Behind the Name: OceanStar719's Personal Name List

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek

Other Scripts: אַהֲרֹן (Ancient Hebrew), Ααρων (Ancient Greek)

Pronounced: AR-ən (English), ER-ən (English)

Rating: 61% based on 16 votes

From the Hebrew name אַהֲרֹן ('Aharon) which is most likely of unknown Egyptian origin. Other theories claim a Hebrew derivation, and suggest meanings such as "high mountain" or "exalted". In the Old Testament this name is borne by the older brother of Moses and the first high priest of the Israelites. He acted as a spokesman for his brother, and carried a miraculous rod. As an English name, Aaron has been in use since the Protestant Reformation.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English, German, Biblical, Biblical Latin

Other Scripts: אֲבִיגַיִל (Ancient Hebrew)

Pronounced: AB-i-gayl (English), AH-bee-giel (German)

Rating: 57% based on 15 votes

From the Hebrew name אֲבִיגָיִל ('Avigayil) meaning "my father is joy". In the Old Testament this is the name of Nabal's wife. After Nabal's death she became the third wife of King David.

As an English name, Abigail first became common after the Protestant Reformation, and it was popular among the Puritans. Some time after the release of the play 'The Scornful Lady' (1616), which featured a character named Abigail, the name became a slang term for a servant, and it grew less common. It was revived in the 20th century.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English (Rare)

Pronounced: ə-KAY-shə

Rating: 57% based on 14 votes

From the name of a type of tree, ultimately deriving from Greek ακη (ake) "thorn, point".

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, Romanian, Polish, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Russian

Other Scripts: Адриан (Russian)

Pronounced: AY-dree-ən (English), AHD-ryahn (Polish), AH-dree-ahn (German), ah-dree-AHN (Russian)

Rating: 63% based on 14 votes

Form of Hadrianus (see HADRIAN). Several saints and six popes have borne this name, including the only English pope, Adrian IV, and the only Dutch pope, Adrian VI. As an English name, it has been in use since the Middle Ages, though it was not popular until modern times.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Scottish, English (Modern)

Pronounced: AYNZ-lee

Rating: 45% based on 13 votes

From a surname which was from a place name: either Annesley in Nottinghamshire or Ansley in Warwickshire. The place names themselves mean either "Anne's field" or "hermitage field" from Old English ansetl "hermitage" and leah "field".

Gender: Feminine

Usage: German, French, English, Greek, Ancient Greek

Other Scripts: Αλεξης (Greek), Αλεξις (Ancient Greek)

Pronounced: ah-LEK-sis (German), al-ek-SEE (French), ə-LEK-sis (English)

Rating: 42% based on 11 votes

From the Greek name Αλεξις (Alexis), which meant "helper" or "defender", derived from Greek αλεξω (alexo) "to defend, to help". This was the name of a 3rd-century BC Greek comic poet, and also of several saints. It is used somewhat interchangeably with the related name Αλεξιος or Alexius, borne by five Byzantine emperors. In the English-speaking world it is more commonly used as a feminine name.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Late Roman

Pronounced: ahm-ə-DAY-əs (English), ahm-ə-DEE-əs (English)

Rating: 47% based on 15 votes

Means "love of God", derived from Latin amare "to love" and Deus "God". A famous bearer was the Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791), who was actually born Wolfgang Theophilus Mozart but preferred the Latin translation of his Greek middle name. This name was also assumed as a middle name by the German novelist E. T. A. Hoffmann (1776-1822), who took it in honour of Mozart.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: AM-broz

Rating: 59% based on 15 votes

From the Late Latin name Ambrosius, which was derived from the Greek name Αμβροσιος (Ambrosios) meaning "immortal". Saint Ambrose was a 4th-century theologian and bishop of Milan, who is considered a Doctor of the Church. Due to the saint, the name came into general use in Christian Europe, though it was never particularly common in England.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Dutch, German, Ancient Germanic

Pronounced: ə-MEE-lee-ə (English), ə-MEEL-yə (English), ah-ME-lyah (Italian), ah-ME-lee-ah (German)

Rating: 64% based on 15 votes

Variant of AMALIA, though it is sometimes confused with EMILIA, which has a different origin. The name became popular in England after the German House of Hanover came to the British throne in the 18th century - it was borne by daughters of George II and George III. Another famous bearer was Amelia Earhart (1897-1937), the first woman to make a solo flight over the Atlantic Ocean.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: French

Pronounced: a-may-LEE

Rating: 61% based on 16 votes

French form of AMELIA

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: AHR-ee-ə

Rating: 51% based on 14 votes

Means "song" or "melody" in Italian (literally means "air"). An aria is an elaborate vocal solo, the type usually performed in operas. As an English name, it has only been in use since the 20th century.

