Pualani f HawaiianMeans
"heavenly flower" or
"royal offspring" from Hawaiian
pua "flower, offspring" and
lani "heaven, sky, royal, majesty".
Puanani f HawaiianMeans
"beautiful flower" or
"beautiful offspring" from Hawaiian
pua "flower, offspring" and
nani "beauty, glory".
Queralt f CatalanFrom the name of a Spanish sanctuary (in Catalonia) that is devoted to the Virgin
Mary.
Quinlan m & f English (Rare)From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of
Ó Caoindealbháin, itself from the given name
Caoindealbhán (Old Irish
Caíndelbán).
Radinka f SerbianDerived from the Slavic element
radŭ meaning
"happy, willing" combined with a diminutive suffix.
Rainbow f English (Rare)From the English word for the arc of multicoloured light that can appear in a misty sky.
Raleigh m & f EnglishFrom an English surname that was derived from a place name meaning either "red clearing" or "roe deer clearing" in Old English. A city in North Carolina bears this name, after the English courtier, poet and explorer Walter Raleigh (1552-1618).
Rebecca f English, Italian, Swedish, German, Dutch, Biblical, Biblical LatinFrom the Hebrew name
רִבְקָה (Rivqah), probably from a Semitic root meaning
"join, tie, snare". This is the name of the wife of
Isaac and the mother of
Esau and
Jacob in the Old Testament. It came into use as an English Christian name after the Protestant Reformation, and it was popular with the Puritans in the 17th century. It has been consistently used since then, becoming especially common in the second half of the 20th century.
... [more] Refilwe m & f TswanaMeans
"we were given" in Tswana, derived from
filwe "given".
Reverie f English (Rare)From the English word meaning
"daydream, fanciful musing", derived from Old French
resverie, itself from
resver meaning "to dream, to rave".
Rhonwen f WelshWelsh form of
Rowena, appearing in medieval Welsh poems and stories as a personification of the English people.
Richmal f English (Rare)Meaning uncertain, possibly a combination of
Richard and
Mary. This name has been used since at least the late 18th century, mainly confined to the town of Bury in Lancashire.
Rihanna f ArabicAlternate transcription of Arabic
رَيحانة (see
Rayhana). This name is borne by the Barbadian singer Robyn Rihanna Fenty (1988-), known simply as Rihanna. In the United States it jumped in popularity between the years 2005 and 2008, when Rihanna was releasing her first albums. It quickly declined over the next few years.
Rosabel f English (Rare)Combination of
Rosa 1 and the common name suffix
bel, inspired by Latin
bella "beautiful". This name was created in the 18th century.
Rosalba f ItalianItalian name meaning
"white rose", derived from Latin
rosa "rose" and
alba "white". A famous bearer was the Venetian painter Rosalba Carriera (1675-1757).
Rosalie f French, German, Dutch, EnglishFrench, German and Dutch form of
Rosalia. In the English-speaking this name received a boost after the release of the movie
Rosalie (1938), which was based on an earlier musical.
Rosario f & m Spanish, ItalianMeans
"rosary", and is taken from the Spanish title of the Virgin
Mary Nuestra Señora del Rosario meaning "Our Lady of the Rosary". This name is feminine in Spanish and masculine in Italian.
Rosaura f SpanishMeans
"golden rose", derived from Latin
rosa "rose" and
aurea "golden". This name was (first?) used by Pedro Calderón de la Barca for a character in his play
Life Is a Dream (1635).
Roselle f VariousDiminutive of
Rose. This is the name of a type of flowering shrub (species Hibiscus sabdariffa) native to Africa but now grown in many places, used to make hibiscus tea.
Royalty f English (Modern)From the English word
royalty, derived (via Old French) from Latin
regalitas, a derivative of
rex "king".
Rusudan f GeorgianPossibly derived from Persian
روز (ruz) meaning
"day". This name was borne by a 13th-century ruling queen of Georgia.
