Ino Aole's Personal Name List
Aamina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arabic, Somali
Other Scripts: آمنة(Arabic)
Pronounced: A-mee-na(Arabic)
Alternate transcription of Arabic
آمنة (see
Amina 1), as well as the Somali form.
Abigail
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Biblical, Biblical German, Biblical Italian, Biblical Portuguese, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: אֲבִיגַיִל(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: AB-i-gayl(English)
From the Hebrew name
אֲבִיגָיִל (ʾAviḡayil) meaning
"my father is joy", derived from the roots
אָב (ʾav) meaning "father" and
גִּיל (gil) meaning "joy". In the
Old Testament this is the name of Nabal's wife. After Nabal's death she became the third wife of King
David.
As an English name, Abigail first became common after the Protestant Reformation, and it was popular among the Puritans. The biblical Abigail refers to herself as a servant, and beginning in the 17th century the name became a slang term for a servant, especially after the release of the play The Scornful Lady (1616), which featured a character named Abigail. The name went out of fashion at that point, but it was revived in the 20th century.
Abital
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: אֲבִיטָל(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: AB-i-tal(English)
Means
"my father is dew" in Hebrew, from the roots
אָב (ʾav) meaning "father" and
טַל (ṭal) meaning "dew". She is the fifth wife of
David in the
Old Testament.
Addison
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AD-i-sən
From an English surname meaning
"son of Adam". Its recent popularity as a feminine name stems from its similarity in sound to
Madison.
Addy 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AD-ee
Adolph
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: A-dawlf(American English, British English) AY-dawlf(American English)
English form of
Adolf, rarely used since World War II.
Afia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Akan
Aileen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish, Irish, English
Pronounced: ie-LEEN(English) IE-leen(English)
Aimée
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: EH-MEH
Ajax
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Αἴας(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: AY-jaks(English)
From the Greek name
Αἴας (Aias), perhaps deriving from Greek
αἰαστής (aiastes) meaning
"mourner" or
αἶα (aia) meaning
"earth, land". In Greek
mythology this was the name of two of the heroes who fought for the Greeks in the Trojan War: the son of
Telamon and the son of Oileus. When the armour of the slain hero
Achilles was not given to Ajax Telamonian, he became mad with jealousy and killed himself.
Alan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Scottish, Breton, French, Polish
Pronounced: AL-ən(English) A-lahn(Breton) A-LAHN(French)
The meaning of this name is not known for certain. It was used in Brittany at least as early as the 6th century, and it possibly means either
"little rock" or
"handsome" in Breton. Alternatively, it may derive from the tribal name of the Alans, an Iranian people who migrated into Europe in the 4th and 5th centuries.
This was the name of several dukes of Brittany, and Breton settlers introduced it to England after the Norman Conquest. Famous modern bearers include Alan Shepard (1923-1998), the first American in space and the fifth man to walk on the moon, and Alan Turing (1912-1954), a British mathematician and computer scientist.
Amanda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Hungarian, Latvian, Late Roman
Pronounced: ə-MAN-də(English) a-MAN-da(Spanish, Italian) a-MAHN-da(Dutch)
In part this is a feminine form of
Amandus. However, it was not used during the Middle Ages. In the 17th century it was recreated by authors and poets who based it directly on Latin
amanda meaning
"lovable, worthy of love". Notably, the playwright Colley Cibber used it for a character in his play
Love's Last Shift (1696). It came into regular use during the 19th century.
Amani
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arabic
Other Scripts: أماني(Arabic)
Pronounced: a-MA-nee
Means
"wishes" in Arabic, related to the root
منا (manā) meaning "to tempt, to put to the test".
Ambre
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: AHNBR
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)
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.
Amelie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German
Pronounced: a-meh-LEE
Amery
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: AM-ə-ree
Amie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AY-mee
Amna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arabic, Urdu, Bosnian
Other Scripts: آمنة(Arabic) آمنہ(Urdu)
Pronounced: AM-na(Arabic)
Means
"safety" in Arabic, derived from
أمن (ʾamina) meaning
"to be safe".
Andra 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Romanian
Andromeda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἀνδρομέδα, Ἀνδρομέδη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: AN-DRO-MEH-DA(Classical Greek) an-DRAH-mi-də(American English) an-DRAW-mi-də(British English)
Derived from Greek
ἀνήρ (aner) meaning "man" (genitive
ἀνδρός) combined with one of the related words
μέδομαι (medomai) meaning "to be mindful of, to provide for, to think on" or
μέδω (medo) meaning "to protect, to rule over". In Greek
mythology Andromeda was an Ethiopian princess rescued from sacrifice by the hero
Perseus. A constellation in the northern sky is named for her. This is also the name of a nearby galaxy, given because it resides (from our point of view) within the constellation.
Anelie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German (Rare)
Annelien
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch
Pronounced: ah-nə-LEEN
Antiope
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἀντιόπη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: an-TIE-ə-pee(English)
Derived from the Greek elements
ἀντί (anti) meaning "against, compared to, like" and
ὄψ (ops) meaning "voice". This was the name of several figures in Greek
mythology, including a daughter of
Ares who was one of the queens of the Amazons. She was kidnapped and married by
Theseus.
Anubis
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Egyptian Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ἄνουβις(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ə-NOO-bis(English)
Latinized form of
Ἄνουβις (Anoubis), the Greek form of Egyptian
jnpw (reconstructed as
Anapa and other forms), which coincided with a word meaning
"royal child, prince". However, it might alternatively be derived from the root
jnp meaning
"to decay". Anubis was the Egyptian god who led the dead to the underworld. He was often depicted as a man with the head of a jackal. The Greeks equated him with their god
Hermes.
Aodh
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Scottish Gaelic, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: EH(Irish) EE(Irish) UGH(Scottish Gaelic) U(Scottish Gaelic)
From Old Irish
Áed, which meant
"fire". This was a very popular name in early Ireland, being borne by numerous figures in Irish
mythology and several high kings. It has been traditionally Anglicized as
Hugh.
Aoife
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: EE-fyə(Irish)
From Old Irish
Aífe, derived from
oíph meaning
"beauty" (modern Irish
aoibh). This was the name of several characters in Irish legend, including a woman at war with
Scáthach (her sister in some versions). She was defeated in single combat by the hero
Cúchulainn, who spared her life on the condition that she bear him a child (
Connla). Another legendary figure by this name appears in the
Children of Lir as the jealous third wife of
Lir.
This name is sometimes Anglicized as Eve or Eva.
April
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AY-prəl
From the name of the month, probably originally derived from Latin aperire "to open", referring to the opening of flowers. It has only been commonly used as a given name since the 1940s.
Aqil
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arabic, Urdu
Other Scripts: عقيل(Arabic) عقیل(Urdu)
Pronounced: ‘a-KEEL(Arabic)
Means
"intelligent, wise, reasonable" in Arabic, from the root
عقل (ʿaqala) meaning "to have intelligence, to be reasonable". Aqil ibn Abi Talib was the name of a cousin of the Prophet
Muhammad.
Araceli
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: a-ra-THEH-lee(European Spanish) a-ra-SEH-lee(Latin American Spanish)
Means
"altar of the sky" from Latin
ara "altar" and
coeli "sky". This is an epithet of the Virgin
Mary in her role as the patron
saint of Lucena, Spain.
Arachne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἀράχνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: A-RA-KNEH(Classical Greek) ə-RAK-nee(English)
Means
"spider" in Greek. In Greek
myth Arachne was a mortal woman who defeated
Athena in a weaving contest. After this Arachne hanged herself, but Athena brought her back to life in the form of a spider.
Aria 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: AHR-ee-ə
Means "song, melody" in Italian (literally means "air"). An aria is an elaborate vocal solo, the type usually performed in operas. As an English name, it has only been in use since the 20th century, its rise in popularity accelerating after the 2010 premier of the television drama Pretty Little Liars, featuring a character by this name. It is not traditionally used in Italy.
Ariel
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hebrew, English, French, Spanish, Polish, Biblical, Biblical Greek
Other Scripts: אֲרִיאֵל(Hebrew) Ἀριήλ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: a-ree-EHL(Hebrew) EHR-ee-əl(English) AR-ee-əl(English) A-RYEHL(French) a-RYEHL(Spanish) A-ryehl(Polish)
Means
"lion of God" in Hebrew, from
אֲרִי (ʾari) meaning "lion" and
אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God". In the
Old Testament it is used as another name for the city of Jerusalem. Shakespeare utilized it for a spirit in his play
The Tempest (1611) and Alexander Pope utilized it for a sylph in his poem
The Rape of the Lock (1712), and one of the moons of Uranus bears this name in his honour. As an English name, it became more common for females in the 1980s, especially after it was used for the title character in the Disney film
The Little Mermaid (1989).
Arielle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: A-RYEHL(French)
French feminine form of
Ariel, as well as an English variant.
Aristotle
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek (Anglicized)
Other Scripts: Ἀριστοτέλης(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: AR-i-staht-əl(American English) AR-i-stawt-əl(British English)
From the Greek name
Ἀριστοτέλης (Aristoteles) meaning
"the best purpose", derived from
ἄριστος (aristos) meaning "best" and
τέλος (telos) meaning "purpose, result, completion". This was the name of a Greek philosopher of the 4th century BC who made lasting contributions to Western thought, including the fields of logic, metaphysics, ethics and biology.
Artemis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, Greek
Other Scripts: Ἄρτεμις(Ancient Greek) Άρτεμις(Greek)
Pronounced: AR-TEH-MEES(Classical Greek) AHR-tə-mis(American English) AH-tə-mis(British English)
Meaning unknown, possibly related either to Greek
ἀρτεμής (artemes) meaning
"safe" or
ἄρταμος (artamos) meaning
"a butcher". Artemis was the Greek goddess of the moon and hunting, the twin of
Apollo and the daughter of
Zeus and
Leto. She was known as
Diana to the Romans.
Ashley
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ASH-lee
From an English surname that was originally derived from place names meaning
"ash tree clearing", from a combination of Old English
æsc and
leah. Until the 1960s it was more commonly given to boys in the United States, but it is now most often used on girls. It reached its height of popularity in America in 1987, but it did not become the highest ranked name until 1991, being overshadowed by the likewise-popular
Jessica until then. In the United Kingdom it is still more common as a masculine name.
Aspasia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1], Greek
Other Scripts: Ἀσπασία(Ancient Greek) Ασπασία(Greek)
Pronounced: A-SPA-SEE-A(Classical Greek)
Derived from Greek
ἀσπάσιος (aspasios) meaning
"welcome, embrace". This was the name of the lover of Pericles (5th century BC).
Aspen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: AS-pən
From the English word for a variety of deciduous trees in the genus Populus, derived from Old English æspe. It is also the name of a ski resort in Colorado.
Astraea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ἀστραία(Ancient Greek)
Latinized form of the Greek
Ἀστραία (Astraia), derived from Greek
ἀστήρ (aster) meaning
"star". Astraea was a Greek goddess of justice and innocence. After wickedness took root in the world she left the earth and became the constellation Virgo.
Astrid
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, French, English
Pronounced: AS-strid(Swedish) AHS-tri(Norwegian) AS-trit(German) AS-TREED(French) AS-trid(English)
Modern Scandinavian form of
Ástríðr. This name was borne by the Swedish writer Astrid Lindgren (1907-2002), the author of
Pippi Longstocking. It was also borne by a Swedish princess (1905-1935) who became the queen of Belgium as the wife of Leopold III.
Atarah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: עֲטָרָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: AT-ə-rə(English)
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)
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.
Aubrey
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AWB-ree
From
Auberi, an Old French form of
Alberich brought to England by the
Normans. It was common in the Middle Ages, and was revived in the 19th century. Since the mid-1970s it has more frequently been given to girls, due to Bread's 1972 song
Aubrey along with its similarity to the established feminine name
Audrey.
Audrey
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: AWD-ree(English) O-DREH(French)
Medieval
diminutive of
Æðelþryð. This was the name of a 7th-century
saint, a princess of East Anglia who founded a monastery at Ely. It was also used by William Shakespeare for a character in his comedy
As You Like It (1599). At the end of the Middle Ages the name became rare due to association with the word
tawdry (which was derived from
St. Audrey, the name of a fair where cheap lace was sold), but it was revived in the 19th century. A famous bearer was British actress Audrey Hepburn (1929-1993).
Aura
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, Finnish
Pronounced: AWR-ə(English) OW-ra(Italian, Spanish) OW-rah(Finnish)
From the word
aura (derived from Latin, ultimately from Greek
αὔρα meaning "breeze") for a distinctive atmosphere or illumination.
Aurelius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman
Pronounced: ow-REH-lee-oos(Latin) aw-REEL-ee-əs(English)
Roman family name that was derived from Latin
aureus meaning
"golden, gilded". Marcus Aurelius was a 2nd-century Roman emperor and philosophical writer. This was also the name of several early
saints.
Aurora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, English, Romanian, Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish, Roman Mythology
Pronounced: ow-RAW-ra(Italian) ow-RO-ra(Spanish, Latin) ə-RAWR-ə(English) OW-ro-rah(Finnish)
Means "dawn" in Latin. Aurora was the Roman goddess of the morning. It has occasionally been used as a given name since the Renaissance.
Autumn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AW-təm
From the name of the season, ultimately from Latin autumnus. This name has been in general use since the 1960s.
Ava 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Persian
Other Scripts: آوا(Persian)
Pronounced: aw-VAW
Means "voice, sound" in Persian.
Axelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: A-KSEHL
Azura
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: ə-ZHUWR-ə, AZH-rə
Azure
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: AZH-ər(American English) AZH-ə(British English)
From the English word that means "sky blue". It is ultimately (via Old French, Latin and Arabic) from Persian
لاجورد (lājvard) meaning "azure, lapis lazuli".
Ba'al
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Semitic Mythology, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: בַּעַל(Ancient Hebrew) 𐤁𐤏𐤋(Phoenician)
Pronounced: BAY-əl(English) BAYL(English)
Hebrew form of Semitic root
bʿl meaning
"lord, master, possessor". This was the title of various deities, often associated with storms and fertility, who were worshipped by the Canaanites, Phoenicians, and other peoples of the ancient Near East. It was particularly applied to the god
Hadad.
