Aali m ArabicMeans
"high, lofty, sublime" in Arabic.
Aarni m FinnishFinnish form of
Arne 1, also associated with the archaic word
aarni meaning
"treasure".
Abidemi m & f YorubaMeans
"born in my absence" in Yoruba. It is typically given to children born when the father is away.
Abishai m BiblicalMeans
"my father is a gift" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament he is one of King
David's heroes.
Adad-Nirari m Ancient AssyrianMeans
"Adad is my helper", from the god's name
Adad combined with Akkadian
nērāru meaning "helper". This name was borne by three kings of the Assyrian Empire.
Adonai m TheologyMeans
"my lord" in Hebrew. This was the title used to refer to the God of the Israelites,
Yahweh, whose name was forbidden to be spoken.
Agni 1 m Hinduism, HindiMeans
"fire" in Sanskrit. This is the name of the ancient Hindu fire god, usually depicted as red-skinned with three legs, seven arms, and two faces.
Ahuludegi m CherokeeMeans
"he throws away the drum" from Cherokee
ᎠᎱᎵ (ahuli) "drum" and
ᎤᏕᎦ (udega) "throw". This was the name of a 19th-century Cherokee chief, also known as John Jolly.
Akli m BerberMeans
"slave, servant, black" in Tamazight.
Alhaji m HausaMeans
"the pilgrim" in Hausa, a derivative of Arabic
حَجّ (hajj) meaning "pilgrimage, hajj". It is typically a title, not a name.
Ali 1 m Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Urdu, Pashto, Indonesian, Malay, Avar, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Uzbek, Tajik, Dhivehi, Albanian, BosnianMeans
"lofty, sublime" in Arabic, from the root
علا ('ala) meaning "to be high". Ali ibn Abi Talib was a cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet
Muhammad and the fourth caliph to rule the Muslim world. His followers were the original Shia Muslims, who regard him as the first rightful caliph.
... [more] Ami 1 m BiblicalMeans
"trustworthy, reliable" in Hebrew. This was the name of a servant of King
Solomon in the Old Testament.
Ami 4 m HebrewMeans
"my people" or
"my nation" in Hebrew.
Amirani m Georgian MythologyMeaning unknown, probably of Proto-Kartvelian origin. This is the name of a hero from Georgian mythology whose story is similar to that of
Prometheus from Greek mythology.
Animikii m Ojibwe, New World MythologyMeans
"thunder, thunderer" in Ojibwe. In Anishinaabe mythology this is the name of the thunderbird, an immense flying creature that makes thunder with its flapping wings.
Antoni m Polish, CatalanPolish and Catalan form of
Antonius (see
Anthony). A notable bearer was the Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí (1852-1926).
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.
Areli m BiblicalMeans
"lion of God, hero" in Hebrew. This was the name of a son of
Gad in the Old Testament.
Aridai m BiblicalMeaning uncertain, possibly of Persian origin. In the Old Testament this is the name of one of the ten sons of
Haman killed by the Jews.
Armani m & f English (Modern)From an Italian surname meaning
"son of Ermanno". It has been used as a given name due to the fashion company Armani, which was founded by the clothing designer Giorgio Armani (1934-).
Asahi m & f JapaneseFrom Japanese
旭 (asahi) or
朝日 (asahi) both meaning "morning sun". Other kanji combinations can also form this name.
Ashanti f & m VariousFrom the name of an African people who reside in southern Ghana. It possibly means "warlike" in the Twi language.
Aştî f & m KurdishMeans
"peace, tranquility" in Kurdish.
Atsushi m JapaneseFrom Japanese
淳 (atsushi) meaning "pure" or
敦 (atsushi) meaning "kindness, honesty". This name can also be formed from other kanji or kanji combinations.
Awotwi m & f AkanMeans
"eighth born child" in Akan.
Baggi m Old NorseByname derived from Old Norse
baggi meaning
"bag, pack".
Bai m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
白 (bái) meaning "white, pure",
百 (bǎi) meaning "one hundred, many" or
柏 (bǎi) meaning "cypress tree, cedar" (which is usually only masculine). Other Chinese characters can form this name as well. This name was borne in the 8th century by the Tang dynasty poet Li Bai, whose given was
白.
Bakari m SwahiliFrom the Swahili name for the constellation Boötes.
Baqi m ArabicMeans
"eternal" in Arabic. This was the pen name of a 16th-century Turkish poet.
Beli m Welsh MythologyProbably a Welsh derivative of
Belenus. Beli Mawr was a Welsh ancestor deity who established several royal lines in Wales.
