Bertie2's Personal Name List

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).

Variant of Mabel. It also coincides with the French phrase ma belle meaning "my beautiful".

From the Latvian name for a type of flowering plant, known as cleavers or bedstraw in English.

Italian form of Magdalene.

French form of Magdalene.

Latinate form of Madeline.

Feminine form of Madhava. This is another name of the Hindu goddess Lakshmi.

From Sanskrit मधुकर (madhukara) meaning "bee, honey-maker".

From Sanskrit माधुर (mādhura) meaning "sweetness", a derivative of मधु (madhu) meaning "honey, sweet".

Feminine form of Maël.

Derived from the Old English elements mære "famous" and wine "friend".

Means "welcome" in Tahitian. It gained popularity in France during the 1980s.

Means "red leaf woman", from Cheyenne ma'e- "red" and vehpȯtse "leaf" combined with the feminine suffix -e'é [1].

Originally a medieval Portuguese form of Matilda. This name was borne by the wife of Afonso, the first king of Portugal. In modern times it was the name of the titular character in a popular Argentine comic strip (published from 1964 to 1973) by Quino.

Old Norse form of Magnhild.

From the English word magnolia for the flower, which was named for the French botanist Pierre Magnol.

From the Punic name 𐤌𐤂𐤍 (Magon) possibly meaning "shield" [1]. This name was borne by three kings of Carthage, and also by a brother of Hannibal Barca.

Old German form of Melle.

From Dakota or Lakota maȟpíya meaning "cloud, sky". This is the first part of the names of the Dakota chief Mahpiya Wicasta (1780-1863), known as Cloud Man, and the Lakota chiefs Mahpiya Luta (1822-1909), known as Red Cloud, and Mahpiya Iyapato (1838-1905), known as Touch the Clouds.

Old German form of Matilda.

From Greek μαῖα (maia) meaning "good mother, dame, foster mother", perhaps in origin a nursery form of μήτηρ (meter). In Greek and Roman mythology she was the eldest of the Pleiades, a group of stars in the constellation Taurus, who were the daughters of Atlas and Pleione. Her son by Zeus was Hermes.

From Tupi maya arya meaning "great-grandmother".

Hawaiian form of Matthew.

Possibly means "greatness" in Ethiopic. This was the name of an Ethiopian queen of the 10th-century BC. She is probably the same person as the Queen of Sheba, who visited Solomon in the Old Testament.

Short form of Maksim, Maksym or Maksimilijan.

From the Hebrew name מַלְאָכִי (Malʾaḵi) meaning "my messenger" or "my angel", derived from a possessive form of מַלְאָךְ (malʾaḵ) meaning "messenger, angel". This is one of the twelve minor prophets of the Old Testament, the author of the Book of Malachi, which some claim foretells the coming of Christ. In England the name came into use after the Protestant Reformation.

Means "angel" in Swahili, derived from Arabic ملك (malak).

Means "jasmine" in Sanskrit.

Derived from the Old German elements mahal meaning "meeting, assembly, court" and ger meaning "spear".

Hawaiian form of Maria. This name experienced a spike in popularity in 2009, due to the eldest daughter (born 1998) of the new American president Barack Obama.

Means "wave, sea" in Greenlandic [1].

Feminine form of Malcolm.

Means "tall grass" in Nahuatl [1].

Old German name derived from the elements manag "many" and walt "power, authority".

From the name of a stylized design common in Maori carvings. It represents a mythological creature with the head of a bird and the body of a human.

From Zulu and Ndebele amandla "strength, power" and inkosi "king, chief".

From Sanskrit मञ्जुल (mañjula) meaning "pleasing, beautiful".

Feminine form of Manuel.

Means "you have been humbled" in Shona.

Means "ice" in Cheyenne [1].

Means "moon" in Maori. This is the name of a moon god (or goddess) in Maori mythology.

Feminine form of Marcellus.

French feminine diminutive of Marcellus.

Feminine form of Marcellinus.

Roman praenomen, or given name, that was probably derived from the name of the Roman god Mars. This was among the most popular of the Roman praenomina. Famous bearers include Marcus Tullius Cicero (known simply as Cicero), a 1st-century BC statesman and orator, Marcus Antonius (known as Mark Antony), a 1st-century BC politician, and Marcus Aurelius, a notable 2nd-century emperor. This was also the name of a pope of the 4th century. This spelling has occasionally been used in the English-speaking world, though the traditional English form Mark has been more common.

Frisian and German diminutive of Maria.

Traditional Russian form of Martha.

From the name of a type of flowering plant common in Israel, called the scarlet pimpernel in English.

Derived from Latin Margarita, which was from Greek μαργαρίτης (margarites) meaning "pearl", a word that was probably ultimately a borrowing from an Indo-Iranian language. Saint Margaret, the patron of expectant mothers, was martyred at Antioch in the 4th century. Later legends told of her escape from a dragon, with which she was often depicted in medieval art. The saint was popular during the Middle Ages, and her name has been widely used in the Christian world.

As an English name it has been very popular since the Middle Ages. It was the top name for girls in England and Wales in the 1920s, 30s and 40s, but it declined in the latter half of the 20th century.

Other saints by this name include a queen of Scotland and a princess of Hungary. It was also borne by Queen Margaret I of Denmark, who united Denmark, Sweden, and Norway in the 14th century. Famous literary bearers include American writer Margaret Mitchell (1900-1949), the author of Gone with the Wind, and Canadian writer Margaret Atwood (1939-). Others include American anthropologist Margaret Mead (1901-1978) and British prime minister Margaret Thatcher (1925-2013).