Bailey
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BAY-lee
From an English surname derived from Middle English
baili meaning
"bailiff", originally denoting one who was a bailiff.
Already an uncommon masculine name, it slowly grew in popularity for American girls beginning in 1978 after the start of the sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati, which featured a character with this name. Though it remained more common as a feminine name, it got a boost for boys in 1994 from another television character on the drama Party of Five. In the United Kingdom and Australia it has always been more popular for boys.
Barak 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, Biblical, Biblical Greek, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: בָּרָק(Hebrew) Βαράκ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: BAR-ək(English)
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.
Barak 2
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arabic
Other Scripts: براك(Arabic)
Pronounced: ba-RAK
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)
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.
Benjamin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Slovene, Croatian, Biblical
Other Scripts: בִּנְיָמִין(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: BEHN-jə-min(English) BEHN-ZHA-MEHN(French) BEHN-ya-meen(German) BEHN-ya-min(Dutch)
From the Hebrew name
בִּנְיָמִין (Binyamin) meaning
"son of the south" or
"son of the right hand", from the roots
בֵּן (ben) meaning "son" and
יָמִין (yamin) meaning "right hand, south". Benjamin in the
Old Testament was the twelfth and youngest son of
Jacob and the founder of one of the southern tribes of the Hebrews. He was originally named
בֶּן־אוֹנִי (Ben-ʾoni) meaning "son of my sorrow" by his mother
Rachel, who died shortly after childbirth, but it was later changed by his father (see
Genesis 35:18).
As an English name, Benjamin came into general use after the Protestant Reformation. A famous bearer was Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), an American statesman, inventor, scientist and philosopher.
Bethany
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BETH-ə-nee
From the name of a biblical town,
Βηθανία (Bethania) in Greek, which is probably of Aramaic or Hebrew origin, possibly meaning "house of affliction" or "house of figs". In the
New Testament the town of Bethany is the home of Lazarus and his sisters Mary and Martha. It has been in use as a rare given name in the English-speaking world since the 19th century, in honour of Mary of Bethany. In America it became moderately common after the 1950s.
Beverly
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BEHV-ər-lee(American English) BEHV-ə-lee(British English)
From an English surname that was originally derived from the name of a Yorkshire city, itself from Old English
beofor "beaver" and (possibly)
licc "stream". It came into use as a masculine given name in the 19th century, then became common as an American feminine name after the publication of George Barr McCutcheon's 1904 novel
Beverly of Graustark [1]. It was most popular in the 1930s, and has since greatly declined in use.
Bradley
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BRAD-lee
From an English surname that originally came from a place name meaning "broad clearing" in Old English. A famous bearer of the surname was the World War II American general Omar Bradley (1893-1981).
Branda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: BRAN-də
Perhaps a variant of
Brandy or a feminine form of
Brand.
Brande
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Brant
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BRANT
From an English surname that was derived from the Old Norse given name
Brandr. This is also the name for a variety of wild geese.
Branwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, Welsh Mythology
Pronounced: BRAN-wehn(Welsh)
Means
"white raven" from Old Welsh
bran "raven" and
gwen "white, blessed". According to the Second Branch of the
Mabinogi [1] she was the daughter of
Llŷr. After she was mistreated by her husband Matholwch, the king of Ireland, she managed to get a message to her brother
Brân, the king of Britain. Brân launched a costly invasion to rescue her, but she died of grief shortly after her return.
Brennan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BREHN-ən
From an Irish surname (Anglicized from Irish Gaelic
Ó Braonáin) that was derived from the byname
Braonán, itself from Irish
braon meaning "rain, moisture, drop" combined with a
diminutive suffix. As a given name, it has been used since the 1960s as an alternative to
Brendan or
Brandon, though it has not been as popular as them.
Brett
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BREHT
From a Middle English surname meaning
"a Breton", referring to an inhabitant of
Brittany. A famous bearer is the American football quarterback Brett Favre (1969-).
Brian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Irish, Old Irish [1]
Pronounced: BRIE-ən(English) BRYEEYN(Irish)
Meaning uncertain, possibly related to the old Celtic root *
brixs "hill, high" (Old Irish
brií) or the related *
brigā "might, power" (Old Irish
briíg). It was borne by the Irish king Brian Boru, who thwarted Viking attempts to conquer Ireland in the 11th century. He was slain in the Battle of Clontarf, though his forces were decisively victorious. This name was common in Ireland after his time, and it was introduced to northern England by Norse-Gael settlers. It was also used in Brittany, and was brought to England by Bretons in the wake of the
Norman Conquest. Though it eventually became rare in the English-speaking world, it was strongly revived in the 20th century, becoming a top-ten name for boys in most regions.
Brielle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: bree-EHL
Short form of
Gabrielle. This is also the name of towns in the Netherlands and New Jersey, though their names derive from a different source.
Brígh
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish Mythology
From Old Irish
bríg meaning
"might, power". This was the name of a daughter of the Irish god
Dagda.
Buffy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BUF-ee
Diminutive of
Elizabeth, from a child's pronunciation of the final syllable. It is now associated with the main character from the television series
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003).
Cadence
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KAY-dəns
From an English word meaning "rhythm, flow". It has been in use only since the 20th century.
Caelestis
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Late Roman
Late Latin name meaning "of the sky, heavenly", a derivative of Latin caelum "heaven, sky".
Cahya
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Indonesian
Pronounced: CHAH-yaw
Calista
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Portuguese (Rare), Spanish (Rare)
Pronounced: kə-LIS-tə(English) ka-LEES-ta(Spanish)
Feminine form of
Callistus. As an English name it might also be a variant of
Kallisto.
Calixto
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Spanish, Portuguese (Rare)
Pronounced: ka-LEEKS-to(Spanish)
Spanish and Portuguese form of
Calixtus.
Callistus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Late Roman
Pronounced: kə-LIS-təs(English)
Late Latin name that was derived from the Greek name
Κάλλιστος (Kallistos) meaning
"most beautiful". This was the name of three popes (also known as Callixtus), including the 3rd-century Callistus I who is regarded as a
saint.
Calvin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAL-vin
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).
Calypso
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Καλυψώ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: kə-LIP-so(English)
From Greek
Καλυψώ (Kalypso), which probably meant
"she that conceals", derived from
καλύπτω (kalypto) meaning "to cover, to conceal". In Greek
myth this was the name of the nymph who fell in love with
Odysseus after he was shipwrecked on her island of Ogygia. When he refused to stay with her she detained him for seven years until
Zeus ordered her to release him.
Cam 1
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Vietnamese
Pronounced: KAM
From Sino-Vietnamese
柑 (cam) meaning
"orange (fruit)".
Cam 2
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAM
Camden
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KAM-dən
From an English surname that was derived from a place name, perhaps meaning "enclosed valley" in Old English. A famous bearer of the surname was the English historian William Camden (1551-1623).
Cameron
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAM-rən
From a Scottish surname meaning
"crooked nose" from Gaelic
cam "crooked" and
sròn "nose". As a given name it is mainly used for boys. It got a little bump in popularity for girls in the second half of the 1990s, likely because of the fame of actress Cameron Diaz (1972-). In the United States, the forms
Camryn and
Kamryn are now more popular than
Cameron for girls.
Candelaria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: kan-deh-LA-rya
Means
"Candlemas" in Spanish, ultimately derived from Spanish
candela "candle". This name is given in honour of the church festival of Candlemas, which commemorates the presentation of Christ in the temple and the purification of the Virgin
Mary.
Carrie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAR-ee, KEHR-ee
Diminutive of
Caroline. This name declined in use shortly after the 1976 release of the horror movie
Carrie, which was based on a 1974 novel by Stephen King.
Carson
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAHR-sən(American English) KAH-sən(British English)
From a Scottish surname of uncertain meaning. A famous bearer of the surname was the American scout Kit Carson (1809-1868).
Cassarah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: kə-SEHR-ə, kə-SAR-ə, KAS-ə-rə
Recently created name intended to mean "what will be, will be". It is from the title of the 1956 song Que Sera, Sera, which was taken from the Italian phrase che sarà sarà. The phrase que sera, sera is not grammatically correct in any Romance language.
Cassiopea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Κασσιόπεια, Κασσιέπεια(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: kas-ee-ə-PEE-ə(English)
Cătălin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Romanian
Pronounced: kə-tə-LEEN
Cate
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: KAYT
Variant of
Kate. A famous bearer is Australian actress Cate Blanchett (1969-).
Céleste
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: SEH-LEST
French feminine and masculine form of
Caelestis.
Celeste
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, English
Pronounced: cheh-LEH-steh(Italian) theh-LEHS-teh(European Spanish) seh-LEHS-teh(Latin American Spanish) sə-LEST(English)
Italian feminine and masculine form of
Caelestis. It is also the Portuguese, Spanish and English feminine form.
Cerberus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Κέρβερος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: SUR-bər-əs(American English) SU-bər-əs(British English)
Latinized form of the Greek
Κέρβερος (Kerberos), which possibly meant
"spotted". In Greek
myth this was the name of the three-headed dog that guarded the entrance to Hades.
Chaya
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: חַיָה(Hebrew)
Pronounced: KHA-ya
Derived from Hebrew
חָיָה (ḥaya) meaning
"living", considered a feminine form of
Chaim.
Chayim
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: חַיִּים(Hebrew)
Pronounced: KHA-yeem
Chelsea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: CHEHL-see
From the name of a district in London, originally derived from Old English and meaning "landing place for chalk or limestone". It has been in general use as an English given name since the 1970s.
Cheyenne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: shie-AN
Derived from the Lakota word šahiyena meaning "red speakers". This is the name of a Native American people of the Great Plains. The name was supposedly given to the Cheyenne by the Lakota because their language was unrelated to their own. As a given name, it has been in use since the 1950s.
Chile
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: KIEL, KIE-əl
Cinderella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: sin-də-REHL-ə(English)
Means "little ashes", in part from the French name Cendrillon. This is the main character in the folktale Cinderella about a maltreated young woman who eventually marries a prince. This old story is best known in the English-speaking world from the French author Charles Perrault's 1697 version. She has other names in other languages, usually with the meaning "ashes", such as German Aschenputtel and Italian Cenerentola.
Cinzia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Cody
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KO-dee
From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of both Irish Gaelic
Ó Cuidighthigh meaning
"descendant of the helpful one" and
Mac Óda meaning
"son of Odo". A famous bearer of the surname was the American frontiersman and showman Buffalo Bill Cody (1846-1917).
Cokkie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch (Rare)
Colby
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KOL-bee
From an English surname, originally from various place names, derived from the Old Norse byname Koli (meaning "coal, dark") and býr "farm, settlement". As a given name, its popularity spiked in the United States and Canada in 2001 when Colby Donaldson (1974-) appeared on the reality television show Survivor.
Concepción
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: kon-thehp-THYON(European Spanish) kon-sehp-SYON(Latin American Spanish)
Means
"conception" in Spanish. This name is given in reference to the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin
Mary. A city in Chile bears this name.
Concordia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology
Pronounced: kon-KOR-dee-a(Latin) kən-KAWR-dee-ə(American English) kən-KAW-dee-ə(British English)
Means "harmony" in Latin. This was the name of the Roman goddess of harmony and peace.
Conn
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology, Old Irish [1]
Perhaps from Old Irish
conn meaning
"sense, reason" or
cenn meaning
"head, chief". This was the name of a legendary high king of Ireland, Conn of the Hundred Battles.
Cornelius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman, English, Dutch, German, Biblical
Pronounced: kor-NEH-lee-oos(Latin) kawr-NEEL-ee-əs(American English) kaw-NEE-lyəs(British English) kawr-NEH-lee-yuys(Dutch) kawr-NEH-lee-uws(German)
Roman family name that possibly derives from the Latin element
cornu meaning
"horn". In Acts in the
New Testament Cornelius is a centurion who is directed by an angel to seek
Peter. After speaking with Peter he converts to Christianity, and he is traditionally deemed the first gentile convert. The name was also borne by a few early
saints, including a 3rd-century pope. In England it came into use in the 16th century, partly due to Dutch influence.
Corwin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAWR-win(American English) KAW-win(British English)
From an English surname, derived from Old French cordoan "leather", ultimately from the name of the Spanish city of Cordova.
Cree
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: KREE
From the name of a Native American tribe of central Canada. Their name derives via French from the Cree word kiristino.
Curtis
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KUR-tis(American English) KU-tis(British English)
From an English surname that originally meant "courteous" in Old French.
Cyan
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: SIE-an
From the English word meaning
"greenish blue, cyan", ultimately derived from Greek
κύανος (kyanos).
Cyril
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Czech, Slovak
Pronounced: SIR-əl(English) SEE-REEL(French) TSI-ril(Czech)
From the Greek name
Κύριλλος (Kyrillos), which was derived from Greek
κύριος (kyrios) meaning
"lord", a word used frequently in the Greek Bible to refer to God or Jesus.
This name was borne by a number of important saints, including Cyril of Jerusalem, a 4th-century bishop and Doctor of the Church, and Cyril of Alexandria, a 5th-century theologian. Another Saint Cyril was a 9th-century Greek missionary to the Slavs, who is credited with creating the Glagolitic alphabet with his brother Methodius in order to translate the Bible into Slavic. The Cyrillic alphabet, named after him, is descended from Glagolitic.
This name has been especially well-used in Eastern Europe and other places where Orthodox Christianity is prevalent. It came into general use in England in the 19th century.
Cyrus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Old Persian (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Κῦρος(Ancient Greek) 𐎤𐎢𐎽𐎢𐏁(Old Persian)
Pronounced: SIE-rəs(English)
Latin form of Greek
Κῦρος (Kyros), from the Old Persian name
𐎤𐎢𐎽𐎢𐏁 (Kuruš), possibly meaning
"young" or
"humiliator (of the enemy)" [1]. Alternatively it could be of Elamite origin. The name has sometimes been associated with Greek
κύριος (kyrios) meaning "lord".
