Nao f & m JapaneseFrom Japanese
直 (nao) meaning "straight, direct" or from a combination of
奈 (na), a phonetic character, and
央 (o) meaning "center". Other kanji or kanji combinations can form this name as well.
Ned m EnglishDiminutive of
Edward or
Edmund. It has been used since the 14th century, and may have had root in the medieval affectionate phrase
mine Ed, which was later reinterpreted as
my Ned.
Neo 1 f & m TswanaMeans
"gift" in Tswana, a derivative of
naya "to give".
Nii m GaFrom a Ga word used as a masculine royal title.
Niv m HebrewMeans either
"speech, expression" or
"fang, tusk" in Hebrew.
Obi m & f IgboMeans
"heart" in Igbo.
Odo m GermanicVariant of
Otto. This form is typically Frankish, and used when referring to historical bearers from medieval France. It was the name of a 9th-century king of the West Franks. Another notable bearer was Saint Odo, a 10th-century abbot of Cluny.
Ola 3 m & f YorubaFrom Yoruba
ọlà meaning
"wealth" or the related
ọlá meaning
"honour, respect". It is also a short form of names containing those elements.
Olu m YorubaShort form of Yoruba names beginning with
olú or
olúwa meaning
"lord, God".
Ora 1 f & m EnglishPerhaps based on Latin
oro "to pray". It was first used in America in the 19th century.
Ott m EstonianPossibly an Estonian form of
Otto. It may also be inspired by an archaic Estonian word meaning
"bear".
Ove m Swedish, Norwegian, DanishProbably a modern form of the Old Danish name
Aghi, originally a short form of names that contain the Old Norse element
egg "edge of a sword" or
agi "awe, fear".
Pan m Greek MythologyPossibly from the Indo-European root *
peh- meaning
"shepherd, protect". In Greek mythology Pan was a half-man, half-goat god associated with shepherds, flocks and pastures.
Pat m & f EnglishShort form of
Patrick or
Patricia. A famous bearer of this name was Pat Garrett (1850-1908), the sheriff who shot Billy the Kid.
Pau m Catalan, OccitanCatalan and Occitan form of
Paul. It also coincides with the Catalan word for
"peace".
Pip m & f EnglishDiminutive of
Philip or
Philippa. This is the name of the main character in
Great Expectations (1860) by Charles Dickens.
Pua f & m HawaiianMeans
"flower, offspring" in Hawaiian.
Qiu m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
秋 (qiū) meaning "autumn",
丘 (qiū) meaning "hill, mound", or other characters with a similar pronunciation. The given name of the philosopher
Confucius was
丘.
Ra'd m ArabicMeans
"thunder" in Arabic. This is the name of the 13th chapter of the Quran (surah ar-Rad).
Raj m Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Punjabi, Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, NepaliMeans
"empire, royalty", from Sanskrit
राज्य (rajya).
Ram 1 m BiblicalMeans
"exalted" in Hebrew. This was a son of Hezron in the Old Testament.
Ray m EnglishShort form of
Raymond, often used as an independent name. It coincides with an English word meaning "beam of light". Science-fiction author Ray Bradbury (1920-2012) and musician Ray Charles (1930-2004) are two notable bearers of the name.
Red m EnglishFrom the English word for the colour, ultimately derived from Old English
read. It was originally a nickname given to a person with red hair or a ruddy complexion.
Ren m & f JapaneseFrom Japanese
蓮 (ren) meaning "lotus",
恋 (ren) meaning "romantic love", or other kanji that are pronounced the same way.
Rex m EnglishFrom Latin
rex meaning
"king". It has been used as a given name since the 19th century.
Rin f & m JapaneseFrom Japanese
凛 (rin) meaning "dignified, severe, cold" or other kanji that are pronounced the same way.
Rio 1 m & f VariousMeans
"river" in Spanish or Portuguese. A city in Brazil bears this name. Its full name is Rio de Janeiro, which means "river of January", so named because the first explorers came to the harbour in January and mistakenly thought it was a river mouth.
Roy m Scottish, English, DutchAnglicized 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".
Ruy m Portuguese, SpanishMedieval Portuguese and Spanish short form of
Rodrigo. It is another name of the 11th-century Spanish military commander Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, also known as El Cid.
