2angelgoats's Personal Name List
Adara
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: אַדָרָה(Hebrew)
Rating: 33% based on 4 votes
Means "noble" in Hebrew.
Aderyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh (Rare)
Personal remark: "Ada"
Rating: 42% based on 6 votes
Means "bird" in Welsh. This is a modern Welsh name.
Aelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Roman
Pronounced: IE-lee-a
Rating: 41% based on 7 votes
Aenor
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Germanic (Latinized)
Probably a Latinized form of a Germanic name of unknown meaning. This was the name of the mother of
Eleanor of Aquitaine.
Aeronwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh (Rare)
Combination of
Aeron and the Welsh element
gwen meaning "white, blessed".
Áila
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Sami
Rating: 40% based on 3 votes
Inari Sami variant form of
Áile and
Aili possibly related to
Láilá.
Aldith
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Medieval English
Alexandrine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: A-LEHK-SAHN-DREEN
French
diminutive of
Alexandra. This was the name of a Danish queen, the wife of King Christian X.
Alice
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Portuguese, Italian, German, Czech, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Dutch
Pronounced: AL-is(English) A-LEES(French) u-LEE-si(European Portuguese) a-LEE-see(Brazilian Portuguese) a-LEE-cheh(Italian) a-LEES(German) A-li-tseh(Czech)
From the Old French name
Aalis, a short form of
Adelais, itself a short form of the Germanic name
Adalheidis (see
Adelaide). This name became popular in France and England in the 12th century. It was among the most common names in England until the 16th century, when it began to decline. It was revived in the 19th century.
This name was borne by the heroine of Lewis Carroll's novels Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and Through the Looking Glass (1871).
Aliénor
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: A-LYEH-NAWR
Personal remark: "Ella"
Rating: 38% based on 4 votes
Aloisia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German (Rare)
Pronounced: a-LOI-zya
Altha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: American
Pronounced: AL-thə
Althea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ἀλθαία(Ancient Greek)
From the Greek name
Ἀλθαία (Althaia), perhaps related to Greek
ἄλθος (althos) meaning
"healing". In Greek
myth she was the mother of Meleager. Soon after her son was born she was told that he would die as soon as a piece of wood that was burning on her fire was fully consumed. She immediately extinguished the piece of wood and sealed it in a chest, but in a fit of rage many years later she took it out and set it alight, thereby killing her son.
Alys
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AL-is
Alyssa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ə-LIS-ə
Variant of
Alicia. The spelling has probably been influenced by that of the alyssum flower, the name of which is derived from Greek
ἀ (a), a negative prefix, combined with
λύσσα (lyssa) meaning "madness, rabies", since it was believed to cure madness.
Amabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Amélie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: A-MEH-LEE
Personal remark: "Amy"
Rating: 76% based on 5 votes
Anaïs
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: A-NA-EES
Rating: 57% based on 3 votes
Meaning uncertain, possibly a derivative of
Anne 1 or
Agnès. It was used in Jean-Henri Guy's opera
Anacréon chez Polycrate (1798), where it is borne by the daughter (otherwise unnamed in history) of the 6th-century BC tyrant
Polycrates of Samos. Guy could have adapted it from a classical name such as
Anaitis or
Athénaïs.
A famous bearer was the Cuban-French writer Anaïs Nin (1903-1977), known for her diaries.
Angelella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian (Archaic)
Pronounced: an-je-LEL-la
Combination of
Angela with the Italian dimitive suffix
-ella.
Angelella Guardagnoli was the birth name of (Blessed) Columba of Rieti (1467-1501), an Italian religious sister of the Third Order of St. Dominic who was noted as a mystic.
Angélique
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: AHN-ZHEH-LEEK
Personal remark: "Anna"
Rating: 43% based on 3 votes
Anneli
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Finnish, Estonian, Swedish, German
Pronounced: AHN-neh-lee(Finnish) A-nə-lee(German)
Finnish, Estonian and Swedish form of
Annelie, as well as a German variant.
Annelien
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch
Pronounced: ah-nə-LEEN
Personal remark: "Anna"
Rating: 30% based on 3 votes
Annemarie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch, German, Danish
Pronounced: ah-nə-ma-REE(Dutch) A-nə-ma-ree(German)
Personal remark: "Anna"
Rating: 28% based on 4 votes
Annis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AN-is
Medieval English form of
Agnes.
Aoife
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: EE-fyə(Irish)
From Old Irish
Aífe, derived from
oíph meaning
"beauty" (modern Irish
aoibh). This was the name of several characters in Irish legend, including a woman at war with
Scáthach (her sister in some versions). She was defeated in single combat by the hero
Cúchulainn, who spared her life on the condition that she bear him a child (
Connla). Another legendary figure by this name appears in the
Children of Lir as the jealous third wife of
Lir.
This name is sometimes Anglicized as Eve or Eva.
Ariana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Portuguese, English (Modern)
Pronounced: ar-ee-AN-ə(English) ar-ee-AHN-ə(English)
Portuguese form of
Ariadne. This name steadily grew in popularity in America in the last few decades of the 20th century. A famous bearer is the American pop singer Ariana Grande (1993-).
Arianrhod
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh Mythology
Pronounced: ar-YAN-rawd(Welsh)
Probably means
"silver wheel" from Welsh
arian "silver" and
rhod "wheel". According to the Fourth Branch of the
Mabinogi [1], Arianrhod was the mother of the twins
Dylan and
Lleu Llaw Gyffes, whom she spontaneously birthed when she stepped over a magical wand. It is speculated that in earlier myths she may have been a goddess of the moon.
Arthémise
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Rare), French (Quebec, Rare), Louisiana Creole
Personal remark: "Amy"
Rating: 48% based on 4 votes
Arwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Means
"noble maiden" in the fictional language Sindarin. In
The Lord of the Rings (1954) by J. R. R. Tolkien, Arwen was the daughter of
Elrond and the lover of
Aragorn.
Astrid
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, French, English
Pronounced: AS-strid(Swedish) AHS-tri(Norwegian) AS-trit(German) AS-TREED(French) AS-trid(English)
Rating: 47% based on 7 votes
Modern Scandinavian form of
Ástríðr. This name was borne by the Swedish writer Astrid Lindgren (1907-2002), the author of
Pippi Longstocking. It was also borne by a Swedish princess (1905-1935) who became the queen of Belgium as the wife of Leopold III.
Athena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, English
Other Scripts: Ἀθηνᾶ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: A-TEH-NA(Classical Greek) ə-THEE-nə(English)
Meaning unknown. Athena was the Greek goddess of wisdom and warfare and the patron goddess of the city of Athens in Greece. It is likely that her name is derived from that of the city, not vice versa. The earliest mention of her seems to be a 15th-century BC Mycenaean Greek inscription from Knossos on Crete.
The daughter of Zeus, she was said to have sprung from his head fully grown after he impregnated and swallowed her mother Metis. Athena is associated with the olive tree and the owl.
Athene
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἀθήνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: A-TEH-NEH(Classical Greek)
Aurélie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: O-REH-LEE
Rating: 65% based on 4 votes
Aurélien
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: O-REH-LYEHN
Rating: 30% based on 4 votes
Autumn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AW-təm
From the name of the season, ultimately from Latin autumnus. This name has been in general use since the 1960s.
Ava 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AY-və
Variant of
Eve. A famous bearer was the American actress Ava Gardner (1922-1990). This name became very popular throughout the English-speaking world in the early 21st century, entering the top ten for girls in the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. It began to rise sharply after 1997, possibly inspired by the actress Heather Locklear and musician Richie Sambora when they used it for their baby daughter that year.
Aveline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: AV-ə-lien, AV-ə-leen
From the Norman French form of the Germanic name
Avelina, a
diminutive of
Avila. The
Normans introduced this name to Britain. After the Middle Ages it became rare as an English name, though it persisted in America until the 19th century
[1].
Aviana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Sicilian
Branwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, Welsh Mythology
Pronounced: BRAN-wehn(Welsh)
Means
"white raven" from Old Welsh
bran "raven" and
gwen "white, blessed". According to the Second Branch of the
Mabinogi [1] she was the daughter of
Llŷr. After she was mistreated by her husband Matholwch, the king of Ireland, she managed to get a message to her brother
Brân, the king of Britain. Brân launched a costly invasion to rescue her, but she died of grief shortly after her return.
Brigitte
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, German, Dutch
Pronounced: BREE-ZHEET(French) bree-GI-tə(German)
French and German form of
Bridget. A famous bearer is the French model and actress Brigitte Bardot (1934-).
Briseida
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Form of
Briseis used in medieval tales about the Trojan War.
Briseis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Βρισηΐς(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: brie-SEE-is(English)
Patronymic derived from
Βρισεύς (Briseus), a Greek name of unknown meaning. In Greek
mythology Briseis (real name Hippodameia) was the daughter of Briseus. She was captured during the Trojan War by
Achilles. After
Agamemnon took her away from him, Achilles refused to fight in the war.
Caecilia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Roman
Pronounced: kie-KEE-lee-a
Rating: 33% based on 3 votes
Camille
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: KA-MEE(French) kə-MEEL(English)
French feminine and masculine form of
Camilla. It is also used in the English-speaking world, where it is generally only feminine.
Carmina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish
Pronounced: kar-MEE-na(Spanish)
Caryn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAR-ən, KEHR-ən
Rating: 65% based on 2 votes
Cassandra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Κασσάνδρα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: kə-SAN-drə(English) kə-SAHN-drə(English)
Personal remark: "Cassie"
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
From the Greek name
Κασσάνδρα (Kassandra), possibly derived from
κέκασμαι (kekasmai) meaning "to excel, to shine" and
ἀνήρ (aner) meaning "man" (genitive
ἀνδρός). In Greek
myth Cassandra was a Trojan princess, the daughter of
Priam and
Hecuba. She was given the gift of prophecy by
Apollo, but when she spurned his advances he cursed her so nobody would believe her prophecies.
In the Middle Ages this name was common in England due to the popularity of medieval tales about the Trojan War. It subsequently became rare, but was revived in the 20th century.
Cassarah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: kə-SEHR-ə, kə-SAR-ə, KAS-ə-rə
Recently created name intended to mean "what will be, will be". It is from the title of the 1956 song Que Sera, Sera, which was taken from the Italian phrase che sarà sarà. The phrase que sera, sera is not grammatically correct in any Romance language.
Cassidy
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KAS-i-dee
Personal remark: "Cassie"
Rating: 60% based on 2 votes
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.
Catalina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Corsican
Pronounced: ka-ta-LEE-na(Spanish)
Personal remark: "Kate"
Cécile
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: SEH-SEEL
Rating: 60% based on 2 votes
Celeste
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, English
Pronounced: cheh-LEH-steh(Italian) theh-LEHS-teh(European Spanish) seh-LEHS-teh(Latin American Spanish) sə-LEST(English)
Italian feminine and masculine form of
Caelestis. It is also the Portuguese, Spanish and English feminine form.
Célestine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: SEH-LEHS-TEEN
Celia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish
Pronounced: SEEL-yə(English) SEE-lee-ə(English) THEHL-ya(European Spanish) SEHL-ya(Latin American Spanish)
Rating: 87% based on 7 votes
Feminine form of the Roman family name
Caelius. Shakespeare used it in his play
As You Like It (1599), which introduced the name to the English-speaking public at large. It is sometimes used as a short form of
Cecilia.
Céline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: SEH-LEEN
Rating: 55% based on 2 votes
French feminine form of
Caelinus. This name can also function as a short form of
Marceline.
Cerise
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: SU-REEZ
Rating: 15% based on 2 votes
Means "cherry" in French.
Chalcedony
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Obscure (Modern)
Rating: 10% based on 2 votes
A rare purple semi-precious stone.
Charmian
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: CHAHR-mee-ən(American English) SHAHR-mee-ən(American English) CHAH-mee-ən(British English) SHAH-mee-ən(British English)
Form of
Charmion used by Shakespeare in his play
Antony and Cleopatra (1606).
Charmion
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Greek (Rare)
Other Scripts: Χάρμιον(Ancient Greek)
Greek name derived from
χάρμα (charma) meaning
"delight". This was the name of one of
Cleopatra's servants, as recorded by Plutarch.
Chaya
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: חַיָה(Hebrew)
Pronounced: KHA-ya
Derived from Hebrew
חָיָה (ḥaya) meaning
"living", considered a feminine form of
Chaim.
Chloé
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: KLO-EH
Rating: 73% based on 6 votes
Chrysanthe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Χρυσάνθη(Ancient Greek)
Personal remark: "Kitty"
Cicely
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SIS-ə-lee
Ĉiela
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Esperanto
Pronounced: chee-EH-la
Means "heavenly, from the sky" in Esperanto, from ĉielo "sky", ultimately derived from Latin caelum.
Claire
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: KLEHR(French, American English) KLEH(British English)
French form of
Clara. This was a common name in France throughout the 20th century, though it has since been eclipsed there by
Clara. It was also very popular in the United Kingdom, especially in the 1970s.
Clémentine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: KLEH-MAHN-TEEN
French feminine form of
Clement. This is also the name of a variety of orange (fruit).
Columba
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Late Roman
Pronounced: ko-LOOM-ba(Late Latin) kə-LUM-bə(English)
Late Latin name meaning
"dove". The dove is a symbol of the Holy Spirit in Christianity. This was the name of several early
saints both masculine and feminine, most notably the 6th-century Irish monk Saint Columba (or Colum) who established a monastery on the island of Iona off the coast of Scotland. He is credited with the conversion of Scotland to Christianity.
Columbine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare), Theatre
Pronounced: KAHL-əm-bien(American English) KAWL-əm-bien(British English)
From the name of a variety of flower. It is also an English form of
Colombina, the theatre character.
Constantina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Late Roman, Romanian
Cordelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, English
Pronounced: kawr-DEEL-ee-ə(American English) kaw-DEE-lee-ə(British English)
Personal remark: "Cora"
Rating: 80% based on 5 votes
From
Cordeilla, a name appearing in the 12th-century chronicles
[1] of Geoffrey of Monmouth, borne by the youngest of the three daughters of King
Leir and the only one to remain loyal to her father. Geoffrey possibly based her name on that of
Creiddylad, a character from Welsh legend.
The spelling was later altered to Cordelia when Geoffrey's story was adapted by others, including Edmund Spenser in his poem The Faerie Queene (1590) and Shakespeare in his tragedy King Lear (1606).
Cybele
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Near Eastern Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Κυβέλη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: SIB-ə-lee(English)
Meaning unknown, possibly from Phrygian roots meaning either "stone" or "hair". This was the name of the Phrygian mother goddess associated with fertility and nature. She was later worshipped by the Greeks and Romans.
Cynthia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Κυνθία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: SIN-thee-ə(English) SEEN-TYA(French)
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Latinized form of Greek
Κυνθία (Kynthia), which means
"woman from Cynthus". This was an epithet of the Greek moon goddess
Artemis, given because Cynthus was the mountain on Delos on which she and her twin brother
Apollo were born. It was not used as a given name until the Renaissance, and it did not become common in the English-speaking world until the 19th century. It reached a peak of popularity in the United States in 1957 and has declined steadily since then.
Danaë
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Δανάη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: DA-NA-EH(Classical Greek) DAN-ay-ee(English)
From
Δαναοί (Danaoi), a word used by
Homer to designate the Greeks. In Greek
mythology Danaë was the daughter of the Argive king Acrisius. It had been prophesied to her father that he would one day be killed by Danaë's son, so he attempted to keep his daughter childless. However,
Zeus came to her in the form of a shower of gold, and she became the mother of
Perseus. Eventually the prophecy was fulfilled and Perseus killed Acrisius, albeit accidentally.
Daphne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, English, Dutch
Other Scripts: Δάφνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: DA-PNEH(Classical Greek) DAF-nee(English) DAHF-nə(Dutch)
Means
"laurel" in Greek. In Greek
mythology she was a nymph turned into a laurel tree by her father in order that she might escape the pursuit of
Apollo. It has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since the end of the 19th century.
Delphia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DEHL-fee-ə
Possibly from the name of the Greek city of Delphi, the site of an oracle of
Apollo, which is possibly related to Greek
δελφύς (delphys) meaning "womb". It was used in the play
The Prophetess (1647), in which it belongs to the title prophetess.
Diana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Catalan, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Estonian, Lithuanian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Armenian, Georgian, Roman Mythology
Other Scripts: Диана(Russian, Bulgarian) Діана(Ukrainian) Դիանա(Armenian) დიანა(Georgian)
Pronounced: die-AN-ə(English) DYA-na(Spanish, Italian, Polish) dee-U-nu(European Portuguese) jee-U-nu(Brazilian Portuguese) dee-A-na(Romanian, German, Dutch, Latin) dee-A-nə(Catalan) dyee-A-nu(Ukrainian) DI-ya-na(Czech) DEE-a-na(Slovak)
Rating: 77% based on 6 votes
Means
"divine, goddesslike", a derivative of Latin
dia or
diva meaning
"goddess". It is ultimately related to the same Indo-European root *
dyew- found in
Zeus. Diana was a Roman goddess of the moon, hunting, forests and childbirth, often identified with the Greek goddess
Artemis.
As a given name, Diana has been regularly used since the Renaissance. It became more common in the English-speaking world following Walter Scott's novel Rob Roy (1817), which featured a character named Diana Vernon. It also appeared in George Meredith's novel Diana of the Crossways (1885). A notable bearer was the British royal Diana Spencer (1961-1997), the Princess of Wales.
Dinah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, English
Other Scripts: דִּינָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: DIE-nə(English) DEE-nə(English)
Rating: 100% based on 1 vote
Dominique
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: DAW-MEE-NEEK
French feminine and masculine form of
Dominicus (see
Dominic).