Portuguese, Galician, Catalan and Occitan form of Margaret. Also in these languages, this is the common word for the daisy flower (species Bellis perennis, Leucanthemum vulgare and others).

Medieval English form of Margaret.

Old Welsh form of Meredith.

French form of Margaret. This is also the French word for the daisy flower (species Leucanthemum vulgare).

Ukrainian and Belarusian form of Margaret.

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.

Form of Maryam common in West Africa.

From Μαριάμη (Mariame), the form of Maria used by the historian Josephus when referring to the wife of King Herod.

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.

Diminutive of Marija (Croatian, Serbian and Slovene) or Mária (Hungarian).

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.

Italian diminutive of Maria.

French diminutive of Marie.

Short form of María Fernanda. A known bearer is Mexican telenovela actress María Fernanda "Marifer" Malo (1985-).

Means "coral" in Swahili, originally a borrowing from Arabic مرْجان (marjān).

Poetic variant form of Maria. It was introduced by the Lusitan-Brazilian poet Tomás Antônio Gonzaga (1744-1810), who invented the name for his lyric poem "Marília de Dirceu", which he wrote under the pseudonym of Dirceu. The name was at least partly inspired by his beloved, Maria Dorotéia Joaquina de Seixas. Also, note that in these modern times, there can be cases where Marília is a contraction of María Lucília.

Combination of Mary and the common name suffix lyn. It was very rare before the start of the 20th century. It was popularized in part by the American stage star Marilyn Miller (1898-1936), who was born Mary Ellen Reynolds and took her stage name from a combination of her birth name and her mother's middle name Lynn. It became popular in the United States during the 1920s, reaching a high point ranked 13th in 1936. Famous bearers include American actress Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962; real name Norma Jeane Mortenson) and American opera singer Marilyn Horne (1934-).

Feminine form of Marinus. This name was borne by a few early saints. This is also the name by which Saint Margaret of Antioch is known in the Eastern Orthodox Church.

From the Roman family name Marinus, which derives either from the name Marius or from the Latin word marinus "of the sea". Saint Marinus was a 4th-century stonemason who built a chapel on Monte Titano, in the country that is today known as San Marino.

Slovene form of Margaret.

Medieval variant of Margery, influenced by the name of the herb marjoram. After the Middle Ages this name was rare, but it was revived at the end of the 19th century.

Ukrainian form of Marcianus.

Form of Martha used in various languages.

Original Latin form of Martial.

Feminine form of Martinus (see Martin). Saint Martina was a 3rd-century martyr who is one of the patron saints of Rome.

Original Latin form of Martin. This is also the official Dutch form of the name, used on birth certificates but commonly rendered Maarten or Marten in daily life.

Means "known, recognized, favour, kindness" in Arabic, a derivative of عرف (ʿarafa) meaning "to know, to recognize" [1].

Russian and Ukrainian diminutive of Mariya.

Usual English form of Maria, the Latin form of the New Testament Greek names Μαριάμ (Mariam) and Μαρία (Maria) — the spellings are interchangeable — which were from Hebrew מִרְיָם (Miryam), a name borne by the sister of Moses in the Old Testament. The meaning is not known for certain, but there are several theories including "sea of bitterness", "rebelliousness", and "wished for child". However it was most likely originally an Egyptian name, perhaps derived in part from mry "beloved" or mr "love".

This is the name of several New Testament characters, most importantly Mary the mother of Jesus. According to the gospels, Jesus was conceived in her by the Holy Spirit while she remained a virgin. This name was also borne by Mary Magdalene, a woman cured of demons by Jesus. She became one of his followers and later witnessed his crucifixion and resurrection.

Due to the Virgin Mary this name has been very popular in the Christian world, though at certain times in some cultures it has been considered too holy for everyday use. In England it has been used since the 12th century, and it has been among the most common feminine names since the 16th century. In the United States in 1880 it was given more than twice as often as the next most popular name for girls (Anna). It remained in the top rank in America until 1946 when it was bumped to second (by Linda). Although it regained the top spot for a few more years in the 1950s it was already falling in usage, and has since dropped out of the top 100 names.

This name has been borne by two queens of England, as well as a queen of Scotland, Mary Queen of Scots. Another notable bearer was Mary Shelley (1797-1851), the author of Frankenstein. A famous fictional character by this name is Mary Poppins from the children's books by P. L. Travers, first published in 1934.

The Latinized form of this name, Maria, is also used in English as well as in several other languages.

Arabic form of Miryam (see Mary) appearing in the Quran. It is also the form used in several other languages. In Iran it is also the name of a flower, the tuberose, which is named after the Virgin Mary.

Ukrainian, Belarusian and Polish form of Marina.

Means "blessings" in Tswana, from sego "blessed".

Old Welsh form of Madoc.

Croatian feminine form of Mateo.

Feminine form of Matej.

Variant of Mahthilt.

From the Germanic name Mahthilt meaning "strength in battle", from the elements maht "might, strength" and hilt "battle". Saint Matilda was the wife of the 10th-century German king Henry I the Fowler. The name was common in many branches of European royalty in the Middle Ages. It was brought to England by the Normans, being borne by the wife of William the Conqueror himself. Another notable royal by this name was a 12th-century daughter of Henry I of England, known as the Empress Matilda because of her first marriage to the Holy Roman emperor Henry V. She later invaded England, laying the foundations for the reign of her son Henry II.

The name was very popular until the 15th century in England, usually in the vernacular form Maud. Both forms were revived by the 19th century. This name appears in the popular Australian folk song Waltzing Matilda, written in 1895.

Spanish, Portuguese and Italian form of Matilda.

