ANTONIO m Spanish, Italian, CroatianSpanish and Italian form of
Antonius (see
ANTHONY). This has been a common name in Italy since the 14th century. In Spain it was the most popular name for boys in the 1950s and 60s.
... [more] ANTONY m EnglishVariant of
ANTHONY. This was formerly the usual English spelling of the name, but during the 17th century the
h began to be added.
ANUBIS m Egyptian Mythology (Latinized)Latinized form of
Ανουβις (Anoubis), the Greek form of Egyptian
Inpw (reconstructed as
Anapa and other forms), which coincided with a word meaning
"royal child, prince". However, it might alternatively be derived from the root
inp meaning
"to decay". Anubis was the Egyptian god who led the dead to the underworld. He was often depicted as a man with the head of a jackal. The Greeks equated him with their god
Hermes.
ANUJ m Indian, Hindi, MarathiMeans
"born later, younger" in Sanskrit. This name is sometimes given to the younger sibling of an older child.
ANWAR m ArabicMeans
"brighter, more luminous" in Arabic. This name was borne by Egyptian president Anwar Sadat (1918-1981), who was assassinated three years after being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
ANZOR m Georgian, ChechenPossibly derived from the Georgian noble title
აზნაური (aznauri), ultimately from Middle Persian
aznawar meaning
"noble".
AODH m Irish, Scottish, Irish MythologyFrom the old Irish name
Áed, which meant
"fire". This was a very popular name in early Ireland, being borne by numerous figures in Irish mythology and several high kings. It has been traditionally Anglicized as
Hugh.
AODHÁN m Irish, Scottish, Irish MythologyFrom the old Irish name
Áedán meaning
"little fire", a diminutive of
Áed (see
AODH). This was the name of an Irish monk and saint of the 7th century. It was also borne by several characters in Irish mythology.
AOI f & m JapaneseFrom Japanese
葵 (aoi) meaning "hollyhock, althea" or an adjectival form of
碧 (ao) meaning "green, blue". Other kanji with the same reading can form this name as well.
AONGHUS m Irish, Scottish, Irish MythologyPossibly meaning
"one strength" derived from Irish
óen "one" and
gus "force, strength, energy". Aonghus (sometimes surnamed
Mac Og meaning "young son") was the Irish god of love and youth. The name was also borne by an 8th-century Pictish king and several Irish kings.
APOLLINAIRE m French (Rare)French form of
APOLLINARIS. It was adopted as a surname by the Polish-French poet Guillaume Apollinaire (1880-1918), who based it on his Polish middle name Apolinary.
APOLLINARIS m Ancient GreekAncient Greek name derived from the name of the god
APOLLO. This was the name of several early saints and martyrs, including a bishop of Ravenna and a bishop of Hierapolis.
APOLLO m Greek Mythology (Latinized)From Greek
Απολλων (Apollon), which is of unknown meaning, though perhaps related to Indo-European *
apelo meaning
"strength". Another theory states that Apollo can be equated with Appaliunas, an Anatolian god whose name possibly means
"father lion" or
"father light". The Greeks later associated Apollo's name with the Greek verb
απολλυμι (apollymi) meaning
"to destroy". In Greek mythology Apollo was the son of
Zeus and
Leto and the twin of
Artemis. He was the god of prophecy, medicine, music, art, law, beauty, and wisdom. Later he also became the god of the sun and light.
APOLLONIOS m Ancient GreekFrom an ancient Greek personal name that was derived from the name of the Greek god
APOLLO. It was borne by a Greek poet of the 3rd century BC. Several saints have also had this name.
APPIUS m Ancient RomanThis was a Roman praenomen, or given name, used predominantly by the Claudia family. Its etymology is unknown. A famous bearer of this name was Appius Claudius Caecus, a Roman statesman of the 3rd century BC. He was responsible for the Aqua Appia (the first Roman aqueduct) and the Appian Way (a road between Rome and Capua), both of which were named for him.
AQIL m ArabicMeans
"intelligent, wise" in Arabic. This transcription represents two different Arabic spellings.
ARA m Armenian, Armenian MythologyMeaning unknown, possibly of Sumerian origin. In Armenian legend this was the name of an Armenian king who was so handsome that the Assyrian queen Semiramis went to war to capture him. During the war Ara was slain.
ARAGORN m LiteratureMeaning unexplained, though the first element is presumably Sindarin
ara "noble, kingly". This is the name of a character in
The Lord of the Rings (1954) by J. R. R. Tolkien. In the book Aragorn is the heir of the Dúnedain kings of the north.
ARAMIS m LiteratureThe surname of one of the musketeers in
The Three Musketeers (1844) by Alexandre Dumas. Dumas based the character on the 17th-century Henri d'Aramitz, whose surname was derived from the French village of Aramits (itself from Basque
aran meaning "valley").
ARAN (1) f & m IrishFrom the name of the Aran Islands off the west coast of Ireland.
ARARAT m ArmenianFrom the name of a mountain in eastern Turkey (formerly part of Armenia), the place where
Noah's Ark came to rest according to the Old Testament.
