Severinus m Ancient RomanRoman family name that was derived from
Severus. Severinus was the name of many early saints, including a 6th-century Roman philosopher martyred by the Ostrogothic king Theodoric. It was also borne by a pope.
Severus m Ancient RomanRoman family name meaning
"stern" in Latin. This name was borne by several early saints including a 6th-century patriarch of Antioch.
Sextus m Ancient RomanRoman praenomen, or given name, meaning
"sixth" in Latin. It was traditionally given to the sixth child.
Shadrach m BiblicalMeans
"command of Aku" in Akkadian,
Aku being the name of the Babylonian god of the moon. In the Old Testament Shadrach is the Babylonian name of
Hananiah, one of the three men cast into a fiery furnace but saved by God.
Shahin m Persian, ArabicMeans
"falcon" in Persian, referring more specifically to the Barbary falcon (species Falco pelegrinoides). The bird's name is a derivative of Persian
شاه (shah) meaning "king".
Shahjahan m UrduMeans
"king of the world" from Persian
شاه (shah) meaning "king" and
جهان (jahan) meaning "world". This was the name of the 17th-century Mughal emperor who built the Taj Mahal.
Shahrazad f Persian (Rare), ArabicPossibly means
"noble lineage" from Persian
چهر (chehr) meaning "lineage, origin" and
آزاد (azad) meaning "free, noble". Alternatively, it might mean
"child of the city" from
شهر (shahr) meaning "city, land" combined with the suffix
زاد (zad) meaning "child of". This is the name of the fictional storyteller in
The 1001 Nights. She tells a story to her husband the king every night for 1001 nights in order to delay her execution.
Shahrokh m PersianMeans
"royal face" in Persian, from
شاه (shah) meaning "king" and
رخ (rokh) meaning "face". This was the name of a 15th-century ruler of the Timurid Empire (a son of
Timur).
Shai m & f HebrewEither from Hebrew
שַׁי (shai) meaning
"gift" or else a Hebrew diminutive of
Isaiah.
Shakira f ArabicFeminine form of
Shakir. A famous bearer is the Colombian singer Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll (1977-), known simply as Shakira.
Shakti f & m Hinduism, HindiMeans
"power" in Sanskrit. In Hinduism a shakti is the female counterpart of a god. The name Shakti is used in particular to refer to the female counterpart of
Shiva, also known as
Parvati among many other names.
Shakuntala f Hinduism, Hindi, MarathiDerived from Sanskrit
शकुन्त (shakunta) meaning
"bird". This is the name of a character in Hindu legend, her story adapted by Kalidasa for the 5th-century play
Abhijnanashakuntalam. It tells how Shakuntala, who was raised in the forest by birds, meets and marries the king
Dushyanta. After a curse is laid upon them Dushyanta loses his memory and they are separated, but eventually the curse is broken after the king sees the signet ring he gave her.
Shamgar m BiblicalPossibly means
"sword" in Hebrew. Shamgar was one of the Old Testament judges.
Shankara m HinduismDerived from the Sanskrit elements
शम् (sham) meaning "auspicious, lucky" and
कर (kara) meaning "maker". This is another name of the Hindu god
Shiva. This was also the name of a 9th-century Indian religious philosopher also known as Shankaracharya.
Sharar m BiblicalMeans
"enemy" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this is the name of the father of Ahiam.
Shariah m ArabicMeans
"divine law, noble law" in Arabic, ultimately from an old Arabic word meaning "pathway".
Sharma m HindiMeans
"protection, comfort, joy" in Sanskrit.
Shashi m & f Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Kannada, TeluguTraditional name for the moon, it literally means "having a hare" in Sanskrit. This is a transcription of both the masculine form
शशि and the feminine form
शशी (spelled with a long final vowel).
Shawnee f English (Modern)Means
"southern people" in the Algonquin language. The Shawnee were an Algonquin tribe who originally lived in the Ohio valley.
