Browse Names

Adetokunbo m & f Yoruba
Means "the crown returns from over the sea" in Yoruba.

Ægir m Norse Mythology
Means "sea, ocean" in Old Norse. According to Norse mythology Ægir was a god or giant (jǫtunn) who lived under the ocean. His wife was Rán.

Alton m English
From an English surname that was derived from a place name meaning "town at the source of the river" in Old English.

Altwidus m Germanic (Latinized)
Derived from the Old German elements alt "old" and witu "forest".

Arvid m Swedish, Norwegian
From the Old Norse name Arnviðr, derived from the elements ǫrn "eagle" and viðr "tree".

Ashton m & f English (Modern)
From an English surname, itself derived from a place name meaning "ash tree town" in Old English. This was a rare masculine name until the 1980s, when it gradually began becoming more common for both genders. Inspired by the female character Ashton Main from the 1985 miniseries North and South, parents in America gave it more frequently to girls than boys from 1986 to 1997. Since then it has been overwhelmingly masculine once again, perhaps due in part to the fame of the actor Ashton Kutcher (1978-).

Boyce m English
From an English surname that was derived from Old French bois "wood".

Braxton m English
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "Bracca's town" in Old English. In some cases it is given in honour of the Confederate general Braxton Bragg (1817-1876).

Brenton m English
From a surname that was derived from an English place name meaning "Bryni's town". Bryni was an Old English name meaning "fire".

Briscoe m English (Rare)
From an English surname that was derived from a place name meaning "birch wood" in Old Norse.

Burton m English
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "fortified town" in Old English. A famous bearer of the surname was Richard Burton (1821-1890), an explorer of Africa and Asia.

Carver m English (Rare)
From an English surname that meant "wood carver".

Clayton m English
From a surname that was originally derived from various English place names, all meaning "clay settlement" in Old English.

Clifton m English
From a surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "settlement by a cliff" in Old English.

Colton m English (Modern)
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "Cola's town". It started being used as a given name in the 1980s. Likely in some cases it was viewed as an elaborated or full form of Cole or Colt.

Crofton m English (Rare)
From a surname that was derived from a place name meaning "town with a small enclosed field" in Old English.

Crosby m English (Modern)
From a surname that was derived from the name of an English town, itself meaning "cross town" in Old Norse.

Dalton m English
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "valley town" in Old English. A notable bearer of the surname was John Dalton (1766-1844), the English chemist and physicist who theorized about the existence of atoms.

Dərya f & m Azerbaijani
Azerbaijani form of Darya 2.

Darya 2 f Persian
Means "sea, ocean" in Persian.

Dayton m English
From an English surname that was derived from places named Deighton, meaning "ditch town" in Old English. Dayton is also the name of a city in Ohio. As a given name, it gained a bit of popularity in the 1990s, probably because it shares a similar sound with names such as Peyton and Clayton.

Denton m English
From a surname, originally from a place name, which meant "valley town" in Old English.

Derya f Turkish
Means "sea, ocean" in Turkish, ultimately from Persian.

Easton m English (Modern)
From an English surname that was derived from place names meaning "east town" in Old English.

Elton m English, Portuguese (Brazilian), Albanian, Swedish (Modern)
From an English surname that was originally from a place name meaning "Ella's town". A famous bearer of this name is British musician Elton John (1947-), born Reginald Dwight, who adopted his stage name in honour of his former bandmate Elton Dean (1945-2006).

Fenton m English
From a surname that was originally taken from a place name meaning "marsh town" in Old English.

Gyatso m Tibetan
From Tibetan རྒྱ་མཚོ (rgya-mtsho) meaning "ocean". This is one of the given names of the current Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso (1935-).

Hafdís f Icelandic
Derived from Old Norse haf "sea, ocean" and dís "goddess".

Hải m Vietnamese
From Sino-Vietnamese 海 (hải) meaning "sea, ocean".

Hai m & f Chinese
From Chinese 海 (hǎi) meaning "sea, ocean" or other characters that are pronounced similarly.

Haywood m English
From a surname that was derived from a place name meaning "fenced wood" in Old English.

Heremoana m Tahitian
From Tahitian here "loved, dear" and moana "ocean".

Horst m German
Means "wood, thicket" in Low German. Alternatively, it may derive from Horsa. This name was popular in the first half of the 20th century but has since become uncommon. It is now a German slang word for an unintelligent person.

