WILBERT m DutchMeans "bright will", derived from the Germanic elements
wil "will, desire" and
beraht "bright".
WILBUR m EnglishFrom an English surname that was originally derived from the nickname
Wildbor meaning "wild boar" in Middle English. This name was borne by Wilbur Wright (1867-1912), one half of the Wright brothers, who together invented the first successful airplane. Wright was named after the Methodist minister Wilbur Fisk (1792-1839).
WILBURN m EnglishFrom a surname that was probably originally derived from an unknown place name. The second element corresponds with Old English
burne "stream".
WILEY m EnglishFrom a surname that was derived from various English place names: towns named
WILLEY or the River
WYLYE.
WILFORD m EnglishFrom a surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "willow ford" in Old English.
WILFRED m EnglishMeans "desiring peace" from Old English
wil "will, desire" and
friþ "peace". Saint Wilfrid was a 7th-century Anglo-Saxon bishop. The name was rarely used after the Norman Conquest, but it was revived in the 19th century.
WILHELM m German, Polish, Ancient GermanicGerman cognate of
WILLIAM. This was the name of two German emperors. It was also the middle name of several philosophers from Germany: Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831), Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (1844-1900), and Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz (1646-1716), who was also a notable mathematician.
WILHELMUS m DutchLatinized form of
WILHELM. This is also the official Dutch form of the name, used on birth certificates but not commonly in daily life.
WILKIE m EnglishFrom an English surname that was originally derived from a diminutive of the given name
WILLIAM.
WILL m EnglishShort form of
WILLIAM or other names beginning with
Will. A famous bearer is American actor Will Smith (1968-), whose full name is Willard.
WILLARD m EnglishFrom an English surname that was derived from the Germanic given name
WILLIHARD (or the Old English cognate
Wilheard).
WILLEM m DutchDutch form of
WILLIAM. Willem the Silent, Prince of Orange, was the leader of the Dutch revolt against Spain that brought about the independence of the Netherlands. He is considered the founder of the Dutch royal family. In English he is commonly called William of Orange.
WILLIAM m EnglishFrom the Germanic name
Willahelm, which was composed of the elements
wil "will, desire" and
helm "helmet, protection". Saint William of Gellone was an 8th-century cousin of
Charlemagne who became a monk. The name was common among the Normans, and it became extremely popular in England after William the Conqueror was recognized as the first Norman king of England in the 11th century. It was later borne by three other English kings, as well as rulers of Scotland, Sicily (of Norman origin), the Netherlands and Prussia.
... [more] WILLIE m & f EnglishMasculine or feminine diminutive of
WILLIAM. A notable bearer is the retired American baseball player Willie Mays (1931-).
WILLIHAD m Ancient GermanicGermanic name derived from the elements
wil "will, desire" and
hadu "battle, combat". This was the name of an 8th-century saint active in Frisia and Saxony.
WILLOUGHBY m English (Rare)From a surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "willow town" in Old English.
WILSON m EnglishFrom an English surname meaning "son of
WILLIAM". The surname was borne by Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924), the American president during World War I.
WILT m EnglishShort form of
WILTON. This name was borne by basketball player Wilt Chamberlain (1936-1999).
WILTON m EnglishFrom a surname that was derived from the names of several English towns. The town names mean variously "willow town", "well town" or "town on the River Wylye" in Old English. The river name is itself of Celtic origin, possibly meaning "tricky".
WINDSOR m & f English (Rare)From an English surname that was from a place name meaning "riverbank with a windlass" in Old English (a windlass is a lifting apparatus). This has been the surname of the royal family of the United Kingdom since 1917.
WINFIELD m EnglishFrom a surname that originated from various English place names, themselves derived from Old English
winn "meadow, pasture" and
feld "field".
WINFRED m EnglishMeans "friend of peace" from the Old English elements
wine "friend" and
friþ "peace". This was the birth name of the 8th-century missionary Saint Boniface. It became rare after the Norman Conquest, though it was revived in the 19th century.
WINSLOW m English (Rare)From a surname that 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).
WINSTON m EnglishFrom a surname derived from an English place name, which was in turn derived from the Old English given name
WYNNSTAN. A famous bearer was Winston Churchill (1874-1965), the British prime minister during World War II. This name was also borne by the fictional Winston Smith, the protagonist in George Orwell's 1949 novel '1984'.
WINTHROP m EnglishFrom a surname that was originally taken from town names meaning either "
WINE's village" or "
WIGMUND's village" in Old English.
WINTON m EnglishFrom a surname that was derived from a place name meaning "enclosure belonging to
WINE" in Old English.
WOB m Frisian, DutchFrisian diminutive of Germanic names beginning with the element
wald meaning "rule".
WOJCIECH m PolishDerived from the Slavic elements
voji "soldier" and
tekha "solace, comfort, joy". Saint Wojciech (also known by the Czech form of his name
Vojtěch or his adopted name
Adalbert) was a Bohemian missionary to Hungary, Poland and Prussia, where he was martyred in the 10th century.