The most notable bearer of the name was Cyrus the Great, the founder of the Achaemenid Persian Empire in the 6th century BC. He is famous in the Old Testament for freeing the captive Jews and allowing them to return to Israel after his conquest of Babylon. As an English name, it first came into use among the Puritans after the Protestant Reformation.
Dahlia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: DAL-yə, DAHL-yə, DAYL-yə
From the name of the flower, which was named for the Swedish botanist Anders Dahl.
Damian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Polish, Romanian, Dutch (Modern)
Pronounced: DAY-mee-ən(English) DA-myan(Polish)
From the Greek name
Δαμιανός (Damianos), which was derived from Greek
δαμάζω (damazo) meaning
"to tame".
Saint Damian was martyred with his twin brother
Cosmas in Syria early in the 4th century. They are the patron saints of physicians. Due to his renown, the name came into general use in Christian Europe. Another saint by this name was Peter Damian, an 11th-century cardinal and theologian from Italy.
Danica
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Serbian, Croatian, Slovene, Slovak, Macedonian, English
Other Scripts: Даница(Serbian, Macedonian)
Pronounced: DA-nee-tsa(Serbian, Croatian) DA-nyee-tsa(Slovak) DAN-i-kə(English)
From a Slavic word meaning "morning star, Venus". This name occurs in Slavic folklore as a personification of the morning star. It has sometimes been used in the English-speaking world since the 1970s.
Dante
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: DAN-teh(Italian) DAHN-tay(English) DAN-tee(English)
Medieval short form of
Durante. The most notable bearer of this name was Dante Alighieri (1265-1321), the Italian poet who wrote the
Divine Comedy.
Darcy
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAHR-see(American English) DAH-see(British English)
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).
Daria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Polish, Romanian, English, Croatian, Russian, Late Roman
Other Scripts: Дарья(Russian) Δαρεία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: DA-rya(Italian, Polish, Romanian) DAHR-ee-ə(English) DAR-ee-ə(English)
Feminine form of
Darius.
Saint Daria was a 3rd-century woman who was martyred with her husband Chrysanthus under the Roman emperor Numerian. It has never been a particularly common English given name. As a Russian name, it is more commonly transcribed
Darya.
Darya 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Persian
Other Scripts: دریا(Persian)
Pronounced: dar-YAW
Means "sea, ocean" in Persian.
Demeter 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Δημήτηρ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: DEH-MEH-TEHR(Classical Greek) də-MEET-ər(American English) də-MEET-ə(British English)
Possibly means
"earth mother", derived from Greek
δᾶ (da) meaning "earth" and
μήτηρ (meter) meaning "mother". In Greek
mythology Demeter was the goddess of agriculture, the daughter of
Cronus, the sister of
Zeus, and the mother of
Persephone. She was an important figure in the Eleusinian Mysteries, which were secret rites performed at Eleusis near Athens.
Demetria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1], English
Other Scripts: Δημητρία(Ancient Greek)
Dennis
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Dutch
Pronounced: DEHN-is(English) DEH-nis(German, Dutch)
Usual English, German and Dutch form of
Denis.
Desmond
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Irish
Pronounced: DEHZ-mənd(English)
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).
Destinee
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: DEHS-ti-nee
Devyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: DEHV-in
Dexter
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DEHK-stər(American English) DEHK-stə(British English)
From an occupational surname meaning "one who dyes" in Old English. It also coincides with the Latin word dexter meaning "right-handed, skilled".
Diklah
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: דִּקְלָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Possibly means
"palm grove" in Hebrew or Aramaic. In the
Old Testament this is the name of a son of
Joktan.
Dion
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1], English
Other Scripts: Δίων(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: DEE-ahn(American English) DEE-awn(British English)
Derived from the Greek element
Διός (Dios) meaning "of
Zeus". This was the name of a 4th-century BC tyrant of Syracuse. It has been used as an American given name since the middle of the 20th century.
Dolly
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAHL-ee(American English) DAWL-ee(British English)
Diminutive of
Dorothy.
Doll and
Dolly were used from the 16th century, and the common English word
doll (for the plaything) is derived from them. In modern times this name is also sometimes used as a diminutive of
Dolores.
Dolores
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, English
Pronounced: do-LO-rehs(Spanish) də-LAWR-is(English)
Means
"sorrows", taken from the Spanish title of the Virgin
Mary Nuestra Señora de los Dolores, meaning "Our Lady of Sorrows". It has been used in the English-speaking world since the 19th century, becoming especially popular in America during the 1920s and 30s.
Dominic
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAHM-i-nik(American English) DAWM-i-nik(British English)
From the Late Latin name
Dominicus meaning
"of the Lord". This name was traditionally given to a child born on Sunday. Several
saints have borne this name, including the 13th-century founder of the Dominican order of friars. It was in this saint's honour that the name was first used in England, starting around the 13th century. It has historically seen more use among Catholics.
Doran
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of
Ó Deoradháin, from the byname
Deoradhán, derived from Irish
deoradh meaning "exile, wanderer" combined with a
diminutive suffix.
Doriano
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: do-RYA-no
Drust
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Pictish
Pictish name probably derived from the old Celtic root *trusto- meaning "noise, tumult". This name was borne by several kings of the Picts, including their last king Drust X, who ruled in the 9th century.
Dudley
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DUD-lee
From a surname that was originally from a place name meaning "Dudda's clearing" in Old English. The surname was borne by a British noble family.
Duncan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: DUNG-kən(English)
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).
Dyan
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Dylis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Echo
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἠχώ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: EH-ko(English)
From the Greek word
ἠχώ (echo) meaning
"echo, reflected sound", related to
ἠχή (eche) meaning "sound". In Greek
mythology Echo was a nymph given a speech impediment by
Hera, so that she could only repeat what others said. She fell in love with
Narcissus, but her love was not returned, and she pined away until nothing remained of her except her voice.
Elyse
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Diminutive of
Elizabeth. It was popularized in the early 1980s by a character from the television comedy
Family Ties.
Emilie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Czech
Pronounced: eh-MEE-lyə(German) eh-MEE-lee-eh(Norwegian) EHM-i-lee(Swedish)
German, Scandinavian and Czech feminine form of
Aemilius (see
Emily).
Emma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Italian, Spanish, Catalan, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, Latvian, Dutch, German, Hungarian, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: EHM-ə(English) EH-MA(French) EHM-ma(Spanish) EHM-mah(Finnish) EH-ma(Dutch, German) EHM-maw(Hungarian)
Originally a short form of Germanic names that began with the element
irmin meaning
"whole" or
"great" (Proto-Germanic *
ermunaz). It was introduced to England by Emma of Normandy, who was the wife both of King Ethelred II (and by him the mother of Edward the Confessor) and later of King Canute. It was also borne by an 11th-century Austrian
saint, who is sometimes called
Hemma.
After the Norman Conquest this name became common in England. It was revived in the 18th century, perhaps in part due to Matthew Prior's 1709 poem Henry and Emma [2]. It was also used by Jane Austen for the central character, the matchmaker Emma Woodhouse, in her novel Emma (1816).
In the United States, it was third in rank in 1880 (behind only the ubiquitous Mary and Anna). It declined steadily over the next century, beginning another rise in the 1980s and eventually becoming the most popular name for girls in 2008. At this time it also experienced similar levels of popularity elsewhere, including the United Kingdom (where it began rising a decade earlier), Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Scandinavia and the Netherlands. Famous bearers include the actresses Emma Thompson (1959-), Emma Stone (1988-) and Emma Watson (1990-).
Emmeline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHM-ə-leen, EHM-ə-lien
From Old French
Emeline, a
diminutive of Germanic names beginning with the element
amal meaning
"unceasing, vigorous, brave". The
Normans introduced this name to England.
Emmett
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHM-it
From an English surname that was derived from a
diminutive of the feminine given name
Emma.
Enzo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Italian, French
Pronounced: EHN-tso(Italian) EHN-ZO(French)
The meaning of this name is uncertain. In some cases it seems to be an old Italian form of
Heinz, though in other cases it could be a variant of the Germanic name
Anzo. In modern times it is also used as a short form of names ending in
enzo, such as
Vincenzo or
Lorenzo.
A famous bearer was the Italian racecar driver and industrialist Enzo Ferrari (1898-1988).
Erica
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish, Italian
Pronounced: EHR-i-kə(English)
Feminine form of
Eric. It was first used in the 18th century. It also coincides with the Latin word for
"heather".
Erika
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, German, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Croatian, English, Italian
Pronounced: eh-REE-kah(Swedish, Norwegian) EH-ree-kah(Finnish) EH-ree-ka(German, Slovak) EH-ree-kaw(Hungarian) EHR-i-kə(English)
Feminine form of
Erik. It also coincides with the word for
"heather" in some languages.
Eris
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἔρις(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: EHR-is(English)
Means
"strife, discord" in Greek. In Greek
mythology Eris was the goddess of discord. She was the sister and companion of
Ares.
Ethan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: אֵיתָן(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: EE-thən(English) EH-TAN(French)
From the Hebrew name
אֵיתָן (ʾEṯan) meaning
"solid, enduring, firm". In the
Old Testament this name is borne by a few minor characters, including the wise man Ethan the Ezrahite, supposedly the author of Psalm 89.
After the Protestant Reformation it was occasionally used as a given name in the English-speaking world, and it became somewhat common in America due to the fame of the revolutionary Ethan Allen (1738-1789). It only became popular towards the end of the 20th century. It is the name of the main character in Edith Wharton's novel Ethan Frome (1911), about a man in love with his wife's cousin.
Euclid
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek (Anglicized)
Other Scripts: Εὐκλείδης(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: YOO-klid(English)
From the Greek name
Εὐκλείδης (Eukleides), derived from Greek
εὖ (eu) meaning "good" and
κλέος (kleos) meaning "glory" with the patronymic suffix
ἴδης (ides). This was the name of a 3rd-century BC Greek mathematician from Alexandria who made numerous contributions to geometry.
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)
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.
Eulalie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: UU-LA-LEE
Evan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh, English
Pronounced: EHV-ən(English)
Anglicized form of
Ifan, a Welsh form of
John.
Eve
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Estonian, Biblical
Other Scripts: חַוָּה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: EEV(English)
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.
Evette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: i-VEHT
Flick
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: FLIK
Franklin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FRANGK-lin
From an English surname that was derived from Middle English frankelin "freeman". A famous bearer of the surname was Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), an American statesman, inventor, scientist and philosopher. The name has commonly been given in his honour in the United States. It also received a boost during the term of American president Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945).
Gabija
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Lithuanian, Baltic Mythology
Probably from Lithuanian
gaubti meaning
"to cover". In Lithuanian
mythology this was the name of the goddess of fire and the home.
Gage
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: GAYJ
From an English surname of Old French origin meaning either "measure", originally denoting one who was an assayer, or "pledge", referring to a moneylender. It was popularized as a given name by a character from the book Pet Sematary (1983) and the subsequent movie adaptation (1989).
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)
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.
Gaius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman, Biblical Latin, Biblical
Pronounced: GA-ee-oos(Latin) GIE-əs(English)
Roman
praenomen, or given name, of uncertain meaning. It is possibly derived from Latin
gaudere "to rejoice", though it may be of unknown Etruscan origin. This was a very common Roman praenomen, the most famous bearers being Gaius Julius Caesar, the great leader of the Roman Republic, and his adopted son Gaius Octavius (later known as Augustus), the first Roman emperor. This name also appears in the
New Testament belonging to a bishop of Ephesus who is regarded as a
saint.
Gemma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Catalan, English (British), Dutch
Pronounced: JEHM-ma(Italian) ZHEHM-mə(Catalan) JEHM-ə(British English) GHEH-ma(Dutch)
Medieval Italian nickname meaning "gem, precious stone". It was borne by the wife of the 13th-century Italian poet Dante Alighieri.
Gerard
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Dutch, Catalan, Polish
Pronounced: ji-RAHRD(American English) JEHR-əd(British English) GHEH-rahrt(Dutch) zhə-RART(Catalan) GEH-rart(Polish)
Derived from the Old German element
ger meaning "spear" combined with
hart meaning "hard, firm, brave, hardy". This name was borne by
saints from Belgium, Germany, Hungary and Italy. The
Normans introduced it to Britain. It was initially much more common there than the similar name
Gerald [1], with which it was often confused, but it is now less common.
Germain
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: ZHEHR-MEHN
Giles
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JIELZ
From the Late Latin name
Aegidius, which is derived from Greek
αἰγίδιον (aigidion) meaning
"young goat".
Saint Giles was an 8th-century miracle worker who came to southern France from Greece. He is regarded as the patron saint of the crippled. In Old French the name
Aegidius became
Gidie and then
Gilles, at which point it was imported to England. Another famous bearer was the 13th-century philosopher and theologian Giles of Rome (
Egidio in Italian).
Ginevra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: jee-NEH-vra
Italian form of
Guinevere. This is also the Italian name for the city of Geneva, Switzerland. It is also sometimes associated with the Italian word
ginepro meaning "juniper".
Gizem
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Turkish
Pronounced: gyee-ZEHM
Means "mystery" in Turkish.
Grace
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: GRAYS
From the English word
grace, which ultimately derives from Latin
gratia. This was one of the virtue names created in the 17th century by the
Puritans. The actress Grace Kelly (1929-1982) was a famous bearer.
This name was very popular in the English-speaking world at the end of the 19th century. Though it declined in use over the next 100 years, it staged a successful comeback at the end of the 20th century. The American sitcom Will and Grace (1998-2006) may have helped, though the name was already strongly rising when it premiered. It was the top name for girls in England and Wales in 2006.
Grady
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: GRAY-dee
From an Irish surname, itself derived from the byname Gráda meaning "noble, illustrious".
Gray
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: GRAY
From an English surname meaning "grey", originally given to a person who had grey hair or clothing.
