COOPERmEnglishFrom a surname meaning "barrel maker" in Middle English.
CORBINmEnglishFrom a French surname which was derived from
corbeau "raven", originally denoting a person who had dark hair. The name was probably popularized in America by actor Corbin Bernsen (1954-).
CORDELLmEnglishFrom a surname meaning "maker of cord" or "seller of cord" in Middle English.
CORENTINmBreton, FrenchPossibly means "hurricane" in Breton. This was the name of a 5th-century bishop of Quimper in Brittany.
COREYmEnglishFrom a surname which was derived from the Old Norse given name
Kóri, of unknown meaning. This name became popular in the 1960s due to the character Corey Baker on the television series 'Julia'.
CORMACmIrishPossibly derived from Irish Gaelic
corb "raven" or "wheel" and
mac "son". This was the name of a 3rd-century king of Ireland.
CORNELIUSmAncient Roman, English, Dutch, German, BiblicalRoman family name which possibly derives from the Latin element
cornu "horn". In Acts in the New Testament Cornelius is a centurion who is directed by an angel to seek
Peter. After speaking with Peter he converts to Christianity, and he is traditionally deemed the first gentile convert. The name was also borne by a few early saints, including a 3rd-century pope. In England it came into use in the 16th century, partly due to Dutch influence.
CORWINmEnglishFrom an English surname, derived from Old French
cordoan "leather", ultimately from the name of the Spanish city of
Cordova.
COSIMOmItalianItalian form of
COSMAS. A famous bearer was Cosimo de' Medici, the 15th-century founder of Medici rule in Florence, who was a patron of the Renaissance and a successful merchant. Other members of the Medici family have also borne this name.
COSMASmAncient Greek (Latinized)From the Greek name
Κοσμας (Kosmas), which was derived from
κοσμος (kosmos) meaning "order, decency". Saint Cosmas was martyred with his twin brother Damian in the 4th century. They are the patron saints of physicians.
COSMOmItalian, EnglishItalian variant of
COSIMO. It was introduced to Britain in the 18th century by the second Scottish Duke of Gordon, who named his son and successor after his friend Cosimo III de' Medici.
COURTNEYf & mEnglishFrom an aristocratic English surname which was derived either from the French place name
Courtenay (originally a derivative of the personal name
Curtenus, itself derived from Latin
curtus "short") or else from a Norman nickname meaning "short nose". As a feminine name in America, it first became popular during the 1970s.
COYmEnglishFrom a surname which meant "quiet, shy, coy" from Middle English
coi.
CRAIGmScottish, EnglishFrom a Scottish surname which was derived from Gaelic
creag meaning "crag" or "rocks", originally indicating a person who lived near a crag.
CRAWFORDmEnglishFrom a surname which was derived from a place name meaning "crow ford" in Old English.
CREEmEnglish (Rare)From the name of a Native American tribe of central Canada. Their name derives via French from the Cree word
kiristino.
CREIGHTONmEnglish (Rare)From a surname which was derived from a place name, originally from Gaelic
crioch "border" combined with Old English
tun "town".
CRESCENTIUSmLate RomanLatin name which was a derivative of the name
CRESCENS. Saint Crescentius was a child martyred in Rome during the persecutions of Emperor Diocletian in the early 4th century.
CRISPINmEnglish (Rare)From the Roman cognomen
Crispinus which was derived from the name
CRISPUS. Saint Crispin was a 3rd-century Roman who was martyred with his twin brother Crispinian in Gaul. They are the patrons of shoemakers. They were popular saints in England during the Middle Ages, and the name has occasionally been used since that time.
CROFTONmEnglish (Rare)From a surname which was derived from a place name meaning "town with a small enclosed field" in Old English.
CRONUSmGreek Mythology (Latinized)Latinized form of the Greek
Κρονος (Kronos), possibly derived from the Indo-European root *
ker- meaning "to cut". Cronus was the Titan who fathered the Greek gods. As his wife
Rhea gave birth to the gods, Cronus swallowed them fearing the prophecy that he would be overthrown by one of his children. However Rhea hid
Zeus, her last child, who eventually forced his father to disgorge his siblings. Cronus and the rest of the Titans were then defeated by the gods and exiled.
