form of
Micaiah. Micah is one of the twelve minor prophets of the
Old Testament. He authored the Book of Micah, which alternates between prophesies of doom and prophesies of restoration. This is also the name of a separate person in the Book of Judges, the keeper of an idol. It was occasionally used as an English given name by the
Puritans after the
Protestant Reformation, but it did not become common until the end of the 20th century.
Mildred
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MIL-drid
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
From the Old English name
Mildþryð meaning
"gentle strength", derived from the elements
milde "gentle" and
þryþ "strength".
Saint Mildred was a 7th-century abbess, the daughter of the Kentish princess Saint Ermenburga. After the
Norman Conquest this name became rare, but it was revived in the 19th century.
Miles
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MIELZ
Rating: 90% based on 4 votes
From the Germanic name
Milo, introduced by the
Normans to England in the form
Miles. The meaning is not known for certain. It is possibly connected to the Slavic name element
milŭ meaning
"gracious, dear". From an early date it was associated with Latin
miles meaning
"soldier".
A notable bearer was the American musician Miles Davis (1926-1991). In Scotland this name was historically used to Anglicize Maoilios.
Miller
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MIL-ər(American English) MIL-ə(British English)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
From an English occupational surname for a miller, derived from Middle English mille "mill".
Millicent
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MIL-i-sənt
Rating: 60% based on 3 votes
From the Gothic name *
Amalaswinþa, composed of the elements
amals "unceasing, vigorous, brave" and
swinþs "strong". Amalaswintha was a 6th-century queen of the Ostrogoths. The
Normans introduced this name to England in the form
Melisent or
Melisende. Melisende was a 12th-century queen of Jerusalem, the daughter of Baldwin II.
Myron
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Ukrainian, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Мирон(Ukrainian) Μύρων(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: MIE-rən(English) MUY-RAWN(Classical Greek)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Derived from Greek
μύρον (myron) meaning
"sweet oil, perfume". Myron was the name of a 5th-century BC Greek sculptor.
Saints bearing this name include a 3rd-century bishop of Crete and a 4th-century martyr from Cyzicus who was killed by a mob. These saints are more widely revered in the Eastern Church, and the name has generally been more common among Eastern Christians. As an English name, it has been used since the 19th century.
Naveed
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Persian, Arabic, Urdu
Other Scripts: نوید(Persian, Urdu) نويد(Arabic)
Pronounced: na-VEED(Persian) na-WEED(Arabic)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Alternate transcription of Persian
نوید or Arabic
نويد (see
Navid), as well as the usual Urdu transcription.
Neasa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: NYA-sə(Irish)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From Old Irish
Ness, meaning uncertain. In Irish legend she was the mother of
Conchobar. She installed her son as king of Ulster by convincing
Fergus mac Róich (her husband and Conchobar's stepfather) to give up his throne to the boy for a year and then helping him rule so astutely that the Ulstermen demanded that he remain as king. According to some versions of the legend she was originally named
Assa "gentle", but was renamed
Ní-assa "not gentle" after she sought to avenge the murders of her foster fathers.
Nell
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NEHL
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Medieval
diminutive of names beginning with
El, such as
Eleanor,
Ellen 1 or
Helen. It may have arisen from the medieval affectionate phrase
mine El, which was later reinterpreted as
my Nel.
Nessa 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew (Rare)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Means "miracle" in Hebrew.
Neva
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Rating: 65% based on 4 votes
Short form of
Geneva. This is also the name of a river in Russia.
Neve
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Anglicized form of
Niamh.
Niall
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Old Irish [1]
Pronounced: NYEEYL(Irish)
Rating: 83% based on 3 votes
Niamh
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: NYEEYW(Irish) NYEEYV(Irish) NYEEV(Irish)
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Means
"bright" in Irish. She was the daughter of the sea god
Manannán mac Lir in Irish legends. She fell in love with the poet
Oisín, the son of
Fionn mac Cumhaill. It has been used as a given name for people only since the early 20th century.
Nila
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Tamil, Hindi, Indonesian, Burmese
Other Scripts: நீலா(Tamil) नीला(Hindi) နီလာ(Burmese)
Pronounced: NEE-LA(Burmese)
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
From Sanskrit
नील (nīla) meaning
"dark blue".
Nimue
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Pronounced: NIM-ə-way(English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Meaning unknown. In Arthurian legends this is the name of a sorceress, also known as the Lady of the Lake, Vivien, or Niniane. Various versions of the tales have
Merlin falling in love with her and becoming imprisoned by her magic. She first appears in the medieval French
Lancelot-Grail Cycle.