Grayson
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: GRAY-sən
From an English surname meaning
"son of the steward", derived from Middle English
greyve "steward". It became common towards the end of the 20th century because of its similarity to popular names like
Jason,
Mason and
Graham.
Griffin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: GRIF-in
Latinized form of
Gruffudd. This name can also be inspired by the English word
griffin, a creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle, ultimately from Greek
γρύψ (gryps).
Grover
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: GRO-vər(American English) GRO-və(British English)
From an English surname derived from Old English graf meaning "grove of trees". A famous bearer was the American president Grover Cleveland (1837-1908), who popularized the name in the United States at the end of the 19th century. The name is now associated with a muppet character from the children's television program Sesame Street.
Gruffydd
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: GRI-fidh
Gwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, English
Pronounced: GWEHN
From Welsh
gwen, the feminine form of
gwyn meaning "white, blessed". It can also be a short form of
Gwendolen,
Gwenllian and other names beginning with
Gwen.
Halcyone
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ἀλκυόνη(Ancient Greek)
Latinized form of Greek
Ἀλκυόνη (see
Alcyone), via the misspelled variant
Ἁλκυόνη (Halkyone). The spelling variation was due to a false association with
ἅλς (hals) meaning "salt, sea".
Harper
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAHR-pər(American English) HAH-pə(British English)
From an English surname that originally belonged to a person who played or made harps (Old English hearpe). A notable bearer was the American author Harper Lee (1926-2016), who wrote To Kill a Mockingbird. It rapidly gained popularity in the 2000s and 2010s, entering the American top ten for girls in 2015.
Heather
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HEDH-ər(American English) HEDH-ə(British English)
From the English word heather for the variety of small shrubs with pink or white flowers, which commonly grow in rocky areas. It is derived from Middle English hather. It was first used as a given name in the late 19th century, though it did not become popular until the last half of the 20th century.
Helen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Estonian, Greek Mythology (Anglicized)
Other Scripts: Ἑλένη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: HEHL-ən(English)
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.
Henry
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HEHN-ree
From the Germanic name
Heimirich meaning
"home ruler", composed of the elements
heim "home" and
rih "ruler". It was later commonly spelled
Heinrich, with the spelling altered due to the influence of other Germanic names like
Haganrich, in which the first element is
hag "enclosure".
Heinrich was popular among continental royalty, being the name of seven German kings, starting with the 10th-century Henry I the Fowler (the first of the Saxon kings), and four French kings. In France it was usually rendered Henri from the Latin form Henricus.
The Normans introduced the French form to England, and it was subsequently used by eight kings, ending with the infamous Henry VIII in the 16th century. During the later Middle Ages it was fairly popular, and was generally rendered as Harry or Herry in English pronunciation. Notable bearers include arctic naval explorer Henry Hudson (1570-1611), American-British novelist Henry James (1843-1916), American automobile manufacturer Henry Ford (1863-1947), and American actor Henry Fonda (1905-1982).
Hyacinthus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized), Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ὑάκινθος(Ancient Greek)
Latinized form of the Greek name
Ὑάκινθος (Hyakinthos), which was derived from the name of the hyacinth flower. In Greek legend Hyakinthos was accidentally killed by the god
Apollo, who mournfully caused this flower to arise from his blood. The name was also borne by several early
saints, notably a 3rd-century martyr who was killed with his brother Protus.
Hymie
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Jewish
Iole
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἰόλη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: EE-O-LEH(Classical Greek) IE-ə-lee(English)
Ione
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, English
Other Scripts: Ἰόνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ie-O-nee(English)
From Ancient Greek
ἴον (ion) meaning
"violet flower". This was the name of a sea nymph in Greek
mythology. It has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since the 19th century, though perhaps based on the Greek place name
Ionia, a region on the west coast of Asia Minor.
Irving
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Jewish
Pronounced: UR-ving(American English) U-ving(British English)
From a Scottish surname that was derived from the town of Irvine in North Ayrshire, itself named for the River Irvine, which is derived from Brythonic elements meaning
"green water". Historically this name has been relatively common among Jews, who have used it as an American-sounding form of Hebrew names beginning with
I such as
Isaac,
Israel and
Isaiah [1]. A famous bearer was the Russian-American songwriter and lyricist Irving Berlin (1888-1989), whose birth name was Israel Beilin.
Jaden
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: JAY-dən
An invented name, using the popular
den suffix sound found in such names as
Braden,
Hayden and
Aidan. This name first became common in America in the 1990s when similar-sounding names were increasing in popularity. The spelling
Jayden has been more popular since 2003. It is sometimes considered a variant of the biblical name
Jadon.
Jahan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Persian
Other Scripts: جهان(Persian)
Pronounced: ja-HAWN
Means "world" in Persian. This name was borne by Shah Jahan, a 17th-century Mughal emperor who is best known as the builder of the Taj Mahal.
Jakob
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Dutch, Slovene
Pronounced: YA-kawp(German, Icelandic, Dutch) YAH-kawp(Swedish, Norwegian) YAH-kob(Danish)
Form of
Jacob (or
James) used in several languages.
Jannah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: JAN-ə
Jayde
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: JAYD
Jaylyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: JAY-lən
Jaymes
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: JAYMZ
Jeanne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: ZHAN(French) JEEN(English)
Modern French form of
Jehanne, an Old French feminine form of
Iohannes (see
John). This has been the most reliably popular French name for girls since the 13th century. Joan of Arc is known as Jeanne d'Arc in France.
Jonathan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Biblical
Other Scripts: יוֹנָתָן(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: JAHN-ə-thən(American English) JAWN-ə-thən(British English) ZHAW-NA-TAHN(French) YO-na-tan(German) YO-na-tahn(Dutch)
From the Hebrew name
יְהוֹנָתָן (Yehonaṯan), contracted to
יוֹנָתָן (Yonaṯan), meaning
"Yahweh has given", derived from the roots
יְהוֹ (yeho) referring to the Hebrew God and
נָתַן (naṯan) meaning "to give". According to the
Old Testament, Jonathan was the eldest son of
Saul. His relationship with his father was strained due to his close friendship with his father's rival
David. Along with Saul he was killed in battle with the Philistines.
As an English name, Jonathan did not become common until after the Protestant Reformation. A famous bearer was the Anglo-Irish satirist Jonathan Swift (1667-1745), who wrote Gulliver's Travels and other works.
Josephine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch
Pronounced: JO-sə-feen(English) yo-zeh-FEE-nə(German)
Joshua
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical
Other Scripts: יְהוֹשֻׁעַ(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: JAHSH-oo-ə(American English) JAWSH-oo-ə(British English)
From the Hebrew name
יְהוֹשֻׁעַ (Yehoshuaʿ) meaning
"Yahweh is salvation", from the roots
יְהוֹ (yeho) referring to the Hebrew God and
יָשַׁע (yashaʿ) meaning "to save". As told in the
Old Testament, Joshua was a companion of
Moses. He went up Mount Sinai with Moses when he received the Ten Commandments from God, and later he was one of the twelve spies sent into Canaan. After Moses died Joshua succeeded him as leader of the Israelites and he led the conquest of Canaan. His original name was
Hoshea.
The name Jesus comes from a Greek transcription of the Aramaic short form יֵשׁוּעַ (Yeshuaʿ), which was the real name of Jesus. As an English name, Joshua has been in use since the Protestant Reformation.
Kacey
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KAY-see
Kacie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KAY-see
Kaden
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KAY-dən
Kai 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Frisian, German, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish, Dutch, English
Pronounced: KIE(German, Swedish, Finnish, Dutch, English)
Meaning uncertain, possibly a Frisian
diminutive of
Gerhard,
Nicolaas,
Cornelis or
Gaius [1]. It is borne by a boy captured by the Snow Queen in an 1844 fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen. Spreading from Germany and Scandinavia, this name became popular in the English-speaking world and other places in Western Europe around the end of the 20th century.
Kai 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Estonian
Kai 3
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hawaiian
Pronounced: KIE
Means "sea" in Hawaiian.
Kale
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hawaiian
Pronounced: KA-leh
Kalea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hawaiian
Pronounced: ka-LEH-a
Means "joy, happiness" in Hawaiian.
Kalyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KAY-lin
Kalypso
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Καλυψώ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: KA-LUYP-SAW(Classical Greek)
Kassandra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, Ancient Greek [1], English (Modern)
Other Scripts: Κασσάνδρα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: KAS-SAN-DRA(Classical Greek) kə-SAN-drə(English) kə-SAHN-drə(English)
Greek form of
Cassandra, as well as a modern English variant.
Kassy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KAS-ee
Katy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAY-tee
Kaveri
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hindi
Other Scripts: कावेरी(Hindi)
From the name of the Kaveri River in southern India.
Kay 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAY
Short form of
Katherine and other names beginning with
K.
Kay 2
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh Mythology, Arthurian Cycle
From the Welsh name
Cai or
Cei, possibly a form of the Roman name
Gaius. Sir Kay was one of the Knights of the Round Table in Arthurian legend. He first appears in Welsh tales as a brave companion of Arthur. In later medieval tales, notably those by the 12th-century French poet Chrétien de Troyes, he is portrayed as an unrefined boor.
Kay 3
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Frisian, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch
Pronounced: KIE(German, Swedish)
Kayin
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Yoruba (Rare)
Means "celebrate" in Yoruba.
Keighley
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
From a surname that was derived from an English place name, ultimately meaning
"clearing belonging to Cyhha". The Old English given name
Cyhha is of unknown meaning. This name also serves as a variant of
Kaylee.
Kelly
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Irish, English
Pronounced: KEHL-ee(English)
Anglicized form of the Irish given name
Ceallach or the surname derived from it
Ó Ceallaigh. As a surname, it has been borne by actor and dancer Gene Kelly (1912-1996) and actress and princess Grace Kelly (1929-1982).
As a given name it was mostly masculine before 1940, but it rose in popularity as a name for girls during the 40s and 50s, probably due both to Grace Kelly (who married Prince Rainier III of Monaco in 1956) and a female character on the 1957 television series Bachelor Father [1]. By the end of the 1970s it was on the decline.
Kenan 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: קֵינָן(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: KEE-nən(English)
Possibly means
"possession" in Hebrew. He is a son of
Enosh and a great-grandson of
Adam in the
Old Testament.
Kenaniah
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: כְּנַנְיָהוּ(Ancient Hebrew)
Kenanyahu
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: כְּנַנְיָהוּ(Ancient Hebrew)
Kenina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish
Kenyon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
From a surname that was derived from an English place name, of uncertain meaning.
Kerr
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish
From a Scots surname that was derived from a word meaning "thicket, marsh", ultimately from Old Norse kjarr.
Kestrel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: KEHS-trəl
From the name of the bird of prey, ultimately derived from Old French crecelle "rattle", which refers to the sound of its cry.
Khajag
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Armenian
Other Scripts: Խաժակ(Armenian)
Pronounced: khah-ZHAHK(Eastern Armenian) khah-ZHAHG(Western Armenian)
Khaleel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arabic
Other Scripts: خليل(Arabic)
Pronounced: kha-LEEL
Alternate transcription of Arabic
خليل (see
Khalil).
Khalil
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arabic, Persian, Urdu
Other Scripts: خليل(Arabic) خلیل(Persian, Urdu)
Pronounced: kha-LEEL(Arabic)
Means "friend" in Arabic.
Khalilah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arabic (Rare)
Other Scripts: خليلة(Arabic)
Pronounced: kha-LEE-la
Kia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish
Pronounced: KEE-ah
Kielo
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Finnish
Pronounced: KEE-lo
Means "lily of the valley" in Finnish (species Convallaria majalis).
Kiki
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Greek
Other Scripts: Κική(Greek)
Pronounced: KEE-kee(English) kee-KEE(Greek)
Diminutive of names beginning with or containing the sound
K.
Kiley
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KIE-lee
Kimberlee
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KIM-bər-lee(American English) KIM-bə-lee(British English)
Kimberly
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KIM-bər-lee(American English) KIM-bə-lee(British English)
From the name of the city of
Kimberley in South Africa, which was named after Lord
Kimberley (1826-1902). The city came to prominence in the late 19th century during the Boer War.
Kimberly has been used as a given name since the mid-20th century, eventually becoming very popular as a feminine name.
Kirstin
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish
Kitty
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KIT-ee
Kizzie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KIZ-ee
Kizzy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KIZ-ee
Diminutive of
Keziah. This particular spelling was repopularized in the late 1970s by a character in the book and miniseries
Roots (1977).
Kleio
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, Greek
Other Scripts: Κλειώ(Greek)
Pronounced: KLEH-AW(Classical Greek)
Derived from Greek
κλέος (kleos) meaning
"glory". In Greek
mythology she was the goddess of history and heroic poetry, one of the nine Muses. She was said to have introduced the alphabet to Greece.
Klytië
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Κλυτίη, Κλυτία(Ancient Greek)
Derived from Greek
κλυτός (klytos) meaning
"famous, noble". In Greek
myth Klytië was an ocean nymph who loved the sun god Helios. Her love was not returned, and she pined away staring at him until she was transformed into a heliotrope flower, whose head moves to follow the sun.
Kristin
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian, Swedish, German, Estonian, English
Pronounced: kris-TEEN(Swedish, German) KRIS-tin(English)
Kyle
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KIEL, KIE-əl
From a Scottish surname that was derived from various place names, themselves from Gaelic caol meaning "narrows, channel, strait". As a given name it was rare in the first half of the 20th century. It rose steadily in popularity throughout the English-speaking world, entering the top 50 in most places by the 1990s. It has since declined in all regions.
Kyler
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KIE-lər(American English) KIE-lə(British English)
Probably a blend of the sounds of
Kyle and
Tyler. It also coincides with the surname
Kyler, an Anglicized form of Dutch
Cuyler.
Kyra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KIR-ə, KIE-rə
Variant of
Kira 2, sometimes considered a feminine form of
Cyrus.
Lalia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Lamya
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arabic
Other Scripts: لمياء(Arabic)
Pronounced: lam-YA
Derived from the poetic Arabic word
لمى (lamā) meaning
"dark red lips".