Dorothée
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: DAW-RAW-TEH
Personal remark: "Dory"
Rating: 35% based on 2 votes
Dovaidė
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Lithuanian
Echo
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἠχώ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: EH-ko(English)
From the Greek word
ἠχώ (echo) meaning
"echo, reflected sound", related to
ἠχή (eche) meaning "sound". In Greek
mythology Echo was a nymph given a speech impediment by
Hera, so that she could only repeat what others said. She fell in love with
Narcissus, but her love was not returned, and she pined away until nothing remained of her except her voice.
Edith
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch
Pronounced: EE-dith(English) EH-dit(German, Swedish, Dutch)
From the Old English name
Eadgyð, derived from the elements
ead "wealth, fortune" and
guð "battle". It was popular among Anglo-Saxon royalty, being borne for example by
Saint Eadgyeth;, the daughter of King Edgar the Peaceful. It was also borne by the Anglo-Saxon wife of the Holy Roman Emperor Otto I. The name remained common after the
Norman Conquest. It became rare after the 15th century, but was revived in the 19th century.
Eirian
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Welsh
Means
"bright, beautiful" in Welsh
[1].
Elaine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Arthurian Cycle
Pronounced: i-LAYN(English) ee-LAYN(English)
From an Old French form of
Helen. It appears in Arthurian legend; in Thomas Malory's 15th-century compilation
Le Morte d'Arthur Elaine was the daughter of
Pelles, the lover of
Lancelot, and the mother of
Galahad. It was not commonly used as an English given name until after the publication of Alfred Tennyson's Arthurian epic
Idylls of the King (1859).
Elin
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Welsh
Pronounced: EH-lin(Swedish, Norwegian, Welsh)
Rating: 33% based on 3 votes
Scandinavian and Welsh form of
Helen.
Élisabeth
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: EH-LEE-ZA-BEHT
Personal remark: "Elsa"
Rating: 90% based on 2 votes
Elita
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Latvian
Meaning unknown.
Eliza
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Polish, Portuguese (Brazilian), Romanian, Hungarian, Georgian
Other Scripts: ელიზა(Georgian)
Pronounced: i-LIE-zə(English) eh-LEE-za(Polish) EH-lee-zaw(Hungarian)
Short form of
Elizabeth. It was borne by the character Eliza Doolittle in George Bernard Shaw's play
Pygmalion (1913) and the subsequent musical adaptation
My Fair Lady (1956).
Élodie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: EH-LAW-DEE
Rating: 78% based on 4 votes
Elowen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Cornish
Personal remark: "Ella"
Rating: 70% based on 4 votes
Means "elm tree" in Cornish. This is a recently coined Cornish name.
Else
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Danish, Norwegian, German, Dutch
Pronounced: EHL-seh(Danish, Norwegian) EHL-zə(German) EHL-sə(Dutch)
Rating: 48% based on 5 votes
Eluned
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: ehl-IN-ehd, ehl-EEN-ehd
Personal remark: "Ella"
Rating: 38% based on 5 votes
Derived from Welsh
eilun meaning
"image, likeness, idol". This was the name of a legendary 5th-century Welsh
saint, also known as Eiliwedd, one of the supposed daughters of
Brychan Brycheiniog.
Émeraude
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Modern), French (Belgian, Modern, Rare)
Pronounced: EHM-RAWD(French, Belgian French)
Personal remark: "Emma"
Rating: 20% based on 2 votes
Derived from French émeraude "emerald".
Emma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Italian, Spanish, Catalan, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, Latvian, Dutch, German, Hungarian, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: EHM-ə(English) EH-MA(French) EHM-ma(Spanish) EHM-mah(Finnish) EH-ma(Dutch, German) EHM-maw(Hungarian)
Rating: 94% based on 5 votes
Originally a short form of Germanic names that began with the element
irmin meaning
"whole" or
"great" (Proto-Germanic *
ermunaz). It was introduced to England by Emma of Normandy, who was the wife both of King Ethelred II (and by him the mother of Edward the Confessor) and later of King Canute. It was also borne by an 11th-century Austrian
saint, who is sometimes called
Hemma.
After the Norman Conquest this name became common in England. It was revived in the 18th century, perhaps in part due to Matthew Prior's 1709 poem Henry and Emma [2]. It was also used by Jane Austen for the central character, the matchmaker Emma Woodhouse, in her novel Emma (1816).
In the United States, it was third in rank in 1880 (behind only the ubiquitous Mary and Anna). It declined steadily over the next century, beginning another rise in the 1980s and eventually becoming the most popular name for girls in 2008. At this time it also experienced similar levels of popularity elsewhere, including the United Kingdom (where it began rising a decade earlier), Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Scandinavia and the Netherlands. Famous bearers include the actresses Emma Thompson (1959-), Emma Stone (1988-) and Emma Watson (1990-).
Emmeline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHM-ə-leen, EHM-ə-lien
Personal remark: "Emma"
Rating: 77% based on 6 votes
From Old French
Emeline, a
diminutive of Germanic names beginning with the element
amal meaning
"unceasing, vigorous, brave". The
Normans introduced this name to England.
Erin
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Irish
Pronounced: EHR-in(English)
Anglicized form of
Éireann. It was initially used by people of Irish heritage in America, Canada and Australia. It was rare until the mid-1950s.
Ermintrude
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Archaic)
English form of
Ermendrud. It was occasionally used until the 19th century.
Esmé
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHZ-may, EHZ-mee
Rating: 68% based on 8 votes
Means "esteemed" or "loved" in Old French. It was first recorded in Scotland, being borne by the first Duke of Lennox in the 16th century. It is now more common as a feminine name.
Esperanza
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: ehs-peh-RAN-tha(European Spanish) ehs-peh-RAN-sa(Latin American Spanish)
Spanish form of the Late Latin name Sperantia, which was derived from sperare "to hope".
Ester
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Catalan, Portuguese, Italian, Czech, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, Estonian, Hebrew
Other Scripts: אֶסְתֵר(Hebrew)
Pronounced: ehs-TEHR(Spanish) əs-TEHR(Catalan) EHS-tehr(Czech, Finnish)
Form of
Esther used in several languages.
Euanthe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1], Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Εὐάνθη(Ancient Greek)
Derived from Greek
εὐανθής (euanthes) meaning
"blooming, flowery", a derivative of
εὖ (eu) meaning "good" and
ἄνθος (anthos) meaning "flower". According to some sources, this was the name of the mother of the three Graces or
Χάριτες (Charites) in Greek
mythology.
Eudora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Εὐδώρα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: yoo-DAWR-ə(English)
Means
"good gift" in Greek, from the elements
εὖ (eu) meaning "good" and
δῶρον (doron) meaning "gift". This was the name of a nymph, one of the Hyades, in Greek
mythology.
Eugénie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: UU-ZHEH-NEE
French form of
Eugenia. This was the name of the wife of Napoleon III.
Euphemia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1], English (Archaic)
Other Scripts: Εὐφημία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: yoo-FEE-mee-ə(English) yoo-FEH-mee-ə(English)
Means
"to use words of good omen" from Greek
εὐφημέω (euphemeo), a derivative of
εὖ (eu) meaning "good" and
φημί (phemi) meaning "to speak, to declare".
Saint Euphemia was an early martyr from Chalcedon.
Europa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Εὐρώπη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: yuw-RO-pə(English)
Latinized form of Greek
Εὐρώπη (Europe), which meant
"wide face" from
εὐρύς (eurys) meaning "wide" and
ὄψ (ops) meaning "face, eye". In Greek
mythology Europa was a Phoenician princess who was abducted and taken to Crete by
Zeus in the guise of a bull. She became the first queen of Crete, and later fathered
Minos by Zeus. The continent of Europe said to be named for her, though it is more likely her name is from that of the continent. This is also the name of a moon of Jupiter.
Evelyn
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English, German
Pronounced: EHV-ə-lin(English) EEV-lin(British English) EEV-ə-lin(British English) EH-və-leen(German)
From an English surname that was derived from the given name
Aveline. In the 17th century when it was first used as a given name it was more common for boys, but it is now regarded as almost entirely feminine, probably in part because of its similarity to
Eve and
Evelina.
This name was popular throughout the English-speaking world in the early 20th century. It staged a comeback in the early 21st century, returning to the American top ten in 2017.
Fajra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Esperanto
Pronounced: FIE-ra
Means "fiery" in Esperanto, from fajro meaning "fire".
Félicie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: FEH-LEE-SEE
Rating: 23% based on 3 votes
Félicienne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: FEH-LEE-SYEHN
Rating: 10% based on 2 votes
French feminine form of
Felicianus (see
Feliciano).
Fiera
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Esperanto
Pronounced: fee-EH-ra
Means "proud" in Esperanto.
Fleur
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, Dutch, English (British)
Pronounced: FLUUR(French, Dutch) FLU(British English) FLUR(American English)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
Means
"flower" in French.
Saint Fleur of Issendolus (
Flor in Gascon) was a 14th-century nun from Maurs, France. This was also the name of a character in John Galsworthy's novels
The Forsyte Saga (1922).
Florence
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: FLAWR-əns(English) FLAW-RAHNS(French)
From the Latin name
Florentius or the feminine form
Florentia, which were derived from
florens "prosperous, flourishing".
Florentius was borne by many early Christian
saints, and it was occasionally used in their honour through the Middle Ages. In modern times it is mostly feminine.