Noach
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew [1], Biblical German, Biblical Dutch
Other Scripts: נֹחַ, נוֹחַ(Hebrew)
Pronounced: NO-ahkh(Dutch)
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
Hebrew, German and Dutch form of
Noah 1.
Noam
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hebrew, French
Other Scripts: נוֹעַם(Hebrew)
Pronounced: NO-am(Hebrew) NOM(English) NAW-AM(French)
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
Means "pleasantness" in Hebrew. A famous bearer is Noam Chomsky (1928-), an American linguist and philosopher.
Noble
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NO-bəl
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
From an English surname meaning "noble, high-born". The name can also be given in direct reference to the English word noble.
Noel
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NOL, NO-əl
Rating: 53% based on 3 votes
English form of
Noël or
Noëlle (rarely). It was fairly popular in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand in the middle of the 20th century. It is occasionally written with a diaeresis, like in French. A famous bearer is British musician Noel Gallagher (1967-).
Noémie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: NAW-EH-MEE
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
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: 65% based on 4 votes
Short form of
Honora or
Eleanor. Henrik Ibsen used it for a character in his play
A Doll's House (1879).
Octavia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Romanian, Ancient Roman
Pronounced: ahk-TAY-vee-ə(American English) awk-TAY-vee-ə(British English) ok-TA-bya(Spanish) ok-TA-wee-a(Latin)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 63% based on 3 votes
Feminine form of
Octavius. Octavia was the wife of Mark Antony and the sister of the Roman emperor Augustus. In 19th-century England it was sometimes given to the eighth-born child.
Octavian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History, Romanian
Pronounced: ahk-TAY-vee-ən(American English) awk-TAY-vee-ən(British English)
Rating: 63% based on 3 votes
From the Roman name
Octavianus, which was derived from the name
Octavius. After Gaius Octavius (later the Roman emperor
Augustus) was adopted by Julius Caesar he took the name Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus.
Octavio
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: ok-TA-byo
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Octavius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman
Pronounced: ok-TA-wee-oos(Latin) ahk-TAY-vee-əs(American English) awk-TAY-vee-əs(British English)
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Roman family name derived from Latin
octavus meaning
"eighth". This was the original family name of the emperor Augustus (born Gaius Octavius). It was also rarely used as a Roman
praenomen, or given name.
Ogden
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: AWG-dən
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
From a surname that was derived from a place name meaning "oak valley" in Old English. A famous bearer was the humorous American poet Ogden Nash (1902-1971).
Oisín
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: aw-SHEEN(Irish) o-SHEEN(English)
Rating: 53% based on 3 votes
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.
Olive
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: AHL-iv(American English) AWL-iv(British English) AW-LEEV(French)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From the English and French word for the type of tree, ultimately derived from Latin oliva.
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: 57% based on 3 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.
Opal
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: O-pəl
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From the English word
opal for the iridescent gemstone, the birthstone of October. The word ultimately derives from Sanskrit
उपल (upala) meaning "jewel".
Ophelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Literature, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ὠφελία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: o-FEEL-ee-ə(English) o-FEEL-yə(English)
Rating: 60% based on 3 votes
Derived from Greek
ὠφέλεια (opheleia) meaning
"help, advantage". This was a rare ancient Greek name, which was either rediscovered or recreated by the poet Jacopo Sannazaro for a character in his poem
Arcadia (1480). It was borrowed by Shakespeare for his play
Hamlet (1600), in which it belongs to the daughter of
Polonius and the potential love interest of
Hamlet. She eventually goes insane and drowns herself after Hamlet kills her father. In spite of this negative association, the name has been in use since the 19th century.
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: 100% based on 2 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).
Oswald
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German
Pronounced: AHZ-wawld(American English) AWZ-wawld(British English) AWS-valt(German)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Derived from the Old English elements
os "god" and
weald "powerful, mighty".
Saint Oswald was a king of Northumbria who introduced Christianity to northeastern England in the 7th century before being killed in battle. There was also an Old Norse
cognate Ásvaldr in use in England, being borne by the 10th-century Saint Oswald of Worcester, who was of Danish ancestry. Though the name had died out by the end of the Middle Ages, it was revived in the 19th century.
Otto
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: AW-to(German, Dutch) AHT-o(American English) AWT-o(British English) OT-to(Finnish)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Later German form of
Audo, originally a short form of various names beginning with Old Frankish
aud or Old High German
ot meaning
"wealth, fortune". This was the name of a 9th-century king of the West Franks (name usually spelled as
Odo). This was also the name of four kings of Germany, starting in the 10th century with Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor, known as Otto the Great.