Laney
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LAY-nee
Larisa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, Ukrainian, Romanian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Slovene, Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Лариса(Russian, Ukrainian) Λάρισα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: lu-RYEE-sə(Russian) lu-ryi-SU(Lithuanian)
Possibly derived from the name of the ancient city of Larisa in Thessaly, which meant
"citadel". In Greek legends, the nymph Larisa was either a daughter or mother of Pelasgus, the ancestor of the mythical Pelasgians. This name was later borne by a 4th-century Greek martyr who is venerated as a
saint in the Eastern Church. The name (of the city, nymph and saint) is commonly Latinized as
Larissa, with a double
s. As a Ukrainian name, it is more commonly transcribed
Larysa.
Layla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arabic, English
Other Scripts: ليلى(Arabic)
Pronounced: LIE-la(Arabic) LAY-lə(English)
Means
"night" in Arabic. Layla was the love interest of the poet
Qays (called Majnun) in an old Arab tale, notably retold by the 12th-century Persian poet Nizami Ganjavi in his poem
Layla and Majnun. This story was a popular romance in medieval Arabia and Persia. The name became used in the English-speaking world after the 1970 release of the song
Layla by Derek and the Dominos, the title of which was inspired by the medieval story.
Leni
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German
Pronounced: LEH-nee
Lenore
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: lə-NAWR(American English) lə-NAW(British English)
Short form of
Eleanor. This is the name of the departed love of the narrator in Edgar Allan Poe's poem
The Raven (1845).
Lex
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Dutch
Pronounced: LEHKS
Lexy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LEHK-see
Li 1
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Chinese
Other Scripts: 理, 立, 黎, 力, 丽, etc.(Chinese) 理, 立, 黎, 力, 麗, etc.(Traditional Chinese)
Pronounced: LEE
From Chinese
理 (lǐ) meaning "reason, logic",
立 (lì) meaning "stand, establish",
黎 (lí) meaning "black, dawn",
力 (lì) meaning "power, capability, influence" (which is usually only masculine) or
丽 (lì) meaning "beautiful" (usually only feminine). Other Chinese characters are also possible.
Ligeia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Λιγεία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: lie-JEE-ə(English)
Derived from Greek
λιγύς (ligys) meaning
"clear-voiced, shrill, whistling". This was the name of one of the Sirens in Greek legend. It was also used by Edgar Allan Poe in his story
Ligeia (1838).
Lila 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hindi
Other Scripts: लीला(Hindi) లీలా(Telugu) ಲೀಲಾ(Kannada) லீலா(Tamil) ലീലാ(Malayalam)
Means "play, amusement" in Sanskrit.
Lilith
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Semitic Mythology, Judeo-Christian-Islamic Legend
Other Scripts: לילית(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: LIL-ith(English)
Derived from Akkadian
lilitu meaning
"of the night". This was the name of a demon in ancient Assyrian myths. In Jewish tradition she was
Adam's first wife, sent out of Eden and replaced by
Eve because she would not submit to him. The offspring of Adam (or
Samael) and Lilith were the evil spirits of the world.
Lina 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arabic
Other Scripts: لينا(Arabic)
Pronounced: LEE-na
Means
"soft, tender" in Arabic, derived from
لان (lāna) meaning "to be soft". It can also be from Arabic
لينة (līna), a type of palm tree, likely derived from the same root.
Lindsay
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIN-zee
From an English and Scottish surname that was originally derived from the name of the eastern English region of Lindsey, which means "
Lincoln island" in Old English. As a given name it was typically masculine until the 1960s (in Britain) and 70s (in America) when it became popular for girls, probably due to its similarity to
Linda and because of American actress Lindsay Wagner (1949-)
[1].
Linnet
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: li-NEHT, LIN-it
Either a variant of
Lynette or else from the name of the small bird, a type of finch.
Livius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman
Roman family name that may be related to either Latin liveo "to envy" or lividus "blue, envious". Titus Livius, also known as Livy, was a Roman historian who wrote a history of the city of Rome.
Lola
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, English, French
Pronounced: LO-la(Spanish) LO-lə(English) LAW-LA(French)
Spanish
diminutive of
Dolores. A famous bearer was Lola Montez (1821-1861; birth name Eliza Gilbert), an Irish-born dancer, actress and courtesan.
Lolita
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: lo-LEE-ta
Diminutive of
Lola. This is the name of a 1955 novel by Vladimir Nabokov.
Lorcán
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: LAWR-kan
Means
"little fierce one", derived from Old Irish
lorcc "fierce" combined with a
diminutive suffix.
Saint Lorcán was a 12th-century archbishop of Dublin.
Loredana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Romanian
Used by the French author George Sand for a character in her novel Mattea (1833) and later by the Italian author Luciano Zuccoli in his novel L'amore de Loredana (1908). It was possibly based on the Venetian surname Loredan, which was derived from the place name Loreo.
Ludwig
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German
Pronounced: LOOT-vikh
From the Germanic name
Hludwig meaning
"famous in battle", composed of the elements
hlut "famous, loud" and
wig "war, battle". This was the name of three Merovingian kings of the Franks (though their names are usually spelled as
Clovis) as well as several Carolingian kings and Holy Roman emperors (names often spelled in the French form
Louis). Other famous bearers include the German composer Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) and the Austrian philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951), who contributed to logic and the philosophy of language.
Luke
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical
Pronounced: LOOK(English)
English form of Latin
Lucas, from the Greek name
Λουκᾶς (Loukas), probably a shortened form of
Λουκανός (Loukanos) meaning
"from Lucania", Lucania being a region in southern Italy. Luke was a doctor who travelled in the company of the apostle
Paul. According to tradition, he was the author of the third gospel and Acts in the
New Testament. He was probably of Greek ethnicity. He is considered a
saint by many Christian denominations.
Due to the saint's renown, the name became common in the Christian world (in various spellings). As an English name, Luke has been in use since the 12th century alongside the Latin form Lucas. Both forms became popular throughout the English-speaking world towards the end of the 20th century. A famous fictional bearer was the hero Luke Skywalker from the Star Wars movies, beginning in 1977.
Lydie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, Czech
Pronounced: LEE-DEE(French)
French and Czech form of
Lydia.
Lyndon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIN-dən
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).
Lynette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Arthurian Cycle
Pronounced: li-NEHT(English)
Form of
Lynet used by Alfred Tennyson in his 1872 poem
Gareth and Lynette [1]. According to Tennyson, Gareth and Lynette were eventually married. In modern times it is also regarded as a
diminutive of
Lynn.
Lynn
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIN
From an English surname that was derived from Welsh
llyn meaning
"lake". Before the start of the 20th century it was primarily used for boys, but it has since come to be more common for girls. In some cases it may be thought of as a short form of
Linda or names that end in
lyn or
line.
Lyric
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: LIR-ik
Means simply
"lyric, songlike" from the English word, ultimately derived from Greek
λυρικός (lyrikos).
Lyubov
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, Ukrainian
Other Scripts: Любовь(Russian) Любов(Ukrainian)
Pronounced: lyuw-BOF(Russian)
Derived from the Slavic element
ľuby meaning
"love".
Maia 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, Roman Mythology, Portuguese, Georgian
Other Scripts: Μαῖα(Ancient Greek) მაია(Georgian)
Pronounced: MIE-A(Classical Greek) MAY-ə(English) MIE-ə(English) MIE-ya(Latin) MAH-EE-AH(Georgian)
From Greek
μαῖα (maia) meaning
"good mother, dame, foster mother", perhaps in origin a nursery form of
μήτηρ (meter). In Greek and Roman
mythology she was the eldest of the Pleiades, a group of stars in the constellation Taurus, who were the daughters of
Atlas and
Pleione. Her son by
Zeus was
Hermes.
Maia 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology
Pronounced: MIE-ya(Latin) MAY-ə(English) MIE-ə(English)
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.
Maia 3
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Estonian, Basque
Pronounced: MIE-a(Basque)
Estonian and Basque form of
Maria.
Maisie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: MAY-zee(English)
Scottish
diminutive of
Mairead. It was long used in the United Kingdom and Australia, becoming popular at the end of the 20th century. In the United States it was brought to public attention by the British actress Maisie Williams (1997-), who played Arya Stark on the television series
Game of Thrones beginning 2011. Her birth name is Margaret.
Malachi
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, English, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: מַלְאָכִי(Hebrew)
Pronounced: MAL-ə-kie(English)
From the Hebrew name
מַלְאָכִי (Malʾaḵi) meaning
"my messenger" or
"my angel", derived from a possessive form of
מַלְאָךְ (malʾaḵ) meaning "messenger, angel". This is one of the twelve minor prophets of the
Old Testament, the author of the Book of Malachi, which some claim foretells the coming of Christ. In England the name came into use after the
Protestant Reformation.
Malakai
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Fijian, Tongan, English (Modern)
Fijian and Tongan form of
Malachi, as well as a modern English variant.
Malandra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Invented name using the popular name suffix
andra, from names such as
Sandra or
Alexandra.
Marco
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Dutch
Pronounced: MAR-ko(Italian, Spanish, German) MAR-koo(European Portuguese) MAKH-koo(Brazilian Portuguese) MAHR-ko(Dutch)
Italian form of
Marcus (see
Mark). During the Middle Ages this name was common in Venice, where
Saint Mark was supposedly buried. A famous bearer was the Venetian explorer Marco Polo, who travelled across Asia to China in the 13th century.
Marcus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman, Biblical Latin, English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
Pronounced: MAR-koos(Latin) MAHR-kəs(American English) MAH-kəs(British English) MAR-kuys(Swedish)
Roman
praenomen, or given name, that was probably derived from the name of the Roman god
Mars. This was among the most popular of the Roman praenomina. Famous bearers include Marcus Tullius Cicero (known simply as Cicero), a 1st-century BC statesman and orator, Marcus Antonius (known as Mark Antony), a 1st-century BC politician, and Marcus Aurelius, a notable 2nd-century emperor. This was also the name of a pope of the 4th century. This spelling has occasionally been used in the English-speaking world, though the traditional English form
Mark has been more common.
Margaret
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAHR-grit(American English) MAHR-gə-rit(American English) MAH-grit(British English) MAH-gə-rit(British English)
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).
Mariella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: ma-RYEHL-la
Marja
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Finnish, Sorbian, Dutch
Pronounced: MAHR-yah(Finnish) MAHR-ya(Dutch)
Finnish and Sorbian form of
Maria, as well as a Dutch variant. It also means "berry" in Finnish.
Marley
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: MAHR-lee(American English) MAH-lee(British English)
From an English surname that was taken from a place name meaning either "pleasant wood", "boundary wood" or "marten wood" in Old English. A famous bearer of the surname was the Jamaican musician Bob Marley (1945-1981).
Marlin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAHR-lin(American English) MAH-lin(British English)
Marshall
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAHR-shəl(American English) MAH-shəl(British English)
From an English surname that originally denoted a person who was a marshal. The word marshal originally derives from Latin mariscalcus, itself from Germanic roots akin to Old High German marah "horse" and scalc "servant". A famous bearer is the American rapper Marshall Mathers (1972-), who performs under the name Eminem.
Martin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Estonian, Russian, Romanian, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Hungarian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Finnish
Other Scripts: Мартин, Мартын(Russian) Мартин(Serbian, Bulgarian, Macedonian)
Pronounced: MAHR-tin(American English) MAH-tin(British English) MAR-TEHN(French) MAR-teen(German, Slovak) MAT-in(Swedish) MAHT-tin(Norwegian) MAH-tseen(Danish) MAR-kyin(Czech) MAWR-teen(Hungarian) mar-TIN(Bulgarian) MAHR-teen(Finnish)
From the Roman name
Martinus, which was derived from
Martis, the genitive case of the name of the Roman god
Mars.
Saint Martin of Tours was a 4th-century bishop who is the patron saint of France. According to legend, he came across a cold beggar in the middle of winter so he ripped his cloak in two and gave half of it to the beggar. He was a favourite saint during the Middle Ages, and his name has become common throughout the Christian world.
An influential bearer of the name was Martin Luther (1483-1546), the theologian who began the Protestant Reformation. The name was also borne by five popes (two of them more commonly known as Marinus). Other more recent bearers include the German philosopher Martin Heidegger (1889-1976), the American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968), and the American filmmaker Martin Scorsese (1942-).
Maryam
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Indonesian, Bashkir, Tatar
Other Scripts: مريم(Arabic) مریم(Persian, Urdu) Мәрйәм(Bashkir) Мәрьям(Tatar)
Pronounced: MAR-yam(Arabic) mar-YAM(Persian) MUR-yəm(Urdu)
Arabic form of
Miryam (see
Mary) appearing in the
Quran. It is also the form used in several other languages. In Iran it is also the name of a flower, the tuberose, which is named after the Virgin Mary.
Maya 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hinduism, Buddhism, Hindi, Marathi, Nepali
Other Scripts: माया(Sanskrit, Hindi, Marathi, Nepali)
Pronounced: MAH-yah(Sanskrit, Hindi)
Means
"illusion, magic" in Sanskrit. In Buddhist tradition this is the name of the mother of Siddhartha Gautama (the
Buddha). This is also another name of the Hindu goddess
Durga.
Maya 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MIE-ə, MAY-ə
Variant of
Maia 1. This name can also be given in reference to the Maya, an indigenous people of southern Mexico and parts of Central America whose civilization flourished between the 3rd and 8th centuries. A famous bearer was the American poet and author Maya Angelou (1928-2014).
Maya 3
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: מַיָּה(Hebrew)
Derived from Hebrew
מַיִם (mayim) meaning
"water".
McKenna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: mə-KEHN-ə
From an Irish and Scottish surname, an Anglicized form of
Mac Cionaodha, itself derived from the given name
Cionaodh. As a given name, it was very rare before 1980. It rapidly increased in popularity during the 1990s, likely because it was viewed as an even more feminine alternative to
Mackenzie [1].
