Feminine Names

gender
usage
Zan f & m Chinese
From Chinese (zàn) meaning "help, support", as well as other characters with a similar pronunciation.
Žana f Slovene, Croatian
Slovene and Croatian form of Gianna.
Zandile f Zulu
Means "they have increased" in Zulu.
Zandra f English
Short form of Alexandra.
Zane 2 f Latvian
Latvian form of Susanna.
Žaneta f Czech, Slovak, Lithuanian
Czech, Slovak and Lithuanian form of Jeannette.
Żaneta f Polish
Polish form of Jeannette.
Žanna f Latvian
Latvian form of Jeanne.
Zanna f English
Short form of Suzanna.
Zanokuhle f & m Xhosa, Zulu
Means "come with goodness" in Zulu and Xhosa, from the roots za "to come, to approach" and hle "beautiful, good".
Zara 1 f Literature, English
Used by William Congreve for a character in his tragedy The Mourning Bride (1697), where it belongs to a captive North African queen. Congreve may have based it on the Arabic name Zahra 1. In 1736 the English writer Aaron Hill used it to translate Zaïre for his popular adaptation of Voltaire's French play Zaïre (1732).... [more]
Zara 2 f Bulgarian
Diminutive of Zaharina.
Zareen f Urdu
Variant of Zarina.
Zaria f English (Modern)
Possibly based on Zahra 2 or the Nigerian city of Zaria.
Zərifə f Azerbaijani
Means "gentle, pleasant" in Azerbaijani, ultimately from Arabic ظريف (ẓarīf).
Zarifa f Arabic
From Arabic ظريف (ẓarīf) meaning "elegant, graceful, charming".
Zarina f Uzbek, Kazakh, Tajik, Urdu, Malay
From Persian زرین (zarīn) meaning "golden". According to the 5th-century BC Greek historian Ctesias, this was the name of a Scythian queen.
Zarja f Slovene
Slovene variant of Zora.
Zavia f English (Rare)
Modern feminine form of Xavier.
Zawadi f & m Swahili
Means "gift" in Swahili, derived from Arabic زواد (zawād) meaning "provisions".
Zaya f Mongolian
Means "fate, destiny" in Mongolian.
Zayna f Arabic
Feminine form of Zayn.
Zaynab f Arabic
Meaning uncertain. It is possibly related to Arabic زين (zayn) meaning "beauty"; it could be from the name of a fragrant flowering tree; or it could be an Arabic form of Zenobia, a name borne by a pre-Islamic queen of Palmyra. Zaynab was the name of a daughter, a granddaughter, and two wives of the Prophet Muhammad.
Zazil f Mayan
Means "clear, light, clarity" in Yucatec Maya. Zazil Há was a 16th-century Maya woman who married the Spanish shipwreck survivor Gonzalo Guerrero.
Zdena f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Zdeněk or Zdenko.
Zdeňka f Czech
Feminine form of Zdeněk.
Zdenka f Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Croatian
Feminine form of Zdeněk or Zdenko.
Zdislava f Czech
Czech feminine form of Zdzisław. This name was borne by the 13th-century Czech saint Zdislava Berka.
Zdzisława f Polish
Feminine form of Zdzisław.
Zebidah f Biblical
Derived from Hebrew זָבַד (zavaḏ) meaning "to give". In the Old Testament she is a wife of King Josiah of Judah and the mother of Jehoiakim. Her name is spelled as Zebudah in some translations.
Zebudah f Biblical
Variant of Zebidah found in some versions of the Old Testament (including the King James Version).
Zedong m & f Chinese
From Chinese () meaning "moist, grace, brilliance" combined with (dōng) meaning "east", as well as other character combinations. A notable bearer was the founder of the People's Republic of China, Mao Zedong (1893-1976).
Zeenat f Urdu
Usual Urdu transcription of Zinat.
Zehra f Turkish, Urdu
Turkish and Urdu form of Zahra 1 or Zahra 2.
Zeina f Arabic
Alternate transcription of Arabic زينة (see Zayna).
Zeinab f Persian
Persian form of Zaynab.
