Browse Names - Behind the Name

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Asra f Arabic
Means "travel at night" in Arabic.

Chausiku f Swahili
Means "born at night" in Swahili.

Esila f Turkish (Modern)
Possibly from Arabic أصيل (ʾaṣīl) meaning "late afternoon, evening".

Layla f Arabic, English
Means "night" in Arabic. Layla was the love interest of the poet Qays (called Majnun) in an old Arab tale, notably retold by the 12th-century Persian poet Nizami Ganjavi in his poem Layla and Majnun. This story was a popular romance in medieval Arabia and Persia. The name became used in the English-speaking world after the 1970 release of the song Layla by Derek and the Dominos, the title of which was inspired by the medieval story.

Lilith f Semitic Mythology, Judeo-Christian-Islamic Legend
Derived from Akkadian lilitu meaning "of the night". This was the name of a demon in ancient Assyrian myths. In Jewish tradition she was Adam's first wife, sent out of Eden and replaced by Eve because she would not submit to him. The offspring of Adam (or Samael) and Lilith were the evil spirits of the world.

Miyako f Japanese
From Japanese 美 (mi) meaning "beautiful", 夜 (ya) meaning "night" and 子 (ko) meaning "child". This name can be formed from other combinations of kanji as well.

Nisha f Hindi, Marathi, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Gujarati, Bengali, Nepali
From Sanskrit निशा (niśā) meaning "night".

Nishant m Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati
From Sanskrit निशान्त (niśānta) meaning "night's end, dawn".

Nox f Roman Mythology
Means "night" in Latin. Nox is the Roman goddess of the night, the equivalent of the Greek goddess Nyx.

Nyx f Greek Mythology
Means "night" in Greek. This was the name of the Greek goddess of the night, the daughter of Khaos and the wife of Erebos.

Orpheus m Greek Mythology
Perhaps related to Greek ὄρφνη (orphne) meaning "the darkness of night". In Greek mythology Orpheus was a poet and musician who went to the underworld to retrieve his dead wife Eurydice. He succeeded in charming Hades with his lyre, and he was allowed to lead his wife out of the underworld on the condition that he not look back at her until they reached the surface. Unfortunately, just before they arrived his love for her overcame his will and he glanced back at her, causing her to be drawn back to Hades.

Otieno m Luo
Means "born at night" in Luo.

Pomare m & f Tahitian
Means "night cough", from Tahitian pō "night" and mare "cough". This name was borne by four kings and a queen of Tahiti. The first king adopted the name after his child died of a cough in the night.

Rajani f & m Hinduism, Telugu, Kannada, Marathi, Hindi, Nepali
Means "dark, night" in Sanskrit. This is another name of the Hindu goddess Durga.

Rajnish m Hindi
Means "lord of the night" from Sanskrit रजनी (rajanī) meaning "night" and ईश (īśa) meaning "lord, ruler". This is another name for the moon in Hindu texts.

Ratree f Thai
From the name of a variety of jasmine flower, the night jasmine, ultimately from a poetic word meaning "night".

Tuta f Quechua
Means "night" in Quechua.

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