Browse Names

This is a list of names in which the gender is feminine; and the first letter is W.
gender
usage
letter
Wacława f Polish (Rare)
Feminine form of Wacław.
Wafiya f Arabic
Feminine form of Wafi.
Waheeda f Arabic
Alternate transcription of Arabic وحيدة (see Wahida).
Wahida f Arabic
Feminine form of Wahid.
Waimarie f Maori
Means "good luck" in Maori.
Wairimu f Eastern African, Kikuyu
From Kikuyu irimũ meaning "ogre, giant". In the Kikuyu origin legend Wairimu is of one of the nine daughters of Mumbi.
Wakana f Japanese
From Japanese (wa) meaning "harmony, peace" and (kana) meaning "play music, complete", as well as other combinations of kanji that are pronounced the same way.
Walburga f German
Means "power of the fortress" from Old German walt meaning "power, authority" and burg meaning "fortress" (or perhaps from Old English cognates, though as an Old English name it is unattested). This was the name of an 8th-century Anglo-Saxon saint who did missionary work in Germany.
Waldeburg f Germanic
Old German form of Walburga.
Walela f Indigenous American, Cherokee
From Cherokee ᏩᎴᎳ (walela) meaning "hummingbird".
Walentyna f Polish
Polish form of Valentina.
Waleria f Polish
Polish form of Valeria.
Wallis m & f English (Rare)
From a surname that was a variant of Wallace. Wallis Simpson (1895-1986) was the divorced woman whom Edward VIII married, which forced him to abdicate the British throne.
Walpurga f German
Variant of Walburga.
Waltraud f German
From the Old German elements walt "power, authority" and drud "strength". This name was borne by a 7th-century Frankish saint who founded a convent near Mons, Belgium.
Waltraut f German
Variant of Waltraud.
Wambdi m & f Indigenous American, Sioux
Dakota form of Wambli.
Wambli m & f Indigenous American, Sioux
From Lakota waŋblí meaning "eagle".
Wambui f Eastern African, Kikuyu
Means "zebra" in Kikuyu. This is one of Mumbi's nine daughters in the Kikuyu origin legend.
Wanangwa m & f Southern African, Tumbuka
Means "freedom" in Tumbuka.
Wanda f Polish, English, German, French
Possibly from a Germanic name meaning "a Wend", referring to the Slavic people who inhabited eastern Germany. In Polish legends this was the name of the daughter of King Krak, the legendary founder of Krakow. It was introduced to the English-speaking world by the author Ouida, who used it for the heroine in her novel Wanda (1883).
Wanesa f Polish (Modern)
Polish form of Vanessa.
Wangari f Eastern African, Kikuyu
From Kikuyu ngarĩ meaning "leopard". In the Kikuyu origin legend this is the name of one of the nine daughters of Mumbi.
Wangchuk m & f Tibetan, Bhutanese
Means "mighty" in Tibetan, from དབང (dbang) meaning "power" and ཕྱུག (phyug) meaning "wealthy, possessing". This is the Tibetan name for the god Shiva.
Wangi f Indonesian, Malay
Means "fragrant" in Malay and Indonesian.
Wangui f Eastern African, Kikuyu
From Kikuyu ngũi meaning "song leader". This is one of Mumbi's nine daughters in the Kikuyu origin legend.
Wanjiku f Eastern African, Kikuyu
Meaning unknown. This is one of Mumbi's nine daughters in the Kikuyu origin legend.
Wanjiru f Eastern African, Kikuyu
Possibly from Kikuyu njĩra meaning "way, path". In the Kikuyu origin legend this is the name of one of the nine daughters of Mumbi.
Wâpanacâhkos f Indigenous American, Cree
Means "morning star, Venus" in Cree.
Warda f Arabic
Means "rose" in Arabic, ultimately a borrowing from an Iranian language.
Wardah f Arabic
Alternate transcription of Arabic وردة (see Warda).
Washti f Biblical Hebrew
Biblical Hebrew form of Vashti.
Wassa f Anglo-Saxon
Meaning uncertain. It may be a short form of a longer name such as Wāðsige, composed of the elements wāð "hunt" and sige "victory".
Wati f Indonesian, Malay
From a suffix meaning "woman" in Indonesian, ultimately from Sanskrit.
Wattana f & m Thai
Means "development" in Thai.