Itsaso f Basque
Means "ocean" in Basque.

Kaito m Japanese
From Japanese 海 (kai) meaning "sea, ocean" combined with 斗 (to), which refers to a Chinese constellation, or 翔 (to) meaning "soar, fly". Other kanji combinations are also possible.

Keith m English, Scottish
From a Scottish surname that was originally derived from the name of a place in East Lothian, itself possibly derived from the Celtic root *kayto- meaning "wood". This was the surname of a long line of Scottish nobles. It has been used as a given name since the 19th century, becoming fairly common throughout the English-speaking world in the 20th century.

Kingsley m & f English (Modern)
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "king's wood" in Old English. This name may have received a minor boost in popularity after the release of the 2007 movie Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, featuring the character Kingsley Shacklebolt.

Kingston m English (Modern)
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "king's town" in Old English. This name rose significantly on the popularity charts after musicians Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale used it for their son born 2006.

Kynaston m English (Rare)
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "Cynefrið's town" in Old English.

Layton m English
From a surname that was originally derived from the name of English towns meaning "town with a leek garden" in Old English. Like similar-sounding names such as Peyton and Dayton, this name began rising in popularity in the 1990s.

Lwandle m & f Zulu, Xhosa
Means "ocean" in Zulu and Xhosa.

Manami f Japanese
From Japanese 愛 (mana) meaning "love, affection" combined with 美 (mi) meaning "beautiful" or 海 (mi) meaning "sea, ocean". Other kanji combinations are possible.

Mekan m Turkmen
Means "place, town, edge" in Turkmen, ultimately from Arabic مكان (makān) meaning "place, position".

Melville m English
From a Scots surname that was originally from a Norman French place name Malleville meaning "bad town". A famous bearer of the surname was the American author Herman Melville (1819-1891), who wrote several novels including Moby-Dick.

Merton m English
From a surname that was derived from a place name meaning "town on a lake" in Old English.

Mílton m Portuguese
Portuguese form of Milton.

Milton m English, Spanish (Latin American)
From an English surname that was derived from a place name meaning "mill town" in Old English. A famous bearer of the surname was John Milton (1608-1674), the poet who wrote Paradise Lost.

Mira 1 f Hindi, Marathi, Malayalam, Tamil, Kannada
From Sanskrit मीर (mīra) meaning "sea, ocean". This was the name of a 16th-century Indian princess who devoted her life to the god Krishna.

Moana f & m Maori, Hawaiian, Tahitian, Samoan, Tongan
Means "ocean, wide expanse of water, deep sea" in Maori, Hawaiian and other Polynesian languages.

Morton m English
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "moor town" in Old English.

Mostyn m Welsh
From the name of a town in northern Wales, which is probably derived from Old English elements meaning "moss town".

Mu m & f Chinese
From Chinese 牧 (mù) meaning "shepherd", 木 (mù) meaning "tree, wood", or other characters with similar pronunciations.

Mulan f Chinese Mythology
From Chinese 木兰 (mùlán) meaning "magnolia". This is the name of a legendary female warrior who disguises herself as a man to take her ailing father's place when he is conscripted into the army.

Nanami f Japanese
From Japanese 七 (nana) meaning "seven" and 海 (mi) meaning "sea". It can also come from 菜 (na) meaning "vegetables, greens" duplicated and 美 (mi) meaning "beautiful". Other kanji combinations are also possible.

Neville m English (British)
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 m English
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).

Norton m English
From a surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "north town" in Old English.

Norwood m English
From a surname that was originally taken from a place name meaning "north wood" in Old English.

Ocean f & m English (Modern)
Simply from the English word ocean for a large body of water. It is ultimately derived from Greek Ὠκεανός (Okeanos), the name of the body of water thought to surround the Earth.

Océane f French
Derived from French océan meaning "ocean".

Okeanos m Greek Mythology
From the name of the river or body of water thought by the ancient Greeks to surround the Earth. In Greek mythology Okeanos was the Titan who personified this body of water.

Paxton m English (Modern)
From an English surname that was derived from a place name meaning "Pœcc's town". Pœcc is an Old English given name of unknown meaning.

Peyton f & m English
From an English surname, originally a place name meaning "Pæga's town". This was a rare masculine name until the 1990s. In 1992 it was used for a female character in the movie The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, and, despite the fact that it was borne by the villain, the name began to rise in popularity for girls as well as boys.... [more]

Preston m English
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "priest town" (Old English preost and tun).

