Behind the Name: Browse Names

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expand search to ancestral names

the meaning is anything from the name's write-up that is surrounded by "double quotes"
separate search terms with spaces
search for an exact phrase by surrounding it with double quotes
- example: "lord of the rings" will match names from the novel 'The Lord of the Rings'
this field understands simple boolean logic
- force a term to be included by preceding it with a + sign
- force a term to be excluded by preceding it with a - sign
- example: +greek +(legend myth) -zeus will match Greek names of myths or legends not about Zeus
expand search to ancestral names: meanings for names further up the family tree will be included in the search

ignore name meanings

the description is the meaning and history write-up for the name
separate search terms with spaces
search for an exact phrase by surrounding it with double quotes
- example: "lord of the rings" will match names from the novel 'The Lord of the Rings'
this field understands simple boolean logic
- force a term to be included by preceding it with a + sign
- force a term to be excluded by preceding it with a - sign
- example: +greek +(legend myth) -zeus will match Greek names of myths or legends not about Zeus
ignore name meanings: keywords from the name meanings are ignored

syllables can only be counted in names that have been assigned pronunciations
names without pronunciations are excluded from results

the pattern will be compared to the name
* is a wildcard that will match zero or more letters
- example: *oo* will match names which contain oo
_ is a wildcard that will match exactly one letter
- example: __z will match names which have two letters and then a z

case sensitive

see the pronunciation key for a guide on how to write the sounds
sounds can only be searched in names that have been assigned pronunciations
names without pronunciations are excluded from results
* is a wildcard that will match zero or more letters in the pronunciation
- example: *lee will match names which end with the sound lee
(s) will match exactly one syllable in the pronunciation
- example: (s)(s)rah will match names which have two syllables and then the sound rah
(c) will match a consonant
(k) will match a consonant or consonant cluster
(v) will match a vowel
(p) will match a plosive or stop consonant
(p) will match a fricative consonant
(n) will match a nasal consonant
case sensitive: check this if you wish distinguish between unstressed lowercase sounds and stressed uppercase sounds

expand search to ancestral names

the "relationship" is how the name relates to its parent name
- example: searching for diminutive will return Betsy because it is a diminutive of its parent Elizabeth
selecting (all core forms) will exclude peripheral forms such as diminutives, short forms, and combinations
expand search to ancestral names: relationships between names further up the family tree will be included

name impressions are based on feedback left by the behindthename.com community

enter a behindthename.com username to search that user's public personal name lists
to limit your search to a specific list, put the name of the list in brackets after the username

NALANIf & mHawaiian
Means "the heavens" or "the chiefs" from Hawaiian nā, a definite article, and lani "heaven, sky, chief".

NAOMI (2)f & mJapanese
From Japanese 直 (nao) meaning "straight" and 美 (mi) meaning "beautiful" (usually feminine) or 己 (mi) meaning "self" (usually masculine). Other kanji combinations can also form this name.

NARCISSEm & fFrench
French masculine and feminine form of NARCISSUS. This is also the French word for the narcissus flower.

NARINDERm & fIndian (Sikh)
Variant of NARENDRA used by Sikhs.

NASEEMm & fArabic, Urdu
Variant transcription of NASIM.

NASIMm & fArabic, Urdu
Means "breeze" in Arabic.

NASSIMm & fArabic
Variant transcription of NASIM.

NATm & fEnglish
Short form of NATHAN, NATHANIEL, NATALIE, or other names beginning with Nat.

NAVDEEPm & fIndian (Sikh)
From Sanskrit नव (nava) meaning "new, fresh" and दीप (dipa) meaning "lamp, light".

NAVNEETm & fIndian (Sikh)
From Sanskrit नव (nava) meaning "new, fresh" and नित्य (nitya) meaning "eternal".

NAZARETf & mSpanish, Armenian
From Nazareth, the town in Galilee where Jesus lived. This name is feminine in Spanish and masculine in Armenian.

NDIDIm & fWestern African, Igbo
Means "patience" in Igbo.

NEELAMf & mIndian, Hindi, Marathi
Variant transcription of NILAM.

NEO (1)f & mSouthern African, Tswana
Means "gift" in Tswana, a derivative of naya "to give".

NERGÜIm & fMongolian
Means "no name" in Mongolian. This name was traditionally given in order to mislead bad spirits.

NESİMm & fTurkish
Turkish form of NASIM.

NGAWANGm & fTibetan, Bhutanese
Means "powerful speech" in Tibetan, from ངག (ngag) meaning "speech" and དབང (dbang) meaning "power, force".

NGỌCf & mVietnamese
From Sino-Vietnamese 玉 (ngọc) meaning "jade, precious stone, gem".

NGOZIf & mWestern African, Igbo
Means "blessing" in Igbo.

NHUNGf & mVietnamese
Means "velvet" in Vietnamese.

NICKYm & fEnglish
Diminutive of NICHOLAS or NICOLE.

NIKA (1)f & mRussian
Russian short form of VERONIKA and other names ending in nika. It can also be a short form of NIKITA (1) (masculine).

NIKEPHOROSm & fAncient Greek, Greek Mythology
Means "carrying victory" from Greek νικη (nike) "victory" and φερω (phero) "to carry, to bear". This name was borne by several Byzantine emperors, including the 10th-century Nikephoros II Phokas. Besides being a masculine personal name, it was also a title borne by the goddess Athena.