Zejneb f Bosnian
Bosnian form of Zaynab.
Zekiye f Turkish
Feminine form of Zeki.
Zelda 1 f Yiddish
Possibly a feminine form of Zelig.
Zelda 2 f English
Short form of Griselda. This is the name of a princess in the Legend of Zelda video games, debuting in 1986 and called ゼルダ (Zeruda) in Japanese. According to creator Shigeru Miyamoto she was named after the American socialite Zelda Fitzgerald (1900-1948).
Zelde f Yiddish (Rare)
Possibly a feminine form of Zelig.
Zélie f French
Short form of Azélie. This is another name of Saint Marie-Azélie Guérin (1831-1877).
Zeliha f Turkish
Variant of Züleyha.
Željka f Croatian, Serbian, Slovene
Feminine form of Željko.
Zella f English
Meaning unknown, possibly an invented name. It arose in the 19th century.
Zelma f English
Variant of Selma 1.
Želmíra f Slovak
Slovak feminine form of Želimir.
Zelpha f Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek
Form of Zilpah used in the Greek and Latin Old Testament.
Zeltzin f Nahuatl
Nahuatl name of uncertain meaning, said to mean "delicate".
Zemfira f Azerbaijani, Tatar, Bashkir, Literature
Meaning unknown, possibly of Romani origin. This name was (first?) used by Aleksandr Pushkin in his poem The Gypsies (1827).
Zena f English
Meaning unknown. It could be a variant of Xenia or a diminutive of names featuring this sound, such as Alexina, Rosina or Zenobia. This name has occasionally been used since the 19th century.
Zenaida f Late Greek
Apparently a Greek derivative of Ζηναΐς (Zenais), which was derived from the name of the Greek god Zeus. This was the name of a 1st-century saint who was a doctor with her sister Philonella.
Zenais f Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek variant of Zenaida.
Zendaya f African American (Modern)
Borne by the American actress Zendaya Coleman (1996-), known simply as Zendaya. Her name was apparently inspired by the Shona name Tendai.
Zenobia f Ancient Greek
Means "life of Zeus", derived from Greek Ζηνός (Zenos) meaning "of Zeus" and βίος (bios) meaning "life". This was the name of the queen of the Palmyrene Empire, which broke away from Rome in the 3rd-century and began expanding into Roman territory. She was eventually defeated by the emperor Aurelian. Her Greek name was used as an approximation of her native Aramaic name.
Zenovia f Greek
Alternate transcription of Greek Ζηνοβία (see Zinovia).
Zenzi f German
Diminutive of Kreszenz.
Zéphyrine f French (Rare)
French feminine form of Zephyrinus (see Zeferino).
Zeresh f Biblical, Biblical Hebrew
Meaning unknown, probably of Persian origin. In the Book of Esther in the Old Testament she is the wife of Haman the Agagite.
Zerina f Bosnian
Bosnian form of Zarina.
Zeruiah f Biblical
From Hebrew צֳרִי (tsori) meaning "balm, salve". In the Old Testament this name belongs to the sister of King David and the mother of Abishai, Joab and Asahel.
Zevida f Biblical Hebrew
Hebrew form of Zebidah.
Zeynəb f Azerbaijani
Azerbaijani form of Zaynab.
Zeynab f Persian, Azerbaijani
Alternate transcription of Persian زینب (see Zeinab) or Azerbaijani Zeynəb.
Zeynep f Turkish
Turkish form of Zaynab.
Zhaklina f Bulgarian, Macedonian
Bulgarian form of Jacqueline, as well as an alternate transcription of Macedonian Жаклина (see Žaklina).
Zhaleh f Persian
Means "dew" or "hoarfrost" in Persian.
Zhanna f Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian
Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian form of Jeanne.
Zhannochka f Russian
Diminutive of Zhanna.
Zhansaya f Kazakh
From Kazakh жан (zhan) meaning "soul" and сая (saya) meaning "shadow, shade, protection, comfort" (both words of Persian origin).