Saint Otto of Bamberg was a 12th-century missionary to Pomerania. The name was also borne by a 19th-century king of Greece, originally from Bavaria. Another notable bearer was the German chancellor Otto von Bismarck (1815-1898).
Owain
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh, Arthurian Cycle
Pronounced: O-wien(Welsh)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From an Old Welsh name (
Ougein,
Eugein and other spellings), which was possibly from the Latin name
Eugenius. Other theories connect it to the Celtic roots *
owi- "sheep", *
wesu- "good" or *
awi- "desire" combined with the Old Welsh suffix
gen "born of". This is the name of several figures from British history, including Owain mab Urien, a 6th-century prince of Rheged who fought against the Angles. The 12th-century French poet Chrétien de Troyes adapted him into
Yvain for his Arthurian romance
Yvain, the Knight of the Lion. Regarded as one of the Knights of the Round Table, Yvain or Owain has since appeared in many other Arthurian tales, typically being the son of King
Urien of Gore, and the errant husband of
Laudine, the Lady of the Fountain.
Other notable bearers include Owain the Great, a 12th-century king of Gwynedd, and Owain Glyndwr, a 14th-century leader of the Welsh resistance to English rule.
Owen 2
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: O-in(English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Pádraig
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: PA-drəg
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Pearl
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PURL(American English) PUL(British English)
Rating: 93% based on 3 votes
From the English word pearl for the concretions formed in the shells of some mollusks, ultimately from Late Latin perla. Like other gemstone names, it has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since the 19th century. The pearl is the traditional birthstone for June, and it supposedly imparts health and wealth.
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: 58% based on 4 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.
Peregrine
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: PEHR-ə-grin
Rating: 90% based on 3 votes
From the Late Latin name
Peregrinus, which meant
"traveller". This was the name of several early
saints.
Philippa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (British), German
Pronounced: FI-li-pə(British English)
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
Latinate feminine form of
Philip. As an English name, it is chiefly British.
Philomela
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Φιλομήλη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: fil-ə-MEE-lə(English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From Greek
Φιλομήλη (Philomele), derived from
φίλος (philos) meaning "lover, friend" and
μῆλον (melon) meaning "fruit". The second element has also been interpreted as Greek
μέλος (melos) meaning "song". In Greek
myth Philomela was the sister-in-law of Tereus, who raped her and cut out her tongue. Prokne avenged her sister by killing her son by Tereus, after which Tereus attempted to kill Philomela. However, the gods intervened and transformed her into a nightingale.
Philomena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Φιλουμένη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: fil-ə-MEE-nə(English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
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.
Phineas
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: פִּינְחָס(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: FIN-ee-əs(English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Phinehas
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: פִּינְחָס(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: FIN-ee-əs(English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Probably means
"Nubian" from the Egyptian name
Panhsj, though some believe it means
"serpent's mouth" in Hebrew. In the
Old Testament Phinehas is a grandson of
Aaron who kills an Israelite because he is intimate with a Midianite woman, thus stopping a plague sent by God. Also in the Bible this is the son of
Eli, killed in battle with the Philistines.
Phoebe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Greek Mythology (Latinized), Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: Φοίβη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: FEE-bee(English)
Rating: 50% based on 3 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.
Pierce
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PIRS(American English) PEEYS(British English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 87% based on 3 votes
From an English surname that was derived from the given name
Piers. In America this name slowly started to grow in popularity in 1982 when actor Pierce Brosnan (1953-) began starring on the television series
Remington Steele.
Porter
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PAWR-tər(American English) PAW-tə(British English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From an occupational English surname meaning "doorkeeper", ultimately from Old French porte "door", from Latin porta.
Prem
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hindi, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Nepali
Other Scripts: प्रेम(Hindi, Marathi, Nepali) பிரேம்(Tamil) ప్రేమ్(Telugu) ಪ್ರೇಂ(Kannada) പ്രേം(Malayalam)
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
From Sanskrit
प्रेम (prema) meaning
"love, affection".
Prentice
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: PREN-tis
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Prentice.
Price
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PRIES
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From a Welsh surname that was derived from
ap Rhys meaning
"son of Rhys".
Prosper
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: PRAWS-PEHR(French) PRAHS-pər(American English) PRAWS-pə(British English)
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
From the Latin name
Prosperus, which meant
"fortunate, successful". This was the name of a 5th-century
saint, a supporter of Saint
Augustine. It has never been common as an English name, though the
Puritans used it, partly because it is identical to the English word
prosper.
Prudence
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: PROO-dəns(English) PRUY-DAHNS(French)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Medieval English form of
Prudentia, the feminine form of
Prudentius. In France it is both the feminine form and a rare masculine form. In England it was used during the Middle Ages and was revived in the 17th century by the
Puritans, in part from the English word
prudence, ultimately of the same source.