Royston m English (British)
From a surname that was originally taken from an Old English place name meaning "town of Royse". The given name Royse was a medieval variant of Rose.

Sawyer m & f English (Modern)
From an English surname meaning "sawer of wood". Mark Twain used it for the hero in his novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876).... [more]

Sefton m English (Rare)
From a surname that was derived from a place name meaning "town in the rushes" in Old English.

Seong-Jin m Korean
From Sino-Korean 成 (seong) meaning "completed, finished, succeeded" or 星 (seong) meaning "star, planet" combined with 鎭 (jin) meaning "town, marketplace" or 震 (jin) meaning "shake, tremor, excite". Other hanja character combinations are also possible.

Shelton m English
From a surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "shelf town" in Old English.

Silverius m Late Roman
Probably from Latin silva meaning "wood, forest" (compare Silvanus, Silvester and Silvius). This name was borne by a 6th-century pope who served for less than a year but is considered a saint.

Silvius m Late Roman, Roman Mythology
Derived from Latin silva meaning "wood, forest". This was the family name of several of the legendary kings of Alba Longa. It was also the name of an early saint martyred in Alexandria.

Stetson m English (Modern)
From an English surname that was originally derived from the name of the village of Stidston in Devon, meaning "Stithweard's town". This is a type of wide-brimmed hat, originally made by the John B. Stetson Company.

Sutton f & m English (Modern)
From a surname, itself derived from the name of numerous English towns, of Old English origin meaning "south town".

Sylvan m English
Either a variant of Silvanus or directly from the Latin word silva meaning "wood, forest".

Takumi m Japanese
From Japanese 匠 (takumi) meaning "artisan" or 巧 (takumi) meaning "skillful". It can also come from 拓 (taku) meaning "expand, open, support" combined with 海 (mi) meaning "sea, ocean" or 実 (mi) meaning "fruit, good result, truth". This name can also be formed of other kanji combinations.

Tasi f & m Chamorro
Means "sea, ocean" in Chamorro.

Tatton m English (Rare)
From a surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "Tata's town" in Old English.

Tengiz m Georgian
Derived from Turkic tengiz meaning "sea, ocean".

Thornton m English
From a surname that was derived from a place name meaning "thorn town" in Old English.

U-Jin m Korean
From Sino-Korean 宇 (u) meaning "house, universe" or 佑 (u) meaning "help, protect, bless" combined with 眞 (jin) meaning "real, genuine" or 鎭 (jin) meaning "town, market place". Other combinations of hanja characters can form this name as well.

Upton m English (Rare)
From a surname that was derived from a place name meaning "upper town" in Old English. A famous bearer of this name was the American novelist Upton Sinclair (1878-1968).

Walton m English
From a surname that was originally taken from various Old English place names meaning "stream town", "wood town", or "wall town".

Widald m Germanic
Old German name composed of the elements witu "wood" and walt "power, authority".

Wido m Germanic
Originally a short form of names beginning with the Old Frankish or Old Saxon element widu, Old High German witu, meaning "wood" (Proto-Germanic *widuz). This was the name of two 11th-century saints, one from Belgium and one from northern Italy, both commonly called Guido or Guy. From early times this name has been confused with the Latin name Vitus.

Widogast m Germanic
Old German name composed of the elements witu "wood" and gast "guest, stranger".

Widukind m Germanic
Old Saxon name composed of the elements widu "wood" and kind "child". This was the name of an 8th-century Saxon leader who fought against the Franks, in the end unsuccessfully.

Willoughby m & f English (Rare)
From a surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "willow town" in Old English.

Woodrow m English
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.

Yang m & f Chinese
From Chinese 洋 (yáng) meaning "ocean" or 阳 (yáng) meaning "light, sun, male" (which is typically only masculine), as well as other Chinese characters pronounced similarly.

Yōko f Japanese
From Japanese 陽 (yō) meaning "light, sun, male" or 洋 (yō) meaning "ocean" combined with 子 (ko) meaning "child". Other combinations of kanji characters can also form this name.

Yōsuke m Japanese
From Japanese 陽 (yō) meaning "light, sun, male" or 洋 (yō) meaning "ocean" combined with 介 (suke) meaning "help, assist". This name can also be formed from other combinations of kanji characters.