AMEDEOmItalianItalian form of
AMADEUS. A notable bearer of this name was Amedeo Avogadro (1776-1856), an Italian chemist most famous for the constant that now bears his name: Avogadro's Number. Another famous bearer was the Italian painter and sculptor Amedeo Modigliani (1884-1920).
ANDREA (1)mItalianItalian form of
Andreas (see
ANDREW). A notable bearer of this name was Andrea Verrocchio, a Renaissance sculptor who taught Leonardo da Vinci and Perugino.
ANDYm & fEnglishDiminutive of
ANDREW or sometimes
ANDREA (2). American pop artist and filmmaker Andy Warhol (1928-1987) was a famous bearer of this name.
ANTONIOmSpanish, Italian, CroatianSpanish and Italian form of
Antonius (see
ANTHONY). A famous bearer was the Italian Renaissance painter Antonio Pisanello (c. 1395-1455). It is also the name of the main character in 'The Merchant of Venice' (1596) by William Shakespeare.
BENVENUTOmItalianMeans "welcome" in Italian. A famous bearer was the Italian Renaissance sculptor and writer Benvenuto Cellini (1500-1571).
BLAKEmEnglishFrom a surname which was derived from Old English
blæc "black" or
blac "pale". A famous bearer of the surname was the poet and artist William Blake (1757-1827).
CHARESmAncient GreekDerived from Greek
χαρις (charis) meaning "grace, kindness". This was the name of a 4th-century BC Athenian general. It was also borne by the sculptor who crafted the Colossus of Rhodes.
CLAUDEm & fFrench, EnglishFrench masculine and feminine form of
CLAUDIUS. In France the masculine name has been common since the Middle Ages due to the 7th-century Saint Claude of Besançon. It was imported to Britain in the 16th century by the aristocratic Hamilton family, who had French connections. A famous bearer of this name was the French impressionist painter Claude Monet (1840-1926).
DIEGOmSpanishPossibly a shortened form of
SANTIAGO. In medieval records
Diego was Latinized as
Didacus, and it has been suggested that it in fact derives from Greek
διδαχη (didache) "teaching". Saint Didacus (or Diego) was a 15th-century Franciscan brother based in Alcalá, Spain. Other famous bearers of this name include Mexican muralist Diego Rivera (1886-1957) and Argentine soccer player Diego Maradona (1960-).
DONATELLOmItalianDiminutive of
DONATO. The Renaissance sculptor Donato di Niccolo di Bette Bardi was better known as Donatello.
DONATOmItalian, Spanish, PortugueseFrom the Late Latin name
Donatus meaning "given". Several early saints had this name. The name was also borne by two Renaissance masters: the sculptor Donato di Niccolo di Bette Bardi (also known as Donatello), and the architect Donato Bramante.
EDGARmEnglish, FrenchDerived from the Old English elements
ead "wealth, fortune" and
gar "spear". This was the name of a 10th-century English king, Edgar the Peaceful. The name did not survive long after the Norman conquest, but it was revived in the 18th century, in part due to a character by this name in Sir Walter Scott's novel 'The Bride of Lammermoor' (1819), which tells of the tragic love between Edgar Ravenswood and Lucy Ashton. Famous bearers include author and poet Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849), French impressionist painter Edgar Degas (1834-1917), and author Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875-1950).
FRANCISCOmSpanish, PortugueseSpanish and Portuguese form of
Franciscus (see
FRANCIS). A notable bearer was Francisco de Goya, a Spanish painter and engraver. The name was also borne by Spanish dictator Francisco Franco.
FRIDAfSwedish, Norwegian, Danish, Ancient GermanicGermanic name, originally a short form of other feminine names containing the Germanic element
frid meaning "peace". This is also the Scandinavian equivalent, from the Old Norse cognate
Fríða. A famous bearer was Mexican painter Frida Kahlo (1907-1954).
GEORGESmFrenchFrench form of
GEORGE. This name was borne by the French artists Georges Seurat (1859-1891) and Georges Braque (1882-1963).
GEORGIAfEnglish, GreekLatinate feminine form of
GEORGE. This is the name of an American state, which was named after the British king George II. A famous bearer was the American painter Georgia O'Keeffe (1887-1986).
GIOTTOmItalianPossibly from
Ambrogiotto, a diminutive of
AMBROGIO, or
Angiolotto, a diminutive of
ANGIOLO. This name was borne by Giotto di Bondone (1267-1337), an Italian painter and architect.
GIOVANNImItalianItalian form of
Iohannes (see
JOHN). The Renaissance painter Giovanni Bellini (1430-1516) and the painter and sculptor Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini (1598-1680) were two famous bearers of this name.
GUIDOmItalian, GermanLatinized form of
WIDO. This was the name of two 11th-century saints. Other notable bearers include 11th-century music theorist Guido d'Arezzo, 13th-century poet Guido Cavalcanti, and 17th-century painter Guido Reni.
GUSTAVEmFrenchFrench form of
GUSTAV. This name was borne by the French artist Gustave Doré (1832-1883).
HANSmGerman, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, DanishGerman, Dutch and Scandinavian short form of
JOHANNES. Two famous bearers were Hans Holbein (1497-1543), a Renaissance portrait painter from Germany, and Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875), a Danish writer of fairy tales.
JEAN (1)mFrenchFrench form of
Jehan, the Old French form of
Iohannes (see
JOHN). The French philosophers Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) and Jean Paul Sartre (1905-1980) were two well-known bearers of this name. It was also borne by the German-French Dadaist artist Jean Arp (1886-1966).