ARASH m Persian, Persian MythologyPossibly means either
"truthfulness" or
"bright" in Persian. In Persian legend Arash was a Persian archer who was ordered by the Turans to shoot an arrow, the landing place of which would determine the new location of the Persian-Turan border. Arash climbed a mountain and fired his arrow with such strength that it flew for several hours and landed on the banks of the far-away Oxus River.
ARATA m JapaneseFrom Japanese
新 (arata) meaning "fresh, new". Other kanji or kanji combinations can also form this name.
ARAWN m Welsh MythologyMeaning unknown. This was the name of the god of the underworld, called Annwfn, in Welsh mythology.
ARCHER m EnglishFrom an English surname meaning
"bowman, archer", of Old French origin.
ARCHIBALD m Scottish, EnglishDerived from the Germanic elements
ercan "genuine" and
bald "bold". The first element was altered due to the influence of Greek names beginning with the element
αρχος (archos) meaning "master". The Normans brought this name to England. It first became common in Scotland in the Middle Ages.
ARCHIL m GeorgianMeaning unknown, of Persian origin. This was the name of an 8th-century Georgian noble who was executed for refusing to convert to Islam.
ARDA m TurkishPossibly means
"marker, stake" in Turkish.
ARDASHIR m PersianFrom the Middle Persian form of
Artakhshathra (see
ARTAXERXES). This was the name of a 3rd-century king of Persia who defeated the Parthians and founded the Sassanid Empire. He also established Zoroastrianism as the state religion.
ARDEN m & f EnglishFrom an English surname, originally taken from various place names, which were derived from a Celtic word meaning
"high".
ARDGHAL m IrishMeans
"high valour", derived from the Irish elements
ard "high" and
gal "valour".
ARDIT m AlbanianMeans
"golden day" in Albanian, from
ar "gold" and
ditë "day".
ARELI m BiblicalMeans
"lion of God, hero" in Hebrew. This was the name of a son of
Gad in the Old Testament.
ARES m Greek MythologyPerhaps from either Greek
αρη (are) meaning
"bane, ruin" or
αρσην (arsen) meaning
"male". The name first appears as
a-re in Mycenaean Greek writing. Ares was the bloodthirsty god of war in Greek mythology, a son of
Zeus and
Hera.
ARETAS m BiblicalGreek form of an Aramaic name, of unknown meaning. This was the name of four Nabataean kings of
Petra in Jordan, including the first king (2nd century BC). King Aretas IV is mentioned briefly in the New Testament.
ARGIDER m BasqueDerived from Basque
argi "light" and
eder "beautiful".
ARGUS m Greek Mythology (Latinized)From the Greek
Αργος (Argos), derived from
αργος (argos) meaning
"glistening, shining". In Greek myth this name belonged to both the man who built the Argo and a man with a hundred eyes.
ARIDAI m BiblicalMeaning unknown, possibly of Persian origin. In the Old Testament this is the name of one of the ten sons of
Haman killed by the Jews.
ARIEL m & f Hebrew, English, French, Spanish, Biblical, Biblical GreekMeans
"lion of God" in Hebrew, from
אֲרִי ('ari) meaning "lion" and
אֵל ('el) meaning "God". In the Old Testament it is used as another name for the city of Jerusalem. Shakespeare used it as the name of a spirit in his play
The Tempest (1611), and one of the moons of Uranus bears this name in his honour. As an English name, it became more common for females in the 1980s, especially after it was used for the title character in the Walt Disney film
The Little Mermaid (1989).
ARIES m Roman MythologyMeans
"ram" in Latin. This is the name of a constellation and the first sign of the zodiac. Some Roman legends state that the ram in the constellation was the one who supplied the Golden Fleece sought by
Jason.
ARISTOTLE m Ancient Greek (Anglicized)From the Greek name
Αριστοτελης (Aristoteles) meaning
"the best purpose", derived from
αριστος (aristos) meaning "best" and
τελος (telos) meaning "purpose, aim". This was the name of a Greek philosopher of the 4th century BC who made lasting contributions to Western thought, including the fields of logic, metaphysics, ethics and biology.
ARJUNA m HinduismMeans
"white, clear" in Sanskrit. This is the name of a hero in Hindu texts, the son of the god
Indra and the princess Kunti.
ARKADIOS m Ancient GreekFrom an ancient Greek name meaning
"of Arcadia". Arcadia was a region in Greece, its name deriving from
αρκτος (arktos) meaning "bear". This was the name of a 3rd-century saint and martyr.
ARKADIY m RussianRussian form of
ARKADIOS. This is the name of one of the main characters in Ivan Turgenev's
Fathers and Sons (1862).
ARKE m FrisianOriginally a short form of Germanic names beginning with the element
arn meaning
"eagle".
ARLO m EnglishMeaning 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".
ARLOTTO m Medieval ItalianMedieval Italian name, recorded in Latin as
Arlotus. It is possibly from Old French
herlot meaning
"vagabond, tramp".
ARMAS m FinnishMeans
"beloved" in Finnish (an archaic poetic word).