Meaning uncertain. It was perhaps inspired by the fictional place name Arlo Hill from the poem 'The Faerie Queene' (1590) by Edmund Spenser. Spenser probably got Arlo by altering the real Irish place name Aherlow, which is Gaelic meaning "between two highlands".

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Italian, Spanish

Pronounced: ahr-TOO-ro

Rating: 40% based on 1 vote

Italian and Spanish form of ARTHUR

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Hebrew, English, Biblical, Biblical Hebrew

Other Scripts: אָשֵׁר (Hebrew)

Pronounced: A-shər (English)

Rating: 69% based on 15 votes

Means "happy" or "blessed" in Hebrew. Asher in the Old Testament is a son of Jacob and Leah's handmaid Zilpah, and the ancestor of one of the twelve tribes of Israel.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English (Modern)

Pronounced: AS-pən

Rating: 36% based on 14 votes

From the English word for the tree, derived from Old English æspe. It is also the name of a ski resort in Colorado.

From a Roman name meaning "from Attica" in Latin. Attica is the region surrounding Athens in Greece. The author Harper Lee used this name in her novel 'To Kill a Mockingbird' (1960).

From a Scottish surname which is derived from Gaelic blár meaning "plain, field, battlefield".

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: KAL-ee

Rating: 48% based on 14 votes

Diminutive of CAROLINE, or sometimes of names beginning with Cal.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: KAL-vin

Rating: 34% based on 9 votes

Derived from the French surname Chauvin, which was derived from chauve "bald". The surname was borne by Jean Chauvin (1509-1564), a theologian from France who was one of the leaders of the Protestant Reformation. His surname was Latinized as Calvinus (based on Latin calvus "bald") and he is known as John Calvin in English. It has been used as a given name in his honour since the 19th century.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, French

Pronounced: CHAHR-əlz (English), SHAHRL (French)

Rating: 67% based on 14 votes

From the Germanic name Karl, which was derived from a Germanic word which meant "man". However, an alternative theory states that it is derived from the common Germanic element hari meaning "army, warrior".

The popularity of the name in continental Europe was due to the fame of Charles the Great (742-814), commonly known as Charlemagne, a king of the Franks who came to rule over most of Europe. It was subsequently borne by several Holy Roman Emperors, as well as kings of France, Spain, Portugal, Sweden and Hungary. The name did not become common in Britain until the 17th century when it was carried by the Stuart king Charles I. It had been introduced into the Stuart royal family by Mary Queen of Scots, who had been raised in France.

Famous bearers of the name include naturalist Charles Darwin (1809-1882) who revolutionized biology with his theory of evolution, novelist Charles Dickens (1812-1870) who wrote such works as 'Great Expectations' and 'A Tale of Two Cities', French statesman Charles de Gaulle (1890-1970), and American cartoonist Charles Schulz (1922-2000), the creator of the 'Peanuts' comic strip.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, Irish

Pronounced: KO-dee

Rating: 31% based on 15 votes

From the Gaelic surname Ó Cuidighthigh, which means "descendent of CUIDIGHTHEACH". A famous bearer of the surname was the American frontiersman and showman Buffalo Bill Cody (1846-1917).

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Irish, English (Modern)

Pronounced: KAHN-ər (English)

Rating: 61% based on 15 votes

Meaning unknown. This is the name of the illegitimate daughter of Fantine in Victor Hugo's novel 'Les Misérables' (1862). After her mother dies, she is rescued from the cruel Thénardier by Jean Valjean.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Spanish, Portuguese

Pronounced: KROOTH (Spanish), KROOS (Latin American Spanish), KROOSH (Portuguese)

Rating: 33% based on 14 votes

Means "cross" in Spanish or Portuguese, referring to the cross of the crucifixion.

From an English surname which was originally from a place name meaning "valley town" in Old English. A notable bearer of the surname was John Dalton (1766-1844), the English chemist and physicist who theorized about the existence of atoms.

French form of DAMIAN

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, Greek Mythology

Other Scripts: Δηλια (Ancient Greek)

Pronounced: DEEL-ee-ə (English), DEEL-yə (English), DEL-yah (Italian, Spanish)

Rating: 59% based on 14 votes

Means "of Delos" in Greek. This was an epithet of the Greek goddess Artemis, given because she and her twin brother Apollo were born on the island of Delos. The name appeared in several poems of the 16th and 17th centuries, and it has occasionally been used as a given name since that time.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: DEKS-tər

Rating: 39% based on 10 votes

From an occupational surname meaning "one who dyes" in Old English. It also coincides with the Latin word dexter meaning "right-handed, skilled".

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: DAHM-ə-nik

Rating: 63% based on 10 votes

From the Late Latin name Dominicus meaning "of the Lord". This name was traditionally given to a child born on Sunday. Several saints have borne this name, including the 13th-century founder of the Dominican order of friars. It was in this saint's honour that the name was first used in England, starting around the 13th century. It is primarily used by Catholics.

