Browse Names

Ai 1 f Japanese
From Japanese 愛 (ai) meaning "love, affection", 藍 (ai) meaning "indigo", or other kanji with the same pronunciation.

Akihiko m Japanese
From Japanese 明 (aki) or 昭 (aki) both meaning "bright" combined with 彦 (hiko) meaning "boy, prince". Other combinations of kanji characters can also form this name.

Al-Amir m Arabic (Rare)
Means "the commander, the prince" in Arabic. This was the name of a 10th-century Fatimid imam.

Alsu f Tatar
Means "pink" in Tatar.

Amir 1 m Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Kazakh, Tatar, Bashkir, Malay, Indonesian, Bosnian
Means "commander, prince" in Arabic. This was originally a title, which has come into English as the Arabic loanword emir.

Amirkhan m Tatar, Kazakh, Chechen, Circassian
From Arabic أمير (ʾamīr) meaning "commander" combined with the Turkic title khan meaning "leader, ruler".

Anat 1 f Semitic Mythology
Possibly derived from a Semitic root meaning "water spring". Anat was a goddess of fertility, hunting and war worshipped by the Semitic peoples of the Levant. She was the sister and consort of the god Hadad.

Anaya f English (Modern)
Meaning unknown, possibly from the Spanish surname Anaya (itself from the name of a Spanish town), used because of its similarity to Amaya.

Anubis m Egyptian Mythology (Latinized)
Latinized form of Ἄνουβις (Anoubis), the Greek form of Egyptian jnpw (reconstructed as Anapa and other forms), which coincided with a word meaning "royal child, prince". However, it might alternatively be derived from the root jnp meaning "to decay". Anubis was the Egyptian god who led the dead to the underworld. He was often depicted as a man with the head of a jackal. The Greeks equated him with their god Hermes.

Anup m Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Malayalam
From Sanskrit अनूप (anūpa) meaning "watery, place near the water, lagoon".

Aoi f & m Japanese
From Japanese 葵 (aoi) meaning "hollyhock, althea" or an adjectival form of 碧 (ao) meaning "green, blue". Other kanji with the same reading can form this name as well.

Ardalion m Late Greek, Georgian (Rare), Russian (Rare)
Probably derived from Greek ἀρδάλιον (ardalion) meaning "water pot". This was the name of a 4th-century saint and martyr from Asia Minor.

Arethusa f Greek Mythology (Latinized)
From Greek Ἀρέθουσα (Arethousa) meaning "quick water", which is possibly derived from ἄρδω (ardo) meaning "water" and θοός (thoos) meaning "quick, nimble". This was the name of a nymph in Greek mythology who was transformed into a fountain.

Armel m Breton, French
Breton and French form of the Old Welsh name Arthmail, which was composed of the elements arth "bear" and mael "prince, chieftain". This was the name of a 6th-century Welsh saint who founded abbeys in Brittany.

Asena f Turkish
Possibly of Scythian origin meaning "blue". In Turkic mythology Asena was a grey wolf who gave birth to the ancestor of the Ashina tribe of Turks.

Awee f & m Navajo
From Navajo awéé' meaning "baby".

Aysu f Turkish, Azerbaijani
Derived from Turkish and Azerbaijani ay meaning "moon" and su meaning "water".

Azzurra f Italian
Means "azure, sky blue" in Italian.

Babe m & f English
From a nickname meaning "baby", also a slang term meaning "attractive person". As a feminine name, in some cases it is a diminutive of Barbara.

Balder m Norse Mythology
From Old Norse Baldr meaning "hero, lord, prince", derived from baldr meaning "brave, bold". In Norse mythology Balder was the handsome son of Odin and Frigg. Because of the disturbing dreams he had when he was young, his mother extracted an oath from every thing in the world that it would not harm him. However the devious god Loki learned that she had overlooked mistletoe. Being jealous, he tricked the blind god Hoder into throwing a branch of mistletoe at Balder, which killed him.