ARMEL m Breton, FrenchBreton and French form of the Brythonic name
Arthmael, which was composed of the elements
arth "bear" and
mael "prince, chieftain". This was the name of a 6th-century Welsh saint who founded abbeys in Brittany.
ARMINIUS m Ancient Germanic (Latinized)Latinized form of a Germanic name that was probably derived from the element
ermen meaning
"whole, universal". Other theories claim that it is related to
HERMAN. Arminius was a 1st-century chief of the Germanic tribe of the Cherusci. Raised in Rome as a hostage, he eventually became a citizen and joined the army. However, he turned against the Empire, leading the Germans in a surprise attack in the Teutoburg Forest and driving the Romans from Germania.
ARNFINN m NorwegianNorwegian form of
Arnfinnr, which was derived from the elements
arn "eagle" and
finnr "Sámi, person from Finland".
ARNOLD m English, German, Dutch, Ancient GermanicFrom a Germanic name meaning
"eagle power", derived from the elements
arn "eagle" and
wald "power". The Normans brought it to England, where it replaced the Old English cognate
Earnweald. It died out as an English name after the Middle Ages, but it was revived in the 19th century.
... [more] ÁRPÁD m HungarianFrom Hungarian
árpa meaning
"barley". This was the name of a 9th-century Magyar ruler who led his people into Hungary. He is considered a Hungarian national hero.
ARRAN m ScottishFrom the name of an island off the west coast of Scotland in the Firth of Clyde.
ARSENIOS m Ancient GreekMeans
"virile" in Greek. Saint Arsenius was a 5th-century deacon who was tutor to the two sons of the Roman emperor Theodosius. The two sons, Arcadius and Honorius, divided the empire into eastern and western halves upon their father's death.
ARTAXERXES m Ancient Persian (Hellenized), BiblicalGreek form of the Persian name
Artakhshathra meaning
"righteous ruler". This was the name of several Achaemenid Persian rulers. It was also borne by the founder of the Sassanid Empire, usually known by the Middle Persian form
Ardashir.
ARTEMIDOROS m Ancient GreekMeans
"gift of Artemis" from the name of the goddess
ARTEMIS combined with Greek
δωρον (doron) meaning "gift". This was the name of a Greek author of the 2nd century who wrote about the interpretation of dreams.
ARTEMIOS m Ancient GreekFrom an ancient Greek name that was derived from the name of the Greek goddess
ARTEMIS. This was the name of a 4th-century general in the Roman army who is venerated as a saint in the Orthodox Church.
ARTHIT m ThaiMeans
"sun" in Thai, derived from the name of the Hindu god
ADITYA.
ARTUR m Portuguese, Galician, Catalan, Polish, Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, German, Estonian, Swedish, ArmenianForm of
ARTHUR in several languages.
ARŪNAS m LithuanianDerived from poetic Lithuanian
aras meaning "eagle" combined with the patronymic suffix
ūnas.
ARWYN m WelshFrom the Welsh intensifying prefix
ar- and
gwyn meaning "white, fair".
ARYA (1) m & f Persian, Indian, Hindi, MalayalamFrom an old Indo-Iranian root meaning "Aryan, noble". In India, this is a transcription of both the masculine form
आर्य and the feminine form
आर्या. In Iran it is only a masculine name.
ASAPH m BiblicalMeans
"collector" in Hebrew. This name belongs to several minor characters in the Old Testament.
ASEN m BulgarianMeaning unknown, probably of Turkic origin. This was the name of a 12th-century Bulgarian emperor (Ivan Asen I) and several of his successors.
ASGER m DanishFrom the Old Norse name
Ásgeirr, derived from the elements
áss meaning "god" and
geirr meaning "spear".
ASH m & f EnglishShort form of
ASHLEY. It can also come directly from the English word denoting either the tree or the residue of fire.
ASHANTI f & m VariousFrom the name of an African people who reside in southern Ghana. It possibly means "warlike" in the Twi language.
ASHLEY f & m EnglishFrom an English surname that was originally derived from place names meaning
"ash tree clearing", from a combination of Old English
æsc and
leah. Until the 1960s it was more commonly given to boys in the United States, but it is now most often used on girls. It reached its height of popularity in America in 1987, but it did not become the highest ranked name until 1991, being overshadowed by the likewise-popular
Jessica until then. In the United Kingdom it is still more common as a masculine name.
ASHOKA m SanskritMeans
"without sorrow" in Sanskrit. This name was borne by Ashoka the Great, a 3rd-century BC emperor of India.
ASHTON m & f EnglishFrom a surname that was originally derived from a place name that meant
"ash tree town" in Old English.
ASHUR m Semitic MythologyFrom the name of the city of
ASHUR, the capital of the Assyrian Empire, which is of unknown meaning. Ashur was the patron deity of the city and the chief god of Assyria.
ASHURBANIPAL m Ancient Assyrian (Anglicized)From Akkadian
Ashur-bani-apli meaning
"ASHUR is creator of a son". This was the name of one of the final kings of the Assyrian Empire, reigning late in the 7th century BC. He appears in the Old Testament under the name
Asnappar.