Ares m Greek MythologyPerhaps from either Greek
ἀρή (are) meaning
"bane, ruin" or
ἄρσην (arsen) meaning
"male". The name first appears as
a-re in Mycenaean Greek writing. Ares was the bloodthirsty god of war in Greek mythology, a son of
Zeus and
Hera.
Aretas m BiblicalGreek form of an Aramaic name, of unknown meaning. This was the name of four Nabataean kings of
Petra in Jordan, including the first king (2nd century BC). King Aretas IV is mentioned briefly in the New Testament.
Argider m BasqueDerived from Basque
argi "light" and
eder "beautiful".
Argus m Greek Mythology (Latinized)From the Greek
Ἄργος (Argos), derived from
ἀργός (argos) meaning
"glistening, shining". This name was borne by several characters from Greek myth, including the man who built the Argo and a giant with one hundred eyes.
Aridai m BiblicalMeaning uncertain, possibly of Persian origin. In the Old Testament this is the name of one of the ten sons of
Haman killed by the Jews.
Ariel m & f Hebrew, English, French, Spanish, Polish, Biblical, Biblical GreekMeans
"lion of God" in Hebrew, from
אֲרִי ('ari) meaning "lion" and
אֵל ('el) meaning "God". In the Old Testament it is used as another name for the city of Jerusalem. Shakespeare utilized it for a spirit in his play
The Tempest (1611) and Alexander Pope utilized it for a sylph in his poem
The Rape of the Lock (1712), and one of the moons of Uranus bears this name in his honour. As an English name, it became more common for females in the 1980s, especially after it was used for the title character in the Disney film
The Little Mermaid (1989).
Aries m AstronomyMeans
"ram" in Latin. This is the name of a constellation and the first sign of the zodiac. Some Roman legends state that the ram in the constellation was the one who supplied the Golden Fleece sought by
Jason.
Aristotle m Ancient Greek (Anglicized)From the Greek name
Ἀριστοτέλης (Aristoteles) meaning
"the best purpose", derived from
ἄριστος (aristos) meaning "best" and
τέλος (telos) meaning "purpose, result, completion". This was the name of a Greek philosopher of the 4th century BC who made lasting contributions to Western thought, including the fields of logic, metaphysics, ethics and biology.
Arjuna m HinduismMeans
"white, clear" in Sanskrit. This is the name of a hero in Hindu texts, the son of the god
Indra and the princess Kunti.
Arkadios m Ancient GreekFrom an ancient Greek name meaning
"of Arcadia". Arcadia was a region in Greece, its name deriving from
ἄρκτος (arktos) meaning "bear". This was the name of a 3rd-century saint and martyr.
Arkadiy m RussianRussian form of
Arkadios. This is the name of one of the main characters in Ivan Turgenev's
Fathers and Sons (1862).
Arlo m EnglishMeaning uncertain. It was perhaps inspired by the fictional place name Arlo Hill from the poem
The Faerie Queene (1590) by Edmund Spenser. Spenser probably got Arlo by altering the real Irish place name Aherlow, meaning "between two highlands".
Arlotto m Medieval ItalianMedieval Italian name, recorded in Latin as
Arlotus. It is possibly from Old French
herlot meaning
"vagabond, tramp".
Armani m & f English (Modern)From an Italian surname meaning
"son of Ermanno". It has been used as a given name due to the fashion company Armani, which was founded by the clothing designer Giorgio Armani (1934-).
Armas m FinnishMeans
"beloved" in Finnish (an archaic poetic word).
Armel m Breton, FrenchBreton and French form of the Old Welsh name
Arthmail, which was composed of the elements
arth "bear" and
mael "prince, chieftain". This was the name of a 6th-century Welsh saint who founded abbeys in Brittany.
Arminius m Old Germanic (Latinized)Latinized form of a Germanic name, possibly derived from the element *
ermunaz meaning
"whole, universal". Other theories claim that it is related to
Herman, or that it is not Germanic at all. Arminius was a 1st-century chief of the Germanic tribe of the Cherusci. Raised in Rome as a hostage, he eventually became a citizen and joined the army. However, he turned against the Empire, leading the Germans in a surprise attack in the Teutoburg Forest and driving the Romans from Germania.
Arnfinn m NorwegianNorwegian form of
Arnfinnr, which was derived from the elements
ǫrn "eagle" and
finnr "Sámi, person from Finland".