Shealtiel m BiblicalMeans
"I have asked of God" in Hebrew. This was the name of the son of King
Jeconiah of Judah and the father of Zerubbabel in the Old Testament.
Sheba m BiblicalMeans
"oath" in Hebrew. This is the name of several characters in the Old Testament. Also in the Bible, this is a place name, referring to a region in Ethiopia. The queen of Sheba visited Solomon after hearing of his wisdom.
Sheena f Scottish, EnglishAnglicized form of
Sìne. This name was popularized outside of Scotland in the 1980s by the singer Sheena Easton (1959-).
Shekinah f VariousFrom the Hebrew word
שׁכִינה (shekhinah) meaning
"God's manifested glory" or
"God's presence". This word does not appear in the Bible, but later Jewish scholars used it to refer to the dwelling place of God, especially the Temple in Jerusalem.
Shemaiah m BiblicalMeans
"heard by Yahweh" in Hebrew. This name is borne by many characters in the Old Testament including a prophet in the reign of
Rehoboam.
Shenandoah m Oneida (Anglicized)Variant of
Skenandoa, or from the name of the Shenandoah River (names that may or may not be connected). The traditional American folk song
Oh Shenandoah may refer to the Oneida chief Skenandoa or to the river; it is unclear.
Shepherd m EnglishFrom an English occupational surname meaning
"sheep herder, shepherd".
Sher m Urdu, PashtoMeans
"lion" in Persian. A famous bearer of this name was Sher Shah, a 16th-century Mughal ruler.
Sheridan m & f EnglishFrom an Irish surname (Anglicized from Irish Gaelic
Ó Sirideáin), which was derived from the given name
Sirideán possibly meaning "searcher".
Sherlock m LiteratureUsed by Scottish author Arthur Conan Doyle for his character Sherlock Holmes, who was a detective in Doyle's mystery stories beginning in 1887. The character's name was from an English surname meaning "shear lock", originally referring to a person with closely cut hair.
Sherwood m EnglishFrom an English place name (or from a surname that was derived from it) meaning
"bright forest". This was the name of the forest in which the legendary outlaw Robin Hood made his home.
Shi m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
时 (shí) meaning "time, era, season",
实 (shí) meaning "real, honest",
史 (shǐ) meaning "history" or
石 (shí) meaning "stone". Other characters can form this name as well.
Shiloh m & f BiblicalFrom an Old Testament place name possibly meaning
"tranquil" in Hebrew. It is also used prophetically in the Old Testament to refer to a person, often understood to be the Messiah (see
Genesis 49:10). This may in fact be a mistranslation.
... [more] Shingo m JapaneseFrom Japanese
真 (shin) meaning "real, genuine" or
慎 (shin) meaning "prudent, careful" combined with
吾 (go) meaning "I, me". Other combinations of kanji can form this name as well.
Shinobu m & f JapaneseFrom Japanese
忍 (shinobu) meaning "endurance, patience", as well as other kanji or kanji combinations having the same pronunciation.
Shion f & m JapaneseFrom Japanese
紫苑 (shion) meaning "aster". It can also come from
詩 (shi) meaning "poem" and
音 (on) meaning "sound". Other kanji combinations can form this name as well.
Shiori f & m JapaneseAs a feminine name it can be from Japanese
詩 (shi) meaning "poem" combined with
織 (ori) meaning "weave". It can also be from
栞 (shiori) meaning "bookmark" (usually feminine) or
撓 (shiori) meaning "lithe, bending" (usually masculine), as well as other kanji or kanji combinations.
Shiphrah f BiblicalMeans
"beautiful" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this is the name of one of the midwives (the other being
Puah) who disobeys the Pharaoh's order to kill any Hebrew boys they deliver.
Shirin f PersianMeans
"sweet" in Persian. This was the name of a character in Persian and Turkish legend.
Shizuka f JapaneseFrom Japanese
静 (shizu) meaning "quiet" combined with
夏 (ka) meaning "summer" or
香 (ka) meaning "fragrance". Other kanji combinations are possible.