Sabrina f English, Italian, German, French, Spanish, PortugueseLatinized form of
Habren, the original Welsh name of the River Severn. According to Geoffrey of Monmouth, Sabrina was the name of a princess who was drowned in the Severn. Supposedly the river was named for her, but it is more likely that her name was actually derived from that of the river, which is of unknown meaning. She appears as a water nymph in John Milton's masque
Comus (1634).
... [more] Sachiko f JapaneseFrom Japanese
幸 (sachi) meaning "happiness, good luck" and
子 (ko) meaning "child". Other kanji combinations are possible.
Saffron f English (Rare)From the English word that refers either to a spice, the crocus flower from which it is harvested, or the yellow-orange colour of the spice. It is derived via Old French from Arabic
زعفران (za'faran), itself probably from Persian meaning "gold leaves".
Salacia f Roman MythologyDerived from Latin
sal meaning
"salt". This was the name of the Roman goddess of salt water.
Santana f & m Spanish (Latin American), Portuguese (Brazilian), English (Modern)From a contraction of
Santa Ana (referring to Saint
Anna) or from a Spanish and Portuguese surname derived from any of the numerous places named for the saint. It can be given in honour of the Mexican-American musician Carlos Santana (1947-), the founder of the band Santana. The name received a boost in popularity for American girls after the character Santana Andrade began appearing on the soap opera
Santa Barbara in 1984.
Saoirse f IrishMeans
"freedom" in Irish Gaelic. It was first used as a given name in the 20th century.
Savitri f Hinduism, Hindi, MarathiMeans
"relating to the sun" in Sanskrit. This is the name of a hymn dedicated to Savitr, a Hindu sun god, and it is also the name of his daughter. It is borne by several other characters in Hindu epics, including a wife of
Brahma, a wife of
Shiva, and a daughter of Daksha. In the Hindu epic the
Mahabharata it is borne by King Satyavan's wife, who successfully pleas with Yama, the god of death, to restore her husband to life.
Sekhmet f Egyptian MythologyFrom Egyptian
sḫmt, derived from
sḫm meaning
"powerful" and a feminine
t suffix. Sekhmet was an Egyptian warrior goddess, also associated with healing, violence and plague. She was commonly depicted with the head of a lioness, and was sometimes conflated with the cat-headed goddess
Bastet.
Seo-Yeon f KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
瑞 (seo) meaning "felicitous omen, auspicious" combined with
娟 (yeon) or
妍 (yeon) both meaning "beautiful". Many other combinations of hanja characters can also form this name.
Sequoia f & m English (Rare)From the name of huge trees that grow in California. The tree got its name from the 19th-century Cherokee scholar
Sequoyah (also known as George Guess), the inventor of the Cherokee writing system.
Setsuko f JapaneseFrom Japanese
節 (setsu) meaning "section, period, verse, melody" and
子 (ko) meaning "child". Other kanji combinations can also be possible.
Shakira f ArabicFeminine form of
Shakir. A famous bearer is the Colombian singer Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll (1977-), known simply as Shakira.
Shannon f & m EnglishFrom the name of the River Shannon, the longest river in Ireland, called
an tSionainn in Irish. It is associated with the legendary figure
Sionann and is sometimes said to be named for her. However it is more likely she was named after the river, which may be related to Old Irish
sen "old, ancient". As a given name, it first became common in America after the 1940s.
Shawnee f English (Modern)Means
"southern people" in the Algonquin language. The Shawnee were an Algonquin tribe who originally lived in the Ohio valley.
Shelley f & m EnglishFrom an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning
"clearing on a bank" in Old English. Two famous bearers of the surname were Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822), a romantic poet whose works include
Adonais and
Ozymandias, and Mary Shelley (1797-1851), his wife, the author of the horror story
Frankenstein. As a feminine given name, it came into general use after the 1940s.