From an Irish surname which was derived from Ó Donndubháin meaning "descendent of DONNDUBHÁN".

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, Hebrew, Biblical

Other Scripts: אֱלִיָּהוּ (Hebrew)

Pronounced: i-LIE-jə (English), i-LIE-zhə (English)

Rating: 65% based on 16 votes

From the Hebrew name אֱלִיָּהוּ ('Eliyyahu) meaning "my God is YAHWEH". Elijah was a Hebrew prophet of the 9th century BC, during the reign of King Ahab and his queen, Jezebel. The two Books of Kings in the Old Testament tell of his exploits, which culminate with him being carried to heaven in a chariot of fire.

Because Elijah was a popular figure in medieval tales, and because his name was borne by a few early saints (who are usually known by the Latin form Elias), the name came into general use during the Middle Ages. In medieval England it was usually spelled Elis. It died out there by the 16th century, but it was revived by the Puritans in the form Elijah after the Protestant Reformation.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: EL-ə

Rating: 53% based on 14 votes

Norman form of the Germanic name Alia, which was a short form of names containing the Germanic element ali meaning "other". It was introduced to England by the Normans and used until the 14th century, and it was later revived in the 19th century. A famous bearer was the American singer Ella Fitzgerald (1917-1996).

French form of EMMERICH

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Italian, Spanish, Romanian, Finnish, Polish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish

Pronounced: e-MEEL-yah (Italian, Spanish, Polish)

Rating: 60% based on 16 votes

Feminine form of Aemilius (see EMIL).

Welsh form of AMBROSE. Emrys Wledig (or Ambrosius Aurelianus) was a Romano-British military leader who fought against the invading Anglo-Saxons in the 5th-century. Tales of his life were used by the 12th-century chronicler Geoffrey of Monmouth to create the character of Merlin, who he called Merlinus Ambrosius or Myrddin Emrys.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Biblical, English, Hebrew

Other Scripts: עֶזְרָא (Hebrew)

Pronounced: EZ-rə (English)

Rating: 25% based on 2 votes

Means "help" in Hebrew. Ezra is a prophet of the Old Testament and the author of the Book of Ezra. It has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since the Protestant Reformation. The American poet Ezra Pound (1885-1972) was a famous bearer.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, English, Romanian, Ancient Roman, Biblical, Biblical Latin

Pronounced: FE-liks (German), FAY-liks (Dutch), FEE-liks (English)

Rating: 64% based on 16 votes

From a Roman cognomen meaning "lucky, successful" in Latin. It was acquired as an agnomen, or nickname, by the 1st-century BC Roman general Sulla. It also appears in the New Testament belonging to the governor of Judea who imprisoned Saint Paul.

Due to its favourable meaning, this name was popular among early Christians, being borne by many early saints and four popes. It has been used in England since the Middle Ages, though it has been more popular in continental Europe. A notable bearer was the German composer Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847).

Older Irish form of FIONN. This is also the usual Anglicized spelling of the name. As a surname it is borne by Huckleberry Finn, a character in Mark Twain's novels.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Irish, English (Modern)

Pronounced: FIN-ə-gən

Rating: 54% based on 14 votes

From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Ó Fionnagáin meaning "descendent of Fionnagán". The name Fionnagán is a diminutive of FIONN. This was the name of a character in James Joyce's novel 'Finnegans Wake' (1939), the title of which was based on a 19th-century Irish ballad called 'Finnegan's Wake'.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: French, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, English, Romanian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek

Other Scripts: גַּבְרִיאֵל (Ancient Hebrew), Γαβριηλ (Ancient Greek)

Pronounced: ga-bree-EL (French), GAHP-ree-el (German), GAH-bryel (Spanish), GAY-bree-əl (English), GAHP-ryel (Polish)

Rating: 70% based on 15 votes

From the Hebrew name גַבְרִיאֵל (Gavri'el) meaning "strong man of God". Gabriel was one of the seven archangels in Hebrew tradition. He appears in both the Old Testament and the New Testament, where he serves as the announcer of the births of John to Zechariah and Jesus to Mary. According to Islamic tradition he was the angel who dictated the Qur'an to Muhammad.

