Browse Names - Behind the Name

Anaya f English (Modern)
Meaning unknown, possibly from the Spanish surname Anaya (itself from the name of a Spanish town), used because of its similarity to Amaya.

Kendall m & f English
From an English surname that comes from the name of the city of Kendale in northwestern England meaning "valley on the river Kent". Originally mostly masculine, the name received a boost in popularity for girls in 1993 when the devious character Kendall Hart began appearing on the American soap opera All My Children.

Maris 2 f English (Rare)
Means "of the sea", taken from the Latin title of the Virgin Mary, Stella Maris, meaning "star of the sea".

Mary f English, Biblical
Usual English form of Maria, the Latin form of the New Testament Greek names Μαριάμ (Mariam) and Μαρία (Maria) — the spellings are interchangeable — which were from Hebrew מִרְיָם (Miryam), a name borne by the sister of Moses in the Old Testament. The meaning is not known for certain, but there are several theories including "sea of bitterness", "rebelliousness", and "wished for child". However it was most likely originally an Egyptian name, perhaps derived in part from mry "beloved" or mr "love".... [more]

Morgan 1 m & f Welsh, English, French
From the Old Welsh masculine name Morcant, which was possibly derived from Welsh mor "sea" and cant "circle". Since the 1980s in America Morgan has been more common for girls than boys, perhaps due to stories of Morgan le Fay or the fame of actress Morgan Fairchild (1950-).

Navy f & m English (Modern)
From the English word meaning "sea force, fleet, armed forces of the sea". It is derived from Old French navie, from Latin navigia, the plural of navigium "boat, vessel". It also refers to a shade of dark blue, a colour traditionally associated with naval uniforms.

Ocean f & m English (Modern)
Simply from the English word ocean for a large body of water. It is ultimately derived from Greek Ὠκεανός (Okeanos), the name of the body of water thought to surround the Earth.

River m & f English (Modern)
From the English word that denotes a flowing body of water. The word is ultimately derived (via Old French) from Latin ripa "riverbank".

Talia 2 f English (Australian)
From the name of a town in South Australia, perhaps meaning "near water" in an Australian Aboriginal language.

Vale f English (Rare)
From the English word meaning "wide river valley".

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name impressions are based on the ratings left by the behindthename.com community
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name impressions are based on the ratings left by the behindthename.com community

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