Vani Joy's Personal Name List

Contracted form of Adalhard.

Means "son of Abraham".

Derived from the given name Edgar.

Derived from the given name Alexander.

Variant of Banner.

From a diminutive form of Bartholomew.

Means "son of Bate".

From French place names derived from beau "beautiful" and chêne "oak".

Variant of Brodie.

Derived from Middle English burgh meaning "fortress, fortification, castle". It was brought to Ireland in the 12th century by the Norman invader William de Burgh.

Means "priest" from Hebrew כֹּהֵן (kohen). It originally denoted one of the priestly tribe of Levi.

Variant of Connolly.

Means "son of David". This was the surname of the revolutionary jazz trumpet player Miles Davis (1926-1991).

Indicated a person from Evreux in France, itself named after the Gaulish tribe of the Eburovices, which was probably derived from a Celtic word meaning "yew".

From Irish Ó Donnchadha meaning "descendant of Donnchadh".

Anglicized form of the Irish name Ó Donndubháin meaning "descendant of Donndubán".

Means "son of Emery". The surname was borne by Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), an American writer and philosopher who wrote about transcendentalism.

Means "son of Eric".

Means "son of Evan".

Anglicized form of Fionnlagh. This spelling is more common in Scotland, though in England and Wales the variant Finley has been more popular since 2007.

Derived from Old French fort "stronghold", indicating a person who lived near or worked at such a place.

Variant of Gardener.

From the name of a place in Berwickshire, Scotland, derived from Brythonic words meaning "spacious fort".

Derived from Norman French meaning "grand, tall, large, great". A famous bearer was the American general and president Ulysses S. Grant (1822-1885).

Anglicized form of Gruffudd.

From Old English heord "herd" and wic "village, town".

From Old French and Middle English hardi meaning "bold, daring, hardy", from the Germanic root *harduz.

Means "son of Harry".

From a diminutive of Hawk.

Diminutive form of Hirsch 1 or Hirsch 2. A famous bearer was the British-German astronomer William Herschel (1738-1822), as well as his sister Caroline Herschel (1750-1848) and son John Herschel (1792-1871), also noted scientists.

Derived from Middle High German herze meaning "heart", a nickname for a big-hearted person.

Variant of Holme. A famous fictional bearer was Sherlock Holmes, a detective in Arthur Conan Doyle's mystery stories beginning in 1887.

Means "son of Hudde".

Occupational name that referred to someone who hunted for a living, from Old English hunta.

Patronymic from the given name Jeffrey.

From Old English cene meaning "bold, brave".

From Old English cniht meaning "knight", a tenant serving as a mounted soldier.

Originally designated one who lived by a lane, a narrow way between fences or hedges, later used of any narrow pathway, including one between houses in a town.

From French écuyer meaning "squire, shield-bearer", from Latin scutarius, a derivative of scutum "shield".

Derived from the given name Lewis. The author C. S. Lewis (1898-1963) was a bearer of this surname.

Anglicized form of Scottish Gaelic MacColuim meaning "son of Columba".

Variant of McConnell.

Means "son of Dougal" in Gaelic.

Variant of McIntyre.

Variant of Meyer 1.

Derived from the given name Meinhard.

Variant of Mullen.

Means "son of Neil". This name was borne by the British admiral Horatio Nelson (1758-1805).

Americanization of Nachtigall.

From a place name derived from Old English ac "oak" and denu "valley".

From the Welsh given name Owain.

Variant of Page.

Means "keeper of the park" in Middle English. It is an occupational name for a person who was a gamekeeper at a medieval park.

From Old English pirige meaning "pear tree", a derivative of peru meaning "pear", itself from Latin pirum. A famous bearer was Matthew Perry (1794-1858), the American naval officer who opened Japan to the West.

Means "son of Philip". Famous bearers of this surname were Frederick Philips (1830-1900) and his son Gerard (1858-1942), the Dutch founders of the company Philips.

Variant of Power 1 or Power 2.

From Welsh ap Richard meaning "son of Richard".

Derived from the given name Randolf.

From Middle High German raben meaning "raven", a nickname for a person with black hair.

Derived from the given name Rhys.

Anglicized form of Ó Raghailligh.

Means "son of Robin".

Means "son of Roman". This was the surname of the last dynasty of Russian tsars.

From Gaelic rusgaire meaning "tanner".

From the name of places in southern Scotland and northern England, derived from Old English hriðer meaning "cattle, ox" and ford meaning "ford, river crossing".

Occupational name for a mounted warrior, from Old English ridere meaning "rider".

From the name of various towns in France, derived from French sauve "safe" and terre "land".

Originally given to a person from Scotland or a person who spoke Scottish Gaelic.

Anglicized form of Ó Scolaidhe.

Variant of Shepherd.

Derived from a Norman French town called "Saint Clair".

From Irish Ó Sluaghadháin meaning "descendant of Sluaghadhán".

From one of the many places named Stanton or Staunton in England, derived from Old English stan meaning "stone" and tun meaning "enclosure, town".

Variant of Sterling.

From various English place names meaning "south town".

Anglicized form of Irish Mac an tSagairt meaning "son of the priest". This name comes from a time when the rules of priestly celibacy were not strictly enforced.

Occupational name for a person who tanned animal hides, from Old English tannian "to tan", itself from Late Latin and possibly ultimately of Celtic origin.

Means "carpenter" in Czech, ultimately from the Old Slavic word tesla meaning "adze".

Derived from Brythonic ar "by" and cardden "thicket". This is the name of several places, the most famous being north of Loch Ness.

From Middle High German wagener meaning "wagon maker, cartwright". This name was borne by the German composer Richard Wagner (1813-1883).

Occupational name for a person who walked on damp raw cloth in order to thicken it. It is derived from Middle English walkere, Old English wealcan meaning "to move".

Means "son of William".

From Old English geat meaning "gate", a name for a gatekeeper or someone who lived near a gate.

From Japanese 雪 (yuki) meaning "snow" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".