Meredith
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Welsh, English
Pronounced: MEHR-ə-dith(English)
From the Welsh name
Maredudd or
Meredydd, from Old Welsh forms such as
Margetud, possibly from
mawredd "greatness, magnificence" combined with
iudd "lord". The Welsh forms of this name were well used through the Middle Ages. Since the mid-1920s it has been used more often for girls than for boys in English-speaking countries, though it is still a masculine name in Wales. A famous bearer of this name as surname was the English novelist and poet George Meredith (1828-1909).
Merlin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle, English
Pronounced: MUR-lin(American English) MU-lin(British English)
Form of the Welsh name
Myrddin used by Geoffrey of Monmouth in his 12th-century chronicle. Writing in Latin, he likely chose the form
Merlinus over
Merdinus in order to prevent associations with French
merde "excrement".
Geoffrey based parts of Merlin's character on Myrddin Wyllt, a legendary madman and prophet who lived in the Caledonian Forest. Other parts of his life were based on that of the historical 5th-century Romano-British military leader Ambrosius Aurelianus (also known as Emrys Wledig). In Geoffrey's version of the tales and later embellishments Merlin is a magician and counselor for King Arthur.
Merrick
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: MEHR-ik
From a Welsh surname that was originally derived from the given name
Meurig.
Michaela
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Swedish, English, Czech, Slovak, Greek, Hebrew
Other Scripts: Μιχαέλα(Greek) מִיכָאֵלָה(Hebrew)
Pronounced: mi-kha-EH-la(German) mi-KAY-lə(English) MI-kha-eh-la(Czech) MEE-kha-eh-la(Slovak)
Mikki
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MIK-ee
Strictly feminine variant of
Mickey.
Minerva
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology, English, Spanish
Pronounced: mee-NEHR-wa(Latin) mi-NUR-və(American English) mi-NU-və(British English) mee-NEHR-ba(Spanish)
Possibly derived from Latin
mens meaning
"intellect", but more likely of Etruscan origin. Minerva was the Roman goddess of wisdom and war, approximately equivalent to the Greek goddess
Athena. It has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since after the Renaissance.
Miranda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Dutch
Pronounced: mi-RAN-də(English) mee-RAHN-da(Dutch)
Derived from Latin
mirandus meaning
"admirable, worthy of being admired". The name was created by Shakespeare for the heroine in his play
The Tempest (1611), in which Miranda and her father
Prospero are stranded on an island. It did not become a common English given name until the 20th century. This is also the name of one of the moons of Uranus, named after the Shakespearean character.
Missie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MIS-ee
Moana
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Maori, Hawaiian, Tahitian, Samoan, Tongan
Pronounced: mo-A-na(Hawaiian)
Means "ocean, wide expanse of water, deep sea" in Maori, Hawaiian and other Polynesian languages.
Moirrey
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Manx
Pronounced: MUW-rə
Molly
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAHL-ee(American English) MAWL-ee(British English)
Medieval
diminutive of
Mary, now often used independently. It developed from
Malle and
Molle, other medieval diminutives. James Joyce used this name in his novel
Ulysses (1922), where it belongs to Molly Bloom, the wife of the main character.
Morana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Slavic Mythology, Croatian
From Old Slavic
morŭ meaning
"death, plague" [1]. In Slavic
mythology this was the name of a goddess associated with winter and death.
Mortimer
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAWR-ti-mər(American English) MAW-ti-mə(British English)
From an English surname that was derived from the name of a town in Normandy, itself meaning "dead water, still water" in Old French.
Mylène
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: MEE-LEHN
Myrtie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MUR-tee(American English) MU-tee(British English)
Nagendra
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hinduism, Kannada, Telugu
Other Scripts: नागेन्द्र, नागेंद्र(Sanskrit) ನಾಗೇಂದ್ರ(Kannada) నాగేంద్ర(Telugu)
Means
"lord of snakes" from Sanskrit
नाग (nāga) meaning "snake" (also "elephant") combined with the name of the Hindu god
Indra, used here to mean "lord". This is another name for Vasuki, the king of snakes, in Hindu
mythology.
Nate
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NAYT
Nava
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: נָאוָה(Hebrew)
Means "beautiful" in Hebrew.
Neasa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: NYA-sə(Irish)
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.
Nemesis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Νέμεσις(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: NEH-MEH-SEES(Classical Greek) NEHM-ə-sis(English)
Means
"distribution of what is due, righteous anger" in Greek. In Greek
mythology Nemesis was the personification of vengeance and justice.
Neville
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (British)
Pronounced: NEHV-əl(English)
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "new town" in Norman French. As a given name it is chiefly British and Australian.
Newton
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NOO-tən, NYOO-tən
From a surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "new town" in Old English. A famous bearer of the surname was the English physicist Isaac Newton (1643-1727).
Nine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Frisian
Pronounced: NEE-nə
Ninel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian
Other Scripts: Нинель(Russian)
Pronounced: nyi-NEHL
Reversal of the surname
Lenin. Lenin was the founder of the former Soviet state. This name was created by communist parents who were eager to reject traditional names.
Ninette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Niobe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Νιόβη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: NEE-O-BEH(Classical Greek) NIE-o-bee(English)
Meaning unknown. In Greek
mythology Niobe was the daughter of Tantalos, a king of Asia Minor. Because she boasted that she was superior to
Leto, Leto's children
Apollo and
Artemis killed her 14 children with poison arrows. In grief, Niobe was turned to stone by
Zeus.
Nydia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare), Spanish, Literature
Pronounced: NID-ee-ə(English) NEE-dhya(Spanish)
Used by British author Edward Bulwer-Lytton for a blind flower-seller in his novel The Last Days of Pompeii (1834). He perhaps based it on Latin nidus "nest".
Nyx
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Νύξ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: NUYKS(Classical Greek) NIKS(English)
Means "night" in Greek. This was the name of the Greek goddess of the night, the daughter of Khaos and the wife of Erebos.
Odysseus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ὀδυσσεύς(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: O-DUYS-SEWS(Classical Greek) o-DIS-ee-əs(English)
Perhaps derived from Greek
ὀδύσσομαι (odyssomai) meaning
"to hate". In Greek legend Odysseus was one of the Greek heroes who fought in the Trojan War. In the
Odyssey Homer relates Odysseus's misadventures on his way back to his kingdom and his wife
Penelope.
Olivia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, French, German, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch
Pronounced: o-LIV-ee-ə(English) ə-LIV-ee-ə(English) o-LEE-vya(Italian, German) o-LEE-bya(Spanish) AW-LEE-VYA(French) O-lee-vee-ah(Finnish) o-LEE-vee-a(Dutch)
This name was used in this spelling by William Shakespeare for a character in his comedy
Twelfth Night (1602). This was a rare name in Shakespeare's time
[1] that may have been based on
Oliva or
Oliver, or directly on the Latin word
oliva meaning
"olive". In the play Olivia is a noblewoman wooed by Duke
Orsino. Instead she falls in love with his messenger Cesario, who is actually
Viola in disguise.
Olivia has been used in the English-speaking world since the 18th century, though it did not become overly popular until the last half of the 20th century. Its rise in popularity in the 1970s may have been inspired by a character on the television series The Waltons (1972-1982) [2] or the singer Olivia Newton-John (1948-2022). In 1989 it was borne by a young character on The Cosby Show, which likely accelerated its growth. It reached the top rank in England and Wales by 2008 and in the United States by 2019.
A famous bearer was the British-American actress Olivia de Havilland (1916-2020).
Ophélie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: AW-FEH-LEE
Osama
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arabic
Other Scripts: أسامة(Arabic)
Pronounced: oo-SA-ma
Alternate transcription of Arabic
أسامة (see
Usama).
Pacey
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: PAY-see
From an English surname that was derived from the French place name Pacy, itself derived from Gaulish given name of unknown meaning.
Parker
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PAHR-kər(American English) PAH-kə(British English)
From an English occupational surname that meant "keeper of the park".
Pat
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PAT
Short form of
Patrick or
Patricia. A famous bearer of this name was Pat Garrett (1850-1908), the sheriff who shot Billy the Kid.
Peregrine
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: PEHR-ə-grin
From the Late Latin name
Peregrinus, which meant
"traveller". This was the name of several early
saints.
Pericles
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Περικλῆς(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: PEHR-ə-kleez(English)
From the Greek name
Περικλῆς (Perikles), which was derived from Greek
περί (peri) meaning "around, exceedingly" and
κλέος (kleos) meaning "glory". This was the name of a 5th-century BC Athenian statesman and general. It is also the name of the central character in the play
Pericles, Prince of Tyre (1608) written (or co-written) by William Shakespeare.
Peter
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Slovene, Slovak, Biblical
Pronounced: PEET-ər(American English) PEE-tə(British English) PEH-tu(German) PEH-tər(Dutch, Danish, Slovene) PEH-tehr(Slovak)
Derived from Greek
Πέτρος (Petros) meaning
"stone". This is a translation used in most versions of the
New Testament of the name
Cephas, meaning "stone" in Aramaic, which was given to the apostle
Simon by
Jesus (compare
Matthew 16:18 and
John 1:42). Simon Peter was the most prominent of the apostles during Jesus' ministry and is often considered the first pope.
Due to the renown of the apostle, this name became common throughout the Christian world (in various spellings). In England the Normans introduced it in the Old French form Piers, which was gradually replaced by the spelling Peter starting in the 15th century [1].
Besides the apostle, other saints by this name include the 11th-century reformer Saint Peter Damian and the 13th-century preacher Saint Peter Martyr. It was also borne by rulers of Aragon, Portugal, and Russia, including the Russian tsar Peter the Great (1672-1725), who defeated Sweden in the Great Northern War. Famous fictional bearers include Peter Rabbit from Beatrix Potter's children's books, Peter Pan, the boy who refused to grow up in J. M. Barrie's 1904 play, and Peter Parker, the real name of the comic book superhero Spider-Man.
Phinehas
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: פִּינְחָס(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: FIN-ee-əs(English)
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.
Phoenix
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: FEE-niks
From the name of a beautiful immortal bird that appears in Egyptian and Greek
mythology. After living for several centuries in the Arabian Desert, it would be consumed by fire and rise from its own ashes, with this cycle repeating every 500 years. The name of the bird was derived from Greek
φοῖνιξ (phoinix) meaning "dark red".
Phyllida
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: FIL-i-də
From
Φυλλίδος (Phyllidos), the genitive form of
Phyllis. This form was used in 17th-century pastoral poetry.
Phyllis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, English
Other Scripts: Φυλλίς(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: FIL-is(English)
Means
"foliage" in Greek. In Greek
mythology this was the name of a woman who killed herself out of love for Demophon and was subsequently transformed into an almond tree. It began to be used as a given name in England in the 16th century, though it was often confused with
Felicia.
Pia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, German, Slovene, Late Roman
Pronounced: PEE-a(Italian, Danish, Swedish, German)
Prisca
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, Ancient Roman, Biblical Latin
Pronounced: PRIS-kə(English)
Feminine form of
Priscus, a Roman family name meaning
"ancient" in Latin. This name appears in the epistles in the
New Testament, referring to
Priscilla the wife of Aquila.
Psyche
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ψυχή(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: PSUY-KEH(Classical Greek) SIE-kee(English)
Means
"the soul", derived from Greek
ψύχω (psycho) meaning "to breathe". The Greeks thought that the breath was the soul. In Greek
mythology Psyche was a beautiful maiden who was beloved by Eros (or Cupid in Roman mythology). She is the subject of Keats's poem
Ode to Psyche (1819).
Qiana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: African American (Modern)
From the word for the silk-like material, introduced by DuPont in 1968 and popular in the fashions of the 1970s
[1].
Quinn
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KWIN
From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Irish Gaelic
Ó Cuinn, itself derived from the given name
Conn. In the United States it was more common as a name for boys until 2010, the year after the female character Quinn Fabray began appearing on the television series
Glee.
Quique
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: KEE-keh
Ramiro
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Spanish, Portuguese
Pronounced: ra-MEE-ro(Spanish) ra-MEE-roo(European Portuguese) ha-MEE-roo(Brazilian Portuguese)
Spanish and Portuguese form of
Ramirus, earlier
Ranimirus, a Latinized form of a Visigothic name derived from the Gothic element
rana "wedge" or perhaps
ragin "law, decree, assessment, responsibility" combined with
mers "famous".
Saint Ramirus was a 6th-century prior of the Saint Claudius Monastery in León. He and several others were executed by the Arian Visigoths, who opposed orthodox Christianity. This name was subsequently borne by kings of León, Asturias and Aragon.
Ramsey
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAM-zee
From an English and Scottish surname that was derived from a place name meaning "garlic island" in Old English.
Rebecca
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Swedish, German, Dutch, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: רִבְקָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: rə-BEHK-ə(English) reh-BEHK-ka(Italian) rə-BEH-ka(Dutch)
From the Hebrew name
רִבְקָה (Rivqa), probably from a Semitic root meaning
"join, tie, snare". This is the name of the wife of
Isaac and the mother of
Esau and
Jacob in the
Old Testament. It came into use as an English Christian name after the
Protestant Reformation, and it was popular with the
Puritans in the 17th century. It has been consistently used since then, becoming especially common in the second half of the 20th century.
This name is borne by a Jewish woman in Walter Scott's novel Ivanhoe (1819), as well as the title character (who is deceased and unseen) in Daphne du Maurier's novel Rebecca (1938).
Regan
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Literature, English
Pronounced: REE-gən(English)
Meaning unknown. In the chronicles of Geoffrey of Monmouth it is the name of a treacherous daughter of King
Leir. Shakespeare adapted the story for his tragedy
King Lear (1606). In the modern era it has appeared in the horror movie
The Exorcist (1973) belonging to a girl possessed by the devil. This name can also be used as a variant of
Reagan.
Rei
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Japanese
Other Scripts: 鈴, 麗, 玲, etc.(Japanese Kanji) れい(Japanese Hiragana)
Pronounced: REH
From Japanese
鈴 (rei) meaning "bell",
麗 (rei) meaning "beautiful, lovely" or
玲 (rei) meaning "the tinkling of jade". This name can also be formed by other kanji with the same pronunciation.
