moonfryer's Personal Name List

From the Greek Ἀνατόλιος (Anatolios), derived from ἀνατολή (anatole) meaning "sunrise". Saint Anatolius was a 3rd-century philosopher from Alexandria.

Derived from Greek ἄριστος (aristos) meaning "the best".

Scottish Gaelic form of Arthur.

From Turkic arslan meaning "lion". This was a byname or title borne by several medieval Turkic rulers, including the Seljuk sultan Alp Arslan (a byname meaning "brave lion") who drove the Byzantines from Anatolia in the 11th century. The author C. S. Lewis later used the name Aslan for the main protagonist (a lion) in his Chronicles of Narnia series of books, first appearing in 1950.

From the English word that means "sky blue". It is ultimately (via Old French, Latin and Arabic) from Persian لاجورد (lājvard) meaning "azure, lapis lazuli".

From Chinese 白 (bái) meaning "white, pure" and 虎 (hǔ) meaning "tiger". This is the Chinese name of the White Tiger, associated with the west and the autumn season.

Latinized form of Kallias.

From an English surname meaning "chase, hunt" in Middle English, originally a nickname for a huntsman.

Means "stone" in Yao.

Italian, Spanish and Portuguese form of Cyrus.

Short form of Anacletus. This name is sometimes used to refer to the third pope, Saint Anacletus. It can also function as an Anglicized form of Kleitos.

Short form of Cleveland.

Contemporary spelling, via the Latinized form Clodovicus, of the Germanic name Hludwig (see Ludwig). Clovis was a Frankish king who united the Franks under his rule in the 5th century. The name was subsequently borne by two further Merovingian kings.

From the name of the Native American people of the northern Mississippi Valley, or from the two American states that were named for them: North and South Dakota (until 1889 unified as the Dakota Territory). The tribal name means "allies, friends" in the Dakota language.

It was rare as an American given name before 1975. In the mid-1980s it began growing in popularity for boys after a character by this name began appearing on the soap opera Ryan's Hope. It is now more common as a feminine name, probably due to the fame of the actress Dakota Fanning (1994-).

Means "adorning the heart", from Persian دل (del) meaning "heart" and آرا (ārā) meaning "decorate, adorn".

Ancient Greek name derived from δῆμος (demos) meaning "the people".

Probably a variant of Dewi 1.

Diminutive of Dmitriy.

Originally a short form of names ending with the Old German element helm meaning "helmet, protection", such as Guglielmo or Anselmo. It is also a derivative of Erasmus, via the old Italian short form Ermo. Saint Elmo, also known as Saint Erasmus, was a 4th-century martyr who is the patron of sailors. Saint Elmo's fire is said to be a sign of his protection.

In the English-speaking world this name is now associated with a red muppet character from the children's television program Sesame Street.

Means "colours" in Turkish.

Originally a short form of Germanic names containing the element fara meaning "journey" (Proto-Germanic *farō). This was the name of a 7th-century Burgundian bishop of Meaux, France.

Diminutive of Felicity. In some cases it can be a nickname from the English word flick.

Means "valley, ravine" in Hebrew.

From the English word gay meaning "gay, happy". By the mid-20th century the word had acquired the additional meaning of "homosexual", and the name has subsequently dropped out of use.

From an English surname that was derived from Old French gaillard "high-spirited, boisterous". This name was rarely used after the mid-20th century, when the word gay acquired the slang meaning "homosexual".

German, Dutch, Spanish and Portuguese form of Giselle.

Means "evening" in Greek. This was the name of the personification of the Evening Star (the planet Venus) in Greek mythology.

The name of the daughter of King Cymbeline in the play Cymbeline (1609) by William Shakespeare. He based her on a legendary character named Innogen, but it was printed incorrectly and never emended. Innogen is probably derived from Gaelic inghean meaning "maiden". As a given name it is chiefly British and Australian.

Diminutive of Janez or Ján.

Diminutive of Jarmo.

From Ἰεσσαί (Iessai), the Greek form of the Hebrew name יִשַׁי (Yishai). This could be a derivative of the word שַׁי (shai) meaning "gift" or יֵשׁ (yesh) meaning "existence". In the Old Testament Jesse is the father of King David. It began to be used as an English given name after the Protestant Reformation.

A famous bearer was Jesse James (1847-1882), an American outlaw who held up banks and stagecoaches. He was eventually shot by a fellow gang member for a reward. Another famous bearer was the American athlete Jesse Owens (1913-1980), whose real name was James Cleveland (or J. C.) Owens.

From Japanese 海 (kai) meaning "sea, ocean" combined with 斗 (to), which refers to a Chinese constellation, or 翔 (to) meaning "soar, fly". Other kanji combinations are also possible.

Diminutive of Ketevan.

From a nickname, probably from the English word kipper meaning "male salmon".

From Japanese 清 (kiyoshi) or 淳 (kiyoshi) both meaning "pure". Other kanji or kanji combinations can also form this name.

German short form of Nicholas, now used independently.

