fleurspalette's Personal Name List
Adelaide
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Portuguese
Pronounced: A-də-layd(English) a-deh-LIE-deh(Italian) a-di-LIE-di(European Portuguese) a-di-LIED(European Portuguese) a-deh-LIE-jee(Brazilian Portuguese)
Means
"nobleness, nobility", from the French form of the Germanic name
Adalheidis, which was composed of
adal "noble" and the suffix
heit "kind, sort, type". It was borne in the 10th century by
Saint Adelaide, the wife of the Holy Roman emperor Otto the Great.
In Britain the parallel form Alice, derived via Old French, has historically been more common than Adelaide, though this form did gain some currency in the 19th century due to the popularity of the German-born wife of King William IV, for whom the city of Adelaide in Australia was named in 1836.
Adelheid
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Dutch (Rare)
Pronounced: A-dəl-hiet(German) A-dəl-hayt(Dutch)
Agape
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ἀγάπη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: A-GA-PEH
Derived from Greek
ἀγάπη (agape) meaning
"love". This name was borne by at least two early
saints.
Aiku
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Japanese
Other Scripts: 藍空, 愛来, 愛空, 愛久, etc.(Japanese Kanji)
Pronounced: AH-EE-KUU
From Japanese 愛 (ai) meaning "love, affection" or 藍 (ai) meaning "indigo" combined with 空 (ku) meaning "sky", 久 (ku) meaning "long time" or 来 (ku) meaning "to come". Other kanji combinations are possible.
Aileas
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish Gaelic
Pronounced: A-ləs
Scottish Gaelic form of
Alice.
Aisha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arabic, Urdu, Hausa, Swahili, Kazakh, African American
Other Scripts: عائشة(Arabic) عائشہ(Urdu) Айша(Kazakh)
Pronounced: ‘A-ee-sha(Arabic) ie-EE-shə(English)
Means
"living, alive" in Arabic. This was the name of
Muhammad's third wife, the daughter of
Abu Bakr. Some time after Muhammad's death she went to war against
Ali, the fourth caliph, but was defeated. Her name is used more by Sunni Muslims and less by Shias.
This name began to be used in America in the 1970s, possibly inspired by Princess Aisha of Jordan (1968-), the daughter of King Hussein and his British-born wife. It received a boost in popularity after Stevie Wonder used it for his first daughter in 1975.
Akai
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Japanese
Other Scripts: 愛海, 朱衣(Japanese Kanji) あかい(Japanese Hiragana)
From the Japanese kanji 愛 (
a) meaning "love, affection" and 海 (
kai) meaning "sea; ocean". It can also derive from 朱 (
aka) meaning "crimson red" and 衣 (
i) meaning "clothing".
Other kanji combinations are possible.
Aki 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Finnish
Pronounced: AH-kee
Alexis
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: French, English, Greek, Spanish, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Αλέξης(Greek) Ἄλεξις(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: A-LEHK-SEE(French) ə-LEHK-sis(English) a-LEHK-sees(Spanish)
From the Greek name
Ἄλεξις (Alexis) meaning
"helper" or
"defender", derived from Greek
ἀλέξω (alexo) meaning "to defend, to help". This was the name of a 3rd-century BC Greek comic poet, and also of several
saints. It is used somewhat interchangeably with the related name
Ἀλέξιος or
Alexius, borne by five Byzantine emperors.
In the English-speaking world this name is more commonly given to girls. This is due to the American actress Alexis Smith (1921-1993), who began appearing in movies in the early 1940s. It got a boost in popularity in the 1980s from a character on the soap opera Dynasty.
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).
Alma 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Albanian, Slovene, Croatian
Pronounced: AL-mə(English) AL-ma(Spanish) AHL-ma(Dutch)
This name became popular after the Battle of Alma (1854), which took place near the River Alma in Crimea and ended in a victory for Britain and France. However, the name was in rare use before the battle; it was probably inspired by Latin
almus "nourishing". It also coincides with the Spanish word meaning
"the soul".
Amelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Medieval French
Pronounced: ə-MEE-lee-ə(English) ə-MEEL-yə(English) a-MEH-lya(Spanish, Italian, Polish)
Variant of
Amalia, though it is sometimes confused with
Emilia, which has a different origin. The name became popular in England after the German House of Hanover came to the British throne in the 18th century — it was borne by daughters of both George II and George III. The author Henry Fielding used it for the title character in his novel
Amelia (1751). Another famous bearer was Amelia Earhart (1897-1937), the first woman to make a solo flight over the Atlantic Ocean.
This name experienced a rise in popularity at the end of the 20th century. It was the most popular name for girls in England and Wales from 2011 to 2015.
Amihan
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Tagalog
Pronounced: a-MEE-han
Means "north wind, winter storm" in Tagalog.
Amy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AY-mee
English form of the Old French name Amée meaning "beloved" (modern French aimée), a vernacular form of the Latin Amata. As an English name, it was in use in the Middle Ages (though not common) and was revived in the 19th century.
Antoine
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French, African American
Pronounced: AHN-TWAN(French) an-TWAWN(English)
French form of
Antonius (see
Anthony). A famous bearer was the French writer Antoine de
Saint-Exupéry (1900-1944), the author of
The Little Prince.
Aoi
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Japanese
Other Scripts: 葵, 碧, etc.(Japanese Kanji) あおい(Japanese Hiragana)
Pronounced: A-O-EE
From Japanese
葵 (aoi) meaning "hollyhock, althea" or an adjectival form of
碧 (ao) meaning "green, blue". Other kanji with the same reading can form this name as well.
Aquila
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Biblical, Ancient Roman
Pronounced: AK-wil-ə(English) ə-KWIL-ə(English)
Arle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Popular Culture
Other Scripts: アルル(Japanese Katakana)
Pronounced: AHR-əl
Derived from the city of Arles in France.
