Ethiopian Names

Ethiopian names are used in the country of Ethiopia in eastern Africa.
gender
usage
Abeba አበባ f Amharic
Means "flower" in Amharic.
Aberash አበራሽ f Amharic
Means "giving off light, shining" in Amharic.
Alemayehu አለማየሁ m & f Amharic
Means "I have seen the world" in Amharic.
Ayana 1 አያና m Ethiopian
Meaning unknown (possibly Amharic or Oromo).
Ayele አየለ m Amharic
Means "become strong, become powerful" in Amharic.
Bekele በቀለ m Amharic
Means "grow, flourish" in Amharic.
Bereket በረከት m Amharic
Means "blessing, abundance, profusion" in Amharic.
Berhane ብርሃኔ m & f Amharic
Means "my light" in Amharic.
Berhanu ብርሃኑ m Amharic
Means "his light" in Amharic.
Bontu f Oromo
Means "proud" in Oromo.
Dawit ዳዊት m Amharic
Amharic form of David.
Dejen ደጀን m Amharic
Means "foundation, support" in Amharic.
Desta ደስታ f & m Amharic
Means "joy" in Amharic.
Elias ኤልያስ m Portuguese, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, English, Dutch, Greek, Amharic, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek
Form of Elijah used in several languages. This is also the form used in the Greek New Testament, as well as some English translations.
Ermias ኤርምያስ m Amharic
Amharic form of Jeremiah.
Eskender እስክንድር m Amharic
Amharic form of Alexander.
Eskinder እስክንድር m Amharic
Alternate transcription of Amharic እስክንድር (see Eskender).
Etenesh እቴነሽ f Amharic
Means "you are my sister" in Amharic.
Gadisa m Oromo
From Oromo gaaddisa meaning "shade".
Gadise f Oromo
Feminine form of Gadisa.
Gudina m Oromo
Means "growth, advancement" in Oromo.
Haregewoin ሓረገ ወይን f Amharic
Means "grape vine" in Amharic.
Hiwot ህይወት f Amharic
Means "life" in Amharic.
Ifa m Oromo
Means "light" in Oromo.
Kebede ከበደ m Amharic
Means "heavy, serious" in Amharic.
Kidist ቅድስት f Amharic
Means "blessed" in Amharic.
Konjit ቆንጂት f Amharic
From Amharic ቆንጆ (qonjo) meaning "beautiful".
Lelisa m Oromo
From Oromo leellisaa meaning "admirer".
Lelise f Oromo
Feminine form of Lelisa.
Lencho m Oromo
Means "lion" in Oromo.
Lishan ሊሻን f & m Amharic
Means "award" in Amharic.
Lulit ሉሊት f Amharic
From Amharic ሉል (lul) meaning "pearl".
Meklit መክሊት f Amharic
Means "talent" in Amharic.
Meti f Oromo
Means "umbrella" in Oromo.
Moti 1 m Oromo
Means "leader" in Oromo.
Samuel ሳሙኤል m English, French, German, Dutch, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Romanian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Jewish, Amharic, Biblical
From the Hebrew name שְׁמוּאֵל (Shemuʾel) meaning "name of God", from the roots שֵׁם (shem) meaning "name" and אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God". Other interpretations have the first root being שָׁמַע (shamaʿ) meaning "to hear" leading to a meaning of "God has heard". As told in the Books of Samuel in the Old Testament, Samuel was the last of the ruling judges. He led the Israelites during a period of domination by the Philistines, who were ultimately defeated in battle at Mizpah. Later he anointed Saul to be the first king of Israel, and even later anointed his successor David.... [more]
Seble ሰብለ f Amharic
Means "harvest" in Amharic.
Sisay ሲሳይ m Amharic
Means "good omen" in Amharic.
Tadesse ታደሠ m Amharic
Means "revived" in Amharic.
Tafari ተፈሪ m Amharic (Rare)
Possibly means "he who inspires awe" in Amharic. This name was borne by Lij Tafari Makonnen (1892-1975), also known as Haile Selassie, the last emperor of Ethiopia. Rastafarians (Ras Tafari meaning "king Tafari") revere him as the earthly incarnation of God.
Tamrat ታምራት m Amharic
Means "miracle" in Amharic.
Tariku ታሪኩ m Amharic
Means "his history, his story" in Amharic.
Tesfaye ተስፋዬ m Amharic
From Amharic ተስፋ (tasfa) meaning "hope".
Tewodros ቴዎድሮስ m Amharic
Amharic form of Theodore.
Werknesh ወርቅነሽ f Amharic
Alternate transcription of Amharic ወርቅነሽ (see Worknesh).
Workneh ወርቅነህ m Amharic
Means "you are gold", from Amharic ወርቅ (warq) meaning "gold".
Worknesh ወርቅነሽ f Amharic
Feminine form of Workneh.
Yared ያሬድ m Biblical Hebrew, Ethiopian
Hebrew form of Jared. This form is also used in Ethiopia. It was borne by a semi-legendary 6th-century Ethiopian musician who is considered a saint in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.
Yewubdar የውብዳር f Amharic
Means "beautiful beyond limits" from Amharic ውብ (wb) meaning "beautiful" and ዳር (dar) meaning "limit, horizon, frontier, shore".
Yishak ይስሃቅ m Amharic
Amharic form of Isaac.
Yohannes ዮሐንስ m Amharic
Amharic form of John.