VLADIMIR   m   Russian, Serbian, Croatian, Slovene, Bulgarian, Macedonian	May 8th
Means "to rule with greatness" or "to rule with peace", derived from the Slavic element volod "rule" combined with mer "great, famous" or mir "peace". This was the name of an 11th-century Grand Duke of Kiev who is venerated as a saint because of his efforts to Christianize Russia.

THEODORIC   m   Ancient Germanic	May 7th
From the Gothic name Thiudreiks meaning "ruler of the people", derived from the Germanic elements þeud "people" and ric "power, ruler". Theodoric the Great was a 6th-century king of the Ostrogoths who eventually became the ruler of Italy.

EMILY   f   English	May 6th
Medieval feminine form of Aemilius (see EMIL). The British writer Emily Bronte, author of 'Wuthering Heights', and the American poet Emily Dickinson are two famous bearers of this name.

TENSKWATAWA   m   Native American	May 5th
Means "open door" in Shawnee. This was the name of a Shawnee prophet. With his brother Tecumseh he led his people in resistance against European expansion in the early 19th century.

MERITXELL   f   Catalan	May 4th
From the name of a village in Andorra where there is a sanctuary dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The name of the village may derive from Latin meridies meaning "midday".

CAMBYSES   m   History	May 3rd
From Καμβυσης (Kambyses), the Greek form of the Persian name Kambujiya, which is of unknown meaning. Two Persian kings bore this name, including Cambyses II who conquered Egypt.

ISAAC   m   English, Jewish, Biblical	May 2nd
From the Hebrew name יִצְחָק (Yitzchaq) which meant "he laughs". Isaac in the Old Testament was the son of Abraham and the father of Esau and Jacob. Famous bearers of this name include the physicist and mathematician Sir Isaac Newton and the science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov.