Ambitious_Aranel's Personal Name List
Zuri
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swahili
Means "beautiful" in Swahili.
Woodrow
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WUWD-ro
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "row of houses by a wood" in Old English. It was borne by the American president Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924), who was given his mother's maiden name as his middle name (his first name was Thomas). During his candidacy and presidency (1912-1921) the name became popular, reaching the 44th rank in 1913, though it quickly declined after that.
Winnie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WIN-ee
Diminutive of
Winifred. Winnie-the-Pooh, a stuffed bear in children's books by A. A. Milne, was named after a real bear named
Winnipeg who lived at the London Zoo.
Wilson
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Spanish (Latin American), Portuguese
Pronounced: WIL-sən(English) WEEL-son(Spanish)
From an English surname meaning
"son of William". The surname was borne by Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924), the American president during World War I.
Toni 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TO-nee
Short form of
Antonia and other related names.
Tiana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: tee-AHN-ə, tee-AN-ə
Short form of
Tatiana or
Christiana. It was rare in the United States until it jumped in popularity in 1975, perhaps due to the Vietnamese-American actress Tiana Alexandra (1956-), who had some exposure at that time. It was used as the name of the princess in the Disney movie
The Princess and the Frog (2009).
Sylvie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, Czech
Pronounced: SEEL-VEE(French) SIL-vi-yeh(Czech)
French and Czech form of
Silvia.
Soren
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Sierra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: see-EHR-ə
Means "mountain range" in Spanish, referring specifically to a mountain range with jagged peaks.
Shelby
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SHEHL-bee
From an English surname, which was possibly a variant of
Selby. Though previously in use as a rare masculine name, it was popularized as a feminine name by the main character in the movie
The Woman in Red (1935). It was later reinforced by the movie
Steel Magnolias (1989) in which Julia Roberts played a character by this name.
Shea
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: SHAY(English)
Anglicized form of
Séaghdha, sometimes used as a feminine name.
Saskia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch, German
Pronounced: SAHS-kee-a(Dutch) ZAS-kya(German)
From the Old German element
sahso meaning
"a Saxon". The Saxons were a Germanic tribe, their name ultimately deriving from the Germanic word *
sahsą meaning "knife". Saskia van Uylenburgh (1612-1642) was the wife of the Dutch painter Rembrandt.
Sarai
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Hebrew [1], Spanish
Other Scripts: שָׂרָי(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: SEHR-ie(English) sə-RIE(English)
Remy
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
English form of
Rémy, occasionally used as a feminine name.
Pierce
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PEERS
From an English surname that was derived from the given name
Piers. In America this name slowly started to grow in popularity in 1982 when actor Pierce Brosnan (1953-) began starring on the television series
Remington Steele.
Pia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, German, Slovene, Late Roman
Pronounced: PEE-a(Italian, Danish, Swedish, German)
Pace
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: PAYS
From an English surname that was derived from the Middle English word pace meaning "peace".
Orpheus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ὀρφεύς(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: OR-PEWS(Classical Greek) AWR-fee-əs(English)
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.
Orion
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ὠρίων(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: AW-REE-AWN(Classical Greek) o-RIE-ən(English)
Meaning uncertain, but possibly related to Greek
ὅριον (horion) meaning
"boundary, limit". Alternatively it may be derived from Akkadian
Uru-anna meaning
"light of the heavens". This is the name of a constellation, which gets its name from a legendary Greek hunter who was killed by a scorpion sent by the earth goddess
Gaia.
Opal
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: O-pəl
From the English word
opal for the iridescent gemstone, the birthstone of October. The word ultimately derives from Sanskrit
उपल (upala) meaning "jewel".
Odette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: AW-DEHT
French
diminutive of
Oda or
Odilia. This is the name of a princess who has been transformed into a swan in the ballet
Swan Lake (1877) by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.
Noemi
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Czech, Polish, Romanian, German, Biblical Latin
Pronounced: no-EH-mee(Italian)
Form of
Naomi 1 in several languages.
Noelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: no-EHL
Rating: 0% based on 1 vote
Melody
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MEHL-ə-dee
From the English word
melody, which is derived (via Old French and Late Latin) from Greek
μέλος (melos) meaning "song" combined with
ἀείδω (aeido) meaning "to sing".