Arnold m English, German, Dutch, Polish, GermanicFrom a Germanic name meaning
"eagle power", derived from the elements
arn "eagle" and
walt "power, authority". The Normans brought it to England, where it replaced the Old English cognate
Earnweald. It died out as an English name after the Middle Ages, but it was revived in the 19th century.
... [more] Arnulf m German, GermanicGermanic name derived from the elements
arn meaning "eagle" and
wolf meaning "wolf". This name was borne by a few early saints, notably a 7th-century Frankish bishop of Metz. It was also the name of a 9th-century Holy Roman emperor.
Árpád m HungarianFrom Hungarian
árpa meaning
"barley". This was the name of a 9th-century Magyar ruler who led his people into Hungary. He is considered a Hungarian national hero.
Arran m ScottishFrom the name of an island off the west coast of Scotland in the Firth of Clyde.
Arsenios m Ancient GreekMeans
"virile" in Greek. Saint Arsenius was a 5th-century deacon who was tutor to the two sons of the Roman emperor Theodosius. The two sons, Arcadius and Honorius, divided the empire into eastern and western halves upon their father's death.
Artabazos m Old Persian (Hellenized)Greek form of the Old Persian name *
Artavazda meaning
"persevering through truth", a calque of Avestan
𐬀𐬴𐬀𐬎𐬎𐬀𐬰𐬛𐬀𐬵 (Ashauuazdah). This was the name of two Achaemenid Persian satraps of Hellespontine Phrygia.
Artaxerxes m Old Persian (Hellenized), Biblical, HistoryGreek form of the Old Persian name
𐎠𐎼𐎫𐎧𐏁𐏂𐎠 (Artaxšaça) meaning
"reign through truth", derived from
𐎠𐎼𐎫 (arta) meaning "truth" and
𐎧𐏁𐏂𐎶 (xšaçam) meaning "reign, kingdom". This was the name of several Achaemenid Persian rulers. It was also borne by the founder of the Sasanian Empire, usually known by the Middle Persian form
Ardashir.
Artemidoros m Ancient GreekMeans
"gift of Artemis" from the name of the goddess
Artemis combined with Greek
δῶρον (doron) meaning "gift". This was the name of a Greek author of the 2nd century who wrote about the interpretation of dreams.
Artemios m Ancient GreekFrom an ancient Greek name that was derived from the name of the Greek goddess
Artemis. This was the name of a 4th-century general in the Roman army who is venerated as a saint in the Orthodox Church.
Arthit m ThaiMeans
"sun" in Thai, derived from the name of the Hindu god
Aditya.
Artur m Portuguese, Galician, Catalan, Polish, Czech, Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, German, Estonian, Swedish, Albanian, ArmenianForm of
Arthur in several languages.
Arūnas m LithuanianDerived from poetic Lithuanian
aras meaning "eagle" combined with the patronymic suffix
ūnas.
Arwyn m WelshFrom the Welsh intensifying prefix
ar- and
gwyn meaning
"white, blessed".
Arya 1 m & f Persian, Hindi, MalayalamFrom an old Indo-Iranian root meaning "Aryan, noble". In India, this is a transcription of both the masculine form
आर्य and the feminine form
आर्या. In Iran it is only a masculine name.
Arzhang m Persian, Persian MythologyMeaning uncertain, possibly from Old Persian meaning
"message of truth". This is the name of a holy book in Manichaeism, written by
Mani. It is also the name of a character in the 10th-century Persian epic the
Shahnameh.
Asahi m & f JapaneseFrom Japanese
旭 (asahi) or
朝日 (asahi) both meaning "morning sun". Other kanji combinations can also form this name.
Asaph m BiblicalMeans
"collector" in Hebrew. This name belongs to several minor characters in the Old Testament.
Ascelin m GermanicDerived from a diminutive of the Old German element
asc meaning
"ash tree" (Proto-Germanic *
askaz).
Asen m BulgarianMeaning unknown, probably of Turkic origin. This was the name of a 12th-century Bulgarian emperor (Ivan Asen I) and several of his successors.
Asger m DanishFrom the Old Norse name
Ásgeirr, derived from the elements
áss meaning "god" and
geirr meaning "spear". It is a cognate of
Ansgar.
Asghar m Arabic, PersianMeans
"smallest, youngest" in Arabic. It is used by Shias in honour of Ali al-Asghar, a young son of
Husayn killed with his father.
Ash m & f EnglishShort form of
Ashley. It can also come directly from the English word denoting either the tree or the residue of fire.
Ashanti f & m VariousFrom the name of an African people who reside in southern Ghana. It possibly means "warlike" in the Twi language.