Means "lady" in Late Latin, a derivative of Latin mater "mother". This was the name of three early saints.

Means "great mother", from Celtic *mātīr meaning "mother" and the divine or augmentative suffix -on. This was the name of a Gaulish and Brythonic mother goddess, the namesake of the River Marne [1].

Ukrainian form of Matthew.

Feminine form of Maurus.

Means "troubles, problems" in Chewa.

Means "God lives" in Ewe.

Means "God is good" in Ewe.

Somali form of Muhammad.

Usual English form of Maximianus, used to refer to the Roman emperor.

Feminine form of Maximillian

Derived from the name of the month of May, which derives from Maia, the name of a Roman goddess. May is also another name of the hawthorn flower. It is also used as a diminutive of Mary, Margaret or Mabel.

Means "illusion, magic" in Sanskrit. In Buddhist tradition this is the name of the mother of Siddhartha Gautama (the Buddha). This is also another name of the Hindu goddess Durga.

Means "praise, gratitude" in Chewa.

Means "test (from God)" in Chewa.

From Zulu imbali "flower" and hle "beautiful".

Means "flower" in Zulu.

Created by Lord Byron for a character in his poem The Corsair (1814). It is not known what inspired Byron to use this name. The year the poem was published, it was used as the middle name of Elizabeth Medora Leigh (1814-1849), a niece and rumoured daughter of Byron.

Originally a Frisian short form of names beginning with the Old German element megin meaning "power, strength" (Proto-Germanic *mageną).

Feminine form of Meirion.

Derived from Greek μέλαινα (melaina) meaning "black, dark". This was the name of a nymph in Greek mythology.

Means "song" in Hawaiian. This is also the Hawaiian, Tongan and Samoan form of Mary.

Meaning unknown, perhaps a form of Millicent. It was borne by the Irish writer and socialite Melesina Trench (1768-1827).

Means "ash tree" in Greek, a derivative of μέλι (meli) meaning "honey". This was the name of a nymph in Greek myth, the daughter of the Greek god Okeanos.

Combination of Mel (from names such as Melanie or Melissa) with the popular name suffix inda [1]. It was created in the 18th century, and may have been inspired by the similar name Belinda. In Hungary, the name was popularized by the 1819 play Bánk Bán by József Katona.

Means "leader of the nation" in Xhosa.

Means "bee" in Greek. In Greek mythology this was the name of a daughter of Procles, as well as an epithet of various Greek nymphs and priestesses. According to the early Christian writer Lactantius [2] this was the name of the sister of the nymph Amalthea, with whom she cared for the young Zeus. Later it appears in Ludovico Ariosto's 1532 poem Orlando Furioso [3] belonging to the fairy who helps Ruggiero escape from the witch Alcina. As an English given name, Melissa has been used since the 18th century.

Means "morning killer" in Cheyenne, derived from méo- "morning" and -na'hané "kill, coup" [1].

Maori and Fijian form of Mary.

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).

Means "meritorious, worthy" in Esperanto.

Old Welsh form of Merfyn.

Means "turtle laying its eggs" in Shawnee.

Feminine diminutive of Michele 1.

Means "feather" in Ojibwe.

Possibly from Greenlandic millalaarpoq meaning "drone, hum (of an insect)" combined with the diminutive suffix -araq.

Maori form of Michael.

Old English form of Mildred.

Feminine form of Milan. It began to be used in Italy in honour of Milena Vukotić (1847-1923), mother of Helen of Montenegro, the wife of the Italian king Victor Emmanuel III. In Italy it can also be considered a combination of Maria and Elena.

From the Slavic element milŭ meaning "gracious, dear" combined with a diminutive suffix. This name was borne by the wife of the 14th-century Serbian ruler Lazar.

Derived from the Slavic elements milŭ "gracious" and vojĭ "soldier".

Means "golden flower" in Mapuche, from milla "gold" and rayen "flower".

Diminutive of Mildred, Millicent and other names containing the same sound.

Proto-Slavic reconstruction of Miłogost.

Derived from the Slavic elements milŭ "gracious, dear" and slava "glory".

Means "fish catcher" in Sanskrit.

From Zulu imini "day" and hle "beautiful".

From Sanskrit मीर (mīra) meaning "sea, ocean". This was the name of a 16th-century Indian princess who devoted her life to the god Krishna.

Derived from Latin mirabilis meaning "wonderful". This name was coined during the Middle Ages, though it eventually died out. It was briefly revived in the 19th century.

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.

Occitan (Mistralian) form of Mireille.

Variant of Mirèio using classical Occitan spelling conventions.

Italian form of Mireille.

Means "peace" in Luganda.

Variant of Mireia.

Slovak variant of Miriam.

Old Persian form of Mithridates.

Means "friend" in Sanskrit, a cognate of Mithra. This is the name of a Vedic god (मित्र) who is associated with friendship and contracts and is frequently paired with the god Varuna. The feminine form मित्रा (spelled with a final long vowel) is also transcribed as Mitra.

From Tupi moasy meaning "pain, regret". This is the name of the son of Iracema and Martim in the novel Iracema (1865) by José de Alencar.

Means "ocean, wide expanse of water, deep sea" in Maori, Hawaiian and other Polynesian languages.

From Tahitian moe "sleep" and raʻi "heaven, sky".

Means "I wake up to wealth" in Yoruba.

Earlier form of Mojmír.

Means "I am lucky" in Yoruba.

Old Welsh form of Meurig.

From Sanskrit मृदु (mṛdu) meaning "soft, delicate, gentle".

Means "peace" in Chewa.

Means "beloved, darling" in Shona [1].