Bragi m Norse Mythology, IcelandicDerived from Old Norse
bragr meaning
"first, foremost" or
"poetry". In Norse mythology Bragi is the god of poetry and the husband of
Iðunn.
Çağrı m & f TurkishMeans
"invitation" or
"falcon" in Turkish.
Carmi m BiblicalMeans
"vine" in Hebrew. This was the name of a son of Reuben in the Old Testament.
Ceri f & m WelshMeaning uncertain. It could come from the name of the Ceri River in Ceredigion, Wales; it could be a short form of
Ceridwen; it could be derived from Welsh
caru meaning "to love".
Chi 2 m & f Igbo Mythology, IgboMeans
"god, spiritual being" in Igbo, referring to the personal spiritual guardian that each person is believed to have. Christian Igbo people use it as a name for the personal Christian god (as opposed to the omnipresent
Chukwu, though the names are used synonymously in some contexts). This can also be a short form of the many Igbo names that begin with this element.
Chí m VietnameseFrom Sino-Vietnamese
志 (chí) meaning
"will, spirit". This was a name adopted by the Vietnamese revolutionary Hồ Chí Minh (1890-1969) in the 1940s.
Chiaki f & m JapaneseFrom Japanese
千 (chi) meaning "thousand" combined with
秋 (aki) meaning "autumn",
晶 (aki) meaning "clear, crystal" or
明 (aki) meaning "bright, light, clear". This name can also be formed from other kanji combinations.
Chidi m & f IgboMeans
"God exists" in Igbo, derived from
Chi 2, referring to God, and
dị meaning "is". It is also a short form of Igbo names beginning with
Chidi.
Cipactli m & f NahuatlMeans
"crocodile, alligator, caiman, monster" in Nahuatl. This is the name of the first day in the tonalpohualli, the Aztec 260-day calendar.
Daichi m JapaneseFrom Japanese
大 (dai) meaning "big, great" combined with
地 (chi) meaning "earth, land" or
智 (chi) meaning "wisdom, intellect". Other kanji combinations are possible.
Daiki m JapaneseFrom 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.
Dáithí m IrishMeans
"swiftness, nimbleness" in Irish. This was the name of a semi-legendary high king of Ireland, also called
Nathí. It is sometimes Anglicized as
David.
Daviti m GeorgianForm of
Davit with the nominative suffix, used in Georgian when the name is written stand-alone.
Desi m & f EnglishDiminutive of
Desmond,
Desiree and other names beginning with a similar sound. In the case of musician and actor Desi Arnaz (1917-1986) it was a diminutive of
Desiderio.
Dewi 1 m WelshPossibly from
Dewydd, an Old Welsh form of
David. Saint Dewi, the patron saint of Wales, was a 6th-century bishop of Mynyw. A later Welsh form of David was
Dafydd, which was more common in the medieval period. Dewi was revived in the 19th century.
Dumuzi m Sumerian MythologyFrom Sumerian
𒌉 (dumu) meaning "son, child" and
𒍣 (zid) meaning "true, loyal". This was the name of a Sumerian god of shepherds and vegetation, the husband of
Inanna. He was said to spend half of each year in the underworld, resulting in the yearly cycle of seasons. He was known to the Semitic peoples of Mesopotamia as
Tammuz.
Duri f & m KoreanMeans
"two" in Korean (Gyeongsang dialect).
Dwi m & f IndonesianMeans
"two, second" in Indonesian, ultimately from Sanskrit
द्वि (dvi).
Eiji m JapaneseFrom Japanese
英 (ei) meaning "excellent, fine" or
栄 (ei) meaning "glory, honour, flourish, prosper" combined with
二 (ji) meaning "two" or
治 (ji) meaning "govern, administer". Other kanji combinations can also form this name.
Eli 1 m English, Hebrew, Biblical, Biblical Greek, Biblical HebrewMeans
"ascension" in Hebrew. In the Books of Samuel in the Old Testament he is a high priest of the Israelites. He took the young
Samuel into his service and gave him guidance when God spoke to him. Because of the misdeeds of his sons, Eli and his descendants were cursed to die before reaching old age.
... [more] Elioenai m BiblicalMeans
"my eyes look to God" in Hebrew. This was the name of several minor characters in the Old Testament.
