Browse Names - Behind the Name

Alethea f English
Derived from Greek ἀλήθεια (aletheia) meaning "truth". This name was coined in the 16th century.

Əminə f Azerbaijani
Azerbaijani form of Amina 2.

Aslı f Turkish
Means "origin, original, essence" in Turkish.

Atsuko f Japanese
From Japanese 温 (atsu) meaning "warm", 篤 (atsu) meaning "deep, true, sincere" or 敦 (atsu) meaning "honest" combined with 子 (ko) meaning "child". Other kanji combinations are possible.

Audovera f Germanic
Derived from Old Frankish aud "wealth, fortune" combined with war "true" or war "aware, cautious". This was the name of the first wife of Chilperic I of Neustria.

Cheng m & f Chinese
From Chinese 成 (chéng) meaning "completed, finished, succeeded" or 诚 (chéng) meaning "sincere, honest, true", as well as other characters that are pronounced similarly.

Dearbhla f Irish
Variant of Dearbháil, perhaps influenced by Irish dearbh "true".

Dilwen f Welsh
Feminine form of Dilwyn.

Dilys f Welsh
Means "genuine" in Welsh. It has been used since the late 19th century.

Elvira f Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, German, Dutch, Swedish, Hungarian, Russian
Spanish form of a Visigothic name, recorded from the 10th century in forms such as Geloyra or Giluira. It is of uncertain meaning, possibly composed of the Gothic element gails "happy" or gails "spear" combined with wers "friendly, agreeable, true". The name was borne by members of the royal families of León and Castille. This is also the name of a character in Mozart's opera Don Giovanni (1787).

Emina f Bosnian
Bosnian form of Amina 2.

Emine f Turkish
Turkish form of Amina 2.

Gailawera f Gothic (Hypothetical)
Possible Gothic form of Elvira.

Geloyra f Gothic (Latinized)
Latinized (Old Spanish) form of a Gothic name (see Elvira).

Kittum f Semitic Mythology
From Akkadian kīttu meaning "truth", a derivative of kīnu "legitimate, true". This was the name of the Akkadian goddess of truth.

Kjellaug f Norwegian
From the Old Norse name Ketillaug, derived from the elements ketill meaning "kettle" and laug possibly meaning "vowed, promised, bound in oath".

Maat f Egyptian Mythology
From Egyptian mꜣꜥt meaning "truth, virtue, justice". Maat (or Ma'at) was the Egyptian goddess who personified truth and balance. She was the consort of Thoth.

Makoto m & f Japanese
From Japanese 誠 (makoto) meaning "sincerity", as well as other kanji or kanji combinations.

Mami f Japanese
From Japanese 真 (ma) meaning "real, genuine" or 麻 (ma) meaning "flax" combined with 美 (mi) meaning "beautiful". Other combinations of kanji can form this name as well.

Mariko f Japanese
From Japanese 真 (ma) meaning "real, genuine", 里 (ri) meaning "village" and 子 (ko) meaning "child". Many different combinations of kanji characters can form this name.

Mayumi 1 f Japanese
From Japanese 真 (ma) meaning "real, genuine" combined with 弓 (yumi) meaning "archery bow" or 由 (yu) meaning "reason, cause" and 美 (mi) meaning "beautiful". This name can also be constructed from other kanji combinations.

Miyu f Japanese
From Japanese 美 (mi) meaning "beautiful" or 実 (mi) meaning "fruit, good result, truth" combined with 優 (yu) meaning "excellence, superiority, gentleness" or 結 (yu) meaning "tie, bind" or 夕 (yu) meaning "evening". Other kanji combinations are possible.

Nili f Hebrew
Acronym of the phrase נצח ישׂראל לא ישׁקר (Netzach Yisrael Lo Yishaker) meaning "the eternity of Israel will not lie". This phrase appears in the Old Testament in 1 Samuel 15:29. It was used as the name of a Jewish spy network in Palestine during World War I.

Nobuko f Japanese
From Japanese 信 (nobu) meaning "trust" and 子 (ko) meaning "child". Other kanji characters can also form this name.