Modern form of Mukesha.

Means "with God" in Shona, derived from ishe meaning "lord, God".

Means "flute" in Sanskrit. This is another name of the Hindu god Krishna, given to him because he played the flute.

From a Tamil word meaning "young". This was the name of a Tamil war god who is now identified with Skanda.

Means "mother-in-law" in Kikuyu.

Ukrainian variant form of Michael.

Ukrainian feminine form of Michael.

Ukrainian form of Michael.

Alternate transcription of Ukrainian Михайло (see Mykhailo).

Derived from Greek μύρον (myron) meaning "sweet oil, perfume". Myron was the name of a 5th-century BC Greek sculptor. Saints bearing this name include a 3rd-century bishop of Crete and a 4th-century martyr from Cyzicus who was killed by a mob. These saints are more widely revered in the Eastern Church, and the name has generally been more common among Eastern Christians. As an English name, it has been used since the 19th century.

Ukrainian form of Miroslav.

Ukrainian feminine form of Miroslav.

Means "pleasant" in Hebrew. This name is borne in the Old Testament by both a daughter of Lamech and a wife of Solomon. Some later Jewish texts give Naamah as the name of Noah's wife, even though she is not named in the Old Testament.

Means "hope" in Russian and Bulgarian.

Alternate transcription of Arabic ناديّة (see Nadiyya), as well as the usual form in several other languages.

Means "rare" in Arabic.

Feminine form of Nadir.

Ukrainian cognate of Nadezhda, being the Ukrainian word meaning "hope".

Belarusian cognate of Nadezhda, being the Belarusian word meaning "hope".

Means "incantation, dirge" in Latin. This was the name of the Roman goddess of funerals.

Latin form of Nevio.

Feminine form of Wafula.

Means "wave, sea foam" in Basque.

From the Basque name of the Spanish city of Nájera, which is Arabic in origin. In the 12th century there was a reported apparition of the Virgin Mary in a nearby cave.

Means "mischief maker" in Apache. This name was borne by a 19th-century Chiricahua Apache chief, the son of Cochise.

Meaning uncertain, possibly derived from Greek Ναϊάς (Naias), a type of water nymph in Greek mythology (plural Ναϊάδες). Alternatively it might be related to Persian Nahid.

Derived from Hindi naina "eyes".

From Aymara nayra meaning "eye" or "early".

From Greenlandic najaa meaning "his younger sister" [1]. It was popularized in Denmark by the writer B. S. Ingemann, who used it in his novel Kunnuk and Naja, or the Greenlanders (1842).

Means "born during the weeding season", from Luhya liliaka meaning "weeding".

From Sanskrit नलिनी (nalinī) meaning "lotus".

Means "returning warrior" in Navajo, derived from nááná "again" and baa' "warrior, heroine, raid, battle".

Greek form of Nanaya.

Meaning unknown, possibly related to Inanna. This was the name of a goddess worshipped by the Sumerians and Akkadians. She was later conflated with the goddesses Anahita and Aphrodite.

Previously a medieval diminutive of Annis, though since the 18th century it has been a diminutive of Ann. It is now usually regarded as an independent name. During the 20th century it became very popular in the United States. A city in the Lorraine region of France bears this name, though it derives from a different source.

Originally this was a Hungarian word referring to a Bulgarian people that lived along the Danube. Since the 19th century it has been used as a Hungarian short form of Ferdinand.

Feminine form of Wanjala.

Variant of Nanuq. This was the (fictional) name of the subject of Robert Flaherty's documentary film Nanook of the North (1922).

Means "polar bear" in Inuktitut.

Modern northern Indian form of Narayana.

Malayalam and Tamil variant of Narayana.

Feminine form of Narcissus.

From the name of a 10th-century Armenian saint, Grigor of Narek, who came from the town of Narek (formerly in Armenia, now in eastern Turkey).

Meaning unknown. It was borne by the wife of Umbarra, who was a 19th-century leader of the Yuin, an Australian Aboriginal people.

Strictly feminine form of Nasim.

Feminine form of Simiyu.

Means "helper" in Arabic, from the root نصر (naṣara) meaning "to help, to aid". This transcription represents two related yet distinct Arabic names: ناصر, in which the first vowel is long, and نصير, in which the second vowel is long.

Feminine form of Nasir.

Means "wild rose" in Persian.

Latinate form of Natalia (see Natalie).

Diminutive of Natalia (Italian) or Natália (Portuguese).

Diminutive of Natale.

Masculine form of Natalia (see Natalie).

Ukrainian and Polish diminutive of Natalia (see Natalie).

Russian diminutive of Natalya. This is the name of a character in Leo Tolstoy's novel War and Peace (1865). It has been used in the English-speaking world only since the 20th century.

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.

Means "seagull" in Greenlandic and Inuktitut.

Latinized form of Greek Ναυσικάα (Nausikaa) meaning "burner of ships". In Homer's epic the Odyssey this is the name of a daughter of Alcinous who helps Odysseus on his journey home.

Alternate transcription of Hindi/Marathi नवीन, Kannada ನವೀನ್, Telugu నవీన్, Tamil நவீன் or Malayalam നവീൻ (see Navin).

From Sanskrit नव (nava) meaning "new, fresh".

Means "jaguar" in Mapuche.

Variant of Nia 2, probably modelled on Maya 2. It was borne by the actress Naya Rivera (1987-2020).

Russian, Ukrainian, Turkmen and Armenian form of Nazarius.

Latin form of Nazzareno.

Latin name meaning "from Nazareth". Nazareth was the town in Galilee where Jesus lived. This name was borne by several early saints, including a man martyred with Celsus in Milan.

