ArashmPersian, Persian Mythology From Avestan 𐬆𐬭𐬆𐬑𐬱𐬀 (Ərəxsha), of uncertain meaning, possibly from a root meaning "bear". In Iranian legend Arash was an archer who was ordered by the Turans to shoot an arrow, the landing place of which would determine the new location of the Iran-Turan border. Arash climbed a mountain and fired his arrow with such strength that it flew for several hours and landed on the banks of the far-away Oxus River.
ArcturusmAstronomy From Ancient Greek Ἀρκτοῦρος (Arktouros), the name of the fourth brightest star in the sky, part of the constellation Boötes. It means "guardian of the bear", derived from ἄρκτος (arktos) meaning "bear" and οὖρος (ouros) meaning "guardian", referring to the star's position close to the constellations Ursa Minor and Ursa Major.
ArmelmBreton, 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.
ÁsbjǫrnmOld Norse Old Norse name derived from the elements áss "god" and bjǫrn "bear". It is therefore a cognate of Osborn.
BearmEnglish (Modern) From the English word for the animal, derived from Old English bera, probably derived from a root meaning "brown".
BermYiddish Means "bear" in Yiddish, a vernacular form of Dov.
BerardmGermanic Variant of Bernard using the related root bero "bear" as the first element. This was the name of a 13th-century saint from Carbio, Italy who was martyred in Morocco.
BerengarmGermanic Old German name derived from the elements bern "bear" and ger "spear". This was the name of two medieval kings of Italy and a Holy Roman emperor.
BerenicefEnglish, Italian, Ancient Greek (Latinized) Latinized form of Βερενίκη (Berenike), the Macedonian form of the Greek name Φερενίκη (Pherenike), which meant "bringing victory" from φέρω (phero) meaning "to bring" and νίκη (nike) meaning "victory". This name was common among the Ptolemy ruling family of Egypt, a dynasty that was originally from Macedon. It occurs briefly in Acts in the New Testament (in most English Bibles it is spelled Bernice) belonging to a sister of King Herod Agrippa II. As an English name, Berenice came into use after the Protestant Reformation.
BernardmEnglish, French, Dutch, Polish, Croatian, Slovene, Czech, Germanic Derived from the Old German element bern "bear" combined with hart "hard, firm, brave, hardy". The Normans brought it to England, where it replaced the Old English cognate Beornheard. This was the name of several saints, including Saint Bernard of Menthon who built hospices in the Swiss Alps in the 10th century, and Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, a 12th-century theologian and Doctor of the Church. Other famous bearers include the Irish playwright and essayist George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) and the British World War II field marshal Bernard Montgomery (1887-1976).
BjørnarmNorwegian From the Old Norse elements bjǫrn "bear" and herr "army, warrior". This name was coined in the 19th century.
ChristophermEnglish From the Late Greek name Χριστόφορος (Christophoros) meaning "bearing Christ", derived from Χριστός (Christos) combined with φέρω (phero) meaning "to bear, to carry". Early Christians used it as a metaphorical name, expressing that they carried Christ in their hearts. In the Middle Ages, literal interpretations of the name's etymology led to legends about a Saint Christopher who carried the young Jesus across a river. He has come to be regarded as the patron saint of travellers.... [more]
GarseamMedieval Spanish Meaning unknown, possibly related to the Basque word hartz meaning "bear". This was the name of several medieval kings of Navarre and Leon.
GerbenmDutch Derived from the Germanic elements ger meaning "spear" and bern meaning "bear".
HumbertmFrench, German (Rare), English (Rare), Germanic Derived from the Old German elements hun "bear cub" and beraht "bright". The Normans introduced this name to England, though it has always been uncommon there. It was the name of a 7th-century Frankish saint who founded Maroilles Abbey. It was also borne by two kings of Italy (called Umberto in Italian), who ruled in the 19th and 20th centuries. A notable fictional bearer is Humbert Humbert from Vladimir Nabokov's novel Lolita (1955).
HumphreymEnglish From the Old German elements hun "bear cub" and fridu "peace". The Normans introduced this name to England, where it replaced the Old English cognate Hunfrith, and it was regularly used through the Middle Ages. A famous bearer was the American actor Humphrey Bogart (1899-1957), who starred in The Maltese Falcon and Casablanca.
HunbeorhtmAnglo-Saxon From the Old English elements hun "bear cub" and beorht "bright", making it a cognate of Humbert. This name was borne by a 9th-century English saint.
MathmWelsh Mythology Possibly from the old Celtic root *matus meaning "bear". According to the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi, Math ap Mathonwy was a king of Gwynedd and a magician. Whenever he was not at war, it was required that he rest his feet in the lap of a virgin. He was the uncle of the hero Gwydion, with whom he shared most of his adventures.
MathgamainmOld Irish Means "bear" in Old Irish, a compound of math, itself meaning "bear", and gamuin meaning "calf". This was the name of a brother of the Irish king Brian Boru.
Minorum & fJapanese From Japanese 実 (minoru) meaning "to bear fruit", as well as other kanji or kanji combinations with the same pronunciation.
Nikephorosm & fAncient Greek, Greek Mythology Means "carrying victory" from Greek νίκη (nike) meaning "victory" and φέρω (phero) meaning "to carry, to bear". This name was borne by several Byzantine emperors, including the 10th-century Nikephoros II Phokas. Besides being a masculine personal name, it was also a title borne by the goddess Athena.
OddbjørnmNorwegian From the Old Norse name Oddbjǫrn, derived from the elements oddr "point of a sword" and bjǫrn "bear".
OrsonmEnglish From a Norman nickname derived from a diminutive of Norman French ors"bear", ultimately from Latin ursus. American actor and director Orson Welles (1915-1985) was a famous bearer of this name.
OttmEstonian Possibly an Estonian form of Otto. It may also be inspired by an archaic Estonian word meaning "bear".
SwithinmHistory From the Old English name Swiðhun or Swiþhun, derived from swiþ "strong" and perhaps hun "bear cub". Saint Swithin was a 9th-century bishop of Winchester.
TorbjörnmSwedish From the Old Norse name Þórbjǫrn, which meant "Thor's bear" from the name of the Norse god Þórr (see Thor) combined with bjǫrn "bear".
UrsmGerman (Swiss) German form of the Latin name Ursus, which meant "bear". Saint Ursus was a 3rd-century soldier in the Theban Legion who was martyred with Saint Victor. He is the patron saint of Solothurn in Switzerland.
UrsulafEnglish, Swedish, Danish, German, Dutch, Finnish, Late Roman Means "little bear", derived from a diminutive form of the Latin word ursa "she-bear". Saint Ursula was a legendary virgin princess of the 4th century who was martyred by the Huns while returning from a pilgrimage. In England the saint was popular during the Middle Ages, and the name came into general use at that time.
VebjørnmNorwegian From the Old Norse name Vébjǫrn, derived from the elements vé "holy" and bjǫrn "bear".
VetlemNorwegian Norwegian form of the Old Norse name Vetrliði meaning "winter traveller", and by extension "bear cub".
YonaguskamCherokee Means "drowning bear" from Cherokee ᏲᎾ (yona) "bear" and possibly ᎫᏂᏍᎧ (guniska) "drown". This was the name of a 19th-century Eastern Cherokee chief.