This name has been used occasionally in England since the 12th century. It was not common in the English-speaking world until the end of the 20th century.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Bulgarian, Macedonian, Romanian

Other Scripts: Гаврил (Bulgarian, Macedonian)

Rating: 40% based on 1 vote

Bulgarian, Macedonian and Romanian form of GABRIEL

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Italian, English (British), Dutch

Pronounced: JEM-ə (English)

Rating: 63% based on 9 votes

Medieval Italian nickname meaning "gem, precious stone". It was borne by the 13th-century wife of the Italian poet Dante Alighieri.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Scottish, English

Pronounced: GRAY-əm, GRAM

Rating: 53% based on 14 votes

From a Scottish surname, originally derived from the English place name Grantham, which probably meant "gravelly homestead" in Old English. The surname was first taken to Scotland in the 12th century by the Norman baron William de Graham. A famous bearer was Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922), the Scottish-Canadian-American inventor who devised the telephone.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: GRIF-in

Rating: 44% based on 14 votes

Latinized form of GRUFFUDD. This name can also be inspired by the English word griffin, a creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle, ultimately from Greek γρυψ (gryps).

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: HAD-lee

Rating: 28% based on 14 votes

From an English surname which was derived from a place name meaning "heather field" in Old English.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: History

Pronounced: HAY-dree-ən (English)

Rating: 30% based on 5 votes

From the Roman cognomen Hadrianus, which meant "from Hadria" in Latin. Hadria was a town in northern Italy (it gave its name to the Adriatic Sea). A famous bearer of the name was Publius Aelius Hadrianus, better known as Hadrian, a 2nd-century Roman emperor who built a wall across northern Britain.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: HAL-ee

Rating: 36% based on 14 votes

Diminutive of HARRIET

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: HER-ee-ət, HAR-ee-ət

Rating: 61% based on 15 votes

English form of HENRIETTE, and thus a feminine form of HARRY. It was first used in the 17th century, becoming very common in the English-speaking world by the 18th century. A famous bearer was Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896), the American author who wrote 'Uncle Tom's Cabin'.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Scottish, English

Pronounced: EE-ən (English)

Rating: 54% based on 14 votes

Modern Scottish form of JOHN

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Italian, Spanish, German, English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Romanian

Pronounced: ee-zah-BEL-lah (Italian), iz-ə-BEL-ə (English)

Rating: 64% based on 15 votes

Latinate form of ISABEL. A notable bearer of the name was the powerful ruling queen Isabella of Castile, who sponsored the explorations of Christopher Columbus.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: JAYS

Rating: 40% based on 1 vote

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: JAK-sən

Rating: 39% based on 14 votes

From an English surname meaning "son of JACK". A famous bearer of the surname was American president Andrew Jackson (1767-1845).

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, Judeo-Christian Legend

Pronounced: JAS-pər (English)

Rating: 72% based on 14 votes

Means "treasurer" in Persian. This name was traditionally assigned to one of the wise men (also known as the Magi, or three kings) who were said to have visited the newborn Jesus. It has occasionally been used in the English-speaking world since the Middle Ages. The name can also be given in reference to the English word for the gemstone.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, Swedish, Finnish, Biblical

Other Scripts: יוֹאֵל (Ancient Hebrew)

Pronounced: JOL (English), JO-əl (English)

Rating: 48% based on 14 votes

From the Hebrew name יוֹאֵל (Yo'el) meaning "YAHWEH is God". Joel is one of the twelve minor prophets of the Old Testament, the author of the Book of Joel. In England, it was first used as a Christian name after the Protestant Reformation.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, Biblical

Other Scripts: יוֹנָה (Ancient Hebrew)

Pronounced: JO-nə (English)

Rating: 61% based on 14 votes

From the Hebrew name יוֹנָה (Yonah) meaning "dove". This was the name of a prophet swallowed by a fish, as told in the Old Testament Book of Jonah. He emerged from the fish alive three days later. His story was popular in the Middle Ages, but the name did not become common until after the Protestant Reformation.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, Biblical

Pronounced: JOOD (English)

Rating: 50% based on 13 votes

Variant of JUDAS. It is used in many English versions of the New Testament to denote the second apostle named Judas, in order to distinguish him from Judas Iscariot. He was supposedly the author of the Epistle of Jude. In the English-speaking world, Jude has occasionally been used as a given name since the time of the Protestant Reformation.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: JOO-lee-et, JOOL-yət

Rating: 71% based on 16 votes

Anglicized form of JULIETTE or GIULIETTA. This spelling was first used by Shakespeare for the lover of Romeo in his play 'Romeo and Juliet' (1596).

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Ancient Roman, English, German

Pronounced: YOO:-lee-oos (Ancient Roman), JOO-lee-əs (English), YOO-lee-uws (German)

Rating: 61% based on 14 votes

From a Roman family name which was possibly derived from Greek ιουλος (ioulos) "downy-bearded". Alternatively, it could be related to the name of the Roman god JUPITER. This was a prominent patrician family of Rome, who claimed descent from the mythological Julus, son of Aeneas. Its most notable member was Gaius Julius Caesar, who is known for his clever conquest of Gaul. After a civil war he became the dictator of the Roman Republic, but was eventually stabbed to death in the senate.

