otis9191's Personal Name List

Short form of Alexander, Alexandra and other names beginning with Alex.

English and Manx form of Anne 1. In the English-speaking world, both this spelling and Anne have been used since the late Middle Ages. Currently Ann is less popular than Anne (and both are less popular than their relatives Anna and Hannah).

Short form of Benjamin or Benedict. A notable bearer was Ben Jonson (1572-1637), an English poet and playwright.

Diminutive of Caroline. This name declined in use shortly after the 1976 release of the horror movie Carrie, which was based on a 1974 novel by Stephen King.

From a Scottish surname of uncertain meaning. A famous bearer of the surname was the American scout Kit Carson (1809-1868).

Variant of Duane, with the spelling altered due to the influence of Wayne. A notable bearer is the American actor Dwayne Johnson (1972-), known as The Rock when he was a professional wrestler.

Short form of Eugene.

Diminutive of Howard.

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.

Diminutive of Jeremy, Jerome, Gerald, Geraldine and other names beginning with the same sound. Notable bearers include the American comedians Jerry Lewis (1926-2017) and Jerry Seinfeld (1954-), as well as the American football player Jerry Rice (1962-).

Variant of Kelly.

Variant of Kelly.

Anglicized form of the Irish given name Ceallach or the surname derived from it Ó Ceallaigh. As a surname, it has been borne by actor and dancer Gene Kelly (1912-1996) and actress and princess Grace Kelly (1929-1982).

As a given name it was mostly masculine before 1940, but it rose in popularity as a name for girls during the 40s and 50s, probably due both to Grace Kelly (who married Prince Rainier III of Monaco in 1956) and a female character on the 1957 television series Bachelor Father [1]. By the end of the 1970s it was on the decline.

Turkish and Albanian form of Muhammad. This name was borne by sultans of the Ottoman Empire (with the older form Mehmed).

From the Welsh name Maredudd or Meredydd, from Old Welsh forms such as Margetud, possibly from mawredd "greatness, magnificence" combined with iudd "lord". The Welsh forms of this name were well used through the Middle Ages. Since the mid-1920s it has been used more often for girls than for boys in English-speaking countries, though it is still a masculine name in Wales. A famous bearer of this name as surname was the English novelist and poet George Meredith (1828-1909).

Variant of Meredith.

Variant of Meredith.

In the case of television personality Oprah Winfrey (1954-), it was a childhood mispronunciation of her real name Orpah that became permanent.

Means "back of the neck" in Hebrew. Orpah is Naomi's second daughter-in-law in the Book of Ruth in the Old Testament.

Short form of Oswald, Osborn and other names beginning with a similar sound.

From an English occupational surname that meant "keeper of the park".

Short form of Philip and various other names beginning with Phil, often a Greek element meaning "friend, dear, beloved".

From a French surname meaning "ruler" in Occitan. This name is often given in honour of Saint Jean-François Régis (1597-1640), a French Jesuit priest.

From the Germanic name Hrodebert meaning "bright fame", derived from the elements hruod "fame" and beraht "bright". The Normans introduced this name to Britain, where it replaced the rare Old English cognate Hreodbeorht. It has been consistently among the most common English names from the 13th to 20th century. In the United States it was the most popular name for boys between 1924 and 1939 (and again in 1953).

This name has been borne by two kings of the Franks, two dukes of Normandy, and three kings of Scotland, including Robert the Bruce who restored the independence of Scotland from England in the 14th century. Several saints have also had the name, the earliest known as Saint Rupert, from an Old German variant. The author Robert Browning (1812-1889) and poets Robert Burns (1759-1796) and Robert Frost (1874-1963) are famous literary namesakes. Other bearers include Robert E. Lee (1807-1870), the commander of the Confederate army during the American Civil War, and American actors Robert Redford (1936-), Robert De Niro (1943-) and Robert Downey Jr. (1965-).

From a common Irish surname, the Anglicized form of Ó Riain. This patronymic derives from the given name Rian, which is of uncertain meaning. It is traditionally said to mean "little king", from Irish rí "king" combined with a diminutive suffix.

In the United States this name steadily grew in popularity through the 1950s and 60s. It shot up the charts after the release of the 1970 movie Ryan's Daughter. Within a few years it was in the top 20 names, where it would stay for over three decades. Famous bearers include the Canadian actors Ryan Reynolds (1976-) and Ryan Gosling (1980-).

Probably inspired by the French word chérie meaning "darling" or the English word sherry, a type of fortified wine named from the Spanish town of Jerez. This name came into popular use during the 1920s, inspired by other similar-sounding names and by Collette's novels Chéri (1920, English translation 1929) and The Last of Chéri (1926, English translation 1932), in which it is a masculine name.

This also coincides with an Irish surname (an Anglicized form of Irish Gaelic Mac Searraigh), derived from the byname Searrach meaning "foal".

From an English surname that meant "dispenser of provisions", derived from Middle English spense "larder, pantry". A famous bearer was American actor Spencer Tracy (1900-1967). It was also the surname of Princess Diana (1961-1997).

Short form of Giovanna.