Ryo m JapaneseAlternate transcription of Japanese Kanji
亮 or
涼 or
遼 or
諒 (see
Ryō).
Ryō m JapaneseFrom Japanese
亮 (ryō) meaning "clear",
涼 (ryō) meaning "cool, refreshing",
遼 (ryō) meaning "distant" or
諒 (ryō) meaning "reality", as well as other kanji that have the same pronunciation.
Ryū m JapaneseFrom Japanese
竜 or 龍 (ryū) meaning "dragon", as well as other kanji with the same pronunciation.
Sa'd m ArabicMeans
"fortune, good luck" in Arabic. Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas was a military commander during the early years of Islam, serving under the Prophet
Muhammad and his successor
Umar.
Sam 1 m & f English, LiteratureShort form of
Samuel,
Samson,
Samantha and other names beginning with
Sam. This is the name of a detective in Dashiell Hammett's novel
The Maltese Falcon (1930). In J. R. R. Tolkien's 1954 novel
The Lord of the Rings (1954) this is a short form of
Samwise.
Sam 2 m Persian, Persian MythologyMeans
"fire" in Persian (from an earlier Iranian root meaning "black"). This is the name of a hero in the 10th-century Persian epic the
Shahnameh.
Shi m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
时 (shí) meaning "time, era, season",
实 (shí) meaning "real, honest",
史 (shǐ) meaning "history" or
石 (shí) meaning "stone". Other characters can form this name as well.
Sho m JapaneseAlternate transcription of Japanese Kanji
翔 or
奨 (see
Shō).
Shō m JapaneseFrom Japanese
翔 (shō) meaning "soar, glide" or
奨 (shō) meaning "prize, reward". Other kanji with identical pronunciations can also form this name.
Sin m Semitic MythologyFrom earlier Akkadian
Su'en, of unknown meaning. This was the name of the Akkadian, Assyrian and Babylonian god of the moon. He was closely identified with the Sumerian god
Nanna.
Si-U m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
始 (si) meaning "begin, start" combined with
祐 (u) meaning "divine intervention, protection" or
雨 (u) meaning "rain". Other combinations of hanja characters can form this name as well.
Sky f & m English (Modern)Simply from the English word
sky, which was ultimately derived from Old Norse
ský "cloud".
Sly m EnglishShort form of
Sylvester. The actor Sylvester Stallone (1946-) is a well-known bearer of this nickname.
Sok m & f KhmerMeans
"healthy, peaceful, happy, pleasant" in Khmer, ultimately from Sanskrit
सुख (sukha).
Suk m KoreanAlternate transcription of Korean Hangul
석 (see
Seok).
Tai m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
太 (tài) meaning "very, extreme" or other characters pronounced in a similar way.
Tao m ChineseFrom Chinese
涛 (tāo) meaning "large waves", as well as other characters with a similar pronunciation.
Tau m Tswana, SothoMeans
"lion" in Tswana and Sotho. Tau was the name of the last ruler of the Rolong in South Africa (18th century).
Ted m EnglishShort form of
Edward or
Theodore. A famous bearer was the American baseball player Ted Williams (1918-2002), who was born as Theodore.
Tex m EnglishFrom a nickname denoting a person who came from the state of Texas. A famous bearer was the American animator Tex Avery (1908-1980), real name Frederick, who was born in Texas.
Tom 1 m English, Dutch, German, Norwegian, Danish, SwedishShort form of
Thomas. Tom Sawyer is the main character in several of Mark Twain's novels, first appearing in
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876). Other famous bearers include American actors Tom Hanks (1956-) and Tom Cruise (1962-), as well as American football player Tom Brady (1977-).
Tom 2 m & f HebrewMeans
"the end, innocence, simplicity" from Hebrew
תּוֹם (tom). It can also be an alternate transcription of
תָּם (see
Tam 2).
Tor m Norwegian, SwedishModern Scandinavian form of
Þórr (see
Thor). It was not used as a personal name until the 18th century. It is sometimes used as a short form of names of Old Norse origin that begin with the element
Tor, which is also a derivative of
Þórr.
Tri m & f IndonesianMeans
"three, third" in Indonesian, ultimately from Sanskrit
त्रि (tri).