NIKORAm & fMaori
Maori form of NICHOLAS or NICOLE.

NILAMf & mIndian, Hindi, Marathi
Means "dark blue, sapphire" in Sanskrit.

NIMA (1)f & mArabic
Means "blessing" in Arabic.

NIMATf & mArabic
Means "blessings" in Arabic, a plural form of NIMA (1).

NINGf & mChinese
From Chinese 宁 (níng) meaning "peaceful, calm, serene", as well as other characters pronounced in a similar way.

NISHATm & fArabic, Bengali
Means "energetic, lively" in Arabic.

NITYAf & mIndian, Hindi
Means "always, eternal" in Sanskrit. This is a transcription of both the feminine form नित्या (an epithet of the Hindu goddess Durga) and the masculine form नित्य.

NITZANm & fHebrew
Means "flower bud" in Hebrew.

NKEMDILIMm & fWestern African, Igbo
Means "let mine be mine" in Igbo.

NKRUMAm & fWestern African, Akan
Means "ninth born child" in Akan.

NOAMm & fHebrew
Means "pleasantness" in Hebrew. A famous bearer is Noam Chomsky (1928-), an American linguist and philosopher.

NOGAf & mHebrew
Variant transcription of NOGAH.

NOGAHm & fBiblical, Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew
Means "brightness" in Hebrew. This is the name of a son of King David in the Old Testament. In modern times it is sometimes used as a feminine name.

NOLLAIGm & fIrish
Means "Christmas" in Irish.

NOOR (1)f & mArabic, Urdu
Variant transcription of NUR.

NOR (1)f & mMalay
Malay variant of NUR.

NOURf & mArabic
Variant transcription of NUR.

NOYf & mHebrew
Means "beauty" in Hebrew.

NSIAm & fWestern African, Akan
Means "sixth born child" in Akan.

NSONOWAm & fWestern African, Akan
Means "seventh born child" in Akan.

NTHANDAm & fSouthern African, Tumbuka
Means "star" in Tumbuka.

NUKAm & fNative American, Greenlandic
Means "younger sibling" in Greenlandic.

NURf & mArabic, Turkish, Urdu, Uyghur, Indonesian, Malay
Means "light" in Arabic. In Islamic tradition النور (al-Nur) is one of the 99 names of Allah.

NURULm & fArabic, Indonesian, Malay
First part of compound Arabic names beginning with نور ال (Nur al) meaning "light of the" (such as نور الدين (Nur al-Din) "light of religion").

NYOMANm & fIndonesian, Balinese
Possibly from a Balinese word meaning "end, remainder". This name is traditionally bestowed upon the third-born child.

	Gender
	Usage
	Initial letter
	Meaning	expand search to ancestral names the meaning is anything from the name's write-up that is surrounded by "double quotes" separate search terms with spaces search for an exact phrase by surrounding it with double quotes example: "lord of the rings" will match names from the novel 'The Lord of the Rings' this field understands simple boolean logic force a term to be included by preceding it with a + sign force a term to be excluded by preceding it with a - sign example: +greek +(legend myth) -zeus will match Greek names of myths or legends not about Zeus expand search to ancestral names: meanings for names further up the family tree will be included in the search
	Description	ignore name meanings the description is the meaning and history write-up for the name separate search terms with spaces search for an exact phrase by surrounding it with double quotes example: "lord of the rings" will match names from the novel 'The Lord of the Rings' this field understands simple boolean logic force a term to be included by preceding it with a + sign force a term to be excluded by preceding it with a - sign example: +greek +(legend myth) -zeus will match Greek names of myths or legends not about Zeus ignore name meanings: keywords from the name meanings are ignored
	Origin
	Length
	Syllables	syllables can only be counted in names that have been assigned pronunciations names without pronunciations are excluded from results
	Pattern	the pattern will be compared to the name * is a wildcard that will match zero or more letters example: oo will match names which contain oo _ is a wildcard that will match exactly one letter example: __z will match names which have two letters and then a z
	Sound	case sensitive see the pronunciation key for a guide on how to write the sounds sounds can only be searched in names that have been assigned pronunciations names without pronunciations are excluded from results * is a wildcard that will match zero or more letters in the pronunciation example: lee will match names which end with the sound lee* (s) will match exactly one syllable in the pronunciation example: (s)(s)rah will match names which have two syllables and then the sound rah (c) will match a consonant (k) will match a consonant or consonant cluster (v) will match a vowel (p) will match a plosive or stop consonant (p) will match a fricative consonant (n) will match a nasal consonant case sensitive: check this if you wish distinguish between unstressed lowercase sounds and stressed uppercase sounds
	Related name
	Relationship	expand search to ancestral names the "relationship" is how the name relates to its parent name example: searching for diminutive will return Betsy because it is a diminutive of its parent Elizabeth selecting *(all core forms)* will exclude peripheral forms such as diminutives, short forms, and combinations expand search to ancestral names: relationships between names further up the family tree will be included
	Popularity
	Namesake
	Name day
	Impression	name impressions are based on feedback left by the behindthename.com community
	User list	enter a behindthename.com username to search that user's public personal name lists to limit your search to a specific list, put the name of the list in brackets after the username
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