Bláán m Old Irish
From Old Irish blá meaning "yellow" combined with a diminutive suffix. This was the name of 6th-century Irish saint, a bishop of Kingarth on the Isle of Bute in Scotland.

Blue m & f English (Rare)
From the English word for the colour, derived via Norman French from a Frankish word (replacing the native Old English cognate blaw). Despite the fact that this name was used by the American musicians Beyoncé and Jay-Z in 2012 for their first daughter, it has not come into general use in the United States.

Bowie m & f English (Modern), Dutch (Modern)
From a Scottish surname, derived from Gaelic buidhe meaning "yellow". It has been used as a given name in honour of the British musician David Bowie (1947-2016), born David Robert Jones, who took his stage name from the American pioneer James Bowie (1796-1836), though with a different pronunciation.

Brendan m Irish, English, Breton
From Brendanus, the Latinized form of the Old Irish name Bréanainn, which was derived from Old Welsh breenhin meaning "king, prince". Saint Brendan was a 6th-century Irish abbot who, according to legend, crossed the Atlantic and reached North America with 17 other monks.

Brennus m Gaulish (Latinized)
Latinized form of a Celtic name (or title) that possibly meant either "king, prince" or "raven". Brennus was a Gallic leader of the 4th century BC who attacked and sacked Rome.

Buğra m Turkish
Means "baby camel" in Turkish.

Burim m Albanian
Means "spring, well, water source" in Albanian.

Cadfael m Welsh (Rare)
From Old Welsh Catmail meaning "battle prince", from cat "battle" and mael "prince". This was apparently the birth name of Saint Cadoc. It was used by the British author Ellis Peters for the main character in her books The Cadfael Chronicles, first released in 1977.

Caeso m Ancient Roman
Roman praenomen, or given name, that was probably derived from Latin caesius meaning "blue-grey". This praenomen was only used by a few families.

Cansu f Turkish
From Turkish can meaning "soul, life" and su meaning "water".

Cyan f & m English (Rare)
From the English word meaning "greenish blue, cyan", ultimately derived from Greek κύανος (kyanos).

Damla f Turkish, Azerbaijani
Means "water drop" in Turkish and Azerbaijani.

Diindiisi f & m Ojibwe
Means "blue jay" in Ojibwe.

Ea 1 m Semitic Mythology
Meaning unknown, perhaps from Sumerian meaning "house of water", or perhaps of Akkadian or Hurrian origin. This was the Akkadian, Assyrian, Hurrian and Babylonian name of the Sumerian water god Enki.

Elmira 2 f Tatar, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Azerbaijani
Possibly from Turkic el meaning "country, society" combined with Arabic أمير (ʾamīr) meaning "commander".

Emirhan m Turkish
Derived from Turkish emir meaning "amir, prince" and han meaning "khan, ruler, leader".

Emőke f Hungarian
Derived from Hungarian emő meaning "suckling (baby)".

Flavius m Ancient Roman, Romanian
Roman family name meaning "golden" or "yellow-haired" from Latin flavus "yellow, golden". Flavius was the family name of the 1st-century Roman emperors Vespasian, Titus and Domitian. It was used as a personal name by several later emperors, notably by Constantine.

Fulvio m Italian
Italian form of the Roman family name Fulvius, which was derived from Latin fulvus "yellow, tawny".

Gauri f Hinduism, Hindi, Marathi
Derived from Sanskrit गौर (gaura) meaning "white, pale, yellow". This is a Hindu goddess, another name of Parvati the wife of Shiva, so named because of her fair complexion.

Glyndwr m Welsh
Given in honour of Owain Glyndwr (or Glyn Dŵr, Anglicized as Glendower), a 14th-century Welsh patriot who led a revolt against England. His byname means "valley water", and was probably inspired by the name of his estate at Glyndyfrdwy (meaning "valley of the River Dee").