Ashley f & m EnglishFrom an English surname that was originally derived from place names meaning
"ash tree clearing", from a combination of Old English
æsc and
leah. Until the 1960s it was more commonly given to boys in the United States, but it is now most often used on girls. It reached its height of popularity in America in 1987, but it did not become the highest ranked name until 1991, being overshadowed by the likewise-popular
Jessica until then. In the United Kingdom it is still more common as a masculine name.
Ashoka m SanskritMeans
"without sorrow" in Sanskrit. This name was borne by Ashoka the Great, a 3rd-century BC emperor of India.
Ashton m & f English (Modern)From an English surname, itself derived from a place name meaning
"ash tree town" in Old English. This was a rare masculine name until the 1980s, when it gradually began becoming more common for both genders. Inspired by the female character Ashton Main from the 1985 miniseries
North and South, parents in America gave it more frequently to girls than boys from 1986 to 1997. Since then it has been overwhelmingly masculine once again, perhaps due in part to the fame of the actor Ashton Kutcher (1978-).
Ashur m Semitic MythologyFrom the name of the city of
Ashur, the capital of the Assyrian Empire, which is of unknown meaning. Ashur was the patron deity of the city and the chief god of Assyria.
Ashurbanipal m Ancient Assyrian (Anglicized)From Akkadian
Ashur-bani-apli meaning
"Ashur is creator of a son". This was the name of one of the final kings of the Assyrian Empire, reigning late in the 7th century BC. He appears in the Old Testament under the name
Asnappar.
Asif m Arabic, UrduPossibly derived from the Hebrew name
Asaph. In the Quran
27:40 an unnamed person magically transports the Queen of Sheba's throne to Solomon's court. According to some Islamic traditions, the person's name was Asif (or Asaf) and he was Solomon's vizier.
Asil m TurkishMeans
"noble" in Turkish, ultimately from Arabic
أصيل (asil).
Ask m Norse MythologyDerived from Old Norse
askr "ash tree". In Norse mythology Ask and his wife
Embla were the first humans created by the gods.
Aslan m Turkish, Kazakh, Azerbaijani, Chechen, Ossetian, Circassian, LiteratureFrom 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.
Asse m FrisianOriginally a short form of Germanic names beginning with the elements
asc meaning
"ash tree" or
ansi meaning
"god".
Astaroth m LiteratureFrom
Ashtaroth, the plural form of
Ashtoreth used in the Bible to refer to Phoenician idols. This spelling was used in late medieval demonology texts to refer to a type of (masculine) demon.
Asterion m Greek MythologyMeans
"of the stars", derived from Greek
ἀστήρ (aster) "star". This is the name of several figures in Greek mythology, including a river god.
Asterix m Popular CultureThe name of a Gaulish hero (
Astérix in the original French) in a comic book series of the same name, debuting 1959. His name is a pun based on French
astérisque meaning
"asterisk, little star" but appearing to end with the Gaulish element
rix meaning "king" (seen for example in the historical figure
Vercingetorix). All male Gauls in the series have humorous names ending with
-ix.
Aştî f & m KurdishMeans
"peace, tranquility" in Kurdish.
Aston m & f English (Rare)From a surname that was originally derived from either a place name meaning "east town" in Old English or from the given name
Æðelstan.
Astor m English (Rare)From a German and French surname derived from Occitan
astur meaning
"hawk". The wealthy and influential Astor family, prominent in British and American society, originated in the Italian Alps.
Astrophel m LiteratureProbably intended to mean "star lover", from Greek
ἀστήρ (aster) meaning "star" and
φίλος (philos) meaning "lover, friend". This name was first used by the 16th-century poet Philip Sidney in his collection of sonnets
Astrophel and Stella.
Asuka f & m JapaneseFrom Japanese
明日 (asu) meaning "tomorrow" and
香 (ka) meaning "fragrance", or from
飛 (asu) meaning "to fly" and
鳥 (ka) meaning "bird". Other kanji combinations can be possible as well.
Atabek m Kazakh, KyrgyzFrom the Turkic noble title
atabeg, derived from
ata meaning "father, ancestor" and
beg meaning "chieftain, master".
Atahualpa m Quechua (Anglicized)From Quechua
Atawallpa meaning
"fortunate hen", from
ataw meaning "fortunate, lucky" and
wallpa meaning "hen". This was the name of the last sovereign Inca emperor. He was executed by the Spanish in 1533.
Atajan m TurkmenFrom Turkmen
ata meaning "father, ancestor" combined with the suffix
jan meaning "dear, darling" (of Persian origin).