Ukrainian and Russian form of Nazarius.

Means "Sunday" in Bulgarian.

Bulgarian feminine form of Nedeljko.

Alternate transcription of Hindi/Marathi नीलम (see Nilam).

Means "divine grace" in Swahili, from Arabic نعمة (niʿma) meaning "blessing".

Alternate transcription of Hindi/Marathi नीरज or Gujarati નીરજ (see Niraj).

Possibly from Sanskrit स्नेह (sneha) meaning "love, tenderness".

Welsh form of Neptune.

Feminine form of Neil.

Feminine form of Wekesa [1].

Created by French author Marie d'Agoult for her semi-autobiographical novel Nélida (1846), written under the name Daniel Stern. It was probably an anagram of her pen name Daniel.

Medieval diminutive of names beginning with El, such as Eleanor, Ellen 1 or Helen. It may have arisen from the medieval affectionate phrase mine El, which was later reinterpreted as my Nel.

From an English surname meaning "son of Neil". It was originally given in honour of the British admiral Horatio Nelson (1758-1805). His most famous battle was the Battle of Trafalgar, in which he destroyed a combined French and Spanish fleet, but was himself killed. Another notable bearer was the South African statesman Nelson Mandela (1918-2013). Mandela's birth name was Rolihlahla; as a child he was given the English name Nelson by a teacher.

Means "unexpected" in Serbian and Croatian. In the Serbian folk song Predrag and Nenad this is the name of Predrag's brother.

Meaning unknown, presumably a Latinized form of a Brythonic name (perhaps Nynniaw). According to the 12th-century chronicler Geoffrey of Monmouth, this was the name of a British prince who fought against the invading forces of Julius Caesar. It was also borne by a 9th-century Welsh monk, traditionally credited with authoring the History of the Britons.

Means "gift" in Tswana, a derivative of naya "to give".

Derived from Greek Νηρηΐδες (Nereides) meaning "nymphs, sea sprites", ultimately derived from the name of the Greek sea god Nereus, who supposedly fathered them.

Derived from Greek νηρός (neros) meaning "water". In Greek myth this was the name of a god of the sea, the father of the Nereids. It is mentioned briefly in the New Testament, belonging to a Christian in Rome. This was also the name of a Roman saint of the 1st century, a member of the army, who was martyred with his companion Achilleus because they refused to execute Christians.

Possibly means "water lily" in an Australian Aboriginal language.

Created by Shakespeare for a character in his play The Merchant of Venice (1596). He possibly took it from Greek Νηρηΐς (Nereis) meaning "nymph, sea sprite", ultimately derived from the name of the Greek sea god Nereus, who supposedly fathered them.

Probably a feminized form of Welsh nêr meaning "lord".

Means "returner, homecomer" in Greek, from νέομαι (neomai) meaning "to return". In Homer's Iliad this was the name of the king of Pylos, famous for his great wisdom and longevity, who acted as a counselor to the Greek allies.

Anglicized form of Niamh.

Variant of Nevena.

Italian form of the Roman family name Naevius, which was derived from Latin naevus "mole (on the body)". A famous bearer was the 3rd-century BC Roman poet Gnaeus Naevius.

Turkish form of Nawra.

Means "force, strength" in Mapuche.

Means "purpose, aim" in Swahili, borrowed from Arabic نيّة (nīya) [1].

Irish form of Neil.

Latinized form of Nikandros.

From the Greek name Νικάνωρ (Nikanor), which was derived from νίκη (nike) meaning "victory" and ἀνήρ (aner) meaning "man". This name was borne by several notable officers from ancient Macedon. It is also mentioned in the New Testament as belonging to one of the original seven deacons of the church, considered a saint.

Feminine form of Nigel.

Tajik and Uzbek form of Negin.

Russian and Ukrainian form of Nikandros.

Sami form of Nils.

From Sanskrit नील (nīla) meaning "dark blue".

Uzbek and Bengali form of Niloufar.

Latinized form of Neilos.

Meaning unknown. In Arthurian legends this is the name of a sorceress, also known as the Lady of the Lake, Vivien, or Niniane. Various versions of the tales have Merlin falling in love with her and becoming imprisoned by her magic. She first appears in the medieval French Lancelot-Grail Cycle.

Short form of names that end in nina, such as Antonina or Giannina. It was imported to Western Europe from Russia and Italy in the 19th century. This name also nearly coincides with the Spanish word niña meaning "little girl" (the word is pronounced differently than the name).

A famous bearer was the American jazz musician Nina Simone (1933-2003).

Means "fire" in Quechua and Aymara.

Means "sound, hum" in Sanskrit.

Means "my daughter" in Ojibwe.

From the name of a 5th-century British saint, known as the Apostle to the Picts, who was apparently responsible for many miracles and cures. He first appears briefly in the 8th-century Latin writings of the historian Bede, though his name is only written in the ablative case Nynia [1]. This may represent a Brythonic name *Ninniau [2][3].

Derived from Sumerian 𒎏 (nin) meaning "lord" and 𒅁 (urta) meaning "ear of barley". In Sumerian, Akkadian and Babylonian mythology Ninurta was a god of agriculture, hunting and healing, later associated with war. He was also called Ningirsu, though they may have originally been separate deities.

From Sanskrit नीरज (nīraja) meaning "water-born, lotus".

From Sanskrit नीरव (nīrava) meaning "quiet, silent".

Feminine form of Nirmal.

Means "unequaled, matchless" in Sanskrit.