Gökçe f Turkish
Means "blue" in Turkish.

Göksu m & f Turkish
From Turkish gök meaning "sky" and su meaning "water".

Gormlaith f Old Irish
Derived from Old Irish gorm "blue" or "illustrious" and flaith "ruler, sovereign, princess". This was the name of several medieval Irish royals, including the wife of the 11th-century king Brian Boru.

Gürsel m Turkish
Means "flowing water" in Turkish.

Hari m Hinduism, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Nepali
Means "brown, yellow, tawny" in Sanskrit, and by extension "monkey, horse, lion". This is another name of the Hindu god Vishnu, and sometimes of his avatar Krishna. In this context it is sometimes considered a derivative of Sanskrit हृ (hṛ) meaning "to take away", referring to the removal of sins.

He f & m Chinese
From Chinese 河 (hé) meaning "river, stream", 和 (hé) meaning "harmony, peace", or 荷 (hé) meaning "lotus, water lily" (which is usually only feminine). Other characters can form this name as well. A famous bearer was the Ming dynasty explorer Zheng He (1371-1433).

Helvius m Ancient Roman
Roman cognomen derived from either Latin helvus meaning "honey-yellow, blond" or from the name of the Helvii, a Celtic tribe who lived west of the Rhône river. Gaius Helvius Cinna was a Roman poet of the 1st century BC.

Hồng f Vietnamese
From Sino-Vietnamese 紅 (hồng) meaning "pink, rosy".

Huangdi m Chinese Mythology
From Chinese 黄 (huáng) meaning "yellow" and 帝 (dì) meaning "god, emperor". This is the Chinese name for the Yellow Emperor, a mythical ruler and deity who is said to have reigned in the 3rd millennium BC. He is regarded as the ancestor of the Chinese people.

Huanglong m Chinese Mythology
From Chinese 黄 (huáng) meaning "yellow" and 龙 (lóng) meaning "dragon". This is the Chinese name for the Yellow Dragon, who is considered the animal form of the mythical Yellow Emperor Huangdi.

Hydra f Astronomy, Greek Mythology
Means "water serpent" in Greek, related to ὕδωρ (hydor) meaning "water". In Greek myth this was the name of a many-headed Lernaean serpent slain by Herakles. It is also the name of a northern constellation, as well as a moon of Pluto.

Iara f Tupi
Means "lady of the water" in Tupi, from y "water" and îara "lady, mistress". In Brazilian folklore this is the name of a beautiful river nymph who would lure men into the water. She may have been based upon earlier Tupi legends.

Irvine m English, Scottish
From a surname that was a variant of Irving.

Irving m English, Jewish
From a Scottish surname that was derived from the town of Irvine in North Ayrshire, itself named for the River Irvine, which is derived from Brythonic elements meaning "green water". Historically this name has been relatively common among Jews, who have used it as an American-sounding form of Hebrew names beginning with I such as Isaac, Israel and Isaiah. A famous bearer was the Russian-American songwriter and lyricist Irving Berlin (1888-1989), whose birth name was Israel Beilin.

Jorunn f Norwegian
From the Old Norse name Jórunnr, derived from the elements jǫfurr "boar" and unna "to love".

Kahurangi f & m Maori
From the name of a type of green gemstone found in New Zealand, meaning "sky blue" in Maori.

Kaltrina f Albanian
Possibly from Albanian kaltër meaning "blue, azure".

Karen 3 f Japanese
From Japanese 華 (ka) meaning "flower" and 蓮 (ren) meaning "lotus, water lily". Other combinations of kanji can also form this name.

Kazuhiko m Japanese
From Japanese 和 (kazu) meaning "harmony, peace" or 一 (kazu) meaning "one" combined with 彦 (hiko) meaning "boy, prince". Other kanji combinations can also form this name.

Kelvin m English
From the name of a Scottish river, perhaps meaning "narrow water". As a title it was borne by the Irish-Scottish physicist William Thomson, Lord Kelvin (1824-1907), who acquired his title from the river.