WOLFGANG m German, Ancient GermanicDerived from the Germanic elements
wulf meaning "wolf" and
gang "path". Two famous bearers of this name were Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) and German novelist and poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832).
WOODROW m EnglishFrom a surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "row of houses by a wood" in Old English. This name was popularized by American president Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924).
WOODY m EnglishEither a diminutive of
WOODROW, or else from a nickname derived from the English word
wood. A famous bearer is film director Woody Allen (1935-).
WRIGHT m EnglishFrom an occupational surname meaning "craftsman", ultimately from Old English
wyrhta. Famous bearers of the surname were the Wright brothers (Wilbur 1867-1912 and Orville 1871-1948), the inventors of the first successful airplane, and Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959), an American architect.
WU m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
武 (wǔ) meaning "military, martial" (which is generally only masculine) or
务 (wù) meaning "affairs, business", as well as other characters that are pronounced similarly. This was the name of several Chinese rulers, including the 2nd-century BC emperor Wu of Han (name spelled
武) who expanded the empire and made Confucianism the state philosophy.
WULFNOÐ m Anglo-SaxonDerived from the Old English elements
wulf "wolf" and
noð "boldness, daring". This name became rare after the Norman Conquest.
WYATT m EnglishFrom an English surname that was derived from the medieval given name
WYOT. Wyatt Earp (1848-1929) was an American lawman and gunfighter involved in the famous shootout at the OK Corral.
WYN m WelshDerived from Welsh
gwyn meaning "blessed, white, fair".
WYOT m Medieval EnglishMiddle English form of the Old English name
Wigheard, composed of the elements
wig "battle" and
heard "brave, hardy".
WYSTAN m English (Rare)From the Old English name
Wigstan, composed of the elements
wig "battle" and
stan "stone". This was the name of a 9th-century Anglo-Saxon saint. It became rare after the Norman Conquest, and in modern times it is chiefly known as the first name of the British poet W. H. Auden (1907-1973).
XANDER m Dutch, English (Modern)Short form of
ALEXANDER. It was popularized in the English-speaking world by a character on the television series 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' (1997-2003).
XAVIER m English, French, Portuguese, Catalan, Spanish (Archaic)Derived from the Basque place name
Etxeberria meaning "the new house". This was the surname of the Jesuit priest Saint Francis Xavier (1506-1552) who was borne in a village of this name. He was a missionary to India, Japan, China, and other areas in East Asia, and he is the patron saint of the Orient and missionaries. His surname has since been adopted as a given name in his honour, chiefly among Catholics.
XERXES m HistoryGreek form of the Persian name
Khshayarsha, which meant "ruler over heroes". This was a 5th-century BC king of Persia, the son of Darius the Great. He attempted an invasion of Greece, which ended unsuccessfully at the battle of Salamis.
XIA m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
夏 (xià) meaning "summer, great, grand",
霞 (xiá) meaning "rosy clouds", or other characters that are pronounced similarly.
XIANG m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
翔 (xiáng) meaning "soar, glide",
祥 (xiáng) meaning "good luck, good omen",
香 (xiāng) meaning "fragrant" (which is usually only feminine) or
湘 (xiāng), which refers to the Xiang River in southern China. This name can also be formed from other characters.
XIMENO m Medieval SpanishMedieval Spanish or Basque name of uncertain meaning. It is possibly a form of
SIMON (1), though it may in fact derive from Basque
seme meaning "son".
XINYI m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
欣 (xīn) meaning "happy, joyous, delighted" or
心 (xīn) meaning "heart, mind, soul" combined with
怡 (yí) meaning "joy, harmony". This name can also be formed from other character combinations.
XUE f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
雪 (xuě) meaning "snow" or
学 (xué) meaning "study, learning, school", besides other characters pronounced similarly.
XUN m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
勋 (xūn) meaning "meritorious deed, rank" or
迅 (xùn) meaning "snow", as well as other characters with a similar pronunciation.
YAHUI f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
雅 (yǎ) meaning "elegant, graceful, refined" combined with
惠 (huì) meaning "favour, benefit". This name can also be formed from other character combinations.
YAHWEH m TheologyA name of the Hebrew God, represented in Hebrew by the Tetragrammaton ("four letters")
יהוה (Yod Heh Vav Heh), which was transliterated into Roman script as
Y H W H. Because it was considered blasphemous to utter the name of God, it was only written and never spoken, which resulted in the original pronunciation becoming lost. The name may have originally been derived from the old Semitic root
הוה (hawah) meaning "to be" or "to become".
YALE m WelshFrom a Welsh surname, which was itself derived from a place name meaning "fertile upland" (from Welsh
ial).
YAM m Semitic MythologyMeans "sea" in Ugaritic. Yam was the Ugaritic god of the sea, also associated with chaos, storms and destruction. He was a son of the chief god
El.