Enki m Sumerian MythologyFrom Sumerian
𒂗 (en) meaning "lord" and
𒆠 (ki) meaning "earth, ground" (though maybe originally from
𒆳 (kur) meaning "underworld, mountain"). Enki, called
Ea by the Akkadians, Assyrians and Babylonians, was the Sumerian god of water and wisdom and the keeper of the Me, the divine laws.
Fadhili m SwahiliMeans
"kindness, favour" in Swahili, ultimately from Arabic.
Farai m & f ShonaFrom Shona
fara meaning
"rejoice, be happy".
Faraji m SwahiliMeans
"consolation" in Swahili (of Arabic origin).
Ferdowsi m HistoryFrom the Persian byname
فردوسی (Ferdosi) meaning "paradisiacal, heavenly", derived from Arabic
فردوس (firdaws), itself of Iranian origin. Ferdowsi was a 10th-century poet and historian, the author of the epic
Shahnameh, which tells the history of Persia.
Fikri m Arabic, TurkishMeans
"intellectual" in Arabic, a derivative of
فكر (fakara) meaning "to think, to reflect".
Fungai m & f ShonaFrom Shona
funga meaning
"think, judge".
Fuxi m Chinese MythologyFrom Chinese
伏 (fú) meaning "prostrate, lying down" and
羲 (xī), a character that refers to the god himself. In Chinese mythology Fuxi is the twin brother and husband of
Nüwa. He is said to have taught humans how to hunt and cook, as well as devising the trigrams. He is sometimes depicted with the body of a snake.
Gai m HebrewMeans
"valley, ravine" in Hebrew.
Giovanni m ItalianItalian form of
Iohannes (see
John). This name has been very common in Italy since the late Middle Ages, as with other equivalents of
John in Europe. The Renaissance writer Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375), the painter Giovanni Bellini (1430-1516) and the painter and sculptor Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini (1598-1680) were famous bearers of the name.
Gwalchmai m Welsh MythologyDerived from Welsh
gwalch "hawk", possibly combined with
Mai "May (month)" or
mai "field, plain". This is the name of a character in Welsh legend (appearing in
Culhwch and Olwen for example). He is probably the antecedent of
Gawain from later Arthurian romance.
Haggai m BiblicalMeans
"festive" in Hebrew, from the root
חָגַג (chagag). This is one of the twelve minor prophets of the Old Testament. He was the author of the Book of Haggai, which urges the exiles returning from Babylonia to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem.
Hai m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
海 (hǎi) meaning "sea, ocean" or other characters that are pronounced similarly.
Haji m ArabicRefers to a person who has participated in the
حَجّ (hajj), the annual pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia that Muslims must undertake at least once in their lifetimes.
Hari m Hinduism, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, NepaliMeans
"brown, yellow, tawny" in Sanskrit, and by extension
"monkey, horse, lion". This is another name of the Hindu god
Vishnu, and sometimes of
Krishna. It is also borne by the son of the Garuda, the bird-like mount of Vishnu.
Haruki m JapaneseFrom Japanese
晴 (haru) meaning "clear weather" or
陽 (haru) meaning "light, sun, male" combined with
輝 (ki) meaning "brightness" or
生 (ki) meaning "living". Other kanji combinations are possible.
Heli 1 m Biblical, Biblical LatinLatin form of
Eli 1 used in the Old and New Testament. This form of the name is used in most English versions of the New Testament to refer to the father of
Joseph (husband of
Mary) in the genealogy in the Gospel of Luke.
Henri m French, FinnishFrench form of
Heinrich (see
Henry). A notable bearer was the French artist Henri Matisse (1869-1954).
Hideaki m JapaneseFrom Japanese
英 (hide) meaning "excellent, fine" and
明 (aki) meaning "bright, light, clear", as well as other combinations of kanji.
Hideki m JapaneseFrom Japanese
秀 (hide) meaning "excellent, outstanding" or
英 (hide) meaning "excellent, fine" combined with
樹 (ki) meaning "tree". Other kanji combinations can also form this name.
Hidemi m JapaneseFrom Japanese
秀 (hide) meaning "excellent, outstanding" and
美 (mi) meaning "beautiful", as well as other combinations of kanji characters.
Hideyoshi m JapaneseFrom Japanese
秀 (hide) meaning "excellent, outstanding" combined with
良 (yoshi) meaning "good, virtuous, respectable" or
吉 (yoshi) meaning "good luck". Other kanji combinations are possible. Toyotomi Hideyoshi (Hideyoshi
秀吉 being his given name) was a 16th-century daimyo who unified Japan and attempted to conquer Korea. He also banned the ownership of weapons by the peasantry, and banished Christian missionaries.