Zhen f & m Chinese
From Chinese (zhēn) meaning "precious, rare", (zhēn) meaning "real, genuine", (zhēn) meaning "virtuous, chaste, loyal", or other Chinese characters that are pronounced similarly.
Zheng m & f Chinese
From Chinese (zhèng) meaning "right, proper, correct" or (zhèng) meaning "government", as well as other hanja characters with a similar pronunciation.
Zhenya f & m Russian, Bulgarian
Russian diminutive of Yevgeniya or Yevgeniy or a Bulgarian diminutive of Evgeniya.
Zhi m & f Chinese
From Chinese (zhì) meaning "will, purpose, ambition" or (zhì) meaning "wisdom, intellect", as well as other characters that are pronounced similarly.
Zhihao m & f Chinese
From Chinese (zhì) meaning "will, purpose, ambition" or (zhì) meaning "wisdom, intellect" combined with (háo) meaning "brave, heroic, chivalrous". Many other character combinations are possible.
Zhivka f Bulgarian, Macedonian
Feminine form of Živko.
Zhong m & f Chinese
From Chinese (zhōng) meaning "middle" or (zhōng) meaning "loyalty, devotion". Other characters can form this name as well.
Zhou m & f Chinese
From Chinese (zhōu) meaning "boat, ship", in addition to other characters that are pronounced similarly.
Zhuldyz f Kazakh
Means "star" in Kazakh.
Zhyldyz f Kyrgyz
Alternate transcription of Kyrgyz Жылдыз (see Jyldyz).
Zhyrgal m & f Kyrgyz
Alternate transcription of Kyrgyz Жыргал (see Jyrgal).
Ziba 1 f Persian
Means "beautiful" in Persian.
Zibiah f Biblical
Means "female gazelle" in Hebrew, the feminine form of the word צְבִי (tsevi). In the Old Testament this is the name of the mother of King Joash of Judah.
Zifa f Tatar, Bashkir
Tatar and Bashkir form of Ziba 1.
Zigrīda f Latvian
Latvian form of Sigrid.
Zihan f & m Chinese
From Chinese () meaning "child" or () meaning "catalpa tree" combined with (hán) meaning "contain, include". Other character combinations are possible.
Zikomo m & f Chewa
Means "thank you, greeting" in Chewa.
Zilla f Biblical German, Biblical Italian
German and Italian form of Zillah.
Zillah f Biblical
Means "shade" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament she is the second wife of Lamech.
Zilpa f Biblical Hebrew, Biblical Spanish, Biblical French, Biblical Italian, Biblical Dutch
Biblical Hebrew form of Zilpah, as well as the form in several other languages.
Zilpah f Biblical
Means "frailty" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this is the name of the handmaid who was given to Jacob by Leah.
Zina f Russian
Short form of Zinaida.
Zinaida f Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian
Russian, Belarusian and Ukrainian form of Zenaida.
Zinat f Persian, Bengali
Means "ornament" in Persian (of Arabic origin).
Zineb f Arabic (Maghrebi)
Alternate transcription of Arabic زينب (see Zaynab) chiefly used in North Africa.
Zinnia f English (Rare)
From the name of the flower, which was itself named for the German botanist Johann Zinn.
Zinovia f Greek
Modern Greek transcription of Zenobia.
Zinoviya f Russian (Rare), Ukrainian (Rare)
Russian and Ukrainian form of Zenobia.
Zipporah f Biblical, Hebrew
From the Hebrew name צִפּוֹרָה (Tsippora), derived from צִפּוֹר (tsippor) meaning "bird". In the Old Testament this is the name of the Midianite wife of Moses. She was the daughter of the priest Jethro.
Zisel f Yiddish (Rare)
From Yiddish זיס (zis) meaning "sweet".
Ziska f German
Short form of Franziska.
Zita 1 f Italian, Portuguese, German, Czech, Slovak, Lithuanian, Latvian
Means "little girl" in Tuscan Italian. This was the name of a 13th-century saint, the patron saint of servants.
Zita 2 f Hungarian
Diminutive of Felicitás.
Zitkala f Sioux
From Lakota zitkála meaning "bird".