This name can also be given in reference to the city in Italy, as in the case of Florence Nightingale (1820-1910), who was born there to British parents. She was a nurse in military hospitals during the Crimean War and is usually considered the founder of modern nursing.
Frances
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FRAN-sis
Feminine form of
Francis. The distinction between
Francis as a masculine name and
Frances as a feminine name did not arise until the 17th century
[1]. A notable bearer was
Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini (1850-1917), a social worker and the first American to be canonized.
Freya
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norse Mythology, English (Modern), German
Pronounced: FRAY-ə(English) FRAY-a(German)
Rating: 88% based on 4 votes
From Old Norse
Freyja meaning
"lady". This is the name of a goddess associated with love, beauty, war and death in Norse
mythology. She claims half of the heroes who are slain in battle and brings them to her realm of Fólkvangr. Along with her brother
Freyr and father
Njord, she is one of the Vanir (as opposed to the Æsir). Some scholars connect her with the goddess
Frigg.
This is not the usual spelling in any of the Scandinavian languages (in Sweden and Denmark it is Freja and in Norway it is Frøja) but it is the common spelling of the goddess's name in English. In the 2000s it became popular in Britain.
Gilda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Portuguese
Pronounced: JEEL-da(Italian)
Originally an Italian short form of
Ermenegilda and other names containing the Old German element
gelt meaning
"payment, tribute, compensation". This is the name of a character in Verdi's opera
Rigoletto (1851). It is also the name of a 1946 American movie, starring Rita Hayworth in the title role.
Glory
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: GLAWR-ee
Simply from the English word glory, ultimately from Latin gloria.
Gracia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: GRA-thya(European Spanish) GRA-sya(Latin American Spanish)
Gwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, English
Pronounced: GWEHN
From Welsh
gwen, the feminine form of
gwyn meaning "white, blessed". It can also be a short form of
Gwendolen,
Gwenllian and other names beginning with
Gwen.
Halcyone
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ἀλκυόνη(Ancient Greek)
Rating: 30% based on 2 votes
Latinized form of Greek
Ἀλκυόνη (see
Alcyone), via the misspelled variant
Ἁλκυόνη (Halkyone). The spelling variation was due to a false association with
ἅλς (hals) meaning "salt, sea".
Heather
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HEDH-ər(American English) HEDH-ə(British English)
From the English word heather for the variety of small shrubs with pink or white flowers, which commonly grow in rocky areas. It is derived from Middle English hather. It was first used as a given name in the late 19th century, though it did not become popular until the last half of the 20th century.
Hebe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἥβη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: HEH-BEH(Classical Greek) HEE-bee(English)
Derived from Greek
ἥβη (hebe) meaning
"youth". In Greek
mythology Hebe was the daughter of
Zeus and
Hera. She was a goddess of youth who acted as the cupbearer to the gods.
Hélène
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: EH-LEHN
Personal remark: "Ella"
Rating: 80% based on 4 votes
Héloïse
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: EH-LO-EEZ
Personal remark: "Ella"
Rating: 20% based on 3 votes
Hemera
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἡμέρα(Ancient Greek)
Means
"day" in Greek. This was the name of the Greek goddess who personified the daytime. According to Hesiod she was the daughter of
Nyx, the personification of the night.
Henriette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, German, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian
Pronounced: AHN-RYEHT(French) hehn-ree-EH-tə(German, Dutch) hehn-ree-EH-də(Danish) hehn-ree-EHT-teh(Norwegian)
Heulwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: HAYL-wehn
Means
"sunshine" in Welsh (a compound of
haul "sun" and
gwen "white, blessed").
Honora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, English
Variant of
Honoria. It was brought to England and Ireland by the
Normans.
Ilona
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hungarian, German, Finnish, Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Czech
Pronounced: EE-lo-naw(Hungarian) ee-LO-na(German) EE-lo-na(German) EE-lo-nah(Finnish) ee-LAW-na(Polish) I-lo-na(Czech)
Old Hungarian form of
Helen, possibly via a Slavic form. In Finland it is associated with the word
ilona, a derivative of
ilo "joy".
Ilsa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German
Pronounced: IL-za
Inès
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: EE-NEHS
Rating: 27% based on 3 votes
Iola
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Probably a variant of
Iole.
Iolanthe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various (Rare)
Pronounced: ie-o-LAN-thee(English)
Personal remark: "Iole"
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Probably a variant of
Yolanda influenced by the Greek words
ἰόλη (iole) meaning "violet" and
ἄνθος (anthos) meaning "flower". This name was (first?) used by Gilbert and Sullivan in their comic opera
Iolanthe (1882).
Iris
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, French, Spanish, Catalan, Italian, Slovene, Croatian, Greek
Other Scripts: Ἶρις(Ancient Greek) Ίρις(Greek)
Pronounced: IE-ris(English) EE-ris(German, Dutch) EE-rees(Finnish, Spanish, Catalan, Italian) EE-REES(French)
Means "rainbow" in Greek. Iris was the name of the Greek goddess of the rainbow, also serving as a messenger to the gods. This name can also be given in reference to the word (which derives from the same Greek source) for the iris flower or the coloured part of the eye.
Isadora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Portuguese
Pronounced: iz-ə-DAWR-ə(English)
Personal remark: "Dory"
Variant of
Isidora. A famous bearer was the American dancer Isadora Duncan (1877-1927).
Isla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: IE-lə
Rating: 75% based on 4 votes
Variant of
Islay, typically used as a feminine name. It also coincides with the Spanish word
isla meaning "island".
Ismene
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἰσμήνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: EEZ-MEH-NEH(Classical Greek) is-MEE-nee(English)
Possibly from Greek
ἰσμή (isme) meaning
"knowledge". This was the name of the daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta in Greek legend.
Isra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arabic
Other Scripts: إسراء(Arabic)
Pronounced: ees-RA
Rating: 30% based on 3 votes
Means
"nocturnal journey" in Arabic, derived from
سرى (sarā) meaning "to travel by night". According to Islamic tradition, the
Isra was a miraculous journey undertaken by the Prophet
Muhammad.
Ivana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Czech, Slovak, Serbian, Croatian, Slovene, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Italian
Other Scripts: Ивана(Serbian, Bulgarian, Macedonian)
Pronounced: I-va-na(Czech) EE-va-na(Slovak) ee-VA-na(Italian)
Ivory
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: African American
Pronounced: IE-və-ree(English) IEV-ree(English)
From the English word for the hard, creamy-white substance that comes from elephant tusks and was formerly used to produce piano keys.
Jade
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: JAYD(English) ZHAD(French)
From the name of the precious stone that is often used in carvings. It is derived from Spanish (piedra de la) ijada meaning "(stone of the) flank", relating to the belief that jade could cure renal colic. As a given name, it came into general use during the 1970s. It was initially unisex, though it is now mostly feminine.
Jane
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JAYN
Medieval English form of
Jehanne, an Old French feminine form of
Iohannes (see
John). This became the most common feminine form of
John in the 17th century, surpassing
Joan. In the first half of the 20th century
Joan once again overtook
Jane for a few decades in both the United States and the United Kingdom.
Famous bearers include the uncrowned English queen Lady Jane Grey (1536-1554), who ruled for only nine days, British novelist Jane Austen (1775-1817), who wrote Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice, British primatologist Jane Goodall (1934-), and American actress Jane Fonda (1937-). This is also the name of the central character in Charlotte Brontë's novel Jane Eyre (1847), which tells of Jane's sad childhood and her relationship with Edward Rochester.
Jasmine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: JAZ-min(English) ZHAS-MEEN(French)
Rating: 55% based on 2 votes
From the English word for the climbing plant with fragrant flowers that is used for making perfumes. It is derived via Arabic from Persian
یاسمین (yāsamīn), which is also a Persian name. In the United States this name steadily grew in popularity from the 1970s, especially among African Americans
[1]. It reached a peak in the early 1990s shortly after the release of the animated Disney movie
Aladdin (1992), which featured a princess by this name.
Jeanne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: ZHAN(French) JEEN(English)
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Modern French form of
Jehanne, an Old French feminine form of
Iohannes (see
John). This has been the most reliably popular French name for girls since the 13th century. Joan of Arc is known as Jeanne d'Arc in France.
Jessica
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Italian, Spanish
Pronounced: JEHS-i-kə(English) ZHEH-SEE-KA(French) YEH-see-ka(German, Dutch) JEH-see-ka(German) YEHS-si-ka(Swedish, Norwegian, Danish) GYEH-see-ka(Spanish)
This name was first used in this form by William Shakespeare in his play
The Merchant of Venice (1596), where it belongs to the daughter of
Shylock. Shakespeare probably based it on the biblical name
Iscah, which would have been spelled
Jescha in his time. It was not commonly used as a given name until the middle of the 20th century. It reached its peak of popularity in the United States in 1987, and was the top ranked name for girls between 1985 and 1995, excepting 1991 and 1992 (when it was unseated by
Ashley). Notable bearers include actresses Jessica Tandy (1909-1994) and Jessica Lange (1949-).