Fictional bearers of this name include Arle Nadja from "Puyo Puyo", and Arle Arisegawa from "The Ditzy Demons Are in Love With Me".
Ash
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ASH
Short form of
Ashley. It can also come directly from the English word denoting either the tree or the residue of fire.
Athol
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Scottish
From Atholl, the name of a district in Scotland, from Scottish Gaelic Athall, possibly derived from Old Irish ath Fhotla "new Ireland".
Auburn
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: AW-bərn
Auri
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Finnish (Rare), Estonian (Rare)
Pronounced: OW-ri(Finnish)
Finnish diminutive of
Aura, occasionally also used in Estonia.
Avril
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Rare), English (Rare)
Pronounced: A-VREEL(French) AV-ril(English)
French form of
April. A famous bearer is the Canadian musician Avril Lavigne (1984-).
Beverly
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BEHV-ər-lee(American English) BEHV-ə-lee(British English)
From an English surname that was originally derived from the name of a Yorkshire city, itself from Old English
beofor "beaver" and (possibly)
licc "stream". It came into use as a masculine given name in the 19th century, then became common as an American feminine name after the publication of George Barr McCutcheon's 1904 novel
Beverly of Graustark [1]. It was most popular in the 1930s, and has since greatly declined in use.
Bituin
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Tagalog
Pronounced: bee-TOO-een
Means "star" in Tagalog.
Blair
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: BLEHR(American English) BLEH(British English)
From a Scottish surname that was derived from Gaelic
blàr meaning
"plain, field, battlefield". In Scotland this name is typically masculine.
In the United States it became more common for girls in the early 1980s, shortly after the debut of the television sitcom The Facts of Life (1979-1988), which featured a character named Blair Warner. The name left the American top 1000 rankings two decades later, but was resurrected by another television character, this time Blair Waldorf from the series Gossip Girl (2007-2012).
Blaze
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: BLAYZ
Modern variant of
Blaise influenced by the English word
blaze.
Bloom
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
From the English word bloom, ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European *bʰleh₃- ("to thrive, flower, bloom").
Bri
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BRIE, BREE
Bronze
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Bronze is a yellowish-brown alloy of copper with up to one-third tin. It is a modern first name. In the US, 5 girls and 9 boys were given this first name in 2018.
Bunnie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Callias
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Καλλίας(Ancient Greek)
Cam 2
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAM
Camilla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, German, Ancient Roman, Roman Mythology
Pronounced: kə-MIL-ə(English) ka-MEEL-la(Italian) kah-MEEL-lah(Danish) KAH-meel-lah(Finnish) ka-MI-la(German)
Feminine form of
Camillus. This was the name of a legendary warrior maiden of the Volsci, as told by
Virgil in the
Aeneid. It was popularized in the English-speaking world by Fanny Burney's novel
Camilla (1796).
Cammy
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAM-ee
Charlotte
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch
Pronounced: SHAR-LAWT(French) SHAHR-lət(American English) SHAH-lət(British English) shar-LAW-tə(German) sha-LOT(Swedish) shahr-LAW-tə(Dutch)
French feminine
diminutive of
Charles. It was introduced to Britain in the 17th century. It was the name of a German-born 18th-century queen consort of Great Britain and Ireland. Another notable bearer was Charlotte Brontë (1816-1855), the eldest of the three Brontë sisters and the author of
Jane Eyre and
Villette. A famous fictional bearer is the spider in the children's novel
Charlotte's Web (1952) by E. B. White.
This name was fairly common in France, England and the United States in the early 20th century. It became quite popular in France and England at the end of the 20th century, just when it was at a low point in the United States. It quickly climbed the American charts and entered the top ten in 2014.
Chiffon
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: shi-FAHN
Borrowing from French chiffon, from Middle French chiffe "cloth, old rag" from Old French chipe "rag", from Middle English chip, chippe "chip, shard, fragment" from Old English ċipp "chip, splinter, beam" from Proto-Germanic kippaz, kipaz (“log, beam”). Akin to Old Saxon kip "beam, post", Old High German kipfa "axle-rod, stave".
Chinazor
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Igbo (Rare)
Claudia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Italian, Spanish, Romanian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Ancient Roman
Pronounced: KLAW-dee-ə(English) KLOW-dya(German, Italian, Romanian) KLOW-dee-a(Dutch, Latin) KLOW-dhya(Spanish)
Feminine form of
Claudius. It is mentioned briefly in the
New Testament. As a Christian name it was very rare until the 16th century.
Claudius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman
Pronounced: KLOW-dee-oos(Latin) KLAW-dee-əs(English)
From a Roman family name that was possibly derived from Latin
claudus meaning
"lame, crippled". This was the name of a patrician family prominent in Roman politics. The ancestor of the family was said to have been a 6th-century BC Sabine leader named Attius Clausus, who adopted the name Appius Claudius upon becoming a Roman citizen. The family produced several Roman emperors of the 1st century, including the emperor known simply as Claudius (birth name Tiberius Claudius Nero Germanicus). He was poisoned by his wife
Agrippina in order to bring her son
Nero (Claudius's stepson) to power.
This name was later borne by several early saints, including a 7th-century bishop of Besançon. It is also the name of the primary antagonist in Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet (1600).
Clavel
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Filipino (Rare), Various
Probably from Spanish clavel ("carnation, pink clove").
Clement
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KLEHM-ənt
English form of the Late Latin name
Clemens (or sometimes of its derivative
Clementius), which meant
"merciful, gentle". This was the name of 14 popes, including
Saint Clement I, the third pope, one of the Apostolic Fathers. Another saint by this name was Clement of Alexandria, a 3rd-century theologian and church father who attempted to reconcile Christian and Platonic philosophies. It has been in general as a given name in Christian Europe (in various spellings) since early times. In England it became rare after the
Protestant Reformation, though it was revived in the 19th century.