Pryor
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
Transferred use of the surname
Pryor.
Ralph
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Swedish
Pronounced: RALF(English, German) RAYF(British English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 50% based on 3 votes
Contracted form of the Old Norse name
Ráðúlfr (or its Norman form
Radulf). Scandinavian settlers introduced it to England before the
Norman Conquest, though afterwards it was bolstered by Norman influence. In the Middle Ages it was variously spelled
Rauf,
Rafe or
Ralf reflecting the usual pronunciation. The
Ralph spelling became more common in the 18th century. A famous bearer of the name was Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), an American poet and author who wrote on transcendentalism.
Rayner
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Archaic)
Pronounced: RAY-nər(American English) RAY-nə(British English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From the Germanic name
Raginheri, composed of the elements
regin "advice, counsel, decision" and
heri "army".
Saint Rainerius was a 12th-century hermit from Pisa. The
Normans brought this name to England where it came into general use, though it was rare by the end of the Middle Ages.
Reiner
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: RIE-nu(German)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Rhett
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: REHT
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
From a surname, an Anglicized form of the Dutch de Raedt, derived from raet "advice, counsel". Margaret Mitchell used this name for the character Rhett Butler in her novel Gone with the Wind (1936).
Rhiannon
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, English, Welsh Mythology
Pronounced: ri-AN-awn(Welsh) ree-AN-ən(English)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Probably derived from an unattested Celtic name *
Rīgantonā meaning
"great queen" (Celtic *
rīganī "queen" and the divine or augmentative suffix
-on). It is speculated that Rigantona was an old Celtic goddess, perhaps associated with fertility and horses like the Gaulish
Epona. As
Rhiannon, she appears in Welsh legend in the
Mabinogi [1] as a beautiful magical woman who rides a white horse. She was betrothed against her will to
Gwawl, but cunningly broke off that engagement and married
Pwyll instead. Their son was
Pryderi.
As an English name, it became popular due to the Fleetwood Mac song Rhiannon (1976), especially in the United Kingdom and Australia.
Rhodri
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: RAW-dri
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
From the Old Welsh name
Rotri, derived from
rod "wheel" and
ri "king". This name was borne by several medieval Welsh rulers, including Rhodri the Great, a 9th-century king of Gwynedd.
Rhonwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Welsh form of
Rowena, appearing in medieval Welsh poems and stories as a personification of the English people.
Rigel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Astronomy
Pronounced: RIE-jəl(English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Derived from Arabic
الرجل (al-Rijl) meaning
"foot". This is the name of the star that forms the left foot of the constellation Orion.
Riordan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
From an Irish surname (Anglicized from Irish Gaelic
Ó Ríoghbhárdáin), which was derived from the given name
Rígbarddán.
Rivka
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: רִבְקָה(Hebrew)
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Roald
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Norwegian
Pronounced: ROO-ahl
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Modern form of the Old Norse name
Hróðvaldr or
Hróaldr, composed of the elements
hróðr "praise, fame" and
valdr "ruler". This name was borne by the Norwegian polar explorer Roald Amundsen (1872-1928) and the British children's author Roald Dahl (1916-1990), who was born to Norwegian parents.
Róisín
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: ro-SHEEN
Rating: 45% based on 2 votes
Diminutive of
Róis or the Irish word
rós meaning
"rose" (of Latin origin). It appears in the 17th-century song
Róisín Dubh.
Rolf
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, English
Pronounced: RAWLF(German) ROLF(English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
From the Old German name
Hrolf (or its Old Norse
cognate Hrólfr), a contracted form of
Hrodulf (see
Rudolf). The
Normans introduced this name to England but it soon became rare. In the modern era it has occasionally been used in the English-speaking world as a German import.
Roma 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Russian
Other Scripts: Рома(Russian)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Roman
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Russian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Ukrainian, Slovene, Croatian, Estonian, German, English
Other Scripts: Роман(Russian, Ukrainian)
Pronounced: ru-MAN(Russian) RAW-man(Polish, Slovak) RO-man(Czech, German) RO-mən(English)
Rating: 88% based on 4 votes
From the Late Latin name
Romanus meaning
"Roman". This name was borne by several early
saints including a 7th-century bishop of Rouen, as well as medieval rulers of Bulgaria, Kyiv and Moldavia.
Rónán
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Old Irish [1]
Pronounced: RO-nan(Irish)
Rating: 100% based on 3 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.
Ronen
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: רוֹנֶן(Hebrew)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Derived from Hebrew
רֹן (ron) meaning
"song, joy".