Reine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: REHN
Means "queen" in French, ultimately from Latin regina.
Renatus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Late Roman
Late Latin name meaning "born again".
Rhea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, Roman Mythology
Other Scripts: Ῥέα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: REH-A(Classical Greek) REE-ə(English) REH-a(Latin)
Rhett
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: REHT
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).
Richard
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Czech, Slovak, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: RICH-ərd(American English) RICH-əd(British English) REE-SHAR(French) RI-khart(German, Czech) REE-khart(Slovak) REE-shahrt(Dutch)
Means
"brave ruler", derived from the Old German elements
rih "ruler, king" and
hart "hard, firm, brave, hardy". This was the name of three early dukes of Normandy. The
Normans introduced it to England when they invaded in the 11th century, and it has been very common there since that time. It was borne by three kings of England including the 12th-century Richard I the Lionheart, one of the leaders of the Third Crusade.
During the late Middle Ages this name was typically among the five most common for English males (with John, William, Robert and Thomas). It remained fairly popular through to the modern era, peaking in the United States in the 1940s and in the United Kingom a bit later, and steadily declining since that time.
Famous bearers include two German opera composers, Richard Wagner (1813-1883) and Richard Strauss (1864-1949), as well as British explorer Richard Burton (1821-1890), American president Richard Nixon (1913-1994), American physicist Richard Feynman (1918-1988), British actor Richard Burton (1925-1984) and American musician Little Richard (1932-2020).
Riley
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RIE-lee
From a surname that comes from two distinct sources. As an Irish surname it is a variant of
Reilly. As an English surname it is derived from a place name meaning
"rye clearing" in Old English.
Before 1980, this was an uncommon masculine name in America. During the 1980s and 90s this name steadily increased in popularity for both boys and girls, and from 2003 onwards it has been more common for girls in the United States. Elsewhere in the English-speaking world, such as the United Kingdom and Australia, it has remained largely masculine.
Robert
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, Finnish, Estonian, Czech, Polish, Russian, Slovene, Croatian, Albanian, Romanian, Catalan, Germanic [1]
Other Scripts: Роберт(Russian)
Pronounced: RAHB-ərt(American English) RAWB-ət(British English) RAW-BEHR(French) RO-beht(Swedish) RO-behrt(German, Finnish, Czech) RO-bərt(Dutch) RAW-bərt(Dutch) RAW-behrt(Polish) RO-byirt(Russian) roo-BEHRT(Catalan)
From the Germanic name
Hrodebert meaning
"bright fame", derived from the elements
hruod "fame" and
beraht "bright". The
Normans introduced this name to Britain, where it replaced the rare Old English
cognate Hreodbeorht. It has been consistently among the most common English names from the 13th to 20th century. In the United States it was the most popular name for boys between 1924 and 1939 (and again in 1953).
This name has been borne by two kings of the Franks, two dukes of Normandy, and three kings of Scotland, including Robert the Bruce who restored the independence of Scotland from England in the 14th century. Several saints have also had the name, the earliest known as Saint Rupert, from an Old German variant. The author Robert Browning (1812-1889) and poets Robert Burns (1759-1796) and Robert Frost (1874-1963) are famous literary namesakes. Other bearers include Robert E. Lee (1807-1870), the commander of the Confederate army during the American Civil War, and American actors Robert Redford (1936-), Robert De Niro (1943-) and Robert Downey Jr. (1965-).
Roberta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese
Pronounced: rə-BUR-tə(American English) rə-BU-tə(British English) ro-BEHR-ta(Italian, Spanish)
Rose
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: ROZ
Originally a Norman French form of the Germanic name
Hrodohaidis meaning
"famous type", composed of the elements
hruod "fame" and
heit "kind, sort, type". The
Normans introduced it to England in the forms
Roese and
Rohese. From an early date it was associated with the word for the fragrant flower
rose (derived from Latin
rosa). When the name was revived in the 19th century, it was probably with the flower in mind.
Roshanak
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Persian
Other Scripts: روشنک(Persian)
Feminine form of
Roshan, used in Persian to refer to
Roxana the wife of Alexander the Great.
Rowan
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, English (Modern)
Pronounced: RO-ən(English)
Anglicized form of the Irish name
Ruadhán. As an English name, it can also be derived from the surname Rowan, itself derived from the Irish given name. It could also be given in reference to the rowan tree, a word of Old Norse origin (coincidentally sharing the same Indo-European root meaning "red" with the Irish name).
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)
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).
Roxy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAHK-see(American English) RAWK-see(British English)
Russell
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RUS-əl
From an English surname, of Norman origin, meaning
"little red one" (a
diminutive of Old French
rous "red"). A notable bearer of the surname was the agnostic British philosopher Bertrand Russell (1872-1970), who wrote on many subjects including logic, epistemology and mathematics. He was also a political activist for causes such as pacifism and women's rights.
This name was common throughout the English-speaking world for most of the 20th century, though in the 1960s it began a slow decline in most places.
Ryanne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: rie-AN
Sabella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: sə-BEHL-ə
Sabri
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arabic, Turkish, Albanian, Malay
Other Scripts: صبريّ(Arabic)
Pronounced: SAB-reey(Arabic) sab-REE(Turkish)
Means
"patient" in Arabic, a derivative of
صبر (ṣabara) meaning "to bind, to be patient".
Sabriyya
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arabic
Other Scripts: صبريّة(Arabic)
Pronounced: sab-REE-ya
Sarai
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Hebrew [1], Spanish
Other Scripts: שָׂרָי(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: SEHR-ie(English) sə-RIE(English)
Saskia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch, German
Pronounced: SAHS-kee-a(Dutch) ZAS-kya(German)
From the Old German element
sahso meaning
"a Saxon". The Saxons were a Germanic tribe, their name ultimately deriving from the Germanic word *
sahsą meaning "knife". Saskia van Uylenburgh (1612-1642) was the wife of the Dutch painter Rembrandt.
Sassa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish (Rare)
Schuyler
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SKIE-lər(American English) SKIE-lə(British English)
From a Dutch surname meaning
"scholar". Dutch settlers brought the surname to America, where it was subsequently adopted as a given name in honour of the American general and senator Philip Schuyler (1733-1804)
[1].
Scott
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Scottish
Pronounced: SKAHT(American English) SKAWT(British English)
From an English and Scottish surname that referred to a person from Scotland or a person who spoke Scottish Gaelic. It is derived from Latin Scoti meaning "Gael, Gaelic speaker", with the ultimate origin uncertain.
Semele
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Σεμέλη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: SEH-MEH-LEH(Classical Greek) SEHM-ə-lee(English)
Meaning unknown, possibly of Phrygian origin. In Greek
mythology she was one of the many lovers of
Zeus.
Hera, being jealous, tricked Semele into asking Zeus to display himself in all his splendour as the god of thunder. When he did, Semele was struck by lightning and died, but not before giving birth to
Dionysos.
Sevda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Turkish, Azerbaijani
Pronounced: sehv-DA(Turkish) sehv-DAH(Azerbaijani)
Means
"love, infatuation" in Turkish and Azerbaijani, ultimately from Arabic
سوداء (sawdāʾ) meaning "black bile, melancholy, sadness"
[1].
Severus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman
Pronounced: seh-WEH-roos(Latin) si-VIR-əs(English) SEHV-ə-rəs(English)
Roman family name meaning
"stern" in Latin. This name was borne by several early
saints including a 6th-century patriarch of Antioch.
Shannon
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SHAN-ən
From the name of the River Shannon, the longest river in Ireland, called
an tSionainn in Irish. It is associated with the legendary figure
Sionann and is sometimes said to be named for her. However it is more likely she was named after the river, which may be related to Old Irish
sen "old, ancient"
[1]. As a given name, it first became common in America after the 1940s.
Shea
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: SHAY(English)
Anglicized form of
Séaghdha, sometimes used as a feminine name.
Sherlock
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: SHUR-lahk(American English) SHU-lawk(British English)
Used by Scottish author Arthur Conan Doyle for his character Sherlock Holmes, who was a detective in Doyle's mystery stories beginning in 1887. The character's name was from an English surname meaning "shear lock", originally referring to a person with closely cut hair.
Sibylla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Late Roman, German
Other Scripts: Σίβυλλα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: zee-BI-la(German)
Sigrid
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, German, Estonian, Finnish (Archaic)
Pronounced: SEE-grid(Swedish) SEEG-reed(Finnish)
From the Old Norse name
Sigríðr, which was derived from the elements
sigr "victory" and
fríðr "beautiful, beloved".
Simin
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Persian
Other Scripts: سیمین(Persian)
Pronounced: see-MEEN
Means "silvery" in Persian.
Simon 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, Hungarian, Slovene, Romanian, Macedonian, Georgian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Симон(Macedonian) სიმონ(Georgian) Σίμων(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: SIE-mən(English) SEE-MAWN(French) SEE-mawn(Danish, Dutch, Macedonian) ZEE-mawn(German) SHEE-mon(Hungarian)
From
Σίμων (Simon), the
New Testament Greek form of the Hebrew name
שִׁמְעוֹן (Shimʿon) meaning
"hearing, listening", derived from
שָׁמַע (shamaʿ) meaning "to hear, to listen". This name is spelled
Simeon, based on Greek
Συμεών, in many translations of the
Old Testament, where it is borne by the second son of
Jacob. The New Testament spelling may show influence from the otherwise unrelated Greek name
Simon 2.
In the New Testament Simon is the name of several characters, including the man who carried the cross for Jesus. Most importantly however it was borne by the leading apostle Simon, also known as Peter (a name given to him by Jesus).
Because of the apostle, this name has been common in the Christian world. In England it was popular during the Middle Ages, though it became more rare after the Protestant Reformation.
Simone 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English, German, Dutch, Danish, Portuguese
Pronounced: SEE-MAWN(French) sə-MON(English) zee-MO-nə(German) see-MO-nə(Dutch)
French feminine form of
Simon 1. A famous bearer was Simone de Beauvoir (1908-1986), a French feminist and philosopher.
Simonetta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: see-mo-NEHT-ta
Siran
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Armenian
Other Scripts: Սիրան(Armenian)
Pronounced: see-RAHN
Siri
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
Pronounced: SEE-ree(Swedish, Norwegian)
Sissy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SIS-ee
Skylar
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: SKIE-lər(American English) SKIE-lə(British English)
Variant of
Skyler. Originally more common for boys during the 1980s, it was popularized as a name for girls after it was used on the American soap opera
The Young and the Restless in 1989 and the movie
Good Will Hunting in 1997
[1]. Its sharp rise in the United States in 2011 might be attributed to the character Skyler White from the television series
Breaking Bad (2008-2013) or the singer Skylar Grey (1986-), who adopted this name in 2010 after previously going by Holly Brook.
Skyler
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: SKIE-lər(American English) SKIE-lə(British English)
Variant of
Schuyler, based on the pronunciation of the surname but respelled as if it was a blend of the English word
sky with names such as
Tyler. It was rare before 1980, and first gained popularity as a name for boys. It is now more common for girls, though it is more evenly unisex than the mostly feminine variant
Skylar.
Sophia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Greek, German, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Σοφία(Greek)
Pronounced: so-FEE-ə(English) sə-FIE-ə(British English) so-FEE-a(Greek) zo-FEE-a(German)
Means
"wisdom" in Greek. This was the name of an early, probably mythical,
saint who died of grief after her three daughters were martyred during the reign of the emperor Hadrian. Legends about her probably arose as a result of a medieval misunderstanding of the phrase
Hagia Sophia "Holy Wisdom", which is the name of a large basilica in Constantinople.
This name was common among continental European royalty during the Middle Ages, and it was popularized in Britain by the German House of Hanover when they inherited the British throne in the 18th century. It was the name of characters in the novels Tom Jones (1749) by Henry Fielding and The Vicar of Wakefield (1766) by Oliver Goldsmith.
In the United States this name was only moderately common until the 1990s when it began rising in popularity, eventually becoming the most popular for girls from 2011 to 2013. A famous bearer is the Italian actress Sophia Loren (1934-).
Sorin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Romanian
Possibly derived from Romanian soare meaning "sun".
Sorne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Basque (Rare)
Means
"conception" in Basque. It was coined by Sabino Arana in 1910 as an equivalent of the Spanish name
Concepción.
Sorrel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: SAWR-əl
From the name of the sour tasting plant, derived from Old French sur "sour", a word of Frankish origin.
Stacia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: STAY-shə
Starla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: STAHR-lə(American English) STAH-lə(British English)
Stella 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Dutch, German
Pronounced: STEHL-ə(English) STEHL-la(Italian) STEH-la(Dutch)
Means "star" in Latin. This name was created by the 16th-century poet Philip Sidney for the subject of his collection of sonnets Astrophel and Stella. It was a nickname of a lover of Jonathan Swift, real name Esther Johnson (1681-1728), though it was not commonly used as a given name until the 19th century. It appears in Tennessee Williams' play A Streetcar Named Desire (1947), belonging to the sister of Blanche DuBois and the wife of Stanley Kowalski.
Sydnie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: SID-nee
Tabea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German
Pronounced: ta-BEH-a
German short form of
Tabitha. This form was used in earlier editions of the Luther Bible.
Tabitha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Biblical, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ταβιθά(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: TAB-i-thə(English)
Means
"gazelle" in Aramaic. Tabitha in the
New Testament was a woman restored to life by
Saint Peter. Her name is translated into Greek as
Dorcas (see
Acts 9:36). As an English name,
Tabitha became common after the
Protestant Reformation. It was popularized in the 1960s by the television show
Bewitched, in which Tabitha (sometimes spelled Tabatha) is the daughter of the main character.
Tai
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Chinese
Other Scripts: 太, etc.(Chinese)
Pronounced: TIE
From Chinese
太 (tài) meaning "very, extreme" or other characters pronounced in a similar way.