Constantine
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History
Pronounced: KAHN-stən-teen(American English) KAWN-stən-teen(British English)
From the Latin name
Constantinus, a derivative of
Constans. Constantine the Great (272-337), full name Flavius Valerius Constantinus, was the first Roman emperor to adopt Christianity. He moved the capital of the empire from Rome to Byzantium, which he renamed Constantinople (modern Istanbul).
Corrinne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ker-IN
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.
Darcy
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAHR-see(American English) DAH-see(British English)
From an English surname that was derived from Norman French d'Arcy, originally denoting one who came from the town of Arcy in La Manche, France. This is the surname of a character, Fitzwilliam Darcy, in Jane Austen's novel Pride and Prejudice (1813).
Darya 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian
Other Scripts: Дарья(Russian) Дар'я(Belarusian, Ukrainian)
Pronounced: DA-ryə(Russian)
Russian, Belarusian and Ukrainian form of
Daria.
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)
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.
Dianica
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German (Rare)
Pronounced: di-an-EE-ka
Form Latin
dianicus "Dianic, belonging to
Diana".
Dimitri
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Russian, Georgian, French
Other Scripts: Димитрий(Russian) დიმიტრი(Georgian)
Pronounced: dyi-MYEE-tryee(Russian) DEE-MEE-TREE(Georgian, French)
Russian variant of
Dmitriy, as well as the Georgian form.
Doll
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Medieval English (Rare)
Dolly
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAHL-ee(American English) DAWL-ee(British English)
Diminutive of
Dorothy.
Doll and
Dolly were used from the 16th century, and the common English word
doll (for the plaything) is derived from them. In modern times this name is also sometimes used as a diminutive of
Dolores.
Dori
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Dove
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DUV
From the English word for the variety of bird, seen as a symbol of peace.
Drew
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DROO
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).
Emerald
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: EHM-ə-rəld
From the word for the green precious stone, which is the traditional birthstone of May. The emerald supposedly imparts love to the bearer. The word is ultimately from Greek
σμάραγδος (smaragdos).
Emily
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHM-ə-lee
English feminine form of
Aemilius (see
Emil). In the English-speaking world it was not common until after the German House of Hanover came to the British throne in the 18th century; the princess Amelia Sophia (1711-1786) was commonly known as
Emily in English, even though
Amelia is an unrelated name.
This name was moderately popular through most of the 20th century, and became very popular around the turn of the 21st century. It was the highest ranked name for girls in the United States from 1996 to 2007, attaining similar levels in other English-speaking countries around the same time.
Famous bearers include the British author Emily Brontë (1818-1848), known for the novel Wuthering Heights, and the American poet Emily Dickinson (1830-1886).
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)
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-).
Enid
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, English, Arthurian Cycle
Pronounced: EH-nid(Welsh) EE-nid(English)
Probably derived from Welsh
enaid meaning
"soul, spirit, life". In Arthurian tales she first appears in the 12th-century French poem
Erec and Enide by Chrétien de Troyes, where she is the wife of Erec. In later adaptations she is typically the wife of
Geraint. The name became more commonly used after the publication of Alfred Tennyson's Arthurian poem
Enid in 1859, and it was fairly popular in Britain in the first half of the 20th century.
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.
Étoile
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Modern, Rare)
Pronounced: EH-TWAL
Derived from French étoile "star" (ultimately via Old French estoile, esteile, from Latin stēlla).
Euphoria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (American, Modern, Rare), Obscure
Pronounced: yoo-FAWR-ee-ə(English)
From the English word meaning "feeling of intense happiness, state of joy", originally a medical Latin term meaning "condition of feeling healthy and comfortable (especially when sick)". It comes from Greek εὐφορία
(euphoria) "power of enduring easily", from εὔφορος
(euphoros) "bearing well, able to endure, patient", ultimately from εὖ
(eu) "good, well" and φέρω
(phero) "to bear".
This name debuted in the United States baby name data in 2007, when it was given to 6 girls born in the US. Use of the name has probably been influenced by the brand of perfume called Euphoria, which was introduced by Calvin Klein in 2005, and more recently by the American television show Euphoria which premiered in 2019 (19 girls born in the United States in 2021 were named Euphoria, and 16 in 2022).
Fauna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology
Pronounced: FOW-na(Latin) FAW-nə(English)
Feminine form of
Faunus. Fauna was a Roman goddess of fertility, women and healing, a daughter and companion of Faunus.
Fawn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FAWN
From the English word fawn for a young deer.
Flora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Dutch, French, Greek, Albanian, Roman Mythology
Other Scripts: Φλώρα(Greek)
Pronounced: FLAWR-ə(English) FLAW-ra(Italian) FLO-ra(Spanish, German, Dutch, Latin) FLAW-ru(Portuguese) FLAW-RA(French)
Derived from Latin
flos meaning
"flower" (genitive case
floris). Flora was the Roman goddess of flowers and spring, the wife of Zephyr the west wind. It has been used as a given name since the Renaissance, starting in France. In Scotland it was sometimes used as an Anglicized form of
Fionnghuala.
Florine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Flurry
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FLUR-EE
Derived from the English word “flurry”, which is used to describe a light and gentle snowfall.
Flynn
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FLIN
From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of
Ó Floinn, which was derived from the given name or byname
Flann. A famous bearer of the surname was American actor Errol Flynn (1909-1959). As a given name, it grew in popularity after it was featured as a character in the Disney movie
Tangled in 2010.
Freya
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norse Mythology, English (Modern), German
Pronounced: FRAY-ə(English) FRAY-a(German)
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.
Genya
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Russian
Other Scripts: Геня(Russian)
Pronounced: GYEH-nyə
Getty
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: GEHT-ee
Diminutive of
Gertrude, as in the case of the Dutch singer Gertrude "Getty" Kaspers (1948-). It could also be a transferred use of the surname
Getty.