Rosalind
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAHZ-ə-lind(American English) RAWZ-ə-lind(British English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 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).
Rosamund
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: RO-zə-mənd(English) RAHZ-ə-mənd(American English) RAWZ-ə-mənd(British English)
Rating: 90% based on 2 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.
Roscoe
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAHS-ko(American English) RAWS-ko(British English)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
From an English surname, originally derived from a place name, itself derived from Old Norse rá "roebuck" and skógr "wood, forest".
Rosemary
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ROZ-mə-ree, ROZ-mehr-ee
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Combination of
Rose and
Mary. This name can also be given in reference to the herb, which gets its name from Latin
ros marinus meaning "dew of the sea". It came into use as a given name in the 19th century.
Roxana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Romanian, Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ῥωξάνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: rahk-SAN-ə(American English) rawk-SAN-ə(British English) rok-SA-na(Spanish)
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Latin form of
Ῥωξάνη (Rhoxane), the Greek form of an Old Persian or Bactrian name, from Old Iranian *
rauxšnā meaning
"bright, shining" [1]. This was the name of Alexander the Great's first wife, a daughter of the Bactrian nobleman Oxyartes. In the modern era it came into use during the 17th century. In the English-speaking world it was popularized by Daniel Defoe, who used it in his novel
Roxana (1724).
Roxane
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: RAWK-SAN(French) rahk-SAN(American English) rawk-SAN(British English)
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
French and English form of
Roxana. This is the name of Cyrano's love interest in the play
Cyrano de Bergerac (1897).
Ruarc
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From Old Irish
Ruarcc. It was possibly an early borrowing from the Old Norse name
Hrǿríkr. Alternatively it might be derived from Old Irish elements such as
rúad "red" and
arg "hero, champion". This was the name of a 9th-century king of Leinster.
Ruby
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ROO-bee
Rating: 87% based on 3 votes
Simply from the name of the precious stone (which ultimately derives from Latin
ruber "red"), which is the traditional birthstone of July. It came into use as a given name in the 16th century
[1].
Rudyard
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: RUD-yərd(American English) RUD-yəd(British English)
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
From a place name meaning "red yard" in Old English. This name was borne by Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936), the author of The Jungle Book and other works, who was named after Rudyard Lake in Staffordshire.
Rufus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman, English, Biblical
Pronounced: ROO-foos(Latin) ROO-fəs(English)
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Roman
cognomen meaning
"red-haired" in Latin. Several early
saints had this name, including one mentioned in one of
Paul's epistles in the
New Testament. As a nickname it was used by William II Rufus, a king of England, because of his red hair. It came into general use in the English-speaking world after the
Protestant Reformation.
Rune
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Norwegian, Danish, Swedish
Pronounced: ROO-nə(Norwegian) ROO-neh(Danish, Swedish)
Rating: 95% based on 2 votes
Derived from Old Norse
rún meaning
"secret lore, rune".
Rupert
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, English
Pronounced: ROO-pehrt(German) ROO-pərt(American English) ROO-pət(British English)
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
German variant form of
Robert, from the Old German variant
Hrodperht. It was borne by the 7th century
Saint Rupert of Salzburg and the 8th-century Saint Rupert of Bingen. The military commander Prince Rupert of the Rhine, a nephew of Charles I, introduced this name to England in the 17th century. A notable bearer is the Australian-American businessman Rupert Murdoch (1931-).
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: 50% based on 2 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.
Sascha
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: German, Dutch
Pronounced: ZA-sha(German) SAH-sha(Dutch)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
German and Dutch form of
Sasha.
Sawyer
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: SOI-ər(American English) SOI-ə(British English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From an English surname meaning
"sawer of wood". Mark Twain used it for the hero in his novel
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876).
Very rare as an American given name before 1980, it increased in popularity in the 1980s and 90s. It got a boost in 2004 after the debut of the television series Lost, which featured a character by this name.
Scarlett
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SKAHR-lit(American English) SKAH-lit(British English)
Rating: 75% based on 4 votes
From an English surname that denoted a person who sold or made clothes made of scarlet (a kind of cloth, possibly derived from Persian
سقرلاط (saqrelāṭ)). Margaret Mitchell used it for the main character, Scarlett O'Hara, in her novel
Gone with the Wind (1936). Her name is explained as having come from her grandmother. Despite the fact that the book was adapted into a popular movie in 1939, the name was not common until the 21st century. It started rising around 2003, about the time that the career of American actress Scarlett Johansson (1984-) started taking off.