Ziv m & f Hebrew
Means "bright, radiant" in Hebrew. This was the ancient name of the second month of the Jewish calendar.
Živa f Slavic Mythology, Slovene, Serbian
From the Old Slavic word živŭ meaning "alive, living". According to the 12th-century Saxon priest Helmold, this was the name of a Slavic goddess possibly associated with life or fertility.
Ziva f Hebrew
Feminine form of Ziv.
Zivit f Hebrew
Feminine form of Ziv.
Živka f Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian
Feminine form of Živko.
Ziynet f Turkish
Turkish form of Zinat.
Zlatica f Croatian, Slovak
Diminutive of Zlata.
Zlatka f Bulgarian
Diminutive of Zlata.
Zlatuše f Czech
Diminutive of Zlata.
Zlota f Jewish (Rare)
From Polish złoto "gold", used as a translation of Yiddish Golda.
Zodwa f Zulu, Xhosa, Ndebele
Short form of Ntombizodwa.
Zoe f English, Italian, Spanish, German, Czech, Ancient Greek
Means "life" in Greek. From early times it was adopted by Hellenized Jews as a translation of Eve. It was borne by two early Christian saints, one martyred under Emperor Hadrian, the other martyred under Diocletian. The name was common in the Byzantine Empire, being borne by a ruling empress of the 11th century.... [more]
Zoé f French, Hungarian
French and Hungarian form of Zoe.
Zoè f Catalan
Catalan form of Zoe.
Zoë f Dutch, English
Dutch form and English variant of Zoe.
Žofia f Slovak
Slovak form of Sophia.
Zofia f Polish
Polish form of Sophia.
Žofie f Czech
Czech form of Sophia.
Zofija f Lithuanian, Slovene
Lithuanian and Slovene form of Sophia.
Zohar m & f Hebrew
Means "light, brilliance" in Hebrew.
Zohra f Urdu, Arabic (Maghrebi)
Alternate transcription of Urdu زہرہ (see Zuhra 1) or Arabic زهرة (see Zuhra 2).
Zohreh f Persian
Means "Venus (planet)" in Persian, borrowed from Arabic الزهرة (al-Zuhara), derived from the root زهر (zahara) meaning "to shine".
Zoi f Greek
Modern Greek transcription of Zoe.
Zoila f Spanish
Spanish feminine form of Zoilus.
Zoja f Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Macedonian
Form of Zoe in several languages.
Zola 1 f English
Meaning unknown, perhaps an invented name. It has been in occasional use in the English-speaking world since the 19th century. It coincides with an Italian surname, a famous bearer being the French-Italian author Émile Zola (1840-1902).
Zola 2 f & m Xhosa
From the Xhosa root -zola meaning "calm".
Zona f Various
Means "girdle, belt" in Greek. This name was made popular by the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist and poet Zona Gale (1874-1938).
Zora f Croatian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Slovene, Czech, Slovak
Means "dawn, aurora" in the South Slavic languages, as well as Czech and Slovak.
Zoraida f Spanish
Perhaps means "enchanting" or "dawn" in Arabic. This was the name of a minor 12th-century Spanish saint, a convert from Islam. The name was used by Cervantes for a character in his novel Don Quixote (1606), in which Zoraida is a beautiful Moorish woman of Algiers who converts to Christianity and elopes with a Spanish officer.
Zorana f Croatian, Serbian
Variant of Zora.
Zoriana f Ukrainian
Alternate transcription of Ukrainian Зоряна (see Zoryana).
Zorica f Serbian, Croatian, Macedonian
Serbian, Croatian and Macedonian diminutive of Zora.
Zorione f Basque
Feminine form of Zorion.
Zornitsa f Bulgarian
Means "morning star" in Bulgarian.
Zoryana f Ukrainian
Derived from Ukrainian зоря (zorya) meaning "dawn, star".
Zosia f Polish
Diminutive of Zofia.
Zosime f Ancient Greek
Feminine form of Zosimos (see Zosimus).
Zoubida f Arabic (Maghrebi)
Form of Zubaida chiefly used in North Africa (using French-influenced orthography).