Talya
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: טַלְיָה, טַלְיָא(Hebrew)
Tamar
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew, Georgian, Biblical, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: תָּמָר(Hebrew) თამარ(Georgian)
Pronounced: TA-MAR(Georgian) TAHM-ahr(American English) TAY-mahr(American English) TAHM-ah(British English) TAY-mah(British English)
Means
"date palm" in Hebrew. According to the
Old Testament Tamar was the daughter-in-law of
Judah and later his wife. This was also the name of a daughter of King
David. She was raped by her half-brother
Amnon, leading to his murder by her brother
Absalom. The name was borne by a 12th-century ruling queen of Georgia who presided over the kingdom at the peak of its power.
Tamara
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Czech, Slovak, Polish, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian, Hungarian, English, Dutch, Spanish, Italian, Lithuanian, Georgian
Other Scripts: Тамара(Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Serbian, Macedonian) თამარა(Georgian)
Pronounced: tu-MA-rə(Russian) TA-ma-ra(Czech, Slovak) ta-MA-ra(Polish, Dutch, Spanish, Italian) TAW-maw-raw(Hungarian) tə-MAR-ə(English) tə-MAHR-ə(English) TAM-ə-rə(English) tu-mu-RU(Lithuanian)
Russian form of
Tamar. Russian performers such as Tamara Karsavina (1885-1978), Tamara Drasin (1905-1943), Tamara Geva (1907-1997) and Tamara Toumanova (1919-1996) introduced it to the English-speaking world. It rapidly grew in popularity in the United States starting in 1957. Another famous bearer was the Polish cubist painter Tamara de Lempicka (1898-1980).
Tamela
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Probably a blend of
Tamara and
Pamela. It first arose in the 1950s.
Tamiko
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Japanese
Other Scripts: 多美子, etc.(Japanese Kanji) たみこ(Japanese Hiragana)
Pronounced: TA-MEE-KO
From Japanese
多 (ta) meaning "many",
美 (mi) meaning "beautiful" and
子 (ko) meaning "child". Other kanji combinations are also possible.
Tammi
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TAM-ee
Tanith
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Semitic Mythology
Other Scripts: 𐤕𐤍𐤕(Phoenician)
Meaning unknown. This was the name of the Phoenician goddess of love, fertility, the moon and the stars. She was particularly associated with the city of Carthage, being the consort of
Ba'al Hammon.
Tanya
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, Bulgarian, English
Other Scripts: Таня(Russian, Bulgarian)
Pronounced: TA-nyə(Russian) TAHN-yə(English) TAN-yə(English)
Russian
diminutive of
Tatiana. It began to be used in the English-speaking world during the 1930s.
Tariq
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arabic, Urdu
Other Scripts: طارق(Arabic, Urdu)
Pronounced: TA-reek(Arabic)
Means
"visitor, knocker at the door" in Arabic, from
طرق (ṭaraqa) meaning "to knock"
[1]. This is the Arabic name of the morning star. Tariq ibn Ziyad was the Islamic general who conquered Spain for the Umayyad Caliphate in the 8th century.
Tatiana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, French, Slovak, Polish, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, Greek, Georgian, English, Russian, Bulgarian, Ancient Roman
Other Scripts: Τατιάνα(Greek) ტატიანა(Georgian) Татьяна(Russian) Татяна(Bulgarian)
Pronounced: ta-TYA-na(Italian, Spanish, Polish, German) TAH-tee-ah-nah(Finnish) ta-TYAHN-ə(English) tu-TYA-nə(Russian)
Feminine form of the Roman name
Tatianus, a derivative of the Roman name
Tatius. This was the name of a 3rd-century
saint who was martyred in Rome under the emperor Alexander Severus. She was especially venerated in Orthodox Christianity, and the name has been common in Russia (as
Татьяна) and Eastern Europe. It was not regularly used in the English-speaking world until the 1980s.
Taylor
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TAY-lər(American English) TAY-lə(British English)
From an English surname that originally denoted someone who was a tailor, from Norman French
tailleur, ultimately from Latin
taliare "to cut".
Its modern use as a feminine name may have been influenced by the British-American author Taylor Caldwell (1900-1985). Since 1990 it has been more popular for girls in the United States. Other England-speaking regions have followed suit, with the exception of England and Wales where it is still slightly more popular for boys. Its popularity peaked in America the mid-1990s for both genders, ranked sixth for girls and 51st for boys. A famous bearer is the American musician Taylor Swift (1989-).
Temperance
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TEHM-prəns, TEHM-pər-əns
From the English word meaning
"moderation" or
"restraint". This was one of the virtue names adopted by the
Puritans in the 17th century. It experienced a modest revival in the United States during the run of the television series
Bones (2005-2017), in which the main character bears this name.
Thad
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: THAD
Thaddeus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: Θαδδαῖος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: THAD-ee-əs(English) tha-DEE-əs(English)
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.
Theodoric
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Gothic (Anglicized)
Other Scripts: 𐌸𐌹𐌿𐌳𐌰𐍂𐌴𐌹𐌺𐍃(Gothic)
Pronounced: thee-AHD-ə-rik(American English) thee-AWD-ə-rik(British English)
From the Gothic name *
Þiudareiks meaning
"ruler of the people", derived from the elements
þiuda "people" and
reiks "ruler, king". It was notably borne by Theodoric the Great, a 6th-century king of the Ostrogoths who eventually became the ruler of Italy. By Theodoric's time the Ostrogoths were partially Romanized and his name was regularly recorded as
Theodoricus. This was also the name of two earlier (5th century) Visigothic kings.
Theresa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German
Pronounced: tə-REE-sə(English) tə-REE-zə(English) teh-REH-za(German)
From the Spanish and Portuguese name
Teresa. It was first recorded as
Therasia, being borne by the Spanish wife of
Saint Paulinus of Nola in the 4th century. The meaning is uncertain, but it could be derived from Greek
θέρος (theros) meaning
"summer", from Greek
θερίζω (therizo) meaning
"to harvest", or from the name of the Greek island of Therasia (the western island of Santorini).
The name was mainly confined to Spain and Portugal during the Middle Ages. After the 16th century it was spread to other parts of the Christian world, due to the fame of the Spanish nun and reformer Saint Teresa of Ávila. Another famous bearer was the Austrian Habsburg queen Maria Theresa (1717-1780), who inherited the domains of her father, the Holy Roman emperor Charles VI, beginning the War of the Austrian Succession.
Thomas
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Greek, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Θωμάς(Greek) Θωμᾶς(Ancient Greek) തോമസ്(Malayalam)
Pronounced: TAHM-əs(American English) TAWM-əs(British English) TAW-MA(French) TO-mas(German) TO-mahs(Dutch) tho-MAS(Greek)
Greek form of the Aramaic name
תְּאוֹמָא (Teʾoma) meaning
"twin". In the
New Testament this is the name of an apostle. When he heard that
Jesus had risen from the dead he initially doubted the story, until Jesus appeared before him and he examined his wounds himself. According to tradition he was martyred in India. Due to his renown, the name came into general use in the Christian world.
In England the name was used by the Normans and became very popular due to Saint Thomas Becket, a 12th-century archbishop of Canterbury and martyr. It was reliably among the top five most common English names for boys from the 13th to the 19th century, and it has remained consistently popular to this day.
Another notable saint by this name was the 13th-century Italian philosopher and theologian Thomas Aquinas, who is regarded as a Doctor of the Church. Other famous bearers include philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679), American president Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), novelist Thomas Hardy (1840-1928), and inventor Thomas Edison (1847-1931).
Thor
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Norse Mythology, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish
Pronounced: THAWR(American English) THAW(British English) TOOR(Norwegian, Swedish) TOR(Danish)
From the Old Norse
Þórr meaning
"thunder", ultimately from Proto-Germanic *
Þunraz. In Norse
mythology Thor is a god of storms, thunder, war and strength, a son of
Odin. He is portrayed as red-bearded, short-tempered, armed with a powerful hammer called Mjölnir, and wearing an enchanted belt called Megingjörð that doubles his strength. During Ragnarök, the final battle at the end of the world, it is foretold that Thor will slay the monstrous sea serpent
Jörmungandr but be fatally poisoned by its venom.
Tiara
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: tee-AHR-ə
From the English word for a semicircle crown, ultimately of Greek origin.
Tibby
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TIB-ee
Tierra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various
Pronounced: TYEH-ra(Spanish)
Means "earth" in Spanish.
Tihana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Croatian, Serbian
Other Scripts: Тихана(Serbian)
Derived from the Slavic element
tixŭ (Serbo-Croatian
tih) meaning
"quiet".
Timothy
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical
Pronounced: TIM-ə-thee(English)
English form of the Greek name
Τιμόθεος (Timotheos) meaning
"honouring God", derived from
τιμάω (timao) meaning "to honour" and
θεός (theos) meaning "god".
Saint Timothy was a companion of
Paul on his missionary journeys and was the recipient of two of Paul's epistles that appear in the
New Testament. He was of both Jewish and Greek ancestry. According to tradition, he was martyred at Ephesus after protesting the worship of
Artemis. As an English name,
Timothy was not used until after the
Protestant Reformation.
Toirdhealbhach
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish (Rare)
Pronounced: TEHR-yəl-ə-wəkh, TRYEH-ləkh
From Old Irish Tairdelbach meaning "instigator", derived from tairdelb "prompting". This name was borne by several medieval Irish kings.
Tommy
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TAHM-ee(American English) TAWM-ee(British English)
Ton
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Dutch
Pronounced: TAWN
Dutch short form of
Anton.
Torin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Meaning unknown. It has been suggested that it is of Irish origin, though no suitable derivation can be found.
Trey
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TRAY
From an English nickname meaning "three".
Trix
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TRIKS
Twila
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TWIE-lə
Meaning unknown. Perhaps based on the English word
twilight, or maybe from a Cajun pronunciation of French
étoile "star"
[1]. It came into use as an American given name in the late 19th century.
Tyr
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Norse Mythology
From
Týr, the Old Norse form of the name of the Germanic god *
Tīwaz, related to Indo-European *
Dyēws (see
Zeus). In Norse
mythology he was a god associated with war and justice, by some accounts a son of
Odin. While the gods bound the great wolf
Fenrir, Tyr placated the beast by placing his right hand in its mouth. After the binding was successful, Fenrir bit off Tyr's hand. At the time of the end of the world, Ragnarök, it is foretold that Tyr will slay and be slain by the giant hound Garm.
Ulrika
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish
Pronounced: uyl-REE-ka
Swedish feminine form of
Ulrich. This was the name of two queens of Sweden.
Usama
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arabic
Other Scripts: أسامة(Arabic)
Pronounced: oo-SA-ma
Means "lion" in Arabic.
Valda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Latvian
Valerius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman
Pronounced: wa-LEH-ree-oos(Latin) və-LIR-ee-əs(English)
Roman family name that was derived from Latin
valere "to be strong". This was the name of several early
saints.
Valéry
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: VA-LEH-REE
Derived from the Old German elements
walah "foreigner, Celt, Roman" and
rih "ruler, king". It has been frequently confused with the name
Valère.
Saint Walaric (or Valery) was a 7th-century Frankish monk who founded an abbey near Leuconaus at the mouth of the Somme River.
Valkyrie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various (Rare)
Pronounced: VAL-ki-ree(English)
Means
"chooser of the slain", derived from Old Norse
valr "the slain" and
kyrja "chooser". In Norse
myth the Valkyries were maidens who led heroes killed in battle to Valhalla.
Vanessa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, German, Dutch
Pronounced: və-NEHS-ə(English) VA-NEH-SA(French) va-NEHS-sa(Italian) vu-NEH-su(European Portuguese) va-NEH-su(Brazilian Portuguese) ba-NEH-sa(Spanish) va-NEH-sa(German) vah-NEH-sa(Dutch)
Invented by author Jonathan Swift for his 1726 poem
Cadenus and Vanessa [1]. He arrived at it by rearranging the initial syllables of the first name and surname of
Esther Vanhomrigh, his close friend. Vanessa was later used as the name of a genus of butterfly. It was a rare given name until the mid-20th century, at which point it became fairly popular.
Vienne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various (Rare)
Pronounced: VYEHN(French)
From the French name for
Vienna, the capital city of Austria.
Violet
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: VIE-lit, VIE-ə-lit
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.
Viorica
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Romanian
Pronounced: vee-o-REE-ka
Derived from Romanian
viorea (see
Viorel).
Wade
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WAYD
Warren
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WAWR-ən
From an English surname that was derived either from Norman French warrene meaning "animal enclosure", or else from the town of La Varenne in Normandy. This name was borne by the American president Warren G. Harding (1865-1923).
Wesley
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WEHS-lee, WEHZ-lee
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.
Willie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WIL-ee
Masculine or feminine
diminutive of
William. Notable bearers include the retired American baseball player Willie Mays (1931-) and the musician Willie Nelson (1933-).
Woodrow
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WUWD-ro
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "row of houses by a wood" in Old English. It was borne by the American president Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924), who was given his mother's maiden name as his middle name (his first name was Thomas). During his candidacy and presidency (1912-1921) the name became popular, reaching the 44th rank in 1913, though it quickly declined after that.
Zarathustra
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History
Pronounced: zar-ə-THOOS-trə(English)
From Avestan
𐬰𐬀𐬭𐬀𐬚𐬎𐬱𐬙𐬭𐬀 (Zarathushtra), in which the second element is
𐬎𐬱𐬙𐬭𐬀 (ushtra) meaning "camel". Proposed meanings for the first element include "old", "moving", "angry" and "yellow". Zarathustra was an Iranian prophet who founded the ancient religion of Zoroastrianism around the 10th century BC. He is also called
Zoroaster in English, from the Greek form of his name
Ζωροάστρης (Zoroastres).
Zipporah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, Hebrew
Other Scripts: צִפּוֹרָה(Hebrew)
Pronounced: zi-PAWR-ə(English) ZIP-ə-rə(English)
Ziv
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: זִיו(Hebrew)
Means "bright, radiant" in Hebrew. This was the ancient name of the second month of the Jewish calendar.
Ziva
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: זִיוָה(Hebrew)
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