Although this name was borne by several early saints, including a pope, it was rare during the Middle Ages. It was revived in Italy and France during the Renaissance, and was subsequently imported to England.

Means "sea" in Hawaiian.

Means "joy, happiness" in Hawaiian.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Irish

Pronounced: KEER-awn, KEE-ar-awn

Rating: 53% based on 13 votes

Anglicized form of CIARÁN

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: KIE-lə

Personal note: Kalia

Rating: 25% based on 13 votes

Feminine form of KYLE

This name arose in Australia, where it is said to mean "boomerang" in an Australian Aboriginal language. It is more likely a feminine form of KYLE, and it is in this capacity that it began to be used in America in the 1970s. A famous bearer is the Australian singer Kylie Minogue (1968-).

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Arabic, English

Other Scripts: ليلى (Arabic)

Pronounced: LAY-lə (English)

Rating: 48% based on 14 votes

Means "night" in Arabic. This was the name of the object of romantic poems written by the 7th-century poet known as Qays. The story of Qays and Layla became a popular romance in medieval Arabia and Persia. The name became used in the English-speaking world after the 1970 release of the song 'Layla' by Derek and the Dominos, the title of which was inspired by the medieval story.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English, Hebrew, Biblical, Biblical Hebrew

Other Scripts: לֵאָה (Hebrew)

Pronounced: LEE-ə (English)

Rating: 60% based on 13 votes

From the Hebrew name לֵאָה (Le'ah) which was probably derived from the Hebrew word לְאָה (le'ah) meaning "weary". Alternatively it might derive from a Chaldean name meaning "mistress" or "ruler" in Akkadian. In the Old Testament, Leah is the first wife of Jacob and the mother of seven of his children. Although this name was used by Jews in the Middle Ages, it was not typical as an English Christian name until after the Protestant Reformation, being common among the Puritans.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Scottish, English (Rare)

Pronounced: LEN-ən

Rating: 23% based on 13 votes

Anglicized form of the Irish surname Ó Leannáin, which means "descendent of Leannán". The name Leannán means "lover" in Gaelic. This surname was borne by musician John Lennon (1940-1980), a member of the Beatles.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, English, Croatian, Late Roman

Pronounced: LE-o (German), LAY-o (Dutch), LEE-o (English)

Rating: 59% based on 14 votes

Derived from Latin leo "lion", a cognate of LEON. It was popular among early Christians and was the name of 13 popes, including Saint Leo the Great who asserted the dominance of the Roman bishops (the popes) over all others in the 5th century. It was also borne by six Byzantine emperors and five Armenian kings. Another famous bearer was Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910), a Russian novelist whose works include 'War and Peace' and 'Anna Karenina'. Leo is also the name of a constellation and the fifth sign of the zodiac.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Irish, English

Pronounced: LEE-əm (English)

Rating: 57% based on 14 votes

Irish short form of WILLIAM

Means "the sea" in Welsh. This was the name of the Welsh god of the sea. He possibly forms the basis for the legendary King Lear of the Britons.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Scottish, English

Pronounced: LO-gən

Rating: 49% based on 14 votes

From a surname which was originally derived from a Scottish place name meaning "little hollow" in Scottish Gaelic.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Italian, German, English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Romanian, Slovak, Ancient Roman

Pronounced: loo-CHEE-ah (Italian), LOO-tsee-ah (German), LOO-shə (English), loo-SEE-ə (English)

Rating: 74% based on 16 votes

Feminine form of LUCIUS. Saint Lucia was a 4th-century martyr from Syracuse. She was said to have had her eyes gouged out, and thus is the patron saint of the blind. She was widely revered in the Middle Ages, and her name has been used throughout Christian Europe (in various spellings). It has been used in the England since the 12th-century, usually in the spellings Lucy or Luce.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: LOO-see

Rating: 73% based on 15 votes

English form of LUCIA, in use since the Middle Ages.

The name of the constellation in the northern sky containing the star Vega. It is said to be shaped after the lyre of Orpheus.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English (Modern)

Pronounced: LIR-ik

Rating: 50% based on 1 vote

Means simply "lyric, songlike" from the English word, ultimately derived from Greek λυρικος (lyrikos).

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: MAY-see

Rating: 28% based on 13 votes

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: MAY-see

Rating: 28% based on 14 votes

From an English surname which was from various towns named Massy in France. The towns themselves were originally named from a Gallo-Roman personal name that was Latinized as Maccius. This is the name of a chain of American department stores founded by Rowland Hussey Macy (1822-1877).

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English, French

Pronounced: MAD-ə-lin (English), MAD-ə-lien (English), ma-də-LEEN (French), mad-LEEN (French)

Rating: 67% based on 9 votes

English form of MAGDALENE. This is the name of the heroine in a series of children's books by Ludwig Bemelmans, first published 1939.

