Iscah f BiblicalFrom the Hebrew name
יִסְכָּה (Yiska) meaning
"to behold". In the Old Testament this is the name of
Abraham's niece, mentioned only briefly. This is the basis of the English name
Jessica.
Iseult f Arthurian CycleThe origins of this name are uncertain, though some Celtic roots have been suggested. It is possible that the name is ultimately Germanic, from a hypothetical name like *
Ishild, composed of the elements
is "ice" and
hilt "battle".
... [more] Isha f & m Hindi, Marathi, HinduismMeans
"master, lord, ruler" in Sanskrit. This is a transcription of both the feminine form
ईशा and the masculine form
ईश (an epithet of the Hindu god
Shiva). It is also the name of one of the Upanishads, which are parts of Hindu scripture.
Ishkur m Sumerian MythologyMeaning unknown, of Sumerian origin. This was the name of a Sumerian storm god, later identified by the Akkadians with
Adad.
Ishmael m BiblicalFrom the Hebrew name
יִשְׁמָעֵאל (Yishmaʿel) meaning
"God will hear", from the roots
שָׁמַע (shamaʿ) meaning "to hear" and
אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God". In the Old Testament this is the name of a son of
Abraham. He is the traditional ancestor of the Arab people. Also in the Old Testament, it is borne by a man who assassinates
Gedaliah the governor of Judah. The author Herman Melville later used this name for the narrator in his novel
Moby-Dick (1851).
Ishmerai m BiblicalMeans
"he guards me" in Hebrew, derived from
שָׁמַר (shamar) meaning "to guard". This name is mentioned briefly in the Old Testament.
Ishtar f Semitic MythologyFrom the Semitic root
ʿṯtr, which possibly relates to the Evening Star. Ishtar was an Akkadian, Assyrian and Babylonian goddess who presided over love, war and fertility. She was cognate with the Canaanite and Phoenician
Ashtoreth, and she was also identified with the Sumerian goddess
Inanna. Her name in Akkadian cuneiform
𒀭𒈹 was the same as the Sumerian cuneiform for Inanna.
Ishvi m BiblicalMeans
"he resembles me" in Hebrew. This is the name of a son of
Asher in the Old Testament.
Isis f Egyptian Mythology (Hellenized)Greek form of Egyptian
ꜣst (reconstructed as
Iset,
Aset or
Ueset), possibly from
st meaning
"throne". In Egyptian mythology Isis was the goddess of the sky and nature, the wife of
Osiris and the mother of
Horus. She was originally depicted wearing a throne-shaped headdress, but in later times she was conflated with the goddess
Hathor and depicted having the horns of a cow on her head. She was also worshipped by people outside of Egypt, such as the Greeks and Romans.
Isla f Scottish, EnglishVariant of
Islay, typically used as a feminine name. It also coincides with the Spanish word
isla meaning "island".
Islambek m ChechenDerived from
Islam, the name of the religion (ultimately from Arabic
إسلام), combined with the Turkic military title
beg meaning "chieftain, master".
Islay f & m ScottishFrom the name of the island of Islay, which lies off of the west coast of Scotland.
Islwyn m WelshFrom the name of a mountain in Wales that means "below the forest" from Welsh
is "below" and
llwyn "forest, grove".
Ismail m Arabic, Malay, Indonesian, Urdu, Bengali, Uyghur, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Chechen, Avar, Albanian, DhivehiArabic form of
Ishmael, also used in several other languages. According to the Quran and Islamic tradition Ismail was a prophet and the founder of the Arab people.
Ismene f Greek MythologyPossibly from Greek
ἰσμή (isme) meaning
"knowledge". This was the name of the daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta in Greek legend.
Isolde f German, Arthurian CycleGerman form of
Iseult, appearing in the 13th-century German poem
Tristan by Gottfried von Strassburg. In 1865 the German composer Richard Wagner debuted his popular opera
Tristan und Isolde and also used the name for his first daughter.
Isra f ArabicMeans
"nocturnal journey" in Arabic, derived from
سرى (sarā) meaning "to travel by night". According to Islamic tradition, the
Isra was a miraculous journey undertaken by the Prophet
Muhammad.
Israfil m Judeo-Christian-Islamic LegendMeaning unknown. In Islamic tradition this is the name of the angel who will blow the trumpet that signals the coming of Judgement Day. He is sometimes equated with the angels
Raphael or
Uriel from Judeo-Christian tradition.
Issachar m Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical GreekPossibly means
"man of hire" or
"there is reward", from Hebrew
שָׁכַר (shaḵar) meaning "hire, wage, reward". In the Old Testament this is the name of one of the twelve sons of
Jacob (by
Leah) and the founder of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. A justification for the name's meaning is given in
Genesis 30:18.
István m HungarianHungarian form of
Stephen. This was the name of the first king of Hungary. Ruling in the 11th century, he encouraged the spread of Christianity among his subjects and is considered the patron saint of Hungary.
Itai 2 m & f ShonaFrom Shona
ita meaning
"do, act, perform".
Italus m Roman MythologyMeans
"of Italy" in Latin. In Roman legend Italus was the father of
Romulus and
Remus, the founders of Rome. He supposedly gave his name to the region known as Italia or Italy (in fact the region may have gotten its name from Oscan
Víteliú meaning "land of bulls").
Ithel m WelshFrom the Old Welsh name
Iudhail, cognate of Old Breton
Iudicael (see
Judicaël).
Ithiel m BiblicalPossibly means
"God is with me" in Hebrew. This is the name of a minor character in the Old Testament.
Iðunn f Norse Mythology, Old Norse, IcelandicProbably derived from the Old Norse prefix
ið- "again, repeated" and
unna "to love". In Norse mythology Iðunn was the goddess of spring and immortality whose responsibility it was to guard the gods' apples of youth.