Shōhei m JapaneseFrom Japanese
翔 (shō) meaning "soar, glide" and
平 (hei) meaning "level, even, peaceful", in addition to other combinations of kanji that are pronounced the same way.
Sholto m ScottishProbably an Anglicized form of Gaelic
sìoltaich meaning
"sower, propagator". It has occasionally been used in the Douglas family since the 17th century, after David Hume of Godscroft claimed it was the name of the 7th-century founder of the clan.
Shona f ScottishAnglicized form of
Seonag or
Seònaid. Though unconnected, this is also the name of an ethnic group who live in Southern Africa, mainly Zimbabwe.
Shprintze f Yiddish (Rare)Possibly a Yiddish form of
Esperanza. This is the name of Tevye's fourth daughter in the musical
Fiddler on the Roof (1964), based on the late 19th-century Yiddish stories of Sholem Aleichem.
Shqipe f AlbanianFrom Albanian
shqip meaning
"Albanian". Additionally, the word
shqipe means
"eagle" in modern Albanian, a variant of older
shkabë. These interrelated words are often the subject of competing claims that the one is derived from the other. The ultimate origin of
shqip "Albanian" is uncertain, but it may be from
shqipoj meaning "to say clearly".
Shrek m Popular CultureDerived from German
Schreck or Yiddish
שרעק (shrek) meaning
"fright". This is the name of a large green ogre in the animated movie
Shrek (2001) and its sequels.
Shripati m HinduismMeans
"husband of Shri" from the name of the Hindu goddess
Shri combined with Sanskrit
पति (pati) meaning "husband, lord". This is another name of the Hindu god
Vishnu.
Shu f ChineseFrom Chinese
淑 (shū) meaning "good, pure, virtuous, charming", besides other characters that are pronounced similarly.
Shui m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
水 (shuǐ) meaning "water", as well as other characters pronounced in a similar way.
Shun 2 f & m JapaneseFrom Japanese
駿 (shun) meaning "fast",
俊 (shun) meaning "talented", or other kanji that are pronounced the same way.
Shyama m & f Hinduism, HindiDerived from Sanskrit
श्याम (shyama) meaning
"dark, black, blue". This is a transcription of the masculine form
श्याम, which is another name of the Hindu god
Krishna, as well as the feminine form
श्यामा, one of the many names of the wife of the god
Shiva. It is also the name of a Jain goddess.
Siavash m Persian, Persian MythologyPersian form of Avestan
𐬯𐬌𐬌𐬁𐬎𐬎𐬀𐬭𐬱𐬀𐬥 (Siiāuuarshan) meaning
"possessing black stallions". This was the name of a virtuous prince in Iranian mythology. He appears briefly in the
Avesta, with a longer account recorded in the 10th-century Persian epic the
Shahnameh.
Sibyl f EnglishFrom Greek
Σίβυλλα (Sibylla), meaning
"prophetess, sibyl". In Greek and Roman legend the sibyls were female prophets who practiced at different holy sites in the ancient world. In later Christian theology, the sibyls were thought to have divine knowledge and were revered in much the same way as the Old Testament prophets. Because of this, the name came into general use in the Christian world during the Middle Ages. The Normans imported it to England, where it was spelled both
Sibyl and
Sybil. It became rare after the Protestant Reformation, but it was revived in the 19th century, perhaps helped by Benjamin Disraeli's novel
Sybil (1845).
Sidonia f Late Roman, GeorgianFeminine form of
Sidonius. This is the name of a legendary saint from Georgia. She and her father Abiathar were supposedly converted by Saint
Nino from Judaism to Christianity.
Sidonius m Late RomanLatin name meaning
"of Sidon". Sidon was an ancient Phoenician city corresponding to modern-day Saida in Lebanon. This name was borne by the 5th-century saint Sidonius Apollinaris, a 5th-century bishop of Clermont.
Sidony f English (Archaic)Feminine form of
Sidonius. This name was in use in the Middle Ages, when it became associated with the word
sindon (of Greek origin) meaning "linen", a reference to the Shroud of Turin.