Mavis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAY-vis
From the name of the type of bird, also called the song thrush, derived from Old French mauvis, of uncertain origin. It was first used as a given name by the British author Marie Corelli, who used it for a character in her novel The Sorrows of Satan (1895).
Marlowe
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: MAHR-lo
From a surname that was derived from a place name meaning "remnants of a lake" in Old English. A famous bearer of the surname was the English playwright Christopher Marlowe (1564-1593).
Lyra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Astronomy
Pronounced: LIE-rə(English)
The name of the constellation in the northern sky containing the star Vega. It is said to be shaped after the lyre of Orpheus. This is the name of the main character in the His Dark Materials series of books by Philip Pullman (beginning 1995).
Loki
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Norse Mythology
Pronounced: LO-kee(English)
Meaning unknown, possibly derived from the Germanic root *
luką meaning
"lock". In Norse
mythology Loki was a trickster god associated with magic and shape shifting. Loki's children include the wolf
Fenrir, the sea serpent
Jörmungandr, and the queen of the dead
Hel. After he orchestrated the death of
Balder, the other gods tied him to a rock below a snake that dripped venom onto his face. It is told that he will break free during Ragnarök, the final battle, and slay and be slain by
Heimdall.
Lily-Rose
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Lila 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIE-lə
Lex
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Dutch
Pronounced: LEHKS
Lesley
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LEHZ-lee, LEHS-lee
Lennox
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: LEHN-əks
From a Scottish surname that was derived from the name of a district in Scotland. The district, called
Leamhnachd in Gaelic, possibly means "place of elms". This name steadily rose in popularity in the 2000s, at the same time as the similar-sounding (but unrelated) names
Lennon and
Knox.
Laurence 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LAWR-əns
From the Roman
cognomen Laurentius, which meant
"from Laurentum". Laurentum was a city in ancient Italy, its name probably deriving from Latin
laurus "laurel".
Saint Laurence was a 3rd-century deacon and martyr from Rome. According to tradition he was roasted alive on a gridiron because, when ordered to hand over the church's treasures, he presented the sick and poor. Due to the saint's popularity, the name came into general use in the Christian world (in various spellings).
In the Middle Ages this name was common in England, partly because of a second saint by this name, a 7th-century archbishop of Canterbury. Likewise it has been common in Ireland due to the 12th-century Saint Laurence O'Toole (whose real name was Lorcán). Since the 19th century the spelling Lawrence has been more common, especially in America. A famous bearer was the British actor Laurence Olivier (1907-1989).
Josie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JO-zee
Joni 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JO-nee
Jay 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JAY
Short form of names beginning with the sound
J, such as
James or
Jason. It was originally used in America in honour of founding father John Jay (1749-1825), whose surname was derived from the jaybird.
Hendrix
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: HEHN-driks
From a Dutch surname that was derived from the given name
Hendrik. A famous bearer of the surname was the American rock musician Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970).
Grady
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: GRAY-dee
From an Irish surname, itself derived from the byname Gráda meaning "noble, illustrious".
Genesis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: JEHN-ə-sis
Means
"birth, origin" in Greek. This is the name of the first book of the
Old Testament in the Bible. It tells of the creation of the world, the expulsion of
Adam and
Eve,
Noah and the great flood, and the three patriarchs.
Fionn
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: FYIN(Irish) FYUWN(Irish) FYOON(Irish) FIN(English)
From the Old Irish name
Finn, derived from
finn meaning
"white, blessed". It occurs frequently in Irish history and legends, the most noteworthy bearer being Fionn mac Cumhaill, the central character of one of the four main cycles of Irish
mythology, the Fenian Cycle. Fionn was born as
Deimne, and acquired his nickname because of his fair hair. He grew all-wise by eating an enchanted salmon, and later became the leader of the Fianna after defeating the fire-breathing demon Áillen. He was the father of
Oisín and grandfather of
Oscar.
Fia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish (Modern, Rare)
Pronounced: fyee-ə
Allegedly derived from Irish fia "deer" (via Old Irish fíad "wild animals, game, especially deer", ultimately from fid "wood").
Faye
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FAY
Fawn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FAWN
From the English word fawn for a young deer.