From the name of a type of vine that grows in Hawaii and is used in making leis.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Scottish

Pronounced: MAY-zee

Rating: 48% based on 13 votes

Diminutive of MAIREAD

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Hebrew, English, Biblical, Biblical Latin

Other Scripts: מַלְאָכִי (Hebrew)

Pronounced: MAL-ə-kie (English)

From the Hebrew name מַלְאָכִי (Mal'akhiy) meaning "my messenger" or "my angel". This is one of the twelve minor prophets of the Old Testament, the author of the Book of Malachi, which some claim foretells the coming of Christ. In England the name came into use after the Protestant Reformation.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Ancient Roman, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Danish, French, Romanian

Pronounced: MER-ee-əs (English), MAR-ee-əs (English), MAH-ree-uws (German)

Rating: 46% based on 14 votes

Roman family name which was derived either from MARS, the name of the Roman god of War, or else from the Latin root mas, maris meaning "male". Gaius Marius was a famous Roman consul of the 2nd century BC. Since the start of the Christian era, it has occasionally been used as a masculine form of MARIA.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English (Modern)

Pronounced: MAHR-lee

Rating: 36% based on 13 votes

From a surname which was taken from a place name meaning "pleasant wood" in Old English. A famous bearer of the surname was the Jamaican musician Bob Marley (1945-1981).

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: MAY-sən

Rating: 28% based on 13 votes

From an English surname meaning "stoneworker", from an Old French word of Germanic origin (akin to Old English macian "to make").

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English, Swedish, Finnish, Slovak

Pronounced: mə-TIL-də (English)

Rating: 67% based on 10 votes

From the Germanic name Mahthildis meaning "strength in battle", from the elements maht "might, strength" and hild "battle". Saint Matilda was the wife of the 10th-century German king Henry I the Fowler. The name was brought to England by the Normans, being borne by the wife of William the Conqueror himself. It was popular until the 15th century in England, usually in the vernacular form Maud. Both forms were revived by the 19th century. This name appears in the popular Australian folk song 'Waltzing Matilda', written in 1895.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: mak-si-MIL-ee-ən, mak-si-MIL-yən

Rating: 63% based on 10 votes

Variant of MAXIMILIAN

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: MAKS-wel

Rating: 58% based on 13 votes

From a Scottish surname meaning "Mack's stream", from the name Mack, a short form of the Scandinavian name MAGNUS, combined with Old English wella "stream". A famous bearer of the surname was James Maxwell (1831-1879), a Scottish physicist who studied gases and electromagnetism.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, German, English

Pronounced: MEE-ah (Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, German), MEE-ə (English)

Rating: 47% based on 13 votes

Scandinavian, Dutch and German diminutive of MARIA

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Serbian, Croatian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Czech

Other Scripts: Мила (Serbian, Bulgarian, Macedonian)

Rating: 51% based on 15 votes

Originally a diminutive of Slavic names containing the element mil "gracious, dear".

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Czech, Russian, Bulgarian, Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Macedonian, Polish, Italian

Other Scripts: Милена (Russian, Bulgarian, Serbian, Macedonian)

Pronounced: mee-LE-nah (Italian)

Rating: 54% based on 15 votes

Feminine form of MILAN. It began to be used in Italy in honour of Milena Vukotić (1847-1923), mother of Helen of Montenegro, the wife of Italian king Victor Emmanuel III. In Italy it can also be considered a combination of MARIA and ELENA.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, Ancient Germanic

Pronounced: MIE-lo (English)

Rating: 62% based on 13 votes

Old Germanic form of MILES, as well as the Latinized form. This form of the name was used in official documents during the Middle Ages, and it has been used independently since the 19th century.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Polish, Italian, Spanish, Romanian, Late Roman

Pronounced: nah-TAH-lyah (Polish, Italian, Spanish)

Rating: 67% based on 12 votes

Polish, Italian, Spanish and Romanian form of NATALIE

Gender: Feminine

Usage: French, English, German

Pronounced: nat-a-LEE (French), NAD-ə-lee (English), NAH-tah-lee (German)

Rating: 68% based on 15 votes

From the Late Latin name Natalia, which meant "Christmas Day" from Latin natale domini. This was the name of the wife of the 4th-century martyr Saint Adrian of Nicomedia. She is venerated as a saint in the Orthodox Church, and the name has traditionally been more common among Eastern Christians than those in the West. It was popularized in America by actress Natalie Wood (1938-1981), who was born to Russian immigrants.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: French, German

Pronounced: na-ta-LEE (French), NAH-tah-lee (German)

Rating: 60% based on 10 votes

French and German variant of NATALIE

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Eastern African, Swahili

Personal note: Naya

Rating: 25% based on 2 votes

Means "purpose" in Swahili.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, Biblical