Sanna f Swedish, Finnish
Short form of Susanna. It can also be derived from Swedish sann meaning "true".

Sapphira f Biblical
From the Greek name Σαπφείρη (Sappheire), which was from Greek σάπφειρος (sappheiros) meaning "sapphire" or "lapis lazuli" (ultimately derived from the Hebrew word סַפִּיר (sappir)). Sapphira is a character in Acts in the New Testament who is killed by God for lying.

Sati f Hinduism
From Sanskrit सत् (sat) meaning "true, virtuous". This is the name of a Hindu goddess, the first wife of Shiva. A daughter of King Daksha, she threw herself onto a fire when her husband was insulted by her father. After her death she was eventually reborn as the goddess Parvati.

Satyavati f Hinduism, Hindi, Telugu
Means "truthful", derived from Sanskrit सत्य (satya) meaning "true, real" and the suffix वती (vatī) meaning "having". In the Hindu epic the Mahabharata she is a commoner who becomes the wife of Shantanu, king of Hastinapura.

Shi m & f Chinese
From Chinese 时 (shí) meaning "time, era, season", 实 (shí) meaning "real, honest", 史 (shǐ) meaning "history" or 石 (shí) meaning "stone". Other characters can form this name as well.

Siddiqa f Arabic (Rare), Urdu
Feminine form of Siddiq.

Sincere m & f English (Modern)
From the English word meaning genuine or heartfelt.

Skaidrīte f Latvian
Derived from Latvian skaidrs meaning "clear, bright".

Tam 2 m & f Hebrew
Means "honest, innocent" in Hebrew.

Tomomi f & m Japanese
From Japanese 智 (tomo) meaning "wisdom, intellect" or 朋 (tomo) meaning "friend" combined with 美 (mi) meaning "beautiful" or 実 (mi) meaning "fruit, good result, truth". Other kanji combinations can also form this name.

Veera f Finnish, Estonian
Finnish and Estonian form of Vera 1.

Vera 1 f Russian, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Portuguese, Italian, Spanish, Hungarian, Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Belarusian, Georgian
Means "faith" in Russian, though it is sometimes associated with the Latin word verus "true". It has been in general use in the English-speaking world since the late 19th century.

Verena f German, Late Roman
Possibly related to Latin verus "true". This might also be a Coptic form of the Ptolemaic name Berenice. Saint Verena was a 3rd-century Egyptian-born nurse who went with the Theban Legion to Switzerland. After the legion was massacred she settled near Zurich.

Vérène f French (Rare)
French form of Verena.

Veriko f Georgian
Georgian diminutive of Vera 1.

Veritas f Roman Mythology
Means "truth" in Latin, a derivative of verus "true". The Roman goddess Veritas was the personification of truth.

Verity f English
From the English word meaning "verity, truth", from Latin verus "true, real". This was one of the virtue names adopted by the Puritans in the 17th century.

Verónica f Spanish, Galician, Portuguese (European)
Spanish, Galician and European Portuguese form of Veronica.

Verônica f Portuguese (Brazilian)
Brazilian Portuguese form of Veronica.

Veronica f English, Italian, Romanian, Late Roman
Latin alteration of Berenice, the spelling influenced by the ecclesiastical Latin phrase vera icon meaning "true image". This was the name of a legendary saint who wiped Jesus' face with a towel and then found his image imprinted upon it. Due to popular stories about her, the name was occasionally used in the Christian world in the Middle Ages. It was borne by the Italian saint and mystic Veronica Giuliani (1660-1727). As an English name, it was not common until the 19th century, when it was imported from France and Scotland.

Veronika f Russian, Czech, Slovak, Ukrainian, German, Hungarian, Bulgarian, Slovene, Croatian, Macedonian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Estonian, Lithuanian, Latvian
Form of Veronica in several languages.

Véronique f French
French form of Veronica.

Wahyuni f Indonesian
From Indonesian wahyu meaning "revelation", derived from Arabic وحي (waḥy).

Weronika f Polish, Sorbian
Polish and Sorbian form of Veronica.

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