Everett
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHV-ə-rit, EHV-rit
From an English surname that was derived from the given name
Everard.
Eurydice
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Εὐρυδίκη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ew-RUY-dee-keh(Latin) yuw-RID-i-see(English)
From the Greek
Εὐρυδίκη (Eurydike) meaning
"wide justice", derived from
εὐρύς (eurys) meaning "wide" and
δίκη (dike) meaning "justice, custom, order". In Greek
myth she was the wife of Orpheus. Her husband tried to rescue her from Hades, but he failed when he disobeyed the condition that he not look back upon her on their way out.
Emory
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHM-ə-ree
Emmy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Swedish, Dutch, German
Pronounced: EHM-ee(English) EH-mee(Dutch)
Emery
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHM-ə-ree
Norman French form of
Emmerich. The
Normans introduced it to England, and though it was never popular, it survived until the end of the Middle Ages. As a modern given name, now typically feminine, it is likely inspired by the surname
Emery, which was itself derived from the medieval given name. It can also be given in reference to the hard black substance called emery.
Emerson
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHM-ər-sən
From an English surname meaning
"son of Emery". The surname was borne by Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), an American writer and philosopher who wrote about transcendentalism.
Elwood
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHL-wuwd
From an English surname that was derived from a place name meaning "elder tree forest" in Old English.
Delilah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, English
Other Scripts: דְּלִילָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: di-LIE-lə(English)
Means
"delicate, weak, languishing" in Hebrew. In the
Old Testament she is the lover of
Samson, whom she betrays to the Philistines by cutting his hair, which is the source of his power. Despite her character flaws, the name began to be used by the
Puritans in the 17th century. It has been used occasionally in the English-speaking world since that time.
Davina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: də-VEE-nə
Feminine form of
David. It originated in Scotland.
Dakota
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: də-KO-tə
From the name of the Native American people of the northern Mississippi Valley, or from the two American states that were named for them: North and South Dakota (until 1889 unified as the Dakota Territory). The tribal name means
"allies, friends" in the Dakota language.
It was rare as an American given name before 1975. In the mid-1980s it began growing in popularity for boys after a character by this name began appearing on the soap opera Ryan's Hope. It is now more common as a feminine name, probably due to the fame of the actress Dakota Fanning (1994-).
Conrad
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: KAHN-rad(English) KAWN-rat(German)
Means
"brave counsel", derived from the Old German elements
kuoni "brave" and
rat "counsel, advice". This was the name of a 10th-century
saint and bishop of Konstanz, in southern Germany. It was also borne by several medieval German kings and dukes, notably Conrad II, the first of the Holy Roman Emperors from the Salic dynasty. In England it was occasionally used during the Middle Ages, but has only been common since the 19th century when it was reintroduced from Germany.
Colson
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KOL-sən
From an English surname meaning
"son of Col". As a given name it entered the American top 1000 rankings in 2017, probably inspired by similar-sounding names such as
Cole and
Colton.
Clover
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KLO-vər
From the English word for the wild flower, ultimately deriving from Old English clafre.
Clementine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KLEHM-ən-teen, KLEHM-ən-tien
Rating: 100% based on 1 vote
Clarke
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KLAHRK
Rating: 30% based on 1 vote
Variant of
Clark. As a feminine name it came into use in the early 1990s, influenced by the character Clarke Betancourt from the 1990 film
Mo' Better Blues. It was further popularized by Clarke Griffin, a character in the television series
The 100 (2014-2020).
Clark
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KLAHRK
Rating: 40% based on 1 vote
From an English surname meaning "cleric" or "scribe", from Old English clerec originally meaning "priest". A famous bearer of the surname was William Clark (1770-1838), an explorer of the west of North America. As a first name it was borne by the American actor Clark Gable (1901-1960), as well as the comic book character Clark Kent, the mild-mannered alter ego of Superman, first created 1938.
Charlie
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: CHAHR-lee
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Diminutive or feminine form of
Charles. A famous bearer was the British comic actor Charlie Chaplin (1889-1977). It is also borne by Charlie Brown, the main character in the comic strip
Peanuts by Charles Schulz.