Gidget
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, Popular Culture
Pronounced: GIJ-et(Literature)
Originally from a novel by Frederick Kohner, which was made into a movie. Gidget's real name was Franzie.
Ginny
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JIN-ee
Gloria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Italian, German
Pronounced: GLAWR-ee-ə(English) GLO-rya(Spanish) GLAW-rya(Italian)
Means
"glory", from the Portuguese and Spanish titles of the Virgin
Mary Maria da Glória and
María de Gloria. Maria da Glória (1819-1853) was the daughter of the Brazilian emperor Pedro I, eventually becoming queen of Portugal as Maria II.
The name was introduced to the English-speaking world by E. D. E. N. Southworth's novel Gloria (1891) and George Bernard Shaw's play You Never Can Tell (1898), which both feature characters with a Portuguese background [1]. It was popularized in the early 20th century by American actress Gloria Swanson (1899-1983). Another famous bearer is feminist Gloria Steinem (1934-).
Harley
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAHR-lee(American English) HAH-lee(British English)
From an English surname that was derived from a place name, itself from Old English
hara "hare" or
hær "rock, heap of stones" and
leah "woodland, clearing". An American name for boys since the 19th century, it began to be used for girls after a character with the name began appearing on the soap opera
Guiding Light in 1987.
Harmonia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἁρμονία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: HAR-MO-NEE-A(Classical Greek) hahr-MO-nee-ə(American English) hah-MO-nee-ə(British English)
Means
"harmony, agreement" in Greek. She was the daughter of
Ares and
Aphrodite, given by
Zeus to
Cadmus to be his wife.
Harriet
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAR-ee-it, HEHR-ee-it
English form of
Henriette, and thus a feminine form of
Harry. It was first used in the 17th century, becoming very common in the English-speaking world by the 18th century. Famous bearers include the Americans Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896), the author of
Uncle Tom's Cabin, and the abolitionist Harriet Tubman (1820-1913).
Hector
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Greek Mythology (Latinized), Arthurian Cycle
Other Scripts: Ἕκτωρ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: HEHK-tər(American English) HEHK-tə(British English) EHK-TAWR(French)
Latinized form of Greek
Ἕκτωρ (Hektor), which was derived from
ἕκτωρ (hektor) meaning
"holding fast", ultimately from
ἔχω (echo) meaning "to hold, to possess". In Greek legend Hector was one of the Trojan champions who fought against the Greeks. After he killed
Achilles' friend
Patroclus in battle, he was himself brutally slain by Achilles, who proceeded to tie his dead body to a chariot and drag it about. This name also appears in Arthurian legends where it belongs to King
Arthur's foster father.
Hector has occasionally been used as a given name since the Middle Ages, probably because of the noble character of the classical hero. It has been historically common in Scotland, where it was used as an Anglicized form of Eachann.
Icy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Variant of
Icie. The spelling was perhaps influenced by the English word "icy" meaning "pertaining to, resembling, or abounding in ice; cold; frosty; or characterized by coldness, as of manner, influence".
Idalia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Germanic (Latinized) [1], Greek Mythology, Polish (Rare)
Other Scripts: Ἰδαλία(Ancient Greek)
Probably from a Germanic name derived from the element
idal, an extended form of
id possibly meaning
"work, labour" [1]. Unrelated, this was also an epithet of the Greek goddess
Aphrodite, given because the city of Idalion on Cyprus was a center of her cult.
This name was borne by the heroine of the Polish writer Juliusz Słowacki's play Fantazy (1841, published 1866).
Ike
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: IEK
Diminutive of
Isaac. This was the nickname of the American president Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890-1969), based on the initial sound of his surname.
Iridessa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Popular Culture
Pronounced: eer-ə-DES-ə
This was the name of a character in the Disney
Tinker Bell film series. Perhaps based on the English word
iridescent, which is derived from the Latin elements
iris meaning "rainbow" (see
Iris) and the suffix
-escent "resembling".
Isabella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, German, English, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Finnish, Dutch, Romanian
Pronounced: ee-za-BEHL-la(Italian) ee-za-BEH-la(German, Dutch) iz-ə-BEHL-ə(English) is-a-BEHL-la(Swedish) EE-sah-behl-lah(Finnish)
Latinate form of
Isabel. This name was borne by many medieval royals, including queens consort of England, France, Portugal, the Holy Roman Empire and Hungary, as well as the powerful ruling queen Isabella of Castile (properly called
Isabel).
In the United States this form was much less common than Isabel until the early 1990s, when it began rapidly rising in popularity. It reached a peak in 2009 and 2010, when it was the most popular name for girls in America, an astounding rise over only 20 years.
A famous bearer is the Italian actress Isabella Rossellini (1952-).
Isabelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English, German, Dutch, Swedish
Pronounced: EE-ZA-BEHL(French) IZ-ə-behl(English) ee-za-BEH-lə(German, Dutch)
Izzy
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: IZ-ee
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.
Jamie
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Scottish [1], English
Pronounced: JAY-mee
Originally a Lowland Scots
diminutive of
James. Since the late 19th century it has also been used as a feminine form.
Jason
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Greek Mythology (Anglicized), Biblical
Other Scripts: Ἰάσων(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: JAY-sən(English) ZHA-ZAWN(French)
From the Greek name
Ἰάσων (Iason) meaning
"healer", derived from Greek
ἰάομαι (iaomai) meaning "to heal". In Greek
mythology Jason was the leader of the Argonauts. After his uncle
Pelias overthrew his father
Aeson as king of Iolcos, Jason went in search of the Golden Fleece in order to win back the throne. During his journeys he married the sorceress
Medea, who helped him gain the fleece and kill his uncle, but who later turned against him when he fell in love with another woman.
