Browse Names

Ælfnoð m Anglo-Saxon
Derived from the Old English element ælf "elf" combined with noð "boldness, daring".

Æthelnoð m Anglo-Saxon
Derived from the Old English elements æðele "noble" and noð "boldness, daring".

Alcibiades m Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Latinized form of the Greek name Ἀλκιβιάδης (Alkibiades), derived from ἀλκή (alke) meaning "strength, prowess" and βία (bia) meaning "force" with the patronymic suffix ἴδης (ides). This was the name of a notable Greek statesman and general during the Peloponnesian War. He changed allegiance from Athens to Sparta and back again during the course of the war. He features in Shakespeare's tragedy Timon of Athens (1607).

Alcides m Greek Mythology (Latinized), Portuguese, Spanish
Latinized form of Greek Ἀλκείδης (Alkeides), derived from ἀλκή (alke) meaning "strength, prowess" and the patronymic suffix ἴδης (ides). This was another name for the hero Herakles.

Alcippe f Greek Mythology (Latinized)
From Greek Ἀλκίππη (Alkippe), derived from ἀλκή (alke) meaning "strength, prowess" and ἵππος (hippos) meaning "horse". This was the name of a daughter of Ares in Greek myth. Her father killed Halirrhotis, a son of Poseidon, when he attempted to rape her, leading to a murder trial in which Ares was quickly acquitted.

Alcmene f Greek Mythology (Latinized)
From Greek Ἀλκμήνη (Alkmene), derived from ἀλκή (alke) meaning "strength, prowess" combined with μήνη (mene) meaning "moon" or μῆνις (menis) meaning "wrath". In Greek mythology Alcmene was the wife of Amphitryon. She was the mother of Herakles by Zeus, who bedded her by disguising himself as her absent husband.

Alkestis f Greek Mythology
Greek form of Alcestis.

Alkinoos m Greek Mythology
Means "strong mind", derived from Greek ἀλκή (alke) "strength, prowess" and νόος (noos) "mind, thought". According to Greek mythology this was the name of a king of the Phaeacians.

Ardghal m Irish (Rare)
Means "high valour", derived from the Old Irish elements ard "high" and gal "valour".

Daler m Tajik
From Tajik далерӣ (daleri) meaning "courage", ultimately from Persian دلاور (delaver) meaning "brave, valiant".

Ellanher m Germanic
Old German name composed of the elements ellan "courage" and heri "army".

Ferdinand m German, French, Dutch, English, Slovak, Czech, Slovene, Croatian
From Fredenandus, the Latinized form of a Gothic name composed of the elements friþus "peace" (or perhaps farþa "journey") and nanþa "boldness, daring". The Visigoths brought the name to the Iberian Peninsula, where it entered into the royal families of Spain and Portugal. From there it became common among the Habsburg royal family of the Holy Roman Empire and Austria, starting with the Spanish-born Ferdinand I in the 16th century. A notable bearer was Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan (1480-1521), called Fernão de Magalhães in Portuguese, who was the leader of the first expedition to sail around the earth.

Fergal m Irish, Old Irish
Means "man of valour", derived from the Old Irish elements fer "man" and gal "valour". This was the name of an 8th-century king of Ireland. As well as the Old Irish form of the name, this is the usual Anglicization of the Modern Irish form Fearghal.

Ganzorig m Mongolian
Means "steel courage" in Mongolian, from ган (gan) meaning "steel" and зориг (zorig) meaning "courage".

Gareth m Welsh, English (British), Arthurian Romance
Meaning uncertain. It appears in this form in Thomas Malory's 15th-century compilation of Arthurian legends Le Morte d'Arthur, in which the knight Gareth (also named Beaumains) is a brother of Gawain. He goes with Lynet to rescue her sister Lyonesse from the Red Knight. Malory based the name on Gaheriet or Guerrehet, which was the name of a similar character in French sources. It may ultimately have a Welsh origin, possibly from the name Gwrhyd meaning "valour" (found in the tale Culhwch and Olwen) or Gwairydd meaning "hay lord" (found in the chronicle Brut y Brenhinedd).

Hartmut m German, Germanic
Means "brave mind", derived from the Old German elements hart "hard, firm, brave, hardy" and muot "mind, spirit". This is the kidnapper of Gudrun in the medieval German epic Kudrun.

Helmut m German, Germanic
Derived from the Old German element helm "helmet" (or perhaps heil "healthy, whole") combined with muot "mind, spirit".

Kemen m Basque
Means "courage, vigour" in Basque.

Menander m Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Latinized form of the Greek name Μένανδρος (Menandros), derived from either μένω (meno) meaning "to stay, to last" or μένος (menos) meaning "mind, strength, force" combined with ἀνήρ (aner) meaning "man" (genitive ἀνδρός). This was the name of a 4th-century BC Greek dramatist. It was also borne by a 2nd-century BC Indo-Greek king who expanded the realm to its greatest extent.

Menelaus m Greek Mythology (Latinized)
From the Greek name Μενέλαος (Menelaos), derived either from μένω (meno) meaning "to stay, to last" or μένος (menos) meaning "mind, strength, force" combined with λαός (laos) meaning "people". In Greek legend he was a king of Sparta and the husband of Helen. When his wife was taken by Paris, the Greeks led by his brother Agamemnon besieged the city of Troy in an effort to get her back. After the war Menelaus and Helen settled down to a happy life.

Ricmod f & m Germanic
Derived from the Old German element rih "ruler, king" combined with muot "mind, spirit".

Shawkat m Arabic, Bengali
Derived from Arabic شوكة (shawkah) meaning "power, greatness, bravery".

Tormod m Norwegian
From the Old Norse name Þórmóðr, which meant "Thor's wrath" from the name of the Norse god Þórr (see Thor) combined with móðr "wrath".

Vikrama m Hinduism
Means "stride, pace" or "valour" in Sanskrit. This is another name of the Hindu god Vishnu. This was also the name of a semi-legendary 1st-century BC king (full name Vikramaditya) of Ujjain in India.

Wulfnoð m Anglo-Saxon
Derived from the Old English elements wulf "wolf" and noð "boldness, daring". This name became rare after the Norman Conquest.