Khazhak m Armenian
Means "blue-eyed" in Armenian.

Kolab f Khmer (Rare)
Means "rose" in Khmer, ultimately from Persian گلاب (golāb).

Kōsuke m Japanese
From Japanese 康 (kō) meaning "peace", 孝 (kō) meaning "filial piety, obedience" or 浩 (kō) meaning "prosperous" combined with 介 (suke) meaning "help, assist". This name can also be formed from other combinations of kanji characters.

Kulap f & m Thai
Means "rose" in Thai (of Persian origin).

Leigong m Chinese Mythology
Means "lord of thunder", from Chinese 雷 (léi) meaning "thunder" and 公 (gōng) meaning "lord, prince". This is the name of a Chinese thunder god.

Leofcild m Anglo-Saxon
Means "dear child", derived from the Old English elements leof "dear, beloved" and cild "child".

Lian 2 m & f Chinese
From Chinese 莲 (lián) meaning "lotus, water lily", 濂 (lián) meaning "waterfall", or other Chinese characters that are pronounced similarly.

Liên f Vietnamese
From Sino-Vietnamese 蓮 (liên) meaning "lotus, water lily".

Livius m Ancient Roman
Roman family name that may be related to either Latin liveo "to envy" or lividus "blue, envious". Titus Livius, also known as Livy, was a Roman historian who wrote a history of the city of Rome.

Maayan f & m Hebrew
Means "spring of water" in Hebrew.

Maël m French, Breton
French form of Breton Mael meaning "prince, chieftain, lord". Saint Mael was a 5th-century Breton hermit who lived in Wales.

Mai 4 f Arabic
Means "water" in Arabic, a dialectal variant of ماء (māʾ).

Masahiko m Japanese
From Japanese 雅 (masa) meaning "elegant, graceful" or 正 (masa) meaning "right, proper" combined with 彦 (hiko) meaning "boy, prince". This name can be formed from other kanji combinations as well.

Maya 3 f Hebrew
Derived from Hebrew מַיִם (mayim) meaning "water".

Mehrab m Persian, Persian Mythology
From Persian مهر (mehr) meaning "sun" or "friendship" and آب (āb) meaning "water". This is the name of the king of Kabul in the 10th-century Persian epic the Shahnameh.

Miray f Turkish
Meaning uncertain, possibly from Arabic أمير (ʾamīr) meaning "commander" combined with Turkish ay meaning "moon, month".

Mirza m Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Bosnian
Means "prince" from Persian میرزا (mīrzā), earlier امیرزاده (amīrzādeh), which is ultimately from Arabic أمير (ʾamīr) meaning "commander" combined with Persian زاده (zādeh) meaning "offspring".

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

Mortimer m English
From an English surname that was derived from the name of a town in Normandy, itself meaning "dead water, still water" in Old French.

Nahla f Arabic
Means "a drink of water" in Arabic.

Neith f Egyptian Mythology (Hellenized)
Greek form of Egyptian nt, possibly from nt "water" or nrw "fear, dread". This was the name of an early Egyptian goddess of weaving, hunting and war. Her character may have some correspondences with the goddesses Tanith, Anat or Athena.

Nena f English
Variant of Nina 1, also coinciding with the Spanish word nena meaning "baby girl".

Nereus m Greek Mythology, Ancient Greek, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek
Derived from Greek νηρός (neros) meaning "water". In Greek myth this was the name of a god of the sea, the father of the Nereids. It is mentioned briefly in the New Testament, belonging to a Christian in Rome. This was also the name of a Roman saint of the 1st century, a member of the army, who was martyred with his companion Achilleus because they refused to execute Christians.

Nerida f Indigenous Australian
Possibly means "water lily" in an Australian Aboriginal language.

Nila f Tamil, Hindi, Indonesian, Burmese
From Sanskrit नील (nīla) meaning "dark blue".

