Browse Names

Willard m English
From an English surname that was derived from the Old German given name Willihard (or the Old English cognate Wilheard).

Wilmer m English, Spanish (Latin American), Swedish
From the Old English name Wilmǣr, likely via a surname that was derived from it. In some cases it might be regarded as a masculine form of Wilma.

Wilt m English
Short form of Wilton. This name was borne by basketball player Wilt Chamberlain (1936-1999).

Wilton m English
From a surname that was derived from the names of several English towns. The town names mean variously "willow town", "well town" or "town on the River Wylye" in Old English. The river name is itself of Celtic origin, possibly meaning "tricky".

Winfield m English
From a surname that originated from various English place names, themselves derived from Old English winn "meadow, pasture" and feld "field".

Winfred m English
Means "friend of peace" from the Old English elements wine "friend" and friþ "peace". This was the birth name of the 8th-century missionary Saint Boniface. It became rare after the Norman Conquest, though it was revived in the 19th century.

Winslow m & f English (Rare)
From a surname that was derived from an Old English place name meaning "hill belonging to Wine". A famous bearer of this name was American painter Winslow Homer (1836-1910).

Winston m English
From an English surname that was derived from the Old English given name Wynnstan. A famous bearer was Winston Churchill (1874-1965), the British prime minister during World War II. This name was also borne by the fictional Winston Smith, the protagonist in George Orwell's 1949 novel 1984.

Winthrop m English (Rare)
From a surname that was originally taken from town names meaning either "Wine's village" or "Wigmund's village" in Old English.

Winton m English
From a surname that was derived from a place name meaning "enclosure belonging to Wine" in Old English.

Wolf m German, Jewish, English (Rare), Germanic
Short form of Wolfgang, Wolfram and other names containing the Old German element wolf meaning "wolf" (Proto-Germanic *wulfaz). It can also be simply from the German or English word. As a Jewish name it can be considered a vernacular form of Zeev.

Wolfe m English (Rare)
Variant of Wolf, influenced by the spelling of the surname (which is also derived from the animal).

Woodie m English
Variant of Woody.

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.

Woody m English
Either a diminutive of names containing wood such as Woodrow, or else from a nickname derived from the English word wood. Famous bearers include the folk singer Woodrow "Woody" Guthrie (1912-1967), the comedian and film director Heywood "Woody" Allen (1935-; born as Allan Stewart Konigsberg), and the actor Woodrow "Woody" Harrelson (1961-). It is also borne by the cartoon characters Woody Woodpecker (debuting 1940) and Woody from the Toy Story movies (beginning 1995).

Wright m English
From an occupational surname meaning "craftsman", ultimately from Old English wyrhta. Famous bearers of the surname were the Wright brothers (Wilbur 1867-1912 and Orville 1871-1948), the inventors of the first successful airplane, and Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959), an American architect.

Wyatt m English
From an English surname that was derived from the medieval given name Wyard or Wyot, from the Old English name Wigheard. Wyatt Earp (1848-1929) was an American lawman and gunfighter involved in the famous shootout at the OK Corral.

Wynne 2 m & f English (Rare)
From an English surname that was derived from the given name Wine.

Wystan m English (Rare)
From the Old English name Wigstan, composed of the elements wig "battle" and stan "stone". This was the name of a 9th-century Anglo-Saxon saint. It became rare after the Norman Conquest, and in modern times it is chiefly known as the first name of the British poet W. H. Auden (1907-1973).