Waverly f & m English
From the rare English surname Waverley, derived from the name of a place in Surrey, itself possibly from Old English wæfre "flickering, wavering" and leah "woodland, clearing".... [more]
Wayan m & f Balinese
From Balinese wayah meaning "old, mature", ultimately from Sanskrit वयस् (vayas) meaning "energy, strength, age". This name is traditionally given to the first-born child.
Wedad f Arabic
Alternate transcription of Arabic وداد (see Widad).
Wednesday f Popular Culture
From the name of the day of the week, which was derived from Old English wodnesdæg meaning "Woden's day". On the Addams Family television series (1964-1966) this was the name of the teenaged daughter, based on an earlier unnamed character in Charles Addams' cartoons. Her name was inspired by the popular nursery rhyme line Wednesday's child is full of woe.
Wei m & f Chinese
From Chinese (wēi) meaning "power, pomp", (wēi) meaning "high, lofty, towering" or (wěi) meaning "great, robust, extraordinary". As a feminine name it can come from (wēi) meaning "small" or (wēi) meaning "fern". This name can be formed by other Chinese characters besides those shown here.
Wen m & f Chinese
From Chinese (wén) meaning "literature, culture, writing", as well as other characters with a similar pronunciation. A famous bearer was the 2nd-century BC Emperor Wen of Han (posthumous name).
Wenche f Norwegian
Norwegian variant of Wenke. A famous bearer is the Norwegian singer Wenche Myhre (1947-), known as Wencke in some countries so as to avoid pronunciation confusion.
Wendi f English
Variant of Wendy.
Wendy f English
In the case of the character from J. M. Barrie's play Peter Pan (1904), it was created from the nickname fwendy "friend", given to the author by a young friend. However, the name was used prior to the play (rarely), in which case it could be related to the Welsh name Gwendolen and other names beginning with the element gwen meaning "white, blessed". The name only became common after Barrie's play ran.
Wenke f Low German
Low German diminutive of Germanic names containing the element wini meaning "friend".
Wenonah f Literature
Variant of Winona. This spelling of the name was used by the American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow for the mother of Hiawatha in his 1855 epic poem The Song of Hiawatha.
Wera f Polish
Polish form of Vera 1 or a short form of Weronika.
Werknesh f Eastern African, Amharic
Alternate transcription of Amharic ወርቅነሽ (see Worknesh).
Weronika f Polish, Sorbian
Polish and Sorbian form of Veronica.
Whetū f & m Maori
Means "star" in Maori.
Whitney f & m English
From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "white island" in Old English. Its popular use as a feminine name was initiated by actress Whitney Blake (1925-2002) in the 1960s, and further boosted in the 1980s by singer Whitney Houston (1963-2012).
Wibke f German
Feminine form of Wiebe.
Widad f Arabic
Means "love" in Arabic.
Widya f Indonesian
Indonesian form of Vidya.
Wiebke f Frisian, German
Feminine form of Wiebe.
Wiesława f Polish
Feminine form of Wielisław.
Wigburg f Germanic
Derived from the Old German elements wig "war" and burg "fortress".
Wihtburg f Anglo-Saxon
Derived from the Old English elements wiht "creature, being" and burg "fortress". This was the name of an 8th-century saint, said to be the youngest daughter of King Anna of East Anglia.
Wikolia f Hawaiian
Hawaiian form of Victoria.
Wiktoria f Polish
Polish form of Victoria.
Wil m & f English, Dutch
Short form of William and other names beginning with Wil.
Wilburg f Anglo-Saxon
Derived from the Old English elements willa "will, desire" and burg "fortress".
Wilda f English
Meaning uncertain, perhaps from a German surname, or perhaps from the English word wild. It has been in use since the 19th century.
Wilfreda f English (Rare)
Feminine form of Wilfred.
Wilhelmina f Dutch, German (Rare), English
Dutch and German feminine form of Wilhelm. This name was borne by a queen of the Netherlands (1880-1962).
Wilhelmine f German
German feminine form of Wilhelm.
Willa f English
Feminine form of William.
Willemijn f Dutch
Feminine form of Willem.
Willemina f Dutch
Feminine form of Willem.
Willidrud f Germanic
Old German form of Wiltrud.