Itsuki m JapaneseFrom Japanese
樹 (itsuki) meaning "tree", using the kanji's nanori reading. Other kanji or kanji combinations can also form this name.
Ittai m BiblicalFrom a Hebrew name spelled variously
אִתַּי (ʾIttai) or
אִיתַי (ʾIṯai) meaning
"with me". In the Old Testament this is the name of one of King
David's mighty men.
Itumeleng m & f TswanaMeans
"be happy" in Tswana, from
itumela meaning "to be happy".
Itzamna m Mayan Mythology, MayanFrom Classic Maya
itzam, an element found in the names of some Maya gods (possibly from
itz "enchanted, nectar" and
mam "grandfather"), combined with
nah "great". Itzamna was the Maya creator god.
Itzcoatl m NahuatlMeans
"obsidian snake" in Nahuatl, from
itztli "obsidian" and
cōātl "snake". Itzcoatl was the fourth king of Tenochtitlan and the first emperor of the Aztec Empire (15th century).
Itzel f MayanMeaning uncertain, possibly from Classic Maya
itz meaning
"resin, nectar, dew, liquid, enchanted". Otherwise, it might be a variant of
Ixchel.
Itziar f Basque, SpanishFrom the name of a Basque village that contains an important shrine to the Virgin
Mary, possibly meaning "old stone".
Ivalu f GreenlandicMeans
"sinew, tendon, thread" in Greenlandic. It was used by the Danish explorer and author Peter Freuchen for the heroine of his novel
Ivalu, the Eskimo Wife (1930).
Ivan m Russian, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Serbian, Macedonian, Croatian, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, English, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, EstonianNewer form of the Old Church Slavic name
Іѡаннъ (Ioannŭ), which was derived from Greek
Ioannes (see
John). This was the name of six Russian rulers, including the 15th-century Ivan III the Great and 16th-century Ivan IV the Terrible, the first tsar of Russia. It was also borne by nine emperors of Bulgaria. Other notable bearers include the Russian author Ivan Turgenev (1818-1883), who wrote
Fathers and Sons, and the Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936), who is best known for his discovery of the conditioned reflex.
Ivaylo m BulgarianPerhaps derived from an old Bulgar name meaning
"wolf". This was the name of a 13th-century emperor of Bulgaria. It is possible that this spelling was the result of a 15th-century misreading of his real name
Vulo from historical documents.
Ivo 1 m German, Dutch, Czech, Italian, Portuguese, Estonian, Latvian, GermanicGermanic name, originally a short form of names beginning with the element
iwa meaning
"yew". Alternative theories suggest that it may in fact be derived from a cognate Celtic element. This was the name of saints (who are also commonly known as Saint
Yves or
Ives), hailing from Cornwall, France, and Brittany.
Ivor m Irish, Scottish, Welsh, English (British)From the Old Norse name
Ívarr, which was probably derived from the elements
ýr "yew tree, bow" and
herr "army, warrior". During the Middle Ages it was brought to Britain by Scandinavian settlers and invaders, and it was adopted in Ireland (Irish
Íomhar), Scotland (Scottish Gaelic
Iomhar) and Wales (Welsh
Ifor).
Ivory m & f African AmericanFrom the English word for the hard, creamy-white substance that comes from elephant tusks and was formerly used to produce piano keys.
Ivy f EnglishFrom the English word for the climbing plant that has small yellow flowers. It is ultimately derived from Old English
ifig.
Iwan m Welsh, PolishModern Welsh form of
Ieuan, a medieval Welsh form of
Iohannes (see
John). It is also a Polish form of
Ivan.
Ixchel f Mayan Mythology, MayanPossibly means
"rainbow lady", from Classic Maya
ix "lady" and
chel "rainbow". Ixchel was a Maya goddess associated with the earth, jaguars, medicine and childbirth. She was often depicted with a snake in her hair and crossbones embroidered on her skirt.
Iya f RussianMeaning unknown. This name was borne by Saint Ia of Persia, a 4th-century martyr who is venerated in the Eastern Orthodox Church.
Izanagi m Japanese MythologyProbably means
"male who invites" in Japanese, from
誘 (izana) meaning "invite, lure, attract". In Japanese mythology the god Izanagi was the husband of
Izanami. When she died he unsuccessfully journeyed to the underworld to retrieve her. In the purifying rites that followed his return, the gods of the sun, moon and wind were created.
Izanami f Japanese MythologyProbably means
"female who invites" in Japanese, from
誘 (izana) meaning "invite, lure, attract". In Japanese mythology she was a creator goddess, the wife of
Izanagi. She died giving birth to Kagutsuchi, the god of fire.
Izaro f BasqueMeans
"island" in Basque, from the name of a small island off the Spanish coast in the Bay of Biscay.
Izaskun f BasqueFrom the name of a sanctuary dedicated to the Virgin
Mary near Tolosa, Gipuzkoa, Spain. It possibly means "broom bush above the valley" in Basque.
Izdihar f ArabicMeans
"blossoming, prospering" in Arabic, a derivative of
زهر (zahara) meaning "to shine, to bloom".
Iztok m SloveneDerived from an archaic Slovene word meaning
"east".
Izumi f JapaneseFrom Japanese
泉 (izumi) meaning "fountain, spring". This name can also be constructed from other combinations of kanji.
Izz ad-Din m ArabicMeans
"glory of religion", derived from Arabic
عزّ (ʿizz) meaning "glory, honour, power" and
دين (dīn) meaning "religion, faith". In the 13th century Izz ad-Din Aybak became the first Mamluk ruler of Egypt. The Mamluks were a warrior caste who were originally slaves.