Tur m Persian MythologyMeaning unknown. In the 10th-century Persian epic the
Shahnameh this is the name of a son of
Fereydoun, said to be the namesake of the Turan nation.
Tye m EnglishFrom a surname meaning
"pasture" in Middle English.
Tyr m Norse MythologyFrom
Týr, the Old Norse form of the name of the Germanic god *
Tīwaz, related to Indo-European *
Dyēws (see
Zeus). In Norse mythology he was a god associated with war and justice, by some accounts a son of
Odin. While the gods bound the great wolf
Fenrir, Tyr placated the beast by placing his right hand in its mouth. After the binding was successful, Fenrir bit off Tyr's hand. At the time of the end of the world, Ragnarök, it is foretold that Tyr will slay and be slain by the giant hound Garm.
Ülo m EstonianFrom the Livonian name
Ilo or
Ylo meaning
"joy", a name appearing in the 13th-century
Livonian Chronicle of Henry. It is now associated with the Estonian word
ülev meaning
"noble".
Uni m Old NorseProbably from Old Norse
una meaning
"to enjoy".
Uno m Swedish, EstonianMeaning uncertain. It is possibly from the Old Norse name
Uni. It could also come from Latin
unus "one".
Urs m German (Swiss)German form of the Latin name
Ursus, which meant
"bear". Saint Ursus was a 3rd-century soldier in the Theban Legion who was martyred with Saint Victor. He is the patron saint of Solothurn in Switzerland.
Utu m Sumerian MythologyDerived from Sumerian
𒌓 (ud) meaning
"sun". In Sumerian mythology this was the name of the god of the sun. He was the son of the moon god
Nanna and
Ningal.
Văn m VietnameseFrom Sino-Vietnamese
文 (văn) meaning
"literature, culture, writing". This is a common middle name for Vietnamese boys.
Wei m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
威 (wēi) meaning "power, pomp",
巍 (wēi) meaning "high, lofty, towering" or
伟 (wěi) meaning "great, robust, extraordinary". As a feminine name it can come from
微 (wēi) meaning "small" or
薇 (wēi) meaning "fern". This name can be formed by other Chinese characters besides those shown here.
Wen m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
文 (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).
Win m & f BurmeseMeans
"bright, radiant, brilliant" in Burmese.
Wyn m WelshDerived from Welsh
gwyn meaning
"white, blessed".
Xia m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
夏 (xià) meaning "summer, great, grand",
霞 (xiá) meaning "rosy clouds", or other characters that are pronounced similarly.
Xue f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
雪 (xuě) meaning "snow" or
学 (xué) meaning "study, learning, school", besides other characters pronounced similarly.
Xun m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
勋 (xūn) meaning "meritorious deed, rank" or
迅 (xùn) meaning "fast, sudden", as well as other characters with a similar pronunciation.
Yam m Semitic MythologyMeans
"sea" in Ugaritic. Yam was the Ugaritic god of the sea, also associated with chaos, storms and destruction. He was a son of the chief god
El.
Yan 2 f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
艳 (yàn) meaning "beautiful, gorgeous" (which is usually only feminine) or
岩 (yán) meaning "cliff, rocks", as well as other Chinese characters pronounced in a similar fashion.
Yaw m AkanMeans
"born on Thursday" in Akan.
Yin f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
银 (yín) meaning "silver, money",
音 (yīn) meaning "sound, tone" or
荫 (yīn) meaning "shade, shelter, protect", as well as other Chinese characters pronounced similarly.
Yun f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
云 (yún) meaning "cloud" or
允 (yǔn) meaning "allow, consent", as well as other Chinese characters that are pronounced in a similar way.
Yuu m & f JapaneseAlternate transcription of Japanese Kanji
優 or
悠 or
勇 (see
Yū).
Zal m Persian MythologyMeans
"albino" in Persian. According to the 10th-century Persian epic the
Shahnameh this was the name of a white-haired warrior, the father of
Rostam.
Zan f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
赞 (zàn) meaning "help, support", as well as other characters with a similar pronunciation.
Zhi m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
志 (zhì) meaning "will, purpose, ambition" or
智 (zhì) meaning "wisdom, intellect", as well as other characters that are pronounced similarly.
Ziv m & f HebrewMeans
"bright, radiant" in Hebrew. This was the ancient name of the second month of the Jewish calendar.