Nilam f & m Hindi, Marathi
From Sanskrit नील (nīla) meaning "dark blue".

Nilesh m Marathi
From Sanskrit नील (nīla) meaning "dark blue" and ईश (īśa) meaning "lord, ruler".

Nilima f Marathi, Hindi, Telugu
From Sanskrit नील (nīla) meaning "dark blue".

Niloufar f Persian
Means "water lily" in Persian.

Niraj m Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Nepali
From Sanskrit नीरज (nīraja) meaning "water-born, lotus".

Nkosana m Xhosa
Means "prince" in Xhosa.

Nu m Egyptian Mythology
From Egyptian nnw meaning "primeval water". In Egyptian mythology this was the name of the god who personified the primeval waters from which the earth was born.

Pegasus m Greek Mythology (Latinized)
From the Greek Πήγασος (Pegasos), possibly either from πηγός (pegos) meaning "strong" or πηγαῖος (pegaios) meaning "from a water spring". In Greek mythology Pegasus was the winged horse that sprang from the blood of Medusa after she was killed by Perseus. There is a constellation in the northern sky named after the horse.

Pembe f Turkish
Means "pink" in Turkish.

Pitambara m Hinduism
Derived from Sanskrit पीत (pīta) meaning "yellow" and अम्बर (ambara) meaning "garment". This is another name of the Hindu gods Vishnu or Krishna, given to them because yellow clothing is traditionally worn at religious events.

Prince m English
From the English word prince, a royal title, which comes ultimately from Latin princeps. This name was borne by the American musician Prince Rogers Nelson (1958-2016), who is known simply as Prince.

Putera m Malay
Means "son, prince" in Malay, ultimately from Sanskrit पुत्र (putra).

Qing f & m Chinese
From Chinese 青 (qīng) meaning "blue, green, young", as well as other characters pronounced in a similar way.

Qinglong m Chinese Mythology
From Chinese 青 (qīng) meaning "blue, green" and 龙 (lóng) meaning "dragon". This is the Chinese name of the Azure Dragon, associated with the east and the spring season.

Regulus m Ancient Roman, Astronomy
Roman cognomen meaning "prince, little king", a diminutive of Latin rex "king". This was the cognomen of several 3rd-century BC consuls from the gens Atilia. It was also the name of several early saints. A star in the constellation Leo bears this name as well.

Ren m & f Japanese
From Japanese 蓮 (ren) meaning "lotus", 恋 (ren) meaning "romantic love", or other kanji that are pronounced the same way.

Roosa f Finnish
Finnish form of Rosa 1. It also means "pink" in Finnish.

Saraswati f Hinduism, Hindi, Marathi
Means "possessing water" from Sanskrit सरस् (saras) meaning "fluid, water, lake" and वती (vatī) meaning "having". This is the name of a Hindu river goddess, also associated with learning and the arts, who is the wife of Brahma. She appears in the Vedas.

Shahzad m Persian, Arabic, Urdu
Means "prince, son of the king" in Persian.

Shui m & f Chinese
From Chinese 水 (shuǐ) meaning "water", as well as other characters pronounced in a similar way.

Shyama m & f Hinduism, Hindi
Derived from Sanskrit श्याम (śyāma) meaning "dark, black, blue". This is a transcription of both the masculine form श्याम (another name of the Hindu god Krishna) and the feminine form श्यामा (another name of the goddess Kali).

Shyamal m Bengali
From Sanskrit श्यामल (śyāmala), a derivative of श्याम (śyāma) meaning "dark, black, blue".

Shyamala f Tamil, Telugu, Marathi
Feminine form of Shyamal.

Sini f Finnish
Means "blue" in Finnish. More specifically, sini is a poetic term for the colour blue.