Willie m & f English
Masculine or feminine diminutive of William. Notable bearers include the retired American baseball player Willie Mays (1931-) and the musician Willie Nelson (1933-).
Willow f English (Modern)
From the name of the tree, which is ultimately derived from Old English welig.
Willy m & f English, German, Dutch
Diminutive of William, Wilhelm or Willem. It is both masculine and feminine in Dutch.
Wilma f German, Dutch, English, Swedish
Short form of Wilhelmina. German settlers introduced it to America in the 19th century.
Wilmot m & f Medieval English
Medieval diminutive and feminine form of William.
Wiltrud f German
Derived from the Old German elements willo "will, desire" and drud "strength". This name was borne by a 10th-century German saint from Bergen.
Win m & f Burmese
Means "bright, radiant, brilliant" in Burmese.
Wina f Germanic
Germanic name derived from the element wini meaning "friend" (Proto-Germanic *weniz).
Windsor m & f English (Rare)
From an English surname that was from a place name meaning "riverbank with a windlass" in Old English (a windlass is a lifting apparatus). This has been the surname of the royal family of the United Kingdom since 1917.
Winifred f English, Welsh
From Latin Winifreda, possibly from a Welsh name Gwenfrewi (maybe influenced by the Old English masculine name Winfred). Saint Winifred was a 7th-century Welsh martyr, probably legendary. According to the story, she was decapitated by a prince after she spurned his advances. Where her head fell there arose a healing spring, which has been a pilgrimage site since medieval times. Her story was recorded in the 12th century by Robert of Shrewsbury, and she has been historically more widely venerated in England than in Wales. The name has been used in England since at least the 16th century.
Winnie f English
Diminutive of Winifred. Winnie-the-Pooh, a stuffed bear in children's books by A. A. Milne, was named after a real bear named Winnipeg who lived at the London Zoo.
Winona f English, Indigenous American, Sioux
Means "firstborn daughter" in Dakota or Lakota. According to folklore, this was the name of a daughter of a Dakota chief (possibly Wapasha III) who leapt from a cliff to her death rather than marry a man she hated. Numerous places in the United States have been named after her. The actress Winona Ryder (1971-) was named after the city in Minnesota where she was born.
Winter f English (Modern)
From the English word for the season, derived from Old English winter.
Wiola f Polish
Polish form of Viola.
Wioleta f Polish
Polish form of Violet.
Wioletta f Polish
Polish form of Violet.
Wisdom f & m English (Rare)
Simply from the English word, a derivative of Old English wis "wise".
Wisława f Polish (Rare)
Feminine form of Wielisław.
Wisteria f English (Rare)
From the name of the flowering plant, which was named for the American anatomist Caspar Wistar.
Wojciecha f Polish (Rare)
Feminine form of Wojciech.
Wongani m & f Southern African, Chewa
Means "be thankful" in Chewa.
Wren f English (Modern)
From the English word for the small songbird. It is ultimately derived from Old English wrenna.
Wrenley f English (Modern)
Elaboration of Wren using the popular name suffix ley.
Wu m & f Chinese
From Chinese () meaning "military, martial" (which is generally only masculine) or () meaning "affairs, business", as well as other characters that are pronounced similarly. This was the name of several Chinese rulers, including the 2nd-century BC emperor Wu of Han (a posthumous name, spelled ) who expanded the empire and made Confucianism the state philosophy.
Wulan f Javanese
Javanese form of Bulan.
Wulfflæd f Anglo-Saxon
Derived from the Old English elements wulf "wolf" and flæd, possibly meaning "beauty".
Wulfgifu f Anglo-Saxon
Derived from the Old English elements wulf "wolf" and giefu "gift".
Wulfrun f Anglo-Saxon
Derived from the Old English elements wulf "wolf" and run "secret lore, rune". This was the name of a 10th-century English noblewoman who founded the city of Wolverhampton.
Wulfruna f History
Form of Wulfrun sometimes used in reference to the 10th-century noblewoman.
Wulfwynn f Anglo-Saxon
Derived from the Old English elements wulf "wolf" and wynn "joy".
Wynne 1 m & f Welsh
Variant of Wyn, sometimes used as a feminine form.
Wynnflæd f Anglo-Saxon
Derived from the Old English elements wynn "joy" and flæd, possibly meaning "beauty".
Wynona f English
Variant of Winona.