Josephina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: jo-sə-FEEN-ə
Josiane
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: ZHO-ZYAN
Rating: 23% based on 3 votes
Judith
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Jewish, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Spanish, French, Biblical
Other Scripts: יְהוּדִית(Hebrew)
Pronounced: JOO-dith(English) YOO-dit(German) YUY-dit(Dutch) khoo-DHEET(Spanish) ZHUY-DEET(French)
From the Hebrew name
יְהוּדִית (Yehuḏiṯ) meaning
"Jewish woman", feminine of
יְהוּדִי (yehuḏi), ultimately referring to a person from the tribe of
Judah. In the
Old Testament Judith is one of the Hittite wives of
Esau. This is also the name of the main character of the apocryphal Book of Judith. She killed Holofernes, an invading Assyrian commander, by beheading him in his sleep.
As an English name it did not become common until after the Protestant Reformation, despite a handful of early examples during the Middle Ages. It was however used earlier on the European continent, being borne by several European royals, such as the 9th-century Judith of Bavaria.
June
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JOON
From the name of the month, which was originally derived from the name of the Roman goddess
Juno. It has been used as a given name since the 19th century.
Juniper
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: JOON-i-pər(American English) JOON-i-pə(British English)
From the English word for the type of tree, derived ultimately from Latin iuniperus.
Karena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Rating: 40% based on 3 votes
Katarina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Croatian, Serbian, Slovene, Sorbian
Other Scripts: Катарина(Serbian)
Pronounced: ka-ta-REE-na(Swedish, German)
Personal remark: "Kate"
Rating: 78% based on 4 votes
Katida
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Esperanto
Pronounced: ka-TEE-da
From Esperanto katido meaning "kitten", ultimately from Latin cattus.
Lena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, Polish, Finnish, Russian, Ukrainian, English, Italian, Portuguese, Greek, Georgian, Armenian
Other Scripts: Лена(Russian, Ukrainian) Λένα(Greek) ლენა(Georgian) Լենա(Armenian)
Pronounced: LEH-na(Swedish, German, Dutch, Polish, Italian) LYEH-nə(Russian) LEE-nə(English) LEH-NA(Georgian) leh-NAH(Armenian)
Rating: 80% based on 4 votes
Leola
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Léonie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: LEH-AW-NEE
Rating: 77% based on 3 votes
Letha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Possibly a short form of
Aletha.
Líadan
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish (Rare)
Pronounced: LYEEY-dən
Rating: 40% based on 3 votes
Possibly from Old Irish
líath meaning
"grey". According to an Irish tale this was the name of a poet who became a nun, but then missed her lover Cuirithir so much that she died of grief. The name was also borne by a 5th-century
saint, the mother of Saint Ciarán the Elder.
Libby
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIB-ee
Liesl
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German
Pronounced: LEE-zəl
Rating: 30% based on 3 votes
Lila 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIE-lə
Rating: 66% based on 5 votes
Lilibet
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Lilita
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Latvian
Personal remark: "Lily"
Rating: 30% based on 2 votes
Lillias
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish
Personal remark: "Lily"
Linnéa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish
Pronounced: lin-NEH-a
From the name of a flower, also known as the twinflower. The Swedish botanist Carolus Linnaeus named it after himself, it being his favourite flower.
Linnet
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: li-NEHT, LIN-it
Rating: 30% based on 2 votes
Either a variant of
Lynette or else from the name of the small bird, a type of finch.
Lise
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, English
Pronounced: LEEZ(French, English) LEE-seh(Swedish, Norwegian, Danish) LEES(English)
Rating: 20% based on 2 votes
Liselotte
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Danish, Swedish, Dutch, German
Pronounced: LEE-zeh-law-tə(German)
Personal remark: "Lotta"
Rating: 20% based on 2 votes
Lola
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, English, French
Pronounced: LO-la(Spanish) LO-lə(English) LAW-LA(French)
Rating: 70% based on 4 votes
Spanish
diminutive of
Dolores. A famous bearer was Lola Montez (1821-1861; birth name Eliza Gilbert), an Irish-born dancer, actress and courtesan.
Lotte
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Dutch, German
Pronounced: LAW-tə(Dutch, German)
Rating: 35% based on 2 votes
Louisa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch
Pronounced: loo-EEZ-ə(English) loo-EE-za(German)
Latinate feminine form of
Louis. A famous bearer was the American novelist Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888), the author of
Little Women.
Lucia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, German, Dutch, English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Romanian, Slovak, Ancient Roman
Pronounced: loo-CHEE-a(Italian) LOO-tsya(German) loo-TSEE-a(German) LUY-see-a(Dutch) LOO-shə(English) loo-SEE-ə(English) luy-SEE-a(Swedish) LOO-chya(Romanian) LOO-kee-a(Latin)
Rating: 60% based on 2 votes
Feminine form of
Lucius.
Saint Lucia was a 4th-century martyr from Syracuse. She was said to have had her eyes gouged out, and thus she is the patron saint of the blind. She was widely revered in the Middle Ages, and her name has been used throughout Christian Europe (in various spellings). It has been used in the England since the 12th century, usually in the spellings
Lucy or
Luce.
Lucienne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: LUY-SYEHN
Personal remark: "Lucy"
Rating: 55% based on 2 votes
Lucille
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: LUY-SEEL(French) loo-SEEL(English)
French form of
Lucilla. A famous bearer was American comedienne Lucille Ball (1911-1989).
Luisa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Italian
Pronounced: LWEE-sa(Spanish) LWEE-za(Italian)
Personal remark: "Lucy"
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Mabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAY-bəl
Medieval feminine form of
Amabilis. This spelling and
Amabel were common during the Middle Ages, though they became rare after the 15th century. It was revived in the 19th century after the publication of C. M. Yonge's 1854 novel
The Heir of Redclyffe [1], which featured a character named Mabel (as well as one named Amabel).
Maela
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Breton
Personal remark: "May"
Rating: 40% based on 1 vote
Maëlle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, Breton
Pronounced: MA-EHL(French)
Personal remark: "May"
Rating: 37% based on 3 votes
Maëlys
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: MA-EH-LEES
Personal remark: "May"
Rating: 37% based on 3 votes
Feminine form of
Maël, possibly influenced by the spelling of
Mailys.
Magdalen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAG-də-lən
Personal remark: "Meg"
Manon
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, Dutch
Pronounced: MA-NAWN(French) ma-NAWN(Dutch)
Maraĵa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Esperanto
Pronounced: ma-RA-zha
Means "made of the sea" in Esperanto, a derivative of maro "sea", ultimately from Latin mare.
Marcelline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: MAR-SU-LEEN
Marguerite
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: MAR-GU-REET
Personal remark: "Meg"
French form of
Margaret. This is also the French word for the daisy flower (species Leucanthemum vulgare).
Maria
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Italian, Portuguese, Catalan, Occitan, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Faroese, Dutch, Frisian, Greek, Polish, Romanian, English, Finnish, Estonian, Corsican, Sardinian, Basque, Armenian, Russian, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Biblical Greek [1], Biblical Latin, Old Church Slavic
Other Scripts: Μαρία(Greek) Մարիա(Armenian) Мария(Russian, Bulgarian) Марія(Ukrainian) Маріа(Church Slavic)
Pronounced: ma-REE-a(Italian, German, Swedish, Dutch, Greek, Romanian, Basque) mu-REE-u(European Portuguese) ma-REE-u(Brazilian Portuguese) mə-REE-ə(Catalan, English) mah-REE-ah(Norwegian, Danish) MAR-ya(Polish) MAH-ree-ah(Finnish) mu-RYEE-yə(Russian) mu-RYEE-yu(Ukrainian)
Latin form of Greek
Μαρία, from Hebrew
מִרְיָם (see
Mary).
Maria is the usual form of the name in many European languages, as well as a secondary form in other languages such as English (where the common spelling is
Mary). In some countries, for example Germany, Poland and Italy,
Maria is occasionally used as a masculine middle name.
This was the name of two ruling queens of Portugal. It was also borne by the Habsburg queen Maria Theresa (1717-1780), whose inheritance of the domains of her father, the Holy Roman emperor Charles VI, began the War of the Austrian Succession.
Marianne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish
Pronounced: MA-RYAN(French) mar-ee-AN(English) ma-RYA-nə(German) ma-ree-YAH-nə(Dutch) MAH-ree-ahn-neh(Finnish)
Personal remark: "May"
Rating: 90% based on 6 votes
Combination of
Marie and
Anne 1, though it could also be considered a variant of
Mariana or
Mariamne. Shortly after the formation of the French Republic in 1792, a female figure by this name was adopted as the symbol of the state.
Marie
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: French, Czech, German, English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Albanian
Pronounced: MA-REE(French) MA-ri-yeh(Czech) ma-REE(German, Dutch) mə-REE(English)
Rating: 72% based on 5 votes
French and Czech form of
Maria. It has been very common in France since the 13th century. At the opening of the 20th century it was given to approximately 20 percent of French girls. This percentage has declined steadily over the course of the century, and it dropped from the top rank in 1958.