Other Scripts: נוֹחַ (Ancient Hebrew)

Pronounced: NO-ə (English)

Rating: 63% based on 15 votes

Derived from the Hebrew name נוֹחַ (Noach) meaning "rest, comfort". According to the Old Testament, Noah was the builder of the Ark that allowed him, his family, and animals of each species to survive the great Flood. After the Flood he received the sign of the rainbow as a covenant from God. As an English Christian name, Noah has been used since the Protestant Reformation, being common among the Puritans.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Irish, English

Pronounced: NO-lan

Rating: 46% based on 13 votes

From an Irish surname which was derived from Ó Nualláin meaning "descendent of NUALLÁN". The baseball player Nolan Ryan (1947-) is a famous bearer of this name.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Serbian, Croatian, Macedonian, Czech, Slovak

Other Scripts: Оливер (Serbian, Macedonian)

Pronounced: AHL-ə-vər (English), AW-lee-ver (German)

Rating: 70% based on 14 votes

From Olivier, a Norman French form of a Germanic name such as ALFHER or an Old Norse name such as Áleifr (see OLAF). The spelling was altered by association with Latin oliva "olive tree". In the Middle Ages the name became well-known in Western Europe because of the French epic 'La Chanson de Roland', in which Olivier was a friend and advisor of the hero Roland.

In England Oliver was a common medieval name, however it became rare after the 17th century because of the military commander Oliver Cromwell, who ruled the country following the civil war. The name was revived in the 19th century, perhaps in part due to the title character in Charles Dickens' novel 'Oliver Twist' (1838), which was about a poor orphan living on the streets of London.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Greek Mythology

Other Scripts: Ωριων (Ancient Greek)

Pronounced: o-RIE-ən (English)

Rating: 50% based on 9 votes

Meaning unknown, but possibly related to Greek ‘οριον (horion) "boundary, limit". This is the name of a constellation, which gets its name from a legendary Greek hunter killed by a scorpion sent by Gaia.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Welsh, English

Pronounced: O-ən (English)

Rating: 61% based on 14 votes

Modern form of OWAIN

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English (Modern)

Pronounced: PIEP-ər

Rating: 39% based on 14 votes

From a surname which was originally given to a person who played on a pipe (a flute). It was popularized as a given name by a character from the television series 'Charmed', which debuted in 1998.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: PIP-ə

Rating: 35% based on 13 votes

Diminutive of PHILIPPA

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Spanish, Romanian, English

Pronounced: rah-MO-nah (Spanish), rə-MON-ə (English)

Rating: 42% based on 10 votes

Feminine form of RAMÓN. It was popularized in the English-speaking world by Helen Hunt Jackson's novel 'Ramona' (1884), as well as several subsequent movies based on the book.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Hebrew

Other Scripts: רִיבָה (Hebrew)

Rating: 40% based on 1 vote

Italian diminutive of ROSA (1)

Gender: Masculine & Feminine

Usage: Irish, English (Modern)

Pronounced: RO-ən (English)

Rating: 48% based on 13 votes

From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Ó Ruadháin meaning "descendent of RUADHÁN". This name can also be given in reference to the rowan tree.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Biblical

Other Scripts: שְׁמוּאֵל (Ancient Hebrew)

Pronounced: SAM-yoo-əl (English), SAM-yəl (English)

Rating: 76% based on 14 votes

From the Hebrew name שְׁמוּאֵל (Shemu'el) which could mean either "name of God" or "God has heard". Samuel was the last of the ruling judges in the Old Testament. He anointed Saul to be the first king of Israel, and later anointed David.

As a Christian name, Samuel came into common use after the Protestant Reformation. Famous bearers include American inventor Samuel Morse (1791-1872), Irish writer Samuel Beckett (1906-1989), and American author Samuel Clemens (1835-1910), who wrote under the pen name Mark Twain.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Spanish, Portuguese

Pronounced: sahn-TYAH-go (Spanish)

Rating: 29% based on 12 votes

Means "Saint James", derived from Spanish santo "saint" combined with Yago, an old Spanish form of JAMES, the patron saint of Spain. Cities in Chile and Spain bear this name.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English (Modern)

Pronounced: SOI-ər, SAW-yər

Rating: 43% based on 12 votes

From a surname meaning "sawer of wood" in Middle English. Mark Twain used it for the hero in his novel 'The Adventures of Tom Sawyer' (1876).

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Japanese

Other Scripts: 小百合 (Japanese)

Rating: 35% based on 13 votes

From Japanese 小 (sa) "small" and 百合 (yuri) "lily".