Shigeko f JapaneseFrom Japanese
繁 (shige) meaning "flourishing, luxuriant" or
成 (shige) meaning "become" combined with
子 (ko) meaning "child". Other kanji combinations can also form this name.
Shinobu m & f JapaneseFrom Japanese
忍 (shinobu) meaning "endurance, patience", as well as other kanji or kanji combinations having the same pronunciation.
Shirley f & m EnglishFrom an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning
"bright clearing" in Old English. This is the name of a main character in Charlotte Brontë's semi-autobiographical novel
Shirley (1849). Though the name was already popular in the United States, the child actress Shirley Temple (1928-2014) gave it a further boost. By 1935 it was the second most common name for girls.
Shizuka f JapaneseFrom Japanese
静 (shizu) meaning "quiet" combined with
夏 (ka) meaning "summer" or
香 (ka) meaning "fragrance". Other kanji combinations are possible.
Shizuko f JapaneseFrom Japanese
静 (shizu) meaning "quiet" and
子 (ko) meaning "child". Other kanji combinations can also form this name.
Sholpan f KazakhMeans
"Venus (the planet)" in Kazakh. Sholpan and
Aiman are sisters in a 19th-century Kazakh epic poem, adapted into the play
Aiman-Sholpan (1934) by Mukhtar Auezov.
Sidonia f Late Roman, GeorgianFeminine form of
Sidonius. This is the name of a legendary saint from Georgia. She and her father Abiathar were supposedly converted by Saint
Nino from Judaism to Christianity.
Sionann f Irish MythologyIn Irish legend this was the name of a granddaughter of the sea god
Lir who went to Connla's Well, which was forbidden. The well burst and drowned her, leaving her body in the river thereafter known as the
Sionainn (see
Shannon).
Slavěna f CzechDerived from Czech
slavná meaning
"glorious", a derivative of Old Slavic
slava "glory".
Socorro f SpanishMeans
"succour, help, relief" in Spanish. It is taken from the title of the Virgin
Mary María del Socorro meaning "Mary of Perpetual Succour".
Solange f FrenchFrench form of the Late Latin name
Sollemnia, which was derived from Latin
sollemnis "religious". This was the name of a French shepherdess who became a saint after she was killed by her master.
Soledad f SpanishMeans
"solitude" in Spanish. It is taken from the title of the Virgin
Mary,
María de la Soledad, meaning "Mary of Solitude".
Solfrid f NorwegianFrom the Old Norse elements
sól "sun" and
fríðr "beautiful, beloved". This name was coined in the 19th century.
Solveig f Norwegian, Swedish, DanishFrom an Old Norse name, which was derived from the elements
sól "sun" and
veig "strength". This is the name of the heroine in Henrik Ibsen's play
Peer Gynt (1876).
Stefani f English, BulgarianEnglish variant and Bulgarian form of
Stephanie. A notable bearer is Stefani Germanotta (1986-), an American singer better known as Lady Gaga.
Stelara f EsperantoFrom Esperanto
stelaro meaning
"constellation", ultimately from Latin
stella "star".
Suellen f EnglishContraction of
Susan and
Ellen 1. Margaret Mitchell used this name in her novel
Gone with the Wind (1936), where it belongs to Scarlett's sister.
Su-Hyeon f & m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
秀 (su) meaning "luxuriant, beautiful, elegant, outstanding" and
賢 (hyeon) meaning "virtuous, worthy, able". Other combinations of hanja characters can also form this name.
Sumayya f ArabicMeans
"high above" in Arabic. This was the name of the first martyr for Islam.
Sunčana f CroatianFrom Croatian
sunčan meaning
"sunny", a derivative of
sunce meaning "sun".
Sunniva f NorwegianScandinavian form of the Old English name
Sunngifu, which meant
"sun gift" from the Old English elements
sunne "sun" and
giefu "gift". This was the name of a legendary English saint who was shipwrecked in Norway and killed by the inhabitants.