Meaning unknown. According to Virgil's Aeneid, this was the name of the son of the Trojan Hyrtacus (himself mentioned in the Iliad, though Nisus is not). In the Aeneid Nisus is the friend of Euryalus. After Euryalus is captured by the Rutuli, both are slain when Nisus attempts to save him.

From Navajo nizhóní meaning "beautiful" [1].

Means "travelling one" in Kikuyu. Njeri (or Wanjeri) is the name of one of the nine daughters of Mumbi in the Kikuyu origin legend.

Means "that which is mine belongs to me" in Igbo.

Means "that to come is greater" in Igbo.

Means "ninth born child" in Akan.

Means "father's mother" in Igbo. This name is given in honour of the child's paternal grandmother.

Means "mother's mother" in Igbo. This name is given in honour of the child's maternal grandmother.

From the Hebrew name נֹחַ (Noaḥ) meaning "rest, repose", derived from the root נוּחַ (nuaḥ). According to the Old Testament, Noah was the builder of the Ark that allowed him, his family, and animals of each species to survive the Great Flood. After the flood he received the sign of the rainbow as a covenant from God. He was the father of Shem, Ham and Japheth.

As an English Christian name, Noah has been used since the Protestant Reformation, being common among the Puritans. In the United States it was not overly popular in the 19th and 20th centuries, but it began slowly growing in the 1970s. Starting 1994 it increased rapidly — this was when actor Noah Wyle (1971-) began starring on the television series ER. A further boost in 2004 from the main character in the movie The Notebook helped it eventually become the most popular name for boys in America between 2013 and 2016. At the same time it has also been heavily used in other English-speaking countries, as well as Germany, the Netherlands, Scandinavia and France.

A famous bearer was the American lexicographer Noah Webster (1758-1843).

Means "heavenly mist" from Hawaiian noe "mist" and lani "heaven, sky, royal, majesty".

Feminine diminutive of Noel.

Spanish feminine form of Noël.

English form of Noëlle.

From Ojibwe nookomis meaning "my grandmother". In Anishinaabe legend this is the name of Nanabozho's grandmother. It was used by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow for the grandmother of Hiawatha in his 1855 poem The Song of Hiawatha [1].

From an Irish surname, the Anglicized form of Ó Nualláin, itself derived from the given name Nuallán. The baseball player Nolan Ryan (1947-) is a famous bearer. This name has climbed steadily in popularity since the 1970s.

Means "merciful" in Ndebele.

Feminine form of Nonus. It was also used in 19th-century England, derived directly from Latin nonus "ninth" and traditionally given to the ninth-born child.

Possibly means "not a man" in Shawnee. This was the name of an 18th-century Shawnee chief, the sister of Hokolesqua.

Roman praenomen, or given name, meaning "ninth" in Latin. This was a rare praenomen.

Means "wind" in Ojibwe.

Short form of Honora or Eleanor. Henrik Ibsen used it for a character in his play A Doll's House (1879).

Created by Felice Romani for the main character in the opera Norma (1831). He may have based it on Latin norma "rule". This name is also frequently used as a feminine form of Norman.

From an old Germanic byname meaning "northman", referring to a Scandinavians. The Normans were Vikings who settled on the coast of France, in the region that became known as Normandy. In England the name Norman or Normant was used before the Norman Conquest, first as a nickname for Scandinavian settlers and later as a given name. After the Conquest it became more common, but died out around the 14th century. It was revived in the 19th century, perhaps in part due to a character by this name in C. M. Yonge's 1856 novel The Daisy Chain [2]. Famous bearers include the American painter Norman Rockwell (1894-1978) and the American author Norman Mailer (1923-2007).

Possibly means "almost there" in Navajo.

From Serbian нов (nov) meaning "new". A notable bearer is the Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic (1987-).

Derived from Latin novellus meaning "new, young, novel", a diminutive of novus "new". This name was borne by the 14th-century Italian scholar Novella d'Andrea, who taught law at the University of Bologna.

From the Xhosa and Ndebele feminine prefix no- combined with uxolo "peace".

Means "they conquered" in Zulu, from nqoba "to conquer".

Means "sixth born child" in Akan.

Means "seventh born child" in Akan.

Means "star" in Tumbuka.

Means "only girls", from Zulu, Xhosa and Ndebele intombi "girl" and zodwa "only".

From Greenlandic nukaa meaning "younger sibling" [1].

From Kyrgyz нур (nur) meaning "light" (of Arabic origin) combined with the Turkic military title beg meaning "chieftain, master".

Spanish form of Núria.

Means "bright boy" in Kazakh, Kyrgyz and Azerbaijani, ultimately from Arabic نور (nūr) meaning "light" and Turkic oglan meaning "young man, boy".

Means "light" in Swahili, ultimately from Arabic نور (nūr).

From Kikuyu mbura meaning "rain". This is the name of one of the nine daughters of Mumbi in the Kikuyu origin legend.

From Shona nyara meaning "be shy, be quiet, be humble" [1].

Used by British author Edward Bulwer-Lytton for a blind flower-seller in his novel The Last Days of Pompeii (1834). He perhaps based it on Latin nidus "nest".

Derived from Breton oan "lamb" (ultimately from Latin agnus) and used as a Breton form of Agnes.

Meaning unknown. This was the name of a saint from Toledo, Spain. The details of her life are unknown.

Variant of Auberon. Oberon and Titania are the king and queen of the fairies in Shakespeare's comedy A Midsummer Night's Dream (1595). A moon of Uranus bears this name in his honour.

Simply from the English word ocean for a large body of water. It is ultimately derived from Greek Ὠκεανός (Okeanos), the name of the body of water thought to surround the Earth.

Derived from French océan meaning "ocean".