This name also appears in the New Testament, belonging to man who sheltered Paul and Silas. In his case, it may represent a Hellenized form of a Hebrew name. It was not used in England until after the Protestant Reformation.
Jecka
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (American)
Pronounced: [JEH - KHUH](American English)
Nickname for the name
Jessica, notably used by a character in “Class of 09” and it’s re-up
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.
Juno
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology
Pronounced: YOO-no(Latin) JOO-no(English)
Meaning unknown, possibly related to an Indo-European root meaning
"young", or possibly of Etruscan origin. In Roman
mythology Juno was the wife of
Jupiter and the queen of the heavens. She was the protectress of marriage and women, and was also the goddess of finance.
Kaito
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Igbo
Pronounced: kai-toh
Means "let us glorify God" in Igbo.
Kari 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian
Kariebi
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Ijaw
Means "the blessing we prayed for" in Ijaw.
Kehinde
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Yoruba
Means "comes last" in Yoruba. It is typically given to the second of twins.
Ken 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KEHN
Kenan 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: קֵינָן(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: KEE-nən(English)
Possibly means
"possession" in Hebrew. He is a son of
Enosh and a great-grandson of
Adam in the
Old Testament.
Kenta
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Swedish
Pronounced: KEN-tah
Kieran
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, English
Pronounced: KIR-ən(English) KIR-awn(English)
Kiko
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: KEE-ko
Kinito
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Spanish (Rare)
Pronounced: kee-NEE-to
Pet name of unclear origin. Sometimes it may be related to the drinking game
kinito or to the nickname
Quino.
Kip
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KIP
From a nickname, probably from the English word kipper meaning "male salmon".
Kobyl
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Russian (Archaic)
Means "mare" in Russian.
Labelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: American (Rare)
Transferred use of the surname
Labelle or a combination of the prefix
-la and the name
Belle.
Laur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Estonian
Lee
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LEE
From a surname that was derived from Old English
leah meaning
"clearing". The surname belonged to Robert E. Lee (1807-1870), commander of the Confederate forces during the American Civil War. In his honour, it has been used as a given name in the American South. It is common as a middle name.
Leif
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
Pronounced: LAYF
From the Old Norse name Leifr meaning "descendant, heir". Leif Eriksson was a Norse explorer who reached North America in the early 11th century. He was the son of Erik the Red.
Leir
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature
The name of an early king of the Britons, according to the 12th-century chronicles
[1] of Geoffrey of Monmouth. Leir's name may be connected to the city where he reigned, Leicester (named
Kaerleir by Geoffrey). Alternatively it might be derived from the name of the legendary Welsh figure
Llŷr. The story of Leir and his daughters was later adapted by Shakespeare for his play
King Lear (1606).
Len
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LEHN
Leticia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: leh-TEE-thya(European Spanish) leh-TEE-sya(Latin American Spanish)
Light
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (African)
Pronounced: LIET(English)
From the English word
light meaning "Electromagnetic radiation in the wavelength range visible to the human eye (about 400–750 nanometers); visible light".
From Middle English light, liht, leoht, from Old English lēoht, from Proto-West Germanic *leuht, from Proto-Germanic *leuhtą, from Proto-Indo-European *lewktom, from the root *lewk- (“light”).
It's also transferred from the surname Light.
As a given name, it's most common in Nigeria and several African countries.
Lolia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ijaw
Pronounced: LO LIA
Means "star" in Ijaw.
Lucilio
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Italian (Rare)
Lucy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LOO-see
English form of
Lucia, in use since the Middle Ages.
Luka
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Croatian, Serbian, Slovene, Macedonian, Russian, Georgian, Old Church Slavic
Other Scripts: Лука(Serbian, Macedonian, Russian) ლუკა(Georgian) Лꙋка(Church Slavic)
Pronounced: LOO-ka(Croatian) LOO-KAH(Georgian)
Form of
Lucas (see
Luke) in several languages.
Lyndis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Popular Culture
A deviant of
Lynn. Used in the popular videogame "Fire Emblem."
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).
Mackenzie
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: mə-KEHN-zee
From a Scottish surname, an Anglicized form of Gaelic
Mac Coinnich, itself derived from the given name
Coinneach. As a feminine given name it was popularized by the American actress Mackenzie Phillips (1959-), especially after she began appearing on the television comedy
One Day at a Time in 1975. In the United Kingdom it is more common as a masculine name.
Maeve
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, English, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: MAYV(English)
Anglicized form of the Irish name
Medb meaning
"intoxicating". In Irish legend this was the name of a warrior queen of Connacht. She and her husband
Ailill fought against the Ulster king
Conchobar and the hero
Cúchulainn, as told in the Irish epic
The Cattle Raid of Cooley.
Mai 3
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Estonian, Norwegian, Danish, Breton [1]
Diminutive of
Maria. This is also the Estonian and Norwegian name for the month of May.
Malina 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish
Mansurah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hausa
Means "supporter, victorious" in Hausa.
Marcella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, German, Ancient Roman
Pronounced: mar-CHEHL-la(Italian) mar-KEHL-la(Latin)
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)
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.
Marigold
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: MAR-i-gold, MEHR-i-gold
From the name of the flower, which comes from a combination of
Mary and the English word
gold.
Marquita
Gender: Feminine
Usage: African American
Mars
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Roman Mythology
Pronounced: MARS(Latin) MAHRZ(American English) MAHZ(British English)
Possibly related to Latin
mas meaning
"male" (genitive
maris). In Roman
mythology Mars was the god of war, often equated with the Greek god
Ares. This is also the name of the fourth planet in the solar system.
Mary
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Biblical
Pronounced: MEHR-ee(English)
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.
May
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAY
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.