ČRTOMIRmSloveneDerived from the Slavic elements
črt "hatred" and
miru "peace, world". This is the name of the hero in the Slovene national epic 'Baptism on the Savica' (1835) by France Prešeren.
CRUZf & mSpanish, PortugueseMeans "cross" in Spanish or Portuguese, referring to the cross of the crucifixion.
CSABAmHungarianPossibly means either "shepherd" or "gift" in Hungarian. According to legend this was the name of the son of
Attila the Hun.
CTIRADmCzech, SlovakDerived from the Slavic elements
chisti meaning "honour" and
rad meaning "happy, willing". In Czech legend this was the name of one of the men tricked by
Šárka.
CUÁNmIrishMeans "little wolf" or "little hound" from the Irish element
cú meaning "wolf, hound" combined with a diminutive suffix.
CUAUHTÉMOCmNative American, NahuatlMeans "falling eagle" in Nahuatl. This was the name of the last Aztec emperor, ruling until he was captured and executed by the Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés in the year 1525.
CÚCHULAINNmIrish MythologyMeans "hound of Culann" in Irish. This was the usual name of the warrior hero who was named Sétanta at birth, given to him because he took the place of one of Culann's hounds after he accidentally killed it. Irish legend tells of Cúchulainn's many adventures, including his single-handed defense of Ulster against the army of Queen
Medb.
CUIMÍNmIrishPossibly from Celtic
cam meaning "bent, crooked". This was the name of a 6th-century Irish saint.
CULHWCHmWelsh, Welsh MythologyMeans "hiding place of the pig" in Welsh. In Welsh legend he was the lover of
Olwen the daughter of the giant Yspaddaden. Before the giant would allow Culhwch to marry his daughter, he insisted that Culhwch complete a series of extremely difficult tasks. Culhwch managed to complete them, and he returned to marry Olwen and kill the giant. This tale appears in the Mabinogion, a collection of tales from Welsh myth.
CUNOBELINUSmAncient CelticPossibly means "hound of Belenus" from the old Celtic element
koun "hound" combined with the name of the god
BELENUS. This was the name of a 1st-century king of southeast Britain.
CUPIDmRoman Mythology (Anglicized)From the Latin
Cupido meaning "desire". This was the name of the Roman god of love, the son of
Venus and
Mars. He was portrayed as a winged, blindfolded boy, armed with a bow and arrows which caused the victim to fall in love. His Greek equivalent was
Eros.
CURTISmEnglishFrom an English surname which originally meant "courteous" in Old French.
CUSTODIOmSpanishMeans "guardian" in Spanish, from Latin
custodia "protection, safekeeping".
CUTHBERTmEnglish (Rare)Derived from the Old English elements
cuþ "famous" and
beorht "bright". Saint Cuthbert was a 6th-century hermit who became the bishop of Lindisfarne, an island off the coast of England. He was known as performer of healing miracles. Because of the saint, this name remained in use in England even after the Norman conquest. It became rare after the Protestant Reformation, but it was (briefly) revived in the 19th century.
CYNWRIGmAncient CelticDerived from Welsh
cyn meaning "chief" and
gwr meaning "hero, man", plus the suffix
ig indicating "has the quality of".
CYPRIANmPolish, English (Rare)From the Roman family name
Cyprianus which meant "from Cyprus" in Latin. Saint Cyprian was a 3rd-century bishop of Carthage and a martyr under the emperor Valerian.
CYRANOmLiteraturePossibly derived from the name of the ancient Greek city of Cyrene, which was located in North Africa. Edmond Rostand used this name in his play 'Cyrano de Bergerac' (1897). He based his character upon a real person, Savinien Cyrano de Bergerac, a French satirist of the 17th century.
CYRUSmEnglish, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Ancient Greek (Latinized)From
Κυρος (Kyros), the Greek form of the Persian name
Kūrush, which may mean "far sighted" or "young". The name is sometimes associated with Greek
κυριος (kyrios) "lord". It was borne by several kings of Persia, including Cyrus the Great, who conquered Babylon. He is famous in the Old Testament for freeing the captive Jews and allowing them to return to Israel. As an English name, it first came into use among the Puritans after the Protestant Reformation.