A notable bearer of this name was Marie Antoinette, a queen of France who was executed by guillotine during the French Revolution. Another was Marie Curie (1867-1934), a physicist and chemist who studied radioactivity with her husband Pierre.
In France it is occasionally used as a masculine name in pairings such as Jean-Marie.
Marisol
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: ma-ree-SOL
Short form of
María Soledad. It is sometimes considered a combination of
María and
Sol 1, or from Spanish
mar y sol "sea and sun".
Markéta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Czech
Pronounced: MAR-keh-ta
Rating: 10% based on 2 votes
Mathilde
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Danish
Pronounced: MA-TEELD(French) ma-TIL-də(German, Dutch)
Personal remark: "Maud"
Form of
Matilda in several languages.
Maud
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Dutch, Swedish
Pronounced: MAWD(English) MOD(French) MOWT(Dutch)
Medieval English and French form of
Matilda. Though it became rare after the 14th century, it was revived and once more grew popular in the 19th century, perhaps due to Alfred Tennyson's 1855 poem
Maud [1].
Maylis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: MAY-LEES, MA-EE-LEES
Personal remark: "May"
Rating: 35% based on 2 votes
From the name of a town in southern France, said to derive from Occitan
mair "mother" and French
lys "lily". It is also sometimes considered a combination of
Marie and
lys.
Megan
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, English
Pronounced: MEHG-ən(English)
Personal remark: "Meg"
Rating: 58% based on 5 votes
Welsh
diminutive of
Margaret. In the English-speaking world outside of Wales it has only been regularly used since the middle of the 20th century.
Meinir
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Rating: 20% based on 2 votes
Means
"tall and slender, beautiful maiden" in Welsh (a compound of
main "slender" and
hir "tall").
Melaina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Μέλαινα(Ancient Greek)
Miela
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Esperanto
Pronounced: mee-EH-la
Means "sweet" in Esperanto, derived from mielo "honey", ultimately from Latin mel.
Mignon
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: MEE-NYAWN(French)
Means "cute, darling" in French. This is the name of a character in Ambroise Thomas's opera Mignon (1866), which was based on Goethe's novel Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship (1796).
Mimosa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Finnish, French, Spanish, Danish, Filipino, Italian
Pronounced: MI-maw-sah(Finnish) Mim-osa(French) mee-MO-sah(Spanish)
Personal remark: "Mimi"
From Mimosa, a genus of plants that are sensitive to touch. The best known plant from that genus is the Mimosa pudica, better known in English as the touch-me-not. The plant genus derives its name from Spanish mimosa, which is the feminine form of the Spanish adjective mimoso meaning "cuddly".
Mina 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hindi, Marathi, Tamil
Other Scripts: मीना(Hindi, Marathi, Sanskrit) மீனா(Tamil)
Rating: 50% based on 2 votes
From Sanskrit
मीन (mīna) meaning
"fish", which in Hindu astrology is the name of a sign of the zodiac.
Miranda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Dutch
Pronounced: mi-RAN-də(English) mee-RAHN-da(Dutch)
Derived from Latin
mirandus meaning
"admirable, worthy of being admired". The name was created by Shakespeare for the heroine in his play
The Tempest (1611), in which Miranda and her father
Prospero are stranded on an island. It did not become a common English given name until the 20th century. This is also the name of one of the moons of Uranus, named after the Shakespearean character.
Miriam
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Italian, Portuguese, Czech, Slovak, Polish, Biblical
Other Scripts: מִרְיָם(Hebrew)
Pronounced: MIR-ee-əm(English) MI-ryam(German) MI-ri-yam(Czech) MEE-ree-am(Slovak)
Personal remark: "Mimi"
Form of
Mary used in the
Old Testament, where it belongs to the elder sister of
Moses and
Aaron. She watched over the infant Moses as the pharaoh's daughter drew him from the Nile. The name has long been popular among Jews, and it has been used as an English Christian name (alongside
Mary) since the
Protestant Reformation.
Mòrag
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish Gaelic
Pronounced: MO-rag
Morwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Cornish, Welsh
Nadia 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, Italian, Spanish, Polish, English, Russian, Bulgarian, Ukrainian
Other Scripts: Надя(Russian, Bulgarian) Надія(Ukrainian)
Pronounced: NA-DYA(French) NA-dya(Italian, Polish) NA-dhya(Spanish) NAD-ee-ə(English) NAHD-ee-ə(English) NA-dyə(Russian)
Rating: 65% based on 2 votes
Variant of
Nadya 1 used in Western Europe, as well as an alternate transcription of the Slavic name. It began to be used in France in the 19th century
[1]. The name received a boost in popularity from the Romanian gymnast Nadia Comăneci (1961-)
[2].
Nadine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, German, English, Dutch
Pronounced: NA-DEEN(French) na-DEE-nə(German, Dutch) na-DEEN(German, Dutch) nay-DEEN(English)
Rating: 30% based on 2 votes
Naila
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arabic, Urdu
Other Scripts: نائلة(Arabic) نائلہ(Urdu)
Pronounced: NA-ee-la(Arabic)
Rating: 20% based on 3 votes
Feminine form of
Nail. This was the name of the wife of
Uthman, the third caliph of the Muslims. She tried in vain to prevent a mob from murdering her husband, and had several fingers cut off in the process.
Naomi 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Hebrew, Biblical
Other Scripts: נָעֳמִי(Hebrew)
Pronounced: nay-O-mee(English) nie-O-mee(English)
Rating: 75% based on 2 votes
From the Hebrew name
נָעֳמִי (Naʿomi) meaning
"my pleasantness", a derivative of
נָעַם (naʿam) meaning "to be pleasant". In the
Old Testament this is the name of the mother-in-law of
Ruth. After the death of her husband and sons, she returned to Bethlehem with Ruth. There she declared that her name should be
Mara because of her misfortune (see
Ruth 1:20).
Though long common as a Jewish name, Naomi was not typically used as an English Christian name until after the Protestant Reformation. A notable bearer is the British model Naomi Campbell (1970-).
Natalia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Polish, Italian, Spanish, Romanian, English, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Greek, Georgian, Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Late Roman
Other Scripts: Ναταλία(Greek) ნატალია(Georgian) Наталия(Russian, Bulgarian) Наталія(Ukrainian)
Pronounced: na-TA-lya(Polish, Italian, Spanish) na-ta-LEE-a(Italian) na-TA-lee-a(Romanian) nə-TAHL-ee-ə(English)
Personal remark: "Natasha"
Rating: 60% based on 3 votes
Latinate form of
Natalia (see
Natalie).
Nia 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: NEE-a
Welsh form of
Niamh. The Welsh poet T. Gwynn Jones used it in his long poem
Tir na n-Óg (1916), referring to the lover of
Oisín.
Noémie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: NAW-EH-MEE
Rating: 65% based on 2 votes
Odessa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various
From the name of a Ukrainian city that sits on the north coast of the Black Sea, which was named after the ancient Greek city of
Ὀδησσός (Odessos), of uncertain meaning. This name can also be used as a feminine form of
Odysseus.
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.
Odilia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Germanic (Latinized) [1][2]
Rating: 10% based on 2 votes
Derived from the Old German element
uodil meaning
"heritage" or
ot meaning
"wealth, fortune".
Saint Odilia (or Odila) was an 8th-century nun who is considered the patron saint of Alsace. She was apparently born blind but gained sight when she was baptized.
Oenone
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Οἰνώνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ee-NO-nee(English)
Latinized form of the Greek
Οἰνώνη (Oinone), derived from
οἶνος (oinos) meaning
"wine". In Greek
mythology Oenone was a mountain nymph who was married to Paris before he went after Helen.
Olive
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: AHL-iv(American English) AWL-iv(British English) AW-LEEV(French)
From the English and French word for the type of tree, ultimately derived from Latin oliva.
Olivia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, French, German, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch
Pronounced: o-LIV-ee-ə(English) ə-LIV-ee-ə(English) o-LEE-vya(Italian, German) o-LEE-bya(Spanish) AW-LEE-VYA(French) O-lee-vee-ah(Finnish) o-LEE-vee-a(Dutch)
Rating: 73% based on 7 votes
This name was used in this spelling by William Shakespeare for a character in his comedy
Twelfth Night (1602). This was a rare name in Shakespeare's time
[1] that may have been based on
Oliva or
Oliver, or directly on the Latin word
oliva meaning
"olive". In the play Olivia is a noblewoman wooed by Duke
Orsino. Instead she falls in love with his messenger Cesario, who is actually
Viola in disguise.
Olivia has been used in the English-speaking world since the 18th century, though it did not become overly popular until the last half of the 20th century. Its rise in popularity in the 1970s may have been inspired by a character on the television series The Waltons (1972-1982) [2] or the singer Olivia Newton-John (1948-2022). In 1989 it was borne by a young character on The Cosby Show, which likely accelerated its growth. It reached the top rank in England and Wales by 2008 and in the United States by 2019.
A famous bearer was the British-American actress Olivia de Havilland (1916-2020).
Ondine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Rare), French (Belgian, Rare)
Rating: 20% based on 1 vote
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".
Ophelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Literature, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ὠφελία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: o-FEEL-ee-ə(English) o-FEEL-yə(English)
Rating: 70% based on 4 votes
Derived from Greek
ὠφέλεια (opheleia) meaning
"help, advantage". This was a rare ancient Greek name, which was either rediscovered or recreated by the poet Jacopo Sannazaro for a character in his poem
Arcadia (1480). It was borrowed by Shakespeare for his play
Hamlet (1600), in which it belongs to the daughter of
Polonius and the potential love interest of
Hamlet. She eventually goes insane and drowns herself after Hamlet kills her father. In spite of this negative association, the name has been in use since the 19th century.
Ophélie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: AW-FEH-LEE
Rating: 50% based on 3 votes
Oriana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish
Pronounced: o-RYA-na
Possibly derived from Latin
aurum "gold" or from its derivatives, Spanish
oro or French
or. In medieval legend Oriana was the daughter of a king of England who married the knight
Amadis.
Orsola
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: OR-so-la
Ouida
Gender: Feminine
Usage: History
Pronounced: WEE-də(English)
Used by the English author Ouida (1839-1908), born Marie Louise Ramé to a French father. Ouida was a
pseudonym that arose from her own childhood pronunciation of her middle name
Louise.
Paloma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: pa-LO-ma
Means "dove, pigeon" in Spanish.
Parthenia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Παρθενία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: pahr-THEE-nee-ə(American English) pah-THEE-nee-ə(British English)
Derived from Greek
παρθένος (parthenos) meaning
"maiden, virgin". This was the name of one of the mares of Marmax in Greek
mythology.
Parvana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Azerbaijani
Pronounced: par-vah-NA
Alternate transcription of Azerbaijani
Pərvanə.
Pelagia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1], Greek, Polish (Rare)
Other Scripts: Πελαγία(Greek)
Pronounced: peh-LA-gya(Polish)
Feminine form of
Pelagius. This was the name of a few early
saints, including a young 4th-century martyr who threw herself from a rooftop in Antioch rather than lose her virginity.
Pénélope
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: PEH-NEH-LAWP
Personal remark: "Pippa"
Rating: 83% based on 6 votes
Pippa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PIP-ə
Rating: 76% based on 7 votes
Rhian
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: REE-an
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
Derived from Welsh rhiain meaning "maiden, young woman".
Rhiannon
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, English, Welsh Mythology
Pronounced: ri-AN-awn(Welsh) ree-AN-ən(English)
Rating: 68% based on 4 votes
Probably derived from an unattested Celtic name *
Rīgantonā meaning
"great queen" (Celtic *
rīganī "queen" and the divine or augmentative suffix
-on). It is speculated that Rigantona was an old Celtic goddess, perhaps associated with fertility and horses like the Gaulish
Epona. As
Rhiannon, she appears in Welsh legend in the
Mabinogi [1] as a beautiful magical woman who rides a white horse. She was betrothed against her will to
Gwawl, but cunningly broke off that engagement and married
Pwyll instead. Their son was
Pryderi.
As an English name, it became popular due to the Fleetwood Mac song Rhiannon (1976), especially in the United Kingdom and Australia.
Romaine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: RAW-MEHN(French) ro-MAYN(English)
Rating: 30% based on 2 votes
French feminine form of
Romanus (see
Roman).
Rosamund
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: RO-zə-mənd(English) RAHZ-ə-mənd(American English) RAWZ-ə-mənd(British English)
Personal remark: "Rose"
Rating: 71% based on 7 votes
Derived from the Old German elements
hros "horse" and
munt "protection". This name was borne by the wife of the Lombard king Alboin in the 6th century. The
Normans introduced it to England. It was subsequently interpreted as coming from Latin
rosa munda "pure rose" or
rosa mundi "rose of the world". This was the name of the mistress of Henry II, the king of England in the 12th century. According to legends she was murdered by his wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine.
Roxana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Romanian, Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ῥωξάνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: rahk-SAN-ə(American English) rawk-SAN-ə(British English) rok-SA-na(Spanish)
Personal remark: "Rose"
Rating: 60% based on 2 votes
Latin form of
Ῥωξάνη (Rhoxane), the Greek form of an Old Persian or Bactrian name, from Old Iranian *
rauxšnā meaning
"bright, shining" [1]. This was the name of Alexander the Great's first wife, a daughter of the Bactrian nobleman Oxyartes. In the modern era it came into use during the 17th century. In the English-speaking world it was popularized by Daniel Defoe, who used it in his novel
Roxana (1724).
Roxanne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: rahk-SAN(American English) rawk-SAN(British English) RAWK-SAN(French)
Personal remark: "Rose"
Rating: 70% based on 2 votes
Rozenn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Breton
Personal remark: "Rose"
Rating: 20% based on 1 vote
Means "rose" in Breton.
Sadie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SAY-dee
Safira
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Portuguese
Pronounced: su-FEE-ru(European Portuguese) sa-FEE-ru(Brazilian Portuguese)
Portuguese form of
Sapphira. It coincides with the Portuguese word for
"sapphire".
Saskia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch, German
Pronounced: SAHS-kee-a(Dutch) ZAS-kya(German)
Rating: 75% based on 4 votes
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.
Selene
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Σελήνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: SEH-LEH-NEH(Classical Greek) si-LEE-nee(English) si-LEEN(English)
Rating: 75% based on 2 votes
Means
"moon" in Greek. This was the name of a Greek goddess of the moon, a Titan. She was sometimes identified with the goddess
Artemis.
Seraphina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare), German (Rare), Late Roman
Pronounced: sehr-ə-FEEN-ə(English) zeh-ra-FEE-na(German)
Rating: 40% based on 2 votes
Feminine form of the Late Latin name
Seraphinus, derived from the biblical word
seraphim, which was Hebrew in origin and meant
"fiery ones". The seraphim were an order of angels, described by Isaiah in the Bible as having six wings each.
This was the name of a 13th-century Italian saint who made clothes for the poor. As an English name, it has never been common.
Séraphine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: SEH-RA-FEEN
Seren
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: SEH-rehn
Rating: 60% based on 4 votes
Means "star" in Welsh. This is a recently created Welsh name.
Sigrid
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, German, Estonian, Finnish (Archaic)
Pronounced: SEE-grid(Swedish) SEEG-reed(Finnish)
From the Old Norse name
Sigríðr, which was derived from the elements
sigr "victory" and
fríðr "beautiful, beloved".
Silvia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, German, Dutch, English, Late Roman, Roman Mythology
Pronounced: SEEL-vya(Italian) SEEL-bya(Spanish) SEEL-vyu(European Portuguese) SEEW-vyu(Brazilian Portuguese) ZIL-vya(German) SIL-vee-a(Dutch) SIL-vee-ə(English)
Feminine form of
Silvius.
Rhea Silvia was the mother of
Romulus and
Remus, the founders of Rome. This was also the name of a 6th-century
saint, the mother of the pope Gregory the Great. It has been a common name in Italy since the Middle Ages. It was introduced to England by Shakespeare, who used it for a character in his play
The Two Gentlemen of Verona (1594). It is now more commonly spelled
Sylvia in the English-speaking world.
Síofra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: SHEE-frə
Rating: 80% based on 1 vote
Means "elf, sprite" in Irish. This name was created in the 20th century.
Soleil
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various
Pronounced: SAW-LAY(French)
Rating: 60% based on 4 votes
Means "sun" in French. It is not commonly used as a name in France itself.
Solène
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: SAW-LEHN
Solveig
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian, Swedish, Danish
Pronounced: SOOL-vie(Norwegian) SOOL-vay(Swedish)
From an Old Norse name, which was derived from the elements
sól "sun" and
veig "strength". This is the name of the heroine in Henrik Ibsen's play
Peer Gynt (1876).
Sophie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English, German, Dutch
Pronounced: SAW-FEE(French) SO-fee(English) zo-FEE(German) so-FEE(Dutch)
Rating: 100% based on 5 votes
Sophronia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, Late Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Σωφρονία(Ancient Greek)
Feminine form of
Sophronius. Torquato Tasso used it in his epic poem
Jerusalem Delivered (1580), in which it is borne by the lover of
Olindo.
Sprita
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Esperanto
Pronounced: SPREE-ta
Means "witty, lively" in Esperanto, ultimately from Latin spiritus "breath, energy".
Starla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: STAHR-lə(American English) STAH-lə(British English)
Rating: 30% based on 3 votes
Stelara
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Esperanto
Pronounced: steh-LA-ra
From Esperanto stelaro meaning "constellation", ultimately from Latin stella "star".
