Vesta f Roman MythologyProbably a Roman cognate of
Hestia. Vesta was the Roman goddess of the hearth. A continuous fire, tended by the Vestal Virgins, was burned in the Temple of Vesta in Rome.
Vilja f Finnish, EstonianPossibly from the Finnish word
vilja meaning
"cereal, grain" or the Swedish word
vilja meaning
"will, intent".
Vilma f Spanish, Portuguese, Finnish, German, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, CroatianForm of
Wilma in several languages.
Viola f English, Italian, Swedish, Danish, Finnish, German, Hungarian, Czech, SlovakMeans
"violet" in Latin. This is the name of the heroine of William Shakespeare's comedy
Twelfth Night (1602). In the play she is the survivor of a shipwreck who disguises herself as a man named Cesario. Working as a messenger for Duke
Orsino, she attempts to convince
Olivia to marry him. Instead Viola falls in love with the duke.
Virgo f AstronomyMeans
"maiden, virgin" in Latin. This is the name of a constellation and the sixth sign of the zodiac.
Virva f FinnishPossibly derived from Finnish
virvatuli meaning
"will o' the wisp". In folklore, will o' the wisp is a floating ball of light that appears over water.
Virve f Estonian, FinnishFrom Estonian
virves meaning
"sprout, shoot" or
virve meaning
"ripple, shimmer".
Wanda f Polish, English, German, FrenchPossibly 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).
Wendy f EnglishIn 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.
Wilda f EnglishMeaning uncertain, perhaps from a German surname, or perhaps from the English word
wild. It has been in use since the 19th century.
Xenia f Greek, Spanish, Ancient GreekMeans
"hospitality" in Greek, a derivative of
ξένος (xenos) meaning "foreigner, guest". This was the name of a 5th-century saint who is venerated in the Eastern Church.
Xinyi m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
欣 (xīn) meaning "happy, joyous, delighted" or
心 (xīn) meaning "heart, mind, soul" combined with
怡 (yí) meaning "joy, harmony". This name can also be formed from other character combinations.
Yahui f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
雅 (yǎ) meaning "elegant, graceful, refined" combined with
惠 (huì) meaning "favour, benefit". This name can also be formed from other character combinations.
Yaiza f SpanishFrom the name of a town in the Canary Islands, Spain. It was used by the novelist Alberto Vázquez-Figueroa for the main character in his
Ocean trilogy of books (beginning 1984).
Yancy m & f EnglishFrom a surname, which was an Americanized form of the Dutch surname
Jansen meaning
"Jan 1's son".
Yawen f ChineseFrom Chinese
雅 (yǎ) meaning "elegant, graceful, refined" combined with
雯 (wén) meaning "cloud patterns". This name can be formed of other character combinations as well.
Yazhu f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
雅 (yǎ) meaning "elegant, graceful, refined" combined with
筑 (zhù) meaning "lute, zither, build". Other character combinations are also possible.
Yijun m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
怡 (yí) meaning "joy, harmony" combined with
君 (jūn) meaning "king, ruler". This name can also be formed from other character combinations.
Yoshi m & f JapaneseFrom Japanese
吉 (yoshi) meaning "good luck",
義 (yoshi) meaning "righteous", or
良 (yoshi) meaning "good, virtuous, respectable", as well as other kanji with the same reading.
Yuuki m & f JapaneseAlternate transcription of Japanese Kanji
優希 or
悠希 or
優輝 or
悠生 (see
Yūki).
Zaida f Arabic (Rare), SpanishFeminine form of
Zayd. This was the name of a Muslim princess who took refuge at the court of (and perhaps married) Alfonso VI of León and Castile in the 11th century.
Zaira f Italian, SpanishItalian and Spanish form of
Zaïre. It was used by Vincenzo Bellini for the heroine of his opera
Zaira (1829), which was based on Voltaire's 1732 play
Zaïre.
Zelda 2 f EnglishShort form of
Griselda. This is the name of a princess in the
Legend of Zelda video games, debuting in 1986 and called
ゼルダ (Zeruda) in Japanese. According to creator Shigeru Miyamoto she was named after the American socialite Zelda Fitzgerald (1900-1948).
Zuhra 2 f Arabic (Rare)Means
"brilliancy, light" in Arabic, derived from the root
زهر (zahara) meaning "to shine". This name is written identically to the related name
Zahrah, though it is pronounced differently.