DAm & fChineseFrom Chinese
达 (dá) meaning "achieve, arrive at, intelligent" (which is usually only masculine),
大 (dà) meaning "big, great, vast, high", or other characters with a similar pronunciation.
DACREmEnglish (Rare)From a surname which was originally derived from a place name in Cumbria, of Brythonic origin meaning "trickling stream".
DAEDALUSmGreek Mythology (Latinized)Latinized form of the Greek
Δαιδαλος (Daidalos) which was derived from
δαιδαλλω (daidallo) meaning "to work cunningly". In Greek myth Daedalus was an Athenian inventor who was banished to Crete. There he designed the Labyrinth for King
Minos, but he and his son
Icarus were eventually imprisoned inside it because he had aided
Theseus in his quest against the Minotaur. Daelalus and Icarus escaped using wings fashioned from wax, but Icarus fell from the sky to his death.
DAE-JUNGmKoreanFrom Sino-Korean
大 (dae) meaning "big, great, vast, large, high" combined with
中 (jung) meaning "middle". Other combinations of hanja characters can form this name as well. A notable bearer was South Korean president Kim Dae-jung (1924-2009).
DAFYDDmWelshWelsh form of
DAVID. This name was borne by Dafydd ap Gruffydd, a 13th-century Welsh ruler, and Dafydd ap Gwilym, a 14th-century poet.
DAGDAmIrish MythologyMeans "good god" in Celtic. In Irish myth Dagda (called also The Dagda) was the powerful god of the earth, knowledge, magic, abundance and treaties, a leader of the Tuatha De Danann. He was skilled in combat and healing and possessed a huge club, the handle of which could revive the dead.
DAGONmSemitic MythologyPerhaps related to Ugaritic
dgn meaning "grain". This was the name of a Semitic god of agriculture, usually depicted with the body of a fish.
DAImWelshDerived from the old Celtic word
dei meaning "to shine". This name is also used as a Welsh diminutive of
DAVID.
DAICHImJapaneseFrom Japanese
大 (dai) meaning "big, great" combined with
地 (chi) meaning "earth, land" or
智 (chi) meaning "wisdom, intellect". Other kanji combinations are possible.
DAIKImJapaneseFrom Japanese
大 (dai) meaning "big, great" combined with
輝 (ki) meaning "brightness",
樹 (ki) meaning "tree" or
貴 (ki) meaning "valuable". Other combinations of kanji can also form this name.
DÁIREmIrish, Irish MythologyMeans "fruitful, fertile" in Irish Gaelic. This name is borne by many figures in Irish legend, including the Ulster chief who reneged on his promise to loan the Brown Bull of Cooley to
Medb, starting the war between Connacht and Ulster as told in the Irish epic 'The Cattle Raid of Cooley'.
DAISUKEmJapaneseFrom Japanese
大 (dai) meaning "big, great" and
輔 (suke) meaning "help". Other kanji combinations are possible.
DÁITHÍmIrishPossibly means "swift" in Irish Gaelic. It is sometimes used as an Irish form of
David.
DAKOTAm & fEnglish (Modern)Means "allies, friends" in the Dakota language. This is the name of a Native American people of the northern Mississippi valley.
DALEm & fEnglishFrom an English surname which originally belonged to a person who lived near a dale or valley.
DALEYmIrish, English (Rare)From an Irish surname which was derived from
Ó Dálaigh meaning "descendant of Dálach". The name
Dálach means "assembly" in Gaelic.
DALLASm & fEnglishFrom a surname which was originally taken from a Scottish place name meaning "meadow dwelling". A city in Texas bears this name, probably in honour of American Vice President George Mifflin Dallas (1792-1864).
DALTONmEnglishFrom an English surname which was originally from a place name meaning "valley town" in Old English. A notable bearer of the surname was John Dalton (1766-1844), the English chemist and physicist who theorized about the existence of atoms.
DAMHÁNmIrishMeans "fawn" from Gaelic
damh "stag, ox" combined with a diminutive suffix.