KEESmDutchDutch diminutive of
CORNELIS. A notable bearer was the Dutch painter Kees van Dongen (1877-1968).
LEONARDOmItalian, Spanish, PortugueseItalian, Spanish and Portuguese form of
LEONARD. A notable bearer was Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), an Italian artist and scientist of the Renaissance. He is also known as the inventor of several contraptions, including flying machines, as well as the painter of the 'Mona Lisa'. Another famous bearer was Leonardo Fibonacci, a 13th-century Italian mathematician. A more recent bearer is American actor Leonardo DiCaprio (1974-).
LORENZOmItalian, SpanishItalian and Spanish form of
Laurentius (see
LAURENCE (1)). Lorenzo de' Medici (1449-1492), known as the Magnificent, was a ruler of Florence during the Renaissance. He was also a great patron of the arts who employed Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Botticelli and other famous artists.
MICHELANGELOmItalianFrom Italian, meaning "
MICHAEL angel", referring to the archangel Michael. The Renaissance painter and sculptor Michelangelo Buonarroti, from Florence, was the man who created such great works of art as the statue of
David and the mural on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. This name was also borne by the Baroque artist Michelangelo Merisi, better known as Caravaggio.
MONETf & mVariousFrom a French surname which was derived from either
HAMON or
EDMOND. This was the surname of the French impressionist painter Claude Monet (1840-1926).
MYRONmEnglish, Ancient GreekDerived from Greek
μυρον (myron) meaning "sweet oil, perfume". Myron was the name of a 5th-century BC Greek sculptor. Saints bearing this name include a 3rd-century bishop of Crete and a 4th-century martyr from Cyzicus who was killed by a mob. These saints are more widely revered in the Eastern Church, and the name has generally been more common among Eastern Christians. As an English name, it has been used since the 19th century.
PABLOmSpanishSpanish form of
Paulus (see
PAUL). Spanish painter and sculptor Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) was a famous bearer of this name.
PAOLOmItalianItalian form of
Paulus (see
PAUL). Paolo Uccello and Paolo Veronese were both Italian Renaissance painters.
PIEROmItalianItalian form of
PETER. Piero della Francesca was an Italian Renaissance painter.
PIERREmFrench, SwedishFrench form of
PETER. This name was borne by Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919), a French impressionist painter, and by Pierre Curie (1859-1906), a physicist who discovered radioactivity with his wife Marie.
PIETERmDutchDutch form of
PETER. This name was borne by the 16th-century Flemish painter Pieter Brueghel the Elder.
PIETROmItalianItalian form of
PETER. Pietro was the given name of the Renaissance painter known as Perugino.
RAEBURNmEnglish (Rare)From a surname which was originally derived from a Scottish place name meaning "stream where does drink" in Middle English. A famous bearer of the surname was Scottish portrait painter Sir Henry Raeburn (1756-1823).
REMBRANDTmDutchFrom a Germanic name which was composed of the elements
ragin "advice" and
brand "sword". This name belonged to the 17th-century Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn.
ROSALBAfItalianItalian name meaning "white rose", derived from Latin
rosa "rose" and
alba "white". A famous bearer was the Venetian painter Rosalba Carriera (1675-1757).
SALVADORmSpanishSpanish form of the Late Latin name
Salvator, which meant "saviour". A famous bearer of this name was the Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí (1904-1989).
TAMARAfRussian, Ukrainian, Czech, Slovak, Polish, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian, Hungarian, English, Dutch, Spanish, ItalianRussian form of
TAMAR. Russian performers such as Tamara Karsavina (1885-1978), Tamara Drasin (1905-1943), Tamara Geva (1907-1997) and Tamara Toumanova (1919-1996) introduced it to the English-speaking world. It was also borne by the Polish cubist painter Tamara de Lempicka (1898-1980).
TARASmUkrainian, RussianUkrainian and Russian form of the Greek name
Ταρασιος (Tarasios), which possibly means "from Taras". Taras was an Italian city, now called Taranto, which was founded by Greek colonists in the 8th century BC and was named for the Greek mythological figure Taras, a son of
Poseidon. Saint Tarasios was an 8th-century bishop of Constantinople. It was also borne by the Ukrainian writer and artist Taras Shevchenko (1814-1861).
THEOPHANESmAncient GreekMeans "manifestation of God" from Greek
θεος (theos) "god" and
φανης (phanes) "appearing". This name was borne by a few saints, including an 8th-century chronicler from Constantinople and a 19th-century Russian Orthodox saint, Theophanes the Recluse, who is
Феофан (Feofan) in Russian. Another famous bearer was a 14th-century Byzantine icon painter active in Moscow.
TIZIANOmItalianItalian form of the Roman cognomen
Titianus, which was derived from the Roman praenomen
TITUS. A famous bearer was the Venetian Renaissance painter Tiziano Vecellio (1488-1576), known in English as Titian.
VINCENTmEnglish, French, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, SlovakFrom the Roman name
Vincentius, which was from Latin
vincere "to conquer". This name was popular among early Christians, and it was borne by many saints. As an English name,
Vincent has been in use since the Middle Ages, though it did not become common until the 19th century. Famous bearers include the French priest Saint Vincent de Paul (1581-1660) and the post-impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890).
WINSLOWmEnglish (Rare)From a surname which was derived from an Old English place name meaning "hill belonging to
WINE". A famous bearer of this name was American painter Winslow Homer (1836-1910).