Sukie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SOO-kee
Susanna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Catalan, Swedish, Finnish, Russian, Ukrainian, Dutch, English, Armenian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Old Church Slavic
Other Scripts: Сусанна(Russian, Ukrainian) Սուսաննա(Armenian) שׁוֹשַׁנָּה(Ancient Hebrew) Сꙋсанна(Church Slavic)
Pronounced: soo-ZAN-na(Italian) soo-ZAN-nə(Catalan) suy-SAN-na(Swedish) SOO-sahn-nah(Finnish) suw-SAN-nə(Russian) suw-SAN-nu(Ukrainian) suy-SAH-na(Dutch) soo-ZAN-ə(English)
Personal remark: "Anna"
Rating: 68% based on 6 votes
From
Σουσάννα (Sousanna), the Greek form of the Hebrew name
שׁוֹשַׁנָּה (Shoshanna). This was derived from the Hebrew word
שׁוֹשָׁן (shoshan) meaning
"lily" (in modern Hebrew this also means
"rose"), perhaps ultimately from Egyptian
sšn "lotus". In the
Old Testament Apocrypha this is the name of a woman falsely accused of adultery. The prophet
Daniel clears her name by tricking her accusers, who end up being condemned themselves. It also occurs in the
New Testament belonging to a woman who ministers to
Jesus.
As an English name, it was occasionally used during the Middle Ages in honour of the Old Testament heroine. It did not become common until after the Protestant Reformation, at which time it was often spelled Susan.
Suzette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: SUY-ZEHT
Svea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish
Pronounced: SVEH-ah
Rating: 58% based on 5 votes
From a personification of the country of Sweden, in use since the 17th century. It is a derivative of Svear, the Swedish name for the North Germanic tribe the Swedes. The Swedish name of the country of Sweden is Sverige, a newer form of Svear rike meaning "the realm of the Svear".
Sybella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: si-BEHL-ə
Rating: 20% based on 2 votes
Tabitha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Biblical, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ταβιθά(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: TAB-i-thə(English)
Personal remark: "Tabby"
Rating: 56% based on 5 votes
Means
"gazelle" in Aramaic. Tabitha in the
New Testament was a woman restored to life by
Saint Peter. Her name is translated into Greek as
Dorcas (see
Acts 9:36). As an English name,
Tabitha became common after the
Protestant Reformation. It was popularized in the 1960s by the television show
Bewitched, in which Tabitha (sometimes spelled Tabatha) is the daughter of the main character.
Tahira
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arabic, Urdu
Other Scripts: طاهرة(Arabic) طاہرہ(Urdu)
Pronounced: TA-hee-ra(Arabic)
Tamela
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Probably a blend of
Tamara and
Pamela. It first arose in the 1950s.
Tessa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Dutch
Pronounced: TEHS-ə(English) TEH-sa(Dutch)
Rating: 93% based on 6 votes
Thea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, English
Pronounced: TEH-a(German) THEE-ə(English)
Thekla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German (Rare), Greek (Rare), Late Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Θέκλα(Greek)
From the ancient Greek name
Θεόκλεια (Theokleia), which meant
"glory of God" from the Greek elements
θεός (theos) meaning "god" and
κλέος (kleos) meaning "glory". This was the name of a 1st-century
saint, appearing (as
Θέκλα) in the apocryphal
Acts of Paul and Thecla. The story tells how Thecla listens to
Paul speak about the virtues of chastity and decides to remain a virgin, angering both her mother and her suitor.
Thérèse
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: TEH-REHZ
Personal remark: "Tessa"
Rating: 50% based on 4 votes
French form of
Theresa. It was borne by the French nun
Saint Thérèse of Lisieux (1873-1897), who is regarded as a Doctor of the Church.
Thulile
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Zulu
Personal remark: "Lily"
Means "quiet, peaceful" in Zulu.
Tirion
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Welsh (Rare), Welsh Mythology
Pronounced: Tee-ree-ohn(Welsh Mythology)
Personal remark: "Tiz"
Rating: 25% based on 2 votes
Means "gentle; happy" in Welsh.
While this name appears as a male name in Welsh mythology, it is mostly used for girls now (with the occasional masculine use).
Tisiphone
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Τισιφόνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ti-SIF-ə-nee(English)
Means
"avenging murder" in Greek, derived from
τίσις (tisis) meaning "vengeance" and
φόνος (phonos) meaning "murder". This was the name of one of the Furies or
Ἐρινύες (Erinyes) in Greek
mythology. She killed Cithaeron with the bite of one of the snakes on her head.
Tziporah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: צִפּוֹרָה(Hebrew)
Umay
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Mythology, Turkish
From a Turkic word meaning "womb" or "placenta". This was the name of a Turkic and Mongolian goddess associated with childbirth.
Undine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: UN-deen(English) un-DEEN(English)
Derived from Latin unda meaning "wave". The word undine was created by the 16th-century Swiss author Paracelsus, who used it for female water spirits.
Vada
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Popular Culture
Pronounced: VAY-də(English) VAH-də(English) VA-də(English)
Meaning unknown. Possibly a variant of
Veda or
Valda or short form of
Nevada.
It was used for the heroine of the American film
My Girl (1991).
Vanilla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: və-NIL-ə
From the English word vanilla referring to "the fruit or bean of the vanilla plant, or the extract made from it, or the distinctive fragrant flavour/flavor characteristic of vanilla extract". The word is derived from Spanish vainilla, literally "little pod", a diminutive form of vaina "pod, scabbard, sheath", from Latin vagina "sheath (of an ear of grain), husk, hull of a plant".
Veda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Telugu, Kannada
Other Scripts: వేద(Telugu) ವೇದ(Kannada)
Means "knowledge" in Sanskrit.
Vendela
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish
Pronounced: VEHN-deh-la
Swedish feminine form of
Wendel.
Vered
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: וֶרֶד(Hebrew)
Means "rose" in Hebrew, originally a borrowing from an Iranian language.
Verity
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: VEHR-i-tee
From the English word meaning
"verity, truth", from Latin
verus "true, real". This was one of the virtue names adopted by the
Puritans in the 17th century.
Verona
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various
From the name of the city in Italy, which is itself of unknown meaning.
Vespera
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Esperanto
Pronounced: vehs-PEH-ra
Means "of the evening", derived from Esperanto vespero "evening", ultimately from Latin vesper.
Viçenta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Medieval Portuguese
Medieval Portuguese feminine form of
Vicente.
Victorine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: VEEK-TAW-REEN
Vindemiatrix
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Astronomy
Pronounced: vin-dee-mee-AY-triks
Means "(female) grape harvester" in Latin. This is the name of the third brightest star in the constellation Virgo, and is so named because it rises in early autumn, the beginning of the wine harvesting season.
Viorica
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Romanian
Pronounced: vee-o-REE-ka
Derived from Romanian
viorea (see
Viorel).
Virginie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: VEER-ZHEE-NEE
Vita 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Roman, Italian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Danish, Slovene
Pronounced: VEE-ta(Italian)
Rating: 80% based on 1 vote
Wren
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: REHN
From the English word for the small songbird. It is ultimately derived from Old English wrenna.
Xanthe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ξάνθη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: KSAN-TEH(Classical Greek)
Rating: 60% based on 2 votes
Derived from Greek
ξανθός (xanthos) meaning
"yellow, blond, fair-haired". This was the name of a few minor figures in Greek
mythology.
Xenia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek, Spanish, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ξένια(Greek) Ξενία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: SEH-nya(Spanish)
Means
"hospitality" in Greek, a derivative of
ξένος (xenos) meaning "foreigner, guest". This was the name of a 5th-century
saint who is venerated in the Eastern Church.
Yanna 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Breton
Breton feminine form of
Yann.
Yvette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: EE-VEHT(French) ee-VEHT(English) i-VEHT(English)
Rating: 58% based on 6 votes
French feminine form of
Yves.
Zénaïde
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Rare)
Pronounced: ZEH-NA-EED
Zenobia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ζηνοβία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ZDEH-NO-BEE-A(Classical Greek) zə-NO-bee-ə(English)
Rating: 30% based on 3 votes
Means
"life of Zeus", derived from Greek
Ζηνός (Zenos) meaning "of
Zeus" and
βίος (bios) meaning "life". This was the name of the queen of the Palmyrene Empire, which broke away from Rome in the 3rd-century and began expanding into Roman territory. She was eventually defeated by the emperor
Aurelian. Her Greek name was used as an approximation of her native Aramaic name.
Zinaida
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian
Other Scripts: Зинаида(Russian) Зінаіда(Belarusian) Зінаїда(Ukrainian)
Pronounced: zyi-nu-EE-də(Russian)
Russian, Belarusian and Ukrainian form of
Zenaida.
Zinnia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: ZIN-ee-ə
From the name of the flower, which was itself named for the German botanist Johann Zinn.
Zipporah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, Hebrew
Other Scripts: צִפּוֹרָה(Hebrew)
Pronounced: zi-PAWR-ə(English) ZIP-ə-rə(English)
Zoë
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch, English
Pronounced: ZO-veh(Dutch) ZO-ee(English)
Rating: 67% based on 3 votes
Dutch form and English variant of
Zoe.
Zula 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ZOOL-ə
Meaning unknown. It has been in use since the 19th century. It is possibly related to the name of the African tribe that lives largely in South Africa, the Zulus. In the 19th century the Zulus were a powerful nation under their leader Shaka.
Zuleika
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: zoo-LAY-kə(English)
Meaning uncertain, possibly of Arabic origin. According to medieval tradition, notably related by the 15th-century Persian poet Jami, this was the name of the biblical Potiphar's wife. She has been a frequent subject of poems and tales.
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