Séamus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: SHEH-məs
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Selah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: סֶלַה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: SEE-lə(English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From a Hebrew musical term that occurs many times in the
Old Testament Psalms. It was probably meant to indicate a musical pause.
Selma 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic
Pronounced: SEHL-mə(English) ZEHL-ma(German) SEHL-ma(Dutch)
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Meaning unknown, possibly a short form of
Anselma. It could also have been inspired by James Macpherson's 18th-century poems, in which it is the name of Ossian's castle.
Severin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Norwegian (Rare), Swedish (Rare), Danish (Rare)
Pronounced: zeh-veh-REEN(German) ZEH-veh-reen(German)
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Severus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman
Pronounced: seh-WEH-roos(Latin) si-VIR-əs(English) SEHV-ə-rəs(English)
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
Roman family name meaning
"stern" in Latin. This name was borne by several early
saints including a 6th-century patriarch of Antioch.
Shiloh
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: שִׁלוֹ, שִׁילֹה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: SHIE-lo(English)
Rating: 53% based on 3 votes
From an
Old Testament place name possibly meaning
"tranquil" in Hebrew. It is also used prophetically in the Old Testament to refer to a person, often understood to be the Messiah (see
Genesis 49:10). This may in fact be a mistranslation.
This name was brought to public attention after actors Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt gave it to their daughter in 2006.
Sigrid
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, German, Estonian, Finnish (Archaic)
Pronounced: SEE-grid(Swedish) SEEG-reed(Finnish)
Rating: 100% based on 3 votes
From the Old Norse name
Sigríðr, which was derived from the elements
sigr "victory" and
fríðr "beautiful, beloved".
Silas
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Greek, Danish, German, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Σίλας(Greek)
Pronounced: SIE-ləs(English)
Rating: 100% based on 3 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).
Silvanus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Roman Mythology, Ancient Roman, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Pronounced: SEEL-wa-noos(Latin) sil-VAYN-əs(English)
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Roman
cognomen meaning
"of the woods", derived from Latin
silva meaning "wood, forest". Silvanus was the Roman god of forests. This name appears in the
New Testament belonging to one of
Saint Paul's companions, also called Silas.
Silvia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, German, Dutch, English, Late Roman, Roman Mythology
Pronounced: SEEL-vya(Italian) SEEL-bya(Spanish) SEEL-vyu(European Portuguese) SEEW-vyu(Brazilian Portuguese) ZIL-vya(German) SIL-vee-a(Dutch) SIL-vee-ə(English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Feminine form of
Silvius.
Rhea Silvia was the mother of
Romulus and
Remus, the founders of Rome. This was also the name of a 6th-century
saint, the mother of the pope Gregory the Great. It has been a common name in Italy since the Middle Ages. It was introduced to England by Shakespeare, who used it for a character in his play
The Two Gentlemen of Verona (1594). It is now more commonly spelled
Sylvia in the English-speaking world.
Sirius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Astronomy
Pronounced: SIR-ee-əs(English)
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
The name of a bright star in the constellation Canis Major, derived via Latin from Greek
σείριος (seirios) meaning
"burning".
Sonal
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati
Other Scripts: सोनल(Hindi, Marathi) સોનલ(Gujarati)
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
From Hindi
सोना (sonā), Marathi
सोन (son) or Gujarati
સોનું (sonum) meaning
"gold", all derived from Sanskrit
सुवर्ण (suvarṇa) meaning literally "good colour".
Sorcha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Scottish Gaelic [1]
Pronounced: SAWR-ə-khə(Irish) SAWR-kə(American English) SAWR-shə(American English) SAW-kə(British English) SAW-shə(British English) SAWR-aw-khə(Scottish Gaelic)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Means
"radiant, bright" in Irish. It has been in use since late medieval times
[2]. It is sometimes Anglicized as
Sarah (in Ireland) and
Clara (in Scotland).
Søren
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Danish
Pronounced: SUUW-ən
Rating: 85% based on 4 votes
Danish form of
Severinus. Søren Kierkegaard (1813-1855) was a Danish philosopher who is regarded as a precursor of existentialism.
Sorrel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: SAWR-əl
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From the name of the sour tasting plant, derived from Old French sur "sour", a word of Frankish origin.
Sparrow
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: SPAR-o, SPEHR-o
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From the name of the bird, ultimately from Old English spearwa.
Sterling
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: STUR-ling(American English) STU-ling(British English)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
From a Scots surname that was derived from city of Stirling, which is itself of unknown meaning. The name can also be given in reference to the English word sterling meaning "excellent". In this case, the word derives from sterling silver, which was so named because of the emblem that some Norman coins bore, from Old English meaning "little star".