Maya 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MIE-ə, MAY-ə
Variant of
Maia 1. This name can also be given in reference to the Maya, an indigenous people of southern Mexico and parts of Central America whose civilization flourished between the 3rd and 8th centuries. A famous bearer was the American poet and author Maya Angelou (1928-2014).
Mayumi 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Tagalog
Pronounced: ma-YOO-mee
Means "tender, soft, modest" in Tagalog.
Mel
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MEHL
Mercedes
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: mehr-THEH-dhehs(European Spanish) mehr-SEH-dhehs(Latin American Spanish) mər-SAY-deez(American English) mə-SAY-deez(British English)
Means
"mercies" (that is, the plural of mercy), from the Spanish title of the Virgin
Mary,
Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes, meaning "Our Lady of Mercies". It is ultimately from the Latin word
merces meaning "wages, reward", which in Vulgar Latin acquired the meaning "favour, pity"
[1].
Michelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English, Dutch
Pronounced: MEE-SHEHL(French) mi-SHEHL(English) mee-SHEHL(Dutch) mee-SHEH-lə(Dutch)
French feminine form of
Michel. It has been common in the English-speaking world since the middle of the 20th century. A famous bearer is the former American first lady Michelle Obama (1964-).
Mina 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Dutch
Pronounced: MEE-nə(English) MEE-na(Dutch)
Short form of
Wilhelmina and other names ending in
mina. This was the name of a character in the novel
Dracula (1897) by Bram Stoker.
Min-Ji
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Korean
Other Scripts: 민지(Korean Hangul) 敏智, 敏知, etc.(Korean Hanja)
Pronounced: MEEN-JEE
From Sino-Korean
敏 (min) meaning "quick, clever, sharp" combined with
智 (ji) meaning "wisdom, intellect" or
知 (ji) meaning "know, perceive, comprehend". Other hanja combinations are possible.
Mirasol
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish (Philippines)
Pronounced: mi-ru-SAWL(Filipino Spanish)
Means "sunflower" in Spanish.
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)
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.
Mônica
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Portuguese (Brazilian)
Brazilian Portuguese form of
Monica.
Mott
The surname Mott was first found in Essex, where the family held a family seat from very early times, having been granted lands by Duke William of Normandy, their liege Lord, for their distinguished assistance at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 A.D. Moate (Irish:
An Móta) is a town in County Westmeath, Ireland.
In this case, the town's name was derived from the term "Motte-and-Bailey," an early Norman fortification with a wooden or stone keep. The Norman earthwork is still visible behind the buildings on the main street.
Muriel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Irish, Scottish, Medieval Breton (Anglicized)
Pronounced: MYUWR-ee-əl(English) MUY-RYEHL(French)
Anglicized form of Irish
Muirgel and Scottish
Muireall. A form of this name was also used in Brittany, and it was first introduced to medieval England by Breton settlers in the wake of the
Norman Conquest. In the modern era it was popularized by a character from Dinah Craik's novel
John Halifax, Gentleman (1856).
Musa
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arabic, Turkish, Hausa, Urdu, Bengali, Indonesian, Malay
Other Scripts: موسى(Arabic) موسیٰ(Urdu) মুসা(Bengali)
Pronounced: MOO-sa(Arabic, Indonesian, Malay) moo-SA(Turkish)
Nancie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NAN-see
Naomi 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Hebrew, Biblical
Other Scripts: נָעֳמִי(Hebrew)
Pronounced: nay-O-mee(English) nie-O-mee(English)
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-).
Nasha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various
Nathan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Hebrew, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: נָתָן(Hebrew) Ναθάν(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: NAY-thən(English) NA-TAHN(French)
From the Hebrew name
נָתָן (Naṯan) meaning
"he gave". In the
Old Testament this is the name of a prophet during the reign of King
David. He chastised David for his adultery with
Bathsheba and for the death of
Uriah the Hittite. Later he championed
Solomon as David's successor. This was also the name of a son of David and Bathsheba.
It has been used as a Christian given name in the English-speaking world since the Protestant Reformation. A famous bearer was Nathan Hale (1755-1776), an American spy executed by the British during the American Revolution.
Nelly
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish, French, German
Pronounced: NEHL-ee(English) NEH-luy(Swedish) NEH-LEE(French)
Nevada
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: nə-VAD-ə
From the name of the American state, which means "snow-capped" in Spanish.
Neven
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian
Other Scripts: Невен(Serbian, Macedonian)
Nicole
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English, Dutch, German
Pronounced: NEE-KAWL(French) ni-KOL(English) nee-KAWL(Dutch, German)
French feminine form of
Nicholas, commonly used in the English-speaking world since the middle of the 20th century. A famous bearer is American-Australian actress Nicole Kidman (1967-).
Nika 1
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Russian
Other Scripts: Ника(Russian)
Russian short form of
Veronika and other names ending in
nika. It can also be a short form of
Nikita 1 (masculine).
Nikki
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NIK-ee
Niko
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Finnish, Croatian, Slovene, Georgian, German
Other Scripts: ნიკო(Georgian)
Pronounced: NEE-ko(Finnish)
Finnish form of
Nicholas, as well as a Croatian, Slovene, Georgian and German short form.
Noel
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NOL, NO-əl
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-).
Noir
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Transferred use of the surname
Noir.
Ozzy
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AWZ-ee
Pearl
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PURL(American English) PUL(British English)
From the English word pearl for the concretions formed in the shells of some mollusks, ultimately from Late Latin perla. Like other gemstone names, it has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since the 19th century. The pearl is the traditional birthstone for June, and it supposedly imparts health and wealth.
Penny
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PEHN-ee
Diminutive of
Penelope. It can also be given in reference to the copper coin (a British pound or an American dollar are worth 100 of them), derived from Old English
penning.