DAMIANmEnglish, Polish, DutchFrom the Greek name
Δαμιανος (Damianos) which was derived from Greek
δαμαζω (damazo) "to tame". Saint Damian was martyred with his twin brother Cosmo in Syria early in the 4th century. They are the patron saints of physicians. Due to his renown, the name came into general use in Christian Europe. Another saint by this name was Peter Damian, an 11th-century cardinal and theologian from Italy.
DAMOCLESmGreek Mythology (Latinized)Latinized form of the Greek name
Δαμοκλης (Damokles), which was derived from
δαμος (damos) "the people", a Doric Greek variant of
δημος (demos), and
κλεος (kleos) "glory". In Greek legend Damocles was a member of the court of Dionysius the Elder, the king of Syracuse. Damocles expressed envy of the king's station so Dionysius offered to switch roles with him for a day. To illustrate to Damocles the peril of a man in his position he suspended a sword over the throne.
DAMODARAmHinduismMeans "rope around the belly", derived from Sanskrit
दाम (dama) meaning "rope" and
उदर (udara) meaning "belly". This is another name of the Hindu god
Krishna, given to him because his foster-mother tied him to a large urn.
DAMONmGreek Mythology, EnglishDerived from Greek
δαμαζω (damazo) meaning "to tame". According to Greek legend, Damon and Pythias were friends who lived on Syracuse in the 4th century BC. When Pythias was sentenced to death, he was allowed to temporarily go free on the condition that Damon take his place in prison. Pythias returned just before Damon was to be executed in his place, and the king was so impressed with their loyalty to one another that he pardoned Pythias. As an English given name, it has only been regularly used since the 20th century.
DAN (2)mEnglish, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Romanian, Czech, German, Polish, Swedish, Danish, NorwegianShort form of
DANIEL.
DANA (2)m & fEnglishFrom a surname which originally belonged to a person who was Danish. It was originally given in honour of American lawyer Richard Henry Dana (1815-1882), the author of 'Two Years Before the Mast'.
DANEmEnglishFrom an English surname which was either a variant of the surname
DEAN or else an ethnic name referring to a person from Denmark.
DANIELmEnglish, Hebrew, French, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovene, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Croatian, Armenian, Georgian, Biblical, Biblical GreekFrom the Hebrew name
דָּנִיֵּאל (Daniyyel) meaning "God is my judge", from the roots
דִּין (din) meaning "to judge" and
אֵל ('el) meaning "God". Daniel was a Hebrew prophet whose story is told in the Book of Daniel in the Old Testament. He lived during the Jewish captivity in Babylon, where he served in the court of the king, rising to prominence by interpreting the king's dreams. The book also presents Daniel's four visions of the end of the world.
... [more] DANTEmItalianMedieval short form of
DURANTE. The most notable bearer of this name was Dante Alighieri, the 13th-century Italian poet who wrote the 'Divine Comedy'.
DARf & mHebrewMeans "mother-of-pearl, nacre" in Hebrew.
DARA (1)mIrishFrom the Irish
Mac Dara which means "oak tree". This was the name of a 6th-century saint from Connemara. It is also used as an Anglicized form of
DÁIRE.
DARA (2)f & mKhmerMeans "star" in Khmer, ultimately from Sanskrit.
DARBYm & fEnglishFrom an English surname, which was derived from the name of the town of
Derby, meaning "deer town" in Old Norse.
DARCYf & mEnglishFrom an English surname which was derived from Norman French
d'Arcy, originally denoting one who came from Arcy in France. This was the surname of a character in Jane Austen's novel 'Pride and Prejudice' (1813).
DARDANmAlbanianFrom the name of the Dardani, an Illyrian tribe who lived on the Balkan Peninsula. Their name may derive from an Illyrian word meaning "pear". They were unrelated to the ancient people who were also called the Dardans who lived near Troy.
DARINmEnglishVariant of
DARREN. This was the adopted surname of the singer Bobby Darin (1936-1973), who was born Robert Cassotto and chose his stage name from a street sign.