Sullivan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: SUL-i-vən(English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From an Irish surname, the Anglicized form of
Ó Súileabháin, itself from the given name
Súileabhán, which was derived from Irish
súil "eye" and
dubh "dark, black" combined with a
diminutive suffix. This name has achieved a moderate level of popularity in France since the 1970s. In the United States it was rare before the 1990s, after which it began climbing steadily. A famous fictional bearer of the surname was James P. Sullivan from the animated movie
Monsters, Inc. (2001).
Sumner
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SUM-nər, SOME-nərr
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Sumner.
Sylvain
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: SEEL-VEHN
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Tennyson
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: TEHN-ə-sən
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
From an English surname that meant
"son of Tenney",
Tenney being a medieval form of
Denis. A notable bearer of the surname was the British poet Alfred Tennyson (1809-1892), commonly called Lord Tennyson after he became a baron in 1884.
Thaddeus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: Θαδδαῖος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: THAD-ee-əs(English) tha-DEE-əs(English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 90% based on 2 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.
Theda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Short form of
Theodora. A famous bearer was actress Theda Bara (1885-1955), who was born Theodosia Goodman.
Theodore
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: THEE-ə-dawr(American English) THEE-ə-daw(British English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From the Greek name
Θεόδωρος (Theodoros), which meant
"gift of god" from Greek
θεός (theos) meaning "god" and
δῶρον (doron) meaning "gift". The name
Dorothea is derived from the same roots in reverse order. This was the name of several
saints, including Theodore of Amasea, a 4th-century Greek soldier; Theodore of Tarsus, a 7th-century archbishop of Canterbury; and Theodore the Studite, a 9th-century Byzantine monk. It was also borne by two popes.
This was a common name in classical Greece, and, due to both the saints who carried it and the favourable meaning, it came into general use in the Christian world, being especially popular among Eastern Christians. It was however rare in Britain before the 19th century. Famous bearers include three tsars of Russia (in the Russian form Fyodor) and American president Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919).
Theophilus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Θεόφιλος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: thee-AHF-i-ləs(American English) thee-AWF-i-ləs(British English)
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
Latinized form of the Greek name
Θεόφιλος (Theophilos) meaning
"friend of god", derived from
θεός (theos) meaning "god" and
φίλος (philos) meaning "friend". In the
New Testament the evangelist
Luke addresses his gospel and the Book of Acts to a man named Theophilus.
Thora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian, Danish
Rating: 100% based on 3 votes
Tierney
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Tilda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish, Finnish
Pronounced: TIL-də(English) TEEL-dah(Finnish)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Tilden
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (American, Rare)
Pronounced: TIL-dən(American English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Transferred use of the surname
Tilden.
Truman
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TROO-mən
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
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).
Turner
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TUR-nər(American English) TU-nə(British English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From an English surname for one who worked with a lathe, derived from Old English turnian "to turn", of Latin origin.
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: 60% based on 1 vote
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.
Upton
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: UP-tən
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From a surname that was derived from a place name meaning "upper town" in Old English. A famous bearer of this name was the American novelist Upton Sinclair (1878-1968).
Veda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Telugu, Kannada
Other Scripts: వేద(Telugu) ವೇದ(Kannada)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Means "knowledge" in Sanskrit.
Vera 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Portuguese, Italian, Spanish, Hungarian, Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Belarusian, Georgian
Other Scripts: Вера(Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Belarusian) ვერა(Georgian)
Pronounced: VYEH-rə(Russian) VIR-ə(English) VEHR-ə(English) VEH-ra(German, Dutch) VEH-rah(Swedish) BEH-ra(Spanish) VEH-raw(Hungarian)
Rating: 93% based on 3 votes
Means "faith" in Russian, though it is sometimes associated with the Latin word verus "true". It has been in general use in the English-speaking world since the late 19th century.
Vered
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: וֶרֶד(Hebrew)
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Means "rose" in Hebrew, originally a borrowing from an Iranian language.
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: 90% based on 2 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: 100% based on 3 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.
Virginia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Greek, Ancient Roman
Other Scripts: Βιργινία(Greek)
Pronounced: vər-JIN-yə(American English) və-JIN-yə(British English) veer-JEE-nya(Italian) beer-KHEE-nya(Spanish)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Feminine form of the Roman family name
Verginius or
Virginius, which is of unknown meaning, but long associated with Latin
virgo "maid, virgin". According to a legend, it was the name of a Roman woman killed by her father so as to save her from the clutches of a crooked official.