Sirje f Estonian
Possibly from Estonian sinisirje meaning "blue-feathered", a word associated with a magical bird in the Estonian national epic Kalevipoeg (1857) by Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald. Apparently this name was suggested by the linguist Julius Mägiste in the 1920s. It was subsequently used in the 1945 opera Tasuleegid by Eugen Kapp.

Sohrab m Persian, Persian Mythology
From Persian سهر (sohr) meaning "red" and آب (āb) meaning "water". In the 10th-century Persian epic the Shahnameh this is the name of the son of the hero Rostam. He was tragically slain in battle by his father, who was unaware he was fighting his own son.

Sǫlvi m Old Norse
From Old Norse sǫlr meaning "yellow, pale, sallow".

Su 1 f Turkish
Means "water" in Turkish.

Suijin m Japanese Mythology
From Japanese 水 (sui) meaning "water" and 神 (jin) meaning "god, spirit". This is the name of the god (or gods) of water, lakes and pools in Japanese mythology.

Sunil m Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Assamese, Gujarati, Punjabi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Nepali
From Sanskrit सु (su) meaning "good, very" combined with नील (nīla) meaning "dark blue".

Takehiko m Japanese
From Japanese 武 (take) meaning "military, martial" or 竹 (take) meaning "bamboo" combined with 彦 (hiko) meaning "boy, prince". Other kanji combinations are also possible.

Talia 2 f English (Australian)
From the name of a town in South Australia, perhaps meaning "near water" in an Australian Aboriginal language.

Thanh f & m Vietnamese
From Sino-Vietnamese 青 (thanh) meaning "blue, green, young" or 聲 (thanh) meaning "sound, voice, tone".

Tirta m & f Indonesian
Means "sacred water, place of pilgrimage" in Indonesian, ultimately from Sanskrit तीर्थ (tīrtha).

Tirto m Javanese
Javanese variant of Tirta.

Uthman m Arabic
Means "baby bustard" in Arabic (a bustard is a type of large bird). Uthman was a companion of the Prophet Muhammad who married two of his daughters. He was the third caliph of the Muslims.

Vaihere f Tahitian
From Tahitian vai "water" and here "loved, dear".

Vaimiti f Tahitian
From Tahitian vai "water" and miti "sea, salt".

Vaitiare f Tahitian
From Tahitian vai "water" and tiare "flower".

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

Wells m English
From an English surname that originally denoted a person who lived near a well or spring, from Middle English wille.

Xanthe f Greek Mythology, Ancient Greek
Derived from Greek ξανθός (xanthos) meaning "yellow, blond, fair-haired". This was the name of a few minor figures in Greek mythology.

Xanthippos m Ancient Greek
From the Greek elements ξανθός (xanthos) meaning "yellow" and ἵππος (hippos) meaning "horse". This was the name of a 5th-century BC Athenian general.

Xanthos m Greek Mythology, Ancient Greek
From Greek ξανθός (xanthos) meaning "yellow". This is the name of several minor figures in Greek mythology, including kings of Pelasgia and Thebes.

Xochipilli m Aztec and Toltec Mythology
Means "flower prince" in Nahuatl, from xōchitl "flower" and pilli "noble child, prince". Xochipilli was the Aztec god of love, flowers, song and games, the twin brother of Xochiquetzal.

Zarathustra m History
From Avestan 𐬰𐬀𐬭𐬀𐬚𐬎𐬱𐬙𐬭𐬀 (Zarathushtra), in which the second element is 𐬎𐬱𐬙𐬭𐬀 (ushtra) meaning "camel". Proposed meanings for the first element include "old", "moving", "angry" and "yellow". Zarathustra was an Iranian prophet who founded the ancient religion of Zoroastrianism around the 10th century BC. He is also called Zoroaster in English, from the Greek form of his name Ζωροάστρης (Zoroastres).

Žydrė f Lithuanian
From Lithuanian žydra meaning "light blue".

Žydrūnas m Lithuanian
From Lithuanian žydra meaning "light blue" (using the patronymic suffix ūnas).