Peppa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Sardinian
Percival
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle, English
Pronounced: PUR-si-vəl(American English) PU-si-vəl(British English)
Created by the 12th-century French poet Chrétien de Troyes for his poem
Perceval, the Story of the Grail. Chrétien may have derived the name from Old French
perce val "pierce the valley", or he may have based it loosely on the Welsh name
Peredur [1]. In the poem Perceval is a boy from Wales who hopes to become a knight under King
Arthur. Setting out to prove himself, he eventually comes to the castle of the Fisher King and is given a glimpse of the Grail.
Pit
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Limburgish
Pronounced: PIT
Limburgish short form of
Pitter.
Polina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Greek
Other Scripts: Полина(Russian, Bulgarian) Поліна(Ukrainian) Πωλίνα(Greek)
Pronounced: pu-LYEE-nə(Russian)
Either a Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian and Greek form of
Paulina or a short form of
Apollinariya.
Primrose
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: PRIM-roz
From the English word for the flower, ultimately deriving from Latin prima rosa "first rose".
Prince
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PRINS
From the English word prince, a royal title, which comes ultimately from Latin princeps. This name was borne by the American musician Prince Rogers Nelson (1958-2016), who is known simply as Prince.
Psyche
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ψυχή(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: PSUY-KEH(Classical Greek) SIE-kee(English)
Means
"the soul", derived from Greek
ψύχω (psycho) meaning "to breathe". The Greeks thought that the breath was the soul. In Greek
mythology Psyche was a beautiful maiden who was beloved by Eros (or Cupid in Roman mythology). She is the subject of Keats's poem
Ode to Psyche (1819).
Pusheen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Popular Culture
From Irish piscín meaning "kitten". It is the name of a popular animated kitten who became famous on Tumblr. She was created by Claire Belton and Andrew Duff in 2010, and has since grown into an empire of toys, books, and other characters.
Robin
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English, French, Dutch, Swedish, Czech
Pronounced: RAHB-in(American English) RAWB-in(British English) RAW-BEHN(French) RAW-bin(Dutch) RO-bin(Czech)
Medieval English
diminutive of
Robert, now usually regarded as an independent name. Robin Hood was a legendary hero and archer of medieval England who stole from the rich to give to the poor. In modern times it has also been used as a feminine name, and it may sometimes be given in reference to the red-breasted bird.
Rosetta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: ro-ZEHT-ta
Roy
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, English, Dutch
Pronounced: ROI(English, Dutch)
Anglicized form of
Ruadh. A notable bearer was the Scottish outlaw and folk hero Rob Roy (1671-1734). It is often associated with French
roi "king".
Ruby
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ROO-bee
Simply from the name of the precious stone (which ultimately derives from Latin
ruber "red"), which is the traditional birthstone of July. It came into use as a given name in the 16th century
[1].
Sabi
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German
Sable
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: SAY-bəl
From the English word meaning "black", derived from the name of the black-furred mammal native to northern Asia, ultimately of Slavic origin.
Sadhbh
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: SIEW(Irish) SIEV(Irish)
Modern Irish form of
Sadb.
Sage
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: SAYJ
From the English word sage, which denotes either a type of spice or else a wise person.
Sally
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SAL-ee
Sanya 2
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Russian
Other Scripts: Саня(Russian)
Pronounced: SA-nyə
Sawyer
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: SOI-ər(American English) SOI-ə(British English)
From an English surname meaning
"sawer of wood". Mark Twain used it for the hero in his novel
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876).
Very rare as an American given name before 1980, it increased in popularity in the 1980s and 90s. It got a boost in 2004 after the debut of the television series Lost, which featured a character by this name.
Selene
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Σελήνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: SEH-LEH-NEH(Classical Greek) si-LEE-nee(English) si-LEEN(English)
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.
Serena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Late Roman
Pronounced: sə-REEN-ə(English) seh-REH-na(Italian)
From a Late Latin name that was derived from Latin
serenus meaning
"clear, tranquil, serene". This name was borne by an obscure early
saint. Edmund Spenser also used it in his poem
The Faerie Queene (1590). A famous bearer from the modern era is tennis player Serena Williams (1981-).
Shadow
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare), Pet
Pronounced: SHAD-o
Transferred use of the surname
Shadow or simply from the English word
shadow.
Sheena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: SHEE-nə(English)
Anglicized form of
Sìne. This name was popularized outside of Scotland in the 1980s by the singer Sheena Easton (1959-).
Sienna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: see-EHN-ə
From the English word meaning "orange-red". It is ultimately from the name of the city of Siena in Italy, because of the colour of the clay there.
Silver
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: SIL-vər(American English) SIL-və(British English)
From the English word for the precious metal or the colour, ultimately derived from Old English seolfor.
Silvermist
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Popular Culture
A Disney character known as water-talent fairy who appears as a friend to
Tinker Bell in Tinkerbell's cartoon films, in the ABC television show 'Once Upon a Time in Wonderland', and in Kinect Disneyland Adventures Pixie Hollow mini-game.
Her name is a combination of the English words "silver" and "mist".
Sìne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish Gaelic [1]
Pronounced: SHEE-nyə
Sirius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Astronomy
Pronounced: SIR-ee-əs(English)
The name of a bright star in the constellation Canis Major, derived via Latin from Greek
σείριος (seirios) meaning
"burning".
Siubhan
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic cognate of
Siobhán. This name used to be Anglicized as the etymologically unrelated
Judith.
Sohan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French (Modern)
Meaning uncertain, though allegedly a form of
Jean 1. It is probably modelled after
Yohan and
Lohan.
Soleil
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various
Pronounced: SAW-LAY(French)
Means "sun" in French. It is not commonly used as a name in France itself.
Solstice
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern, Rare)
Pronounced: SAWL-stis
Derived from Latin
solsticium and thus ultimately from
sol "sun" and
stito "to stand still". The English word
solstice refers to two times of the year when the sun's apparent position in the sky reaches its northernmost or southernmost extremes.