Latinized form of Okeanos.

Feminine form of Octavius. Octavia was the wife of Mark Antony and the sister of the Roman emperor Augustus. In 19th-century England it was sometimes given to the eighth-born child.

From the Roman name Octavianus, which was derived from the name Octavius. After Gaius Octavius (later the Roman emperor Augustus) was adopted by Julius Caesar he took the name Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus.

Roman family name derived from Latin octavus meaning "eighth". This was the original family name of the emperor Augustus (born Gaius Octavius). It was also rarely used as a Roman praenomen, or given name.

Derived from the Old German elements uodil "heritage" and ger "spear".

Possibly an elaboration of Odilia used in Latin America. In most countries it is a feminine name, but in the Dominican Republic it is commonly masculine.

Old German form of Ulrich.

Ukrainian variant of Dariya.

From the Old Norse name Oddvarr, derived from the elements oddr "point of a sword" and varr "aware, cautious".

Possibly means "lightning has struck" in Mohawk. This was the name of an 18th-century Mohawk chief, also called John Deseronto.

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.

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.

From Old Irish Odrán, derived from odar "dun-coloured, greyish brown, tan" combined with a diminutive suffix. This was the name of a saint who travelled with Saint Columba through Scotland.

French form of Odilo.

Anglicized form of Old Norse Óðinn, which was derived from óðr meaning "inspiration, rage, frenzy". It ultimately developed from Proto-Germanic *Wōdanaz. The name appears as Woden in Anglo-Saxon sources (for example, as the founder of several royal lineages in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle) and in forms such as Wuotan, Wotan or Wodan in continental Europe, though he is best known from Norse sources.

In Norse mythology Odin is the highest of the gods, presiding over war, wisdom and death. He is the husband of Frigg and resides in Valhalla, where warriors go after they are slain. He is usually depicted as a one-eyed older man, carrying two ravens on his shoulders who inform him of all the events of the world. At the time of Ragnarök, the final battle, it is told that he will be killed fighting the great wolf Fenrir.

Variant of Odoacer.

Perhaps derived from Greek ὀδύσσομαι (odyssomai) meaning "to hate". In Greek legend Odysseus was one of the Greek heroes who fought in the Trojan War. In the Odyssey Homer relates Odysseus's misadventures on his way back to his kingdom and his wife Penelope.

Feminine form of Ofir.

Means "God's time" in Igbo.

Means "God first" in Urhobo.

Means "God provided for me" in Urhobo.

Means "God exists" in Urhobo.

Means "boy (born on) Afor" in Igbo, Afor being one of the four days of the Igbo week.

Means "boy (born on) Orie" in Igbo, Orie being one of the four days of the Igbo week.

Means "boy, young man" in Igbo.

Polish short form of Aleksandra.

From Yoruba ọlà meaning "wealth" or the related ọlá meaning "honour, respect". It is also a short form of names containing those elements.

Icelandic form of Olaf.

Galician variant of Eulalia.

Means "wealth surrounds me" in Yoruba.

From Olegarius, the Latinized form of a Germanic name, possibly Aldegar or a metathesized form of Odalgar. This was the name of a 12th-century saint, a bishop of Barcelona.

Latin form of Olegario.

Ukrainian form of Alexius.

Ukrainian form of Helen.

Ukrainian diminutive of Oleksandra. This was the name of an 1898 novel by the Russian author Aleksandr Kuprin.

Ukrainian form of Olga.

The name of a princess of Norway in the medieval Spanish tale of the knight Amadis of Gaul. It is perhaps related to Greek ὀλύνθη (olynthe) meaning "wild fig tree" (similar to Olindo). Olinda is also the name of a Brazilian city.

Used by the Italian poet Torquato Tasso for the lover of Sophronia in his epic poem Jerusalem Delivered (1580). It might be a variant of Olinto, the Italian form of the ancient Greek city Ὄλυνθος (Olynthos) meaning "wild fig".

From the English and French word for the type of tree, ultimately derived from Latin oliva.

From Old French Olivier, which was possibly derived from Latin oliva "olive tree" [1]. Alternatively there could be an underlying Germanic name, such as Old Norse Áleifr (see Olaf) or Frankish Alawar (see Álvaro), with the spelling altered by association with the Latin word. In the Middle Ages the name became well-known in Western Europe because of the French epic La Chanson de Roland, in which Olivier is a friend and advisor to the hero Roland.

In England Oliver was a common medieval name, however it became rare after the 17th century because of the military commander Oliver Cromwell, who ruled the country following the civil war. The name was revived in the 19th century, perhaps due in part to the title character in Charles Dickens' novel Oliver Twist (1838), about a poor orphan living on the streets of London. It became very popular at the beginning of the 21st century, reaching the top rank for boys in England and Wales in 2009 and entering the top ten in the United States in 2017.

Feminine form of Oliver. This was the name of the title character in the French opera Les noces d'Olivette (1879) by Edmond Audran.

Means "work of God" in Igbo.

Icelandic form of Olve.

Old Norse form of Olve.

Means "white footprint" from Welsh ol "footprint, track" and gwen "white, blessed". In the Welsh tale Culhwch and Olwen she was a beautiful maiden, the lover of Culhwch and the daughter of the giant Yspaddaden. Her father insisted that Culhwch complete several seemingly impossible tasks before he would allow them to marry.

Feminine form of Olympos.

Meaning uncertain, possibly a Swahili variant of Umar.

Means "child is family" in Yoruba.

Means "big medicine" in Oneida, from onúhkwaht "medicine" and the suffix -koó "big, great". This was the name of a chief of the Oneida people, also named Cornelius Hill (1834-1907).