Diminutive of Lance, Landon and other names beginning with Lan.

From the English word, meaning "something inherited from a predecessor, heritage". It is derived from Old French legacie, itself from Latin legatum "bequest, legacy".

From a Welsh surname that was derived from llwyd meaning "grey". The composer Andrew Lloyd Webber (1948-) is a famous bearer of this name.

Short form of Alonzo and other names containing the same sound. Famous bearers were American actors Lon Chaney Sr. (1883-1930) and Lon Chaney Jr. (1906-1973). The elder's birth name was Leonidas.

Means "little blackbird", derived from Old Irish lon "blackbird" combined with a diminutive suffix. This name was borne by several early saints.

Italian and Spanish form of Laurentius (see Laurence 1). Lorenzo de' Medici (1449-1492), known as the Magnificent, was a ruler of Florence during the Renaissance. He was also a great patron of the arts who employed Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Botticelli and other famous artists.

From Japanese 誠 (makoto) meaning "sincerity", as well as other kanji or kanji combinations.

Diminutive of Martin.

Finnish short form of Mikael.

Originally a diminutive of names beginning with the Slavic element milŭ meaning "gracious, dear". This was the name of a 14th-century Serbian hero who apparently killed the Ottoman sultan Murad I at the Battle of Kosovo.

From the Slavic element mirŭ meaning "peace, world", originally a diminutive of names containing that element.

From Japanese 直 (nao) meaning "straight, direct" and 樹 (ki) meaning "tree", as well as other combinations of different kanji with the same pronunciations.

From an English surname that was derived from the Middle English phrase atten ash "at the ash tree". A famous bearer of the surname was the mathematician John Nash (1928-2015).

As a given name for boys, it gained some popularity in the mid-1990s after the debut of the American television series Nash Bridges. It got more exposure beginning 2005 when a character by this name started appearing on the soap opera One Life to Live.

From the English word meaning "sea force, fleet, armed forces of the sea". It is derived from Old French navie, from Latin navigia, the plural of navigium "boat, vessel". It also refers to a shade of dark blue, a colour traditionally associated with naval uniforms.

Means "heart" in Igbo.

From Sanskrit ओम् (om), considered to be a sacred syllable because it represents the range of sounds that can be made by the human voice.

Means "my light" in Hebrew.

Variant of Ozzie.

Russian, Czech, Bulgarian, Slovene, Macedonian and Belarusian form of Paul.

Latinized form of the Greek name Πελάγιος (Pelagios), which was derived from πέλαγος (pelagos) meaning "the sea". This was the name of several saints and two popes. It was also borne by a 4th-century British theologian whose teachings were eventually declared heretical.

Derived from Pythios, a name of Apollo, combined with Greek ἀγορά (agora) meaning "assembly, marketplace". This was the name of a 6th-century BC Greek philosopher and mathematician from Samos. He was the founder of a school of philosophy whose members believed that numbers described the universe.

Diminutive of Randall, Randolf or Miranda.

Anglicized form of Rhys.

Anglicized form of Rhys. It is also used as a feminine name, popularized by the American actress Reese Witherspoon (1976-).

Means "love" in Shona [1].

Diminutive of Rudolf.

Short form of Alessandro (Italian) or Aleksandre (Georgian). Sandro Botticelli (1445-1510) was an Italian Renaissance artist, the painter of The Birth of Venus and other famous works.

Russian and Ukrainian diminutive of Aleksandr or Aleksandra.

Variant of Skyler. Originally more common for boys during the 1980s, it was popularized as a name for girls after it was used on the American soap opera The Young and the Restless in 1989 and the movie Good Will Hunting in 1997 [1]. Its sharp rise in the United States in 2011 might be attributed to the character Skyler White from the television series Breaking Bad (2008-2013) or the singer Skylar Grey (1986-), who adopted this name in 2010 after previously going by Holly Brook.

Anglicized form of Suibhne. In fiction, this name is borne by the murderous barber Sweeney Todd, first appearing in the British serial The String of Pearls: A Romance (1846-1847).

Short form of Terence or Terry 1.

Latinized form of the Greek name Telesphoros (see Télesphore).

Means "will, desire" in Sotho and Tswana.

From Japanese 月 (tsuki) meaning "moon" and 子 (ko) meaning "child". Other combinations of kanji are possible.

Hungarian form of Václav.

Short form of Vernon.

From a surname that was derived from the Anglo-Scandinavian given name Waltheof [1]. Its present use in the English-speaking world is usually in honour of Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), an American transcendentalist, poet and author. His name came from a surname from his father's side of the family.

From the English word for the small songbird. It is ultimately derived from Old English wrenna.

Diminutive of Yann or Yanna 2.

From Japanese 洋 (yō) meaning ocean, 陽 (yō) meaning sunshine, or other kanji with the same pronunciation.

Alternate transcription of Japanese Kanji 義郎 (see Yoshirō).

Alternate transcription of Hebrew זְאֵב (see Zeev).