Gender: Masculine

Usage: German, English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Finnish, Romanian

Pronounced: ze-BAHS-tee-ahn (German), sə-BAS-chən (English), se-BAHS-tyahn (Polish)

Rating: 81% based on 16 votes

From the Latin name Sebastianus which meant "from Sebaste". Sebaste was the name a town in Asia Minor, its name deriving from Greek σεβαστος (sebastos) "venerable" (a translation of Latin Augustus, the title of the Roman emperors). Saint Sebastian was a 3rd-century Roman soldier martyred by arrows after it was discovered he was a Christian. Due to the saint's popularity, the name came into general use in medieval Europe, especially in Spain and France. It was also borne by a 16th-century king of Portugal who died in a crusade against Morocco.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek

Other Scripts: שֵׁת (Ancient Hebrew), Σηθ (Ancient Greek)

Pronounced: SETH (English)

Rating: 52% based on 9 votes

Means "placed" or "appointed" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament he is the third named son of Adam and Eve. In England this name came into use after the Protestant Reformation.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Biblical

Other Scripts: שִׁלוֹ, שִׁילֹה (Ancient Hebrew)

Pronounced: SHIE-lo (English)

Rating: 38% based on 13 votes

From an Old Testament place name meaning "tranquil" in Hebrew. It is also used prophetically in the Old Testament to refer to a person, often understood to be the Messiah (see Genesis 49:10). This may in fact be a mistranslation.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, Greek, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek

Other Scripts: Σιλας (Greek)

Pronounced: SIE-ləs (English)

Rating: 50% based on 9 votes

Short form of SILVANUS. This is the name of a companion of Saint Paul in the New Testament. It was not used as an English name until after the Protestant Reformation.

Gender: Masculine & Feminine

Usage: English (Modern)

Pronounced: SKIE-lər

Rating: 30% based on 13 votes

Variant of SCHUYLER. The spelling was modified due to association with the name Tyler and the English word sky.

Danish form of SEVERINUS. Søren Kierkegaard (1813-1855) was a Danish philosopher who is regarded as a precursor of existentialism.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: SPEN-sər

Rating: 50% based on 1 vote

From a surname which meant "dispenser of provisions" in Middle English. A famous bearer was American actor Spencer Tracy (1900-1967). It was also the surname of Princess Diana (1961-1997).

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: STEL-ə

Rating: 54% based on 11 votes

Means "star" in Latin. This name was created by the 16th-century poet Sir Philip Sidney for the subject of his collection of sonnets 'Astrophel and Stella'. It was not commonly used as a given name until the 19th century. It appears in Tennessee Williams' play 'A Streetcar Named Desire' (1947), belonging to the sister of Blanche DuBois and the wife of Stanley Kowalski.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: SUL-i-vən

Rating: 35% based on 12 votes

From an Irish surname which was derived from Ó Súilleabháin meaning "descendent of Súilleabhán". The name Súilleabhán means "little dark eye" in Irish.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English (Modern)

Pronounced: TAW-nee

Rating: 20% based on 1 vote

From the English word, ultimately deriving from Old French tané, which means "light brown".

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: TAY-lər

Rating: 33% based on 12 votes

From an English surname which originally denoted someone who was a tailor, from Norman French tailleur, ultimately from Latin taliare "to cut". British author Taylor Caldwell (1900-1985) may have been an influence on its modern use as a feminine name.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Finnish, Slovene, Croatian

Rating: 40% based on 4 votes

Short form of DOROTHEA or THEODORA

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English

Pronounced: TES-ə

Rating: 60% based on 13 votes

Diminutive of THERESA

Gender: Masculine

Usage: Welsh, English, French, Celtic Mythology

Pronounced: TRIS-tən (English), trees-TAWN (French)

Rating: 59% based on 14 votes

Old French form of the Pictish name Drustan, a diminutive of DRUST. The spelling was altered by association with Latin tristis "sad". In Celtic legend Tristan was sent to Ireland in order to fetch Isolde, who was to be the bride of King Mark of Cornwall. Instead, Tristan and Isolde end up falling in love. Their tragic story was very popular in the Middle Ages, and the name has occasionally been used since that time.

Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: WIE-ət

Rating: 54% based on 12 votes

From an English surname which was derived from the medieval given name WYOT. Wyatt Earp (1848-1929) was an American lawman and gunfighter involved in the famous shootout at the OK Corral.

Gender: Feminine

Usage: English, Greek, Italian, Ancient Greek

Other Scripts: Ζωη (Greek)

Pronounced: ZO-ee (English), DZO-e (Italian)

Means "life" in Greek. From early times it was adopted by Hellenized Jews as a translation of EVE. It was borne by two early Christian saints, one martyred under emperor Hadrian, the other martyred under Diocletian. The name was common in the Byzantine Empire, being borne by a ruling empress of the 11th century. As an English name, Zoe has only been in use since the 19th century. It has generally been more common among Eastern Christians (in various spellings).