DARIUSmEnglish, Lithuanian, Romanian, Biblical, Biblical LatinRoman form of
Δαρειος (Dareios), which was the Greek form of the Persian name
Dārayavahush, which was composed of the elements
dâraya "to possess" and
vahu "good". Three ancient kings of Persia bore this name, including Darius the Great who expanded the Achaemenid Empire to its greatest extent. His forces invaded Greece but were defeated in the Battle of Marathon.
... [more] DARNELLmEnglishFrom a surname, possibly derived from Old French
darnel, a type of grass. Alternatively it may be derived from Old English
derne "hidden" and
halh "nook".
DARRELLmEnglishFrom an English surname which was derived from Norman French
d'Airelle, originally denoting one who came from Airelle in France.
DARRENmEnglishThe meaning of this name is not known for certain. It could be from a rare Irish surname or it could be an altered form of
DARRELL. It was first brought to public attention in the late 1950s by the American actor Darren McGavin (1922-2006). It was further popularized in the 1960s by the character Darrin Stephens from the television show 'Bewitched'.
D'ARTAGNANmLiteratureMeans "from Artagnan" in French, Artagnan being a town in southwest France. This was the name of a character in the novel 'The Three Musketeers' (1884) by Alexandre Dumas. In the novel D'Artagnan is an aspiring musketeer who first duels with the three title characters and then becomes their friend.
DARWINmEnglishFrom a surname which was derived from the Old English given name
Deorwine which meant "dear friend". The surname was borne by the English naturalist Charles Darwin (1809-1882), the man who first proposed the theory of natural selection and subsequently revolutionized biology.
DASHIELLmEnglish (Rare)In the case of American author Dashiell Hammett (1894-1961), it is an Anglicized form of his mother's surname
De Chiel, which is of unknown meaning.
DATHANmBiblicalPossibly means "fountain" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this is the name of one of the conspirators against
Moses.
DAUMANTASmLithuanianFrom Lithuanian
daug "much" and
mantus "intelligent". This name was borne by a 13th-century Lithuanian ruler of Pskov who is venerated as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church.
DAVIDmEnglish, Hebrew, French, Scottish, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Czech, Slovene, Russian, Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian, Romanian, Biblical, Biblical LatinFrom the Hebrew name
דָּוִד (Dawid), which was derived from Hebrew
דּוֹד (dod) meaning "beloved" or "uncle". David was the second and greatest of the kings of Israel, ruling in the 10th century BC. Several stories about him are told in the Old Testament, including his defeat of
Goliath, a giant Philistine. According to the New Testament,
Jesus was descended from him.
... [more] DAVISmEnglishFrom a surname which was derived from the given name
DAVID. A famous bearer of the surname was Jefferson Davis (1808-1889), the only president of the Confederate States of America.
DAWSONmEnglishFrom a surname meaning "son of
DAVID". This name was popularized in the late 1990s by the television drama 'Dawson's Creek'.
DAXmEnglishFrom an English surname which was derived either from the town of Dax in France or else from the Old English given name
Dæcca (of unknown meaning).
DAYTONmEnglishFrom an English surname which was derived from a place name which possibly meant either "dairy town" or "ditch town" in Old English.
DAZHDBOGmSlavic MythologyPossibly means "the giving god" in Slavic. He was a Slavic god of the sun and light, a son of Svarog. In some myths he is the ancestor of the Russian people.
DEACONmEnglish (Modern)Either from the occupational surname
Deacon or directly from the vocabulary word
deacon, which refer to a cleric in the Christian church (ultimately from Greek
διακονος (diakonos) meaning "servant").
DEBDASmBengaliBengali form of
DEVADAS. This is the name of a 1917 novel by the Bengali author Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay.
DECEBALmRomanianMeans "powerful, brave" in Dacian. This was the name adopted by Diurpaneus, a 1st-century king of Dacia. For many years he successfully resisted Roman expansion into his territory but was finally defeated by the forces of Emperor Trajan in 106.
DECLANmIrishAnglicized form of Irish
Deaglán, which is of unknown meaning. Saint Declan was a 5th-century missionary to Ireland.
DEEf & mEnglishShort form of names beginning with
D. It may also be given in reference to the
Dee River in Scotland.