This was the name of the first English baby born in the New World: Virginia Dare in 1587 on Roanoke Island. Perhaps because of this, the name has generally been more popular in America than elsewhere in the English-speaking world, though in both Britain and America it was not often used until the 19th century. The baby was named after the Colony of Virginia, which was itself named for Elizabeth I, the Virgin Queen. A more recent bearer was the English novelist Virginia Woolf (1882-1941).
Walter
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Italian, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: WAWL-tər(American English) WAWL-tə(British English) VAL-tu(German) VAL-tehr(Swedish, Italian)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
From the Germanic name
Waltheri meaning
"power of the army", from the elements
walt "power, authority" and
heri "army". In medieval German tales (notably
Waltharius by Ekkehard of
Saint Gall) Walter of Aquitaine is a heroic king of the Visigoths. The name was also borne by an 11th-century French saint, Walter of Pontoise. The
Normans brought it to England, where it replaced the Old English
cognate Wealdhere.
A famous bearer of the name was the English courtier, poet and explorer Walter Raleigh (1552-1618). It was also borne by Walter Scott (1771-1832), a Scottish novelist who wrote Ivanhoe and other notable works.
Ward 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WAWRD(American English) WAWD(British English)
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
From an occupational surname for a watchman, derived from Old English
weard "guard".
Warwick
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: WAWR-ik
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
From a surname that was derived from the name of a town in England, itself from Old English wer "weir, dam" and wic "settlement".
Wesley
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WEHS-lee, WEHZ-lee
Rating: 50% 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.
Wilder
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
From an English surname meaning "wild, untamed, uncontrolled", from Old English wilde.
Wilhelm
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Polish, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: VIL-helm(German) VEEL-khelm(Polish)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
German
cognate of
William. This was the name of two German emperors. It was also the middle name of several philosophers from Germany: Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831), Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (1844-1900), and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646-1716), who was also a notable mathematician. Another famous bearer was the physicist Wilhelm Röntgen (1845-1923).
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: 70% based on 1 vote
Dutch and German feminine form of
Wilhelm. This name was borne by a queen of the Netherlands (1880-1962).
Willis
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WIL-is
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Winifred
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Welsh
Pronounced: WIN-ə-frid(English)
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
From Latin
Winifreda, possibly from a Welsh name
Gwenfrewi (maybe influenced by the Old English masculine name
Winfred).
Saint Winifred was a 7th-century Welsh martyr, probably legendary. According to the story, she was decapitated by a prince after she spurned his advances. Where her head fell there arose a healing spring, which has been a pilgrimage site since medieval times. Her story was recorded in the 12th century by Robert of Shrewsbury, and she has been historically more widely venerated in England than in Wales. The name has been used in England since at least the 16th century.
Wolf
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Jewish, English (Rare), Germanic [1]
Other Scripts: װאָלףֿ(Yiddish)
Pronounced: VAWLF(German) WUWLF(English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 45% based on 2 votes
Short form of
Wolfgang,
Wolfram and other names containing the Old German element
wolf meaning
"wolf" (Proto-Germanic *
wulfaz). It can also be simply from the German or English word. As a Jewish name it can be considered a vernacular form of
Zeev.
Wolfram
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German
Pronounced: VAWL-fram
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Derived from the Old German element
wolf meaning "wolf" combined with
hram meaning "raven".
Saint Wolfram (or Wulfram) was a 7th-century archbishop of Sens. This name was also borne by the 13th-century German poet Wolfram von Eschenbach, the author of
Parzival.
Wright
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RIET
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
From an occupational surname meaning "craftsman", ultimately from Old English wyrhta. Famous bearers of the surname were the Wright brothers (Wilbur 1867-1912 and Orville 1871-1948), the inventors of the first successful airplane, and Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959), an American architect.
York
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: YAWRK(American English) YAWK(British English)
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
From an English surname that was derived from York, the name of a city in northern England. The city name was originally
Eburacon, Latinized as
Eboracum, meaning "yew" in Brythonic. In the Anglo-Saxon period it was corrupted to
Eoforwic, as if from Old English
eofor "boar" and
wic "village". This was rendered as
Jórvík by the Vikings and eventually reduced to
York.
Zelda 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Yiddish
Other Scripts: זעלדאַ(Yiddish)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Possibly a feminine form of
Zelig.
Zev
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: זְאֵב(Hebrew)
Rating: 70% based on 1 vote
Alternate transcription of Hebrew
זְאֵב (see
Zeev).
Zillah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: צִלָּה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: ZIL-ə(English)
Rating: 100% based on 2 votes
Zipporah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, Hebrew
Other Scripts: צִפּוֹרָה(Hebrew)
Pronounced: zi-PAWR-ə(English) ZIP-ə-rə(English)
Rating: 95% based on 2 votes
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