Zowie f English (Rare)
Variant of Zoe.
Zoya f Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Bulgarian
Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian and Bulgarian form of Zoe.
Zrinka f Croatian
Possibly from Zrin, the name of a village in Croatia, or from the noble Zrinski family that originated there.
Zsanett f Hungarian
Hungarian form of Jeannette.
Zselyke f Hungarian
Possibly a Hungarian form of Željka.
Zsófia f Hungarian
Hungarian form of Sophia.
Zsóka f Hungarian
Diminutive of Erzsébet or Zsófia.
Zsuzsa f Hungarian
Diminutive of Zsuzsanna.
Zsuzsanna f Hungarian
Hungarian form of Susanna.
Zsuzsi f Hungarian
Diminutive of Zsuzsanna.
Zubaida f Arabic, Urdu
Means "elite, prime, cream" in Arabic. This was the name of a 9th-century wife of Harun ar-Rashid, the Abbasid caliph featured in the stories of The 1001 Nights.
Zübeyde f Turkish
Turkish form of Zubaida.
Zuhra 1 f Urdu
Urdu form of Zohreh.
Zuhra 2 f Arabic (Rare)
Means "brilliancy, light" in Arabic, derived from the root زهر (zahara) meaning "to shine". This name is written identically to the related name Zahra, though it is pronounced differently.
Zuhura f Swahili, Dhivehi
Means "Venus (planet)" in Swahili and Dhivehi. Both are borrowed from Arabic الزهرة (al-Zuhara), derived from the root زهر (zahara) meaning "to shine".
Zula 1 f Polish (Rare)
Polish diminutive of Zuzanna.
Zula 2 f English
Meaning unknown. It has been in use since the 19th century. It is possibly related to the name of the African tribe that lives largely in South Africa, the Zulus. In the 19th century the Zulus were a powerful nation under their leader Shaka.
Zulaykha f Arabic (Rare)
Arabic form of Zuleika.
Zuleika f Literature
Meaning uncertain, possibly of Arabic origin. According to medieval tradition, notably related by the 15th-century Persian poet Jami, this was the name of the biblical Potiphar's wife. She has been a frequent subject of poems and tales.
Zuleima f Spanish
Variant of Zulema.
Zulekha f Arabic
Alternate transcription of Arabic زليخا (see Zulaykha).
Zulema f Spanish
Possibly a Spanish feminine form of Sulayman.
Züleyha f Turkish
Turkish form of Zuleika.
Züleyxa f Azerbaijani
Azerbaijani form of Zuleika.
Zümra f Turkish
From Turkish zümrüt meaning "emerald", derived via Arabic from Greek σμάραγδος (smaragdos).
Zümrüd f Azerbaijani
Means "emerald" in Azerbaijani, of Persian origin.
Zuri f Swahili
Means "beautiful" in Swahili.
Zuriñe f Basque
Derived from Basque zuri "white". This is a Basque equivalent of Blanca.
Zusa f Yiddish (Rare)
Means "sweet" in Yiddish.
Zuza f Slovak, Polish
Slovak and Polish diminutive of Susanna.
Zuzana f Czech, Slovak, Lithuanian
Czech, Slovak and Lithuanian form of Susanna.
Zuzanka f Czech, Slovak
Diminutive of Zuzana.
Zuzanna f Polish, Latvian (Rare)
Polish and Latvian form of Susanna.
Zuzia f Polish
Polish diminutive of Zuzanna.
Zuzka f Czech, Slovak
Diminutive of Zuzana.
Zvezdana f Serbian, Slovene
Serbian and Slovene form of Zvjezdana.
Zvjezdana f Croatian
Derived from Croatian zvijezda meaning "star".
Zvonimira f Croatian
Feminine form of Zvonimir.
Zyanya f Zapotec
Possibly means "forever, always" in Zapotec. It appears in the novel Aztec (1980) by the American author Gary Jennings.
Žydrė f Lithuanian
From Lithuanian žydra meaning "light blue".
Zyta f Polish
Possibly a Polish form of Zita 1, or possibly a short form of Felicyta.