Chandler
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: CHAND-lər
Rating: 50% based on 1 vote
From an occupational surname that meant "candle seller" or "candle maker" in Middle English, ultimately from Latin candela via Old French. It surged in popularity after the 1994 debut of the American sitcom Friends, featuring a character by this name.
Cassidy
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KAS-i-dee
Rating: 100% based on 1 vote
From an Irish surname (Anglicized from Irish Gaelic
Ó Caiside), which is derived from the byname
Caiside. Very rare as a given name before the 1970s, it established itself in the 80s and then surged in popularity during the 90s.
Brooke
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BRUWK
Rating: 35% based on 2 votes
Variant of
Brook. The name came into use in the 1950s, probably influenced by American socialite Brooke Astor (1902-2007). It was further popularized by actress Brooke Shields (1965-).
Briar
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: BRIE-ər
Rating: 100% based on 1 vote
From the English word for the thorny plant.
Blaire
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: BLEHR
Rating: 80% based on 1 vote
Blair
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: BLEHR(English)
Rating: 100% based on 1 vote
From a Scottish surname that was derived from Gaelic
blàr meaning
"plain, field, battlefield". In Scotland this name is typically masculine.
In the United States it became more common for girls in the early 1980s, shortly after the debut of the television sitcom The Facts of Life (1979-1988), which featured a character named Blair Warner. The name left the American top 1000 rankings two decades later, but was resurrected by another television character, this time Blair Waldorf from the series Gossip Girl (2007-2012).
Beau
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Dutch (Modern)
Pronounced: BO
Rating: 0% based on 1 vote
Means
"beautiful, handsome" in French. It has been used as a given name since the middle of the 20th century. In Margaret Mitchell's novel
Gone with the Wind (1936) this is the name of Ashley and Melanie's son.
Although this is a grammatically masculine adjective in French, it is given to girls as well as boys in Britain and the Netherlands. In America it is more exclusively masculine. It is not commonly used as a name in France itself.
Avery
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AY-və-ree, AYV-ree
Rating: 80% based on 1 vote
From an English surname that was itself derived from the Norman French form of the given names
Alberich or
Alfred.
As a given name, it was used on the American sitcom Murphy Brown (1988-1998) for both the mother and son of the main character. By 1998 it was more popular as a name for girls in the United States, perhaps further inspired by a character from the movie Jerry Maguire (1996).
Ares
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἄρης(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: A-REHS(Classical Greek) EHR-eez(English)
Rating: 40% based on 1 vote
Perhaps from either Greek
ἀρή (are) meaning
"bane, ruin" or
ἄρσην (arsen) meaning
"male". The name first appears as
a-re in Mycenaean Greek writing. Ares was the bloodthirsty god of war in Greek
mythology, a son of
Zeus and
Hera.
Annabelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: AN-ə-behl(English)
Rating: 80% based on 1 vote
Variant of
Annabel. It can also be interpreted as a combination of
Anna and French
belle "beautiful".
Anahí
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish (Latin American)
Pronounced: a-na-EE
Rating: 60% based on 1 vote
Possibly from the Guarani name for the cockspur coral tree (species Erythrina crista-galli). In a Guarani legend this is the name of a young woman burned at the stake by the conquistadors, after which she is transformed into the flowering tree.
Ambrose
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AM-broz
Rating: 100% based on 1 vote
From the Late Latin name
Ambrosius, which was derived from the Greek name
Ἀμβρόσιος (Ambrosios) meaning
"immortal".
Saint Ambrose was a 4th-century theologian and bishop of Milan, who is considered a Doctor of the Church. Due to the saint, the name came into general use in Christian Europe, though it was never particularly common in England.
Alistair
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish
Pronounced: AL-i-stər(English)
Rating: 90% based on 1 vote
Ainsley
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, English (Modern)
Pronounced: AYNZ-lee(English)
Rating: 20% based on 1 vote
From an English surname that was from a place name: either Annesley in Nottinghamshire or Ansley in Warwickshire. The place names themselves derive from Old English
anne "alone, solitary" or
ansetl "hermitage" and
leah "woodland, clearing".
In America, this name received a boost of popularity in 2000 when a character bearing it began appearing on the television series The West Wing.
behindthename.com · Copyright © 1996-2024