Lionel Shriver (born Margaret Shriver), used Solstice for a character in her novel 'Big Brother' (2013).
Sonic
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Popular Culture
Pronounced: SAHN-ik(American English) SAWN-ik(British English)
From the English word
sonic meaning
"related to sound", derived from Latin
sonus meaning "sound". It also connotates speediness, or the speed of sound, due to words like
supersonic or
hypersonic. A notable fictional bearer is the speedy video game character Sonic the Hedgehog, introduced in 1991 by Sega. He is called
ソニック (Sonikku) in Japan.
Stella 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Dutch, German
Pronounced: STEHL-ə(English) STEHL-la(Italian) STEH-la(Dutch)
Means "star" in Latin. This name was created by the 16th-century poet Philip Sidney for the subject of his collection of sonnets Astrophel and Stella. It was a nickname of a lover of Jonathan Swift, real name Esther Johnson (1681-1728), though it was not commonly used as a given name until the 19th century. It appears in Tennessee Williams' play A Streetcar Named Desire (1947), belonging to the sister of Blanche DuBois and the wife of Stanley Kowalski.
Stormy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: STAWR-mee(American English) STAW-mee(British English)
From the English word meaning "stormy, wild, turbulent", ultimately from Old English stormig.
Sunny
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SUN-ee
From the English word meaning "sunny, cheerful".
Tabitha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Biblical, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ταβιθά(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: TAB-i-thə(English)
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.
Taiwo
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Yoruba
Pronounced: TA-EE-WO
Means "taste the world, taste life" in Yoruba.
Tara 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TAHR-ə, TEHR-ə, TAR-ə
Anglicized form of the Irish place name Teamhair, which possibly means "elevated place". This was the name of the sacred hill near Dublin where the Irish high kings resided. It was popularized as a given name by the novel Gone with the Wind (1936) and the subsequent movie adaptation (1939), in which it is the name of the O'Hara plantation.
Tariere
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ijaw
Pronounced: ta ri hey rey
Means "the loved woman" in Ijaw.
Tatum
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: TAY-təm
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "Tata's homestead" in Old English. It was brought to public attention by the child actress Tatum O'Neal (1963-) in the 1970s, though it did not catch on. It attained a modest level of popularity after 1996, when it was borne by a character in the movie Scream.
Terry 2
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: TEHR-ee
Diminutive of
Terence or
Theresa. A famous bearer was Terry Fox (1958-1981), a young man with an artificial leg who attempted to run across Canada to raise money for cancer research. He died of the disease before crossing the country.
Tinker Bell
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: TING-kər BEHL(American English) TING-kə BEHL(British English)
Created by the writer J. M. Barrie for a fairy character, first introduced in his 1904 play Peter Pan. Her name refers to the fact that she is a mender of pots and kettles (a tinker) with a voice like a tinkling bell.
Tiyaga
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Tagalog, Cebuano, Filipino
Means "perseverance" in Tagalog and Cebuano.
Tomo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Croatian
Pronounced: TO-mo
Tyrell
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern), African American (Modern)
Pronounced: TIR-əl(English) tie-REHL(English) tə-REHL(English)
From a surname that was a variant of
Terrell. Influenced by similar-sounding names such as
Tyrone and
Darrell it has been used by African-American parents, usually stressed on the second syllable.
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".
Vector
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Popular Culture
Pronounced: VEHK-tər
Means "carrier" in Latin. This is the name of two fictional characters; Vector the Crocodile from the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, and a villain from Despicable Me.
Vera 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Portuguese, Italian, Spanish, Hungarian, Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Belarusian, Georgian
Other Scripts: Вера(Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Belarusian) ვერა(Georgian)
Pronounced: VYEH-rə(Russian) VIR-ə(English) VEHR-ə(English) VEH-ra(German, Dutch) VEH-rah(Swedish) BEH-ra(Spanish) VEH-raw(Hungarian)
Means "faith" in Russian, though it is sometimes associated with the Latin word verus "true". It has been in general use in the English-speaking world since the late 19th century.
Veronica
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Romanian, Late Roman
Pronounced: və-RAHN-i-kə(American English) və-RAWN-i-kə(British English) veh-RAW-nee-ka(Italian)
Latin alteration of
Berenice, the spelling influenced by the ecclesiastical Latin phrase
vera icon meaning
"true image". This was the name of a legendary
saint who wiped
Jesus' face with a towel and then found his image imprinted upon it. Due to popular stories about her, the name was occasionally used in the Christian world in the Middle Ages. It was borne by the Italian saint and mystic Veronica Giuliani (1660-1727). As an English name, it was not common until the 19th century, when it was imported from France and Scotland.
Vidia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian (Rare)
Vieno
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Finnish (Rare)
Pronounced: VEE-eh-no
Means "gentle" in Finnish.
Viridian
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Various (Modern, Rare)
From the name of the blue-green pigment, which is derived from Latin viridis, meaning "green".
Wren
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: REHN
From the English word for the small songbird. It is ultimately derived from Old English wrenna.
Yani
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Bulgarian, Greek
Other Scripts: Яни(Bulgarian)
Pronounced: YAH-nee(Greek)
Yuki
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Japanese
Other Scripts: 幸, 雪, 由貴, 由紀, etc.(Japanese Kanji) ゆき(Japanese Hiragana)
Pronounced: YOO-KYEE
From Japanese
幸 (yuki) meaning "happiness" or
雪 (yuki) meaning "snow". It can also come from
由 (yu) meaning "reason, cause" combined with
貴 (ki) meaning "valuable" or
紀 (ki) meaning "chronicle". Other kanji or kanji combinations are also possible.
Yvette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: EE-VEHT(French) ee-VEHT(English) i-VEHT(English)
French feminine form of
Yves.
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.
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