From the name of a Native American tribe, perhaps meaning "standing rock".

Norman French form of Humphrey.

Irish form of Honora.

Russian and Ukrainian form of Onuphrius.

Latinized form of Greek Ὀνούφριος (Onouphrios), derived from Egyptian wnn-nfr meaning "he who is good, he who is happy". This was an epithet of the god Osiris. It was later used by an Egyptian saint and hermit from the 4th or 5th century.

Means "who is greater than God?" in Igbo.

Means "gift" in Igbo.

Anglicized form of Úna.

From the English word opal for the iridescent gemstone, the birthstone of October. The word ultimately derives from Sanskrit उपल (upala) meaning "jewel".

Means "gratitude is suitable for me" in Yoruba.

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.

From the Greek name Ὠριγένης (Origenes), which was possibly derived from the name of the Egyptian god Horus combined with γενής (genes) meaning "born". Origen was a 3rd-century theologian from Alexandria. Long after his death some of his writings were declared heretical, hence he is not regarded as a saint.

Possibly related to Greek ὀρίνω (orino) meaning "to excite, to agitate". George Bernard Shaw used this name in his play The Apple Cart (1929).

Meaning uncertain, but possibly related to Greek ὅριον (horion) meaning "boundary, limit". Alternatively it may be derived from Akkadian Uru-anna meaning "light of the heavens". This is the name of a constellation, which gets its name from a legendary Greek hunter who was killed by a scorpion sent by the earth goddess Gaia.

Anglicized form of Órlaith.

Feminine form of Orlando.

From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Irish Gaelic Ó Ruaidh, derived from the given name Ruadh.

Anglicized form of Odharnait.

Created by the Italian author Gabriele d'Annunzio for his novel La Figlia di Jorio (1904). It is derived from Tuscan Italian ornello meaning "flowering ash tree".

Perhaps related to Greek ὄρφνη (orphne) meaning "the darkness of night". In Greek mythology Orpheus was a poet and musician who went to the underworld to retrieve his dead wife Eurydice. He succeeded in charming Hades with his lyre, and he was allowed to lead his wife out of the underworld on the condition that he not look back at her until they reached the surface. Unfortunately, just before they arrived his love for her overcame his will and he glanced back at her, causing her to be drawn back to Hades.

Italian form of Ursula.

Derived from the Old German elements ort "point" and wini "friend". This is the name of Gudrun's brother in the medieval German epic Kudrun.

Italian form of Hosanna. This was the name of a 15th-century Italian saint and mystic, as well as a 16th-century Montenegrin saint.

Possibly means "deer friend", derived from Old Irish oss "deer" and carae "friend". Alternatively, it may derive from the Old English name Osgar or its Old Norse cognate Ásgeirr, which may have been brought to Ireland by Viking invaders and settlers. In Irish legend Oscar was the son of the poet Oisín and the grandson of the hero Fionn mac Cumhaill.

This name was popularized in continental Europe by the works of the 18th-century Scottish poet James Macpherson [1]. Napoleon was an admirer of Macpherson, and he suggested Oscar as the second middle name of his godson, who eventually became king of Sweden as Oscar I. Other notable bearers include the Irish writer and humorist Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) and the Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer (1907-2012).

Derived from the Old English elements os "god" and gar "spear". It is a cognate of Ansgar.

From the Old English elements os "god" and mund "protection". During the Anglo-Saxon period a Norse cognate Ásmundr was also used in England, and another version was imported by the Normans. Saint Osmund was an 11th-century Norman nobleman who became an English bishop. Though it eventually became rare, it was revived in the 19th century, in part from a surname that was derived from the given name.

Variant of Oisín used by James Macpherson in his 18th-century poems, which he claimed to have based on early Irish legends. In the poems Ossian is the son of Fingal, and serves as the narrator.

Old English form of Oswald.

From the Old English elements os "god" and wine "friend". Saint Oswin was a 7th-century king of Northumbria. After the Norman Conquest this name was used less, and it died out after the 14th century. It was briefly revived in the 19th century.

Old English form of Oswin.

Means "born at night" in Luo.

From an English surname that was derived from the medieval given name Ode, a cognate of Otto. In America it has been used in honour of the revolutionary James Otis (1725-1783).

From Old Norse ótti "terror, fear" and herr "army, warrior". In the Old Norse poem Hyndluljóð in the Poetic Edda, the goddess Freya helps Óttar learn about his ancestry.

Swedish form of Odilia.

Later German form of Audo, originally a short form of various names beginning with Old Frankish aud or Old High German ot meaning "wealth, fortune". This was the name of a 9th-century king of the West Franks (name usually spelled as Odo). This was also the name of four kings of Germany, starting in the 10th century with Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor, known as Otto the Great. Saint Otto of Bamberg was a 12th-century missionary to Pomerania. The name was also borne by a 19th-century king of Greece, originally from Bavaria. Another notable bearer was the German chancellor Otto von Bismarck (1815-1898).

Derived from Greek οὐράνιος (ouranios) meaning "heavenly". In Greek mythology she was the goddess of astronomy and astrology, one of the nine Muses.

From the Roman family name Ovidius, which was possibly derived from Latin ovis "a sheep". Alternatively, it could have a Sabellic origin. Publius Ovidius Naso, better known as Ovid, was a 1st-century BC Roman poet who is best known as the author of the Metamorphoses. He was sent into exile on the coast of the Black Sea by Emperor Augustus for no apparent reason.

Feminine form of Ovidius (see Ovid).

Italian and Spanish form of Ovidius (see Ovid).

Latin form of Ovid.

Anglicized form of Owain.