Behind the Name: edda16's Personal Name List

Beniamin

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Romanian, Polish, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]

Other Scripts: Βενιαμίν(Ancient Greek)

Pronounced: BEH-nya-meen(Romanian) beh-NYA-meen(Polish)

Rating: 43% based on 3 votes

Romanian and Polish form of Benjamin, as well as the form used in the Greek and Latin Bibles.

Elias

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Portuguese, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, English, Dutch, Greek, Amharic, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]

Other Scripts: Ηλίας(Greek) ኤልያስ(Amharic) Ἠλίας(Ancient Greek)

Pronounced: i-LEE-ush(European Portuguese) eh-LEE-us(Brazilian Portuguese) eh-LEE-as(German) EH-lee-ahs(Finnish) i-LIE-əs(English) ee-LIE-əs(English) EH-lee-yahs(Dutch)

Rating: 50% based on 4 votes

Form of Elijah used in several languages. This is also the form used in the Greek New Testament, as well as some English translations.

Finn 2

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Dutch, German

Pronounced: FIN(Danish)

Rating: 48% based on 5 votes

From the Old Norse name Finnr, which meant "Sámi, person from Finland".

Jonas 2

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, French, Biblical

Other Scripts: Ἰωνᾶς(Ancient Greek)

Pronounced: YOO-nas(Swedish) YO-nas(German) YO-nahs(Dutch) JO-nəs(English)

Rating: 48% based on 5 votes

From Ἰωνᾶς (Ionas), the Greek form of Jonah. This spelling is used in some English translations of the New Testament.

Kento

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Japanese

Other Scripts: 健人(Japanese Kanji)

Pronounced: KEN-TO

Rating: 40% based on 3 votes

From Japanese 健 (ken) "healthy, strong" and 人 (to) "person".

Maël

Gender: Masculine

Usage: French, Breton

Pronounced: MA-EHL(French)

Rating: 60% based on 3 votes

French form of Breton Mael meaning "prince, chieftain, lord". Saint Mael was a 5th-century Breton hermit who lived in Wales.

Nathaniel

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, Biblical

Other Scripts: ןְתַןְאֵל(Ancient Hebrew)

Pronounced: nə-THAN-yəl(English)

Rating: 60% based on 2 votes

Variant of Nathanael. It has been regularly used in the English-speaking world since the Protestant Reformation. This has been the most popular spelling, even though the spelling Nathanael is found in most versions of the New Testament. The American writer Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864), author of The Scarlet Letter, was a famous bearer of this name.

Nicholas

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: NIK-ə-ləs, NIK-ləs

Rating: 50% based on 3 votes

From the Greek name Νικόλαος (Nikolaos) meaning "victory of the people", derived from Greek νίκη (nike) meaning "victory" and λαός (laos) meaning "people". Saint Nicholas was a 4th-century bishop from Anatolia who, according to legend, saved the daughters of a poor man from lives of prostitution. He is the patron saint of children, sailors and merchants, as well as Greece and Russia. He formed the basis for the figure known as Santa Claus (created in the 19th century from Dutch Sinterklaas), the bringer of Christmas presents.

Due to the renown of the saint, this name has been widely used in the Christian world. It has been common in England since the 12th century, though it became a bit less popular after the Protestant Reformation. The name has been borne by five popes and two tsars of Russia.

Noel

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: NOL, NO-əl

Rating: 40% based on 4 votes

English form of Noël or Noëlle (rarely). It was fairly popular in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand in the middle of the 20th century. It is occasionally written with a diaeresis, like in French. A famous bearer is British musician Noel Gallagher (1967-).

Ragnar

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Icelandic, Faroese, Estonian

Pronounced: RAHNG-nahr(Swedish) RAK-nar(Icelandic)

Rating: 50% based on 2 votes

Modern Scandinavian form of Ragnarr.