YAMA (1) m HinduismMeans "twin" in Sanskrit. This is the name of the Hindu god of death. He is also regarded as the first mortal being, or in other words, the first person to die. This name is related to Persian
Jam.
YAMATO m JapaneseFrom
YAMATO, an ancient name for Japan. It can also refer to the Yamato period in Japanese history, which lasted into the 8th century. The individual kanji are
大 meaning "great" and
和 meaning "harmony".
YAN (2) f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
艳 (yàn) meaning "beautiful, gorgeous" (which is usually only feminine) or
岩 (yán) meaning "cliff, rocks", as well as other Chinese characters pronounced in a similar fashion.
YANCY m EnglishFrom a surname, which was an Americanized form of the Dutch surname
Jansen meaning "
JAN (1)'s son".
YANG m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
洋 (yáng) meaning "ocean" or
阳 (yáng) meaning "light, sun, male" (which is typically only masculine), as well as other Chinese characters pronounced similarly.
YASEN m BulgarianMeans both "ash tree" and "clear, serene" in Bulgarian.
YASIN m Arabic, Persian, UrduFrom the Arabic letters
ي (called
ya) and
س (called
sin). These letters begin the 36th chapter of the Quran (surah Ya Sin).
YASIR m Arabic, UrduMeans "to be rich", derived from Arabic
يسر (yasira) meaning "to become easy". This was the name of an early Islamic martyr. It was also borne by Yasir Arafat (1929-2004), a leader of the Palestine Liberation Organization.
YASU f & m JapaneseFrom Japanese
安 (yasu) meaning "peace, quiet",
康 (yasu) meaning "peaceful" or
坦 (yasu) meaning "flat, smooth, level", as well as other kanji that are pronounced the same way.
YATING f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
雅 (yǎ) meaning "elegant, graceful, refined" combined with
婷 (tíng) meaning "pretty, graceful". Other character combinations are possible.
YAZHU f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
雅 (yǎ) meaning "elegant, graceful, refined" combined with
筑 (zhù) meaning "lute, zither, build". Other character combinations are also possible.
YE-JUN m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
藝 (ye) meaning "art, talent, craft" combined with
俊 (jun) meaning "talented, handsome", as well as other hanja combinations.
YEONG f & m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
英 (yeong) meaning "flower, petal, brave, hero", as well as other hanja characters that are pronounced similarly. It usually occurs in combination with another character, though it is sometimes used as a stand-alone name. This name was borne by Jang Yeong-sil (where
Jang is the surname), a 15th-century Korean scientist and inventor.
YEONG-CHEOL m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
永 (yeong) meaning "perpetual, eternal" combined with
哲 (cheol) meaning "wise, sage". Other hanja combinations are possible.
YEONG-GI m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
榮 (yeong) meaning "glory, honour, flourish, prosper" and
起 (gi) meaning "rise, stand up, begin". Other hanja character combinations are possible.
YEONG-HO m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
英 (yeong) meaning "flower, petal, brave, hero",
映 (yeong) meaning "reflect light" or
泳 (yeong) meaning "dive, swim" combined with
浩 (ho) meaning "great, numerous, vast" or
皓 (ho) meaning "bright, luminous, clear, hoary". Other hanja combinations are possible.
YEONG-HWAN m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
永 (yeong) meaning "perpetual, eternal" or
泳 (yeong) meaning "dive, swim" combined with
煥 (hwan) meaning "shining, brilliant, lustrous". Other hanja combinations are possible as well.
YEONG-SU m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
永 (yeong) meaning "perpetual, eternal" and
壽 (su) meaning "long life, lifespan", as well as other hanja character combinations.
YERUSLAN m FolkloreFrom Tatar
Uruslan, which was possibly from Turkic
arslan meaning "lion". Yeruslan Lazarevich is the name of a hero in Russian and Tatar folktales. These tales were based on (or at least influenced by) Persian tales of their hero
Rostam.
YESHUA m Biblical Hebrew, Ancient AramaicContracted form of
Yehoshu'a (see
JOSHUA) used in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah in the Hebrew Bible. The form was also used in Aramaic, and was most likely the name represented by Greek
Iesous (see
JESUS) in the New Testament. This means it was probably the real name of Jesus.
YI f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
宜 (yí) meaning "suitable, proper",
毅 (yì) meaning "resolute, decisive, firm",
义 (yì) meaning "justice, righteousness",
益 (yì) meaning "profit, benefit",
怡 (yí) meaning "joy, harmony" (which is usually only feminine) or
仪 (yí) meaning "ceremony, rites" (also usually feminine). Other characters can also form this name.
YIJUN m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
怡 (yí) meaning "joy, harmony" combined with
君 (jūn) meaning "king, ruler". This name can also be formed from other character combinations.
YIN f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
银 (yín) meaning "silver, money",
音 (yīn) meaning "sound, tone" or
荫 (yīn) meaning "shade, shelter, protect", as well as other Chinese characters pronounced similarly.