Siegbert m GermanDerived from the Old German elements
sigu "victory" and
beraht "bright". This was the name of several Frankish kings, including the 7th-century Sigebert III of Austrasia who is regarded as a saint.
Siegfried m German, Germanic MythologyDerived from the Old German elements
sigu "victory" and
fridu "peace". Siegfried was a hero from German legend, the chief character in the
Nibelungenlied. He secretly helped the Burgundian king
Gunther overcome the challenges set out by the Icelandic queen
Brunhild so that Gunther might win her hand. In exchange, Gunther consented to the marriage of Siegfried and his sister
Kriemhild. Years later, after a dispute between Brunhild and Kriemhild, Siegfried was murdered by
Hagen with Gunther's consent. He was stabbed in his one vulnerable spot on the small of his back, which had been covered by a leaf while he bathed in dragon's blood. He is a parallel to the Norse hero
Sigurd. The story was later adapted by Richard Wagner to form part of his opera
The Ring of the Nibelung (1876).
Sienna f English (Modern)From the English word meaning
"orange-red". It is ultimately from the name of the city of Siena in Italy, because of the colour of the clay there.
Sierra f English (Modern)Means
"mountain range" in Spanish, referring specifically to a mountain range with jagged peaks.
Sigeberht m Anglo-SaxonMeans
"bright victory", derived from Old English
sige "victory" and
beorht "bright" (a cognate of
Siegbert). This was the name of a king of Wessex. The name fell out of use after the Norman Conquest.
Sigismund m German (Rare), GermanicForm of
Sigmund in which the first element is
sigis, an extended form of
sigu. Saint Sigismund was a 6th-century king of the Burgundians. This was also the name of kings of Poland and a ruler of the Holy Roman Empire.
Sigmund m German, Norwegian, English, Norse MythologyDerived from the Old German elements
sigu "victory" and
munt "protection" (or in the case of the Scandinavian cognate, from Old Norse
sigr and
mundr). An early variant of this name was
Sigismund, borne by a 6th-century saint and king of the Burgundians. In the Norse
Völsungasaga Sigmund is the hero
Sigurd's father, the bearer of the powerful sword Gram. A notable bearer was the Austrian psychologist Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), the creator of the revolutionary theory of psychoanalysis.
Sigurd m Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Norse MythologyFrom the Old Norse name
Sigurðr, which was derived from the elements
sigr "victory" and
vǫrðr "guard, guardian". Sigurd was the hero of the Norse epic the
Völsungasaga, which tells how his foster-father Regin sent him to recover a hoard of gold guarded by the dragon Fafnir. After slaying the dragon Sigurd tasted some of its blood, enabling him to understand the language of birds, who told him that Regin was planning to betray him. In a later adventure, Sigurd disguised himself as
Gunnar (his wife
Gudrun's brother) and rescued the maiden
Brynhildr from a ring of fire, with the result that Gunnar and Brynhildr were married. When the truth eventually came out, Brynhildr took revenge upon Sigurd. The stories of the German hero
Siegfried were in part based on him.
Sikke m FrisianOriginally a short form of names beginning with the Old German element
sigu meaning
"victory".
Silver m & f English (Rare)From the English word for the precious metal or the colour, ultimately derived from Old English
seolfor.
Silvester m Slovak, Slovene, Serbian, German, English, Late RomanFrom a Latin name meaning
"wooded, wild", derived from
silva "wood, forest". This was the name of three popes, including Saint Silvester I who supposedly baptized the first Christian Roman emperor,
Constantine the Great. As an English name,
Silvester (or
Sylvester) has been in use since the Middle Ages, though it became less common after the Protestant Reformation.
Silvius m Late Roman, Roman MythologyDerived from Latin
silva meaning
"wood, forest". This was the family name of several of the legendary kings of Alba Longa. It was also the name of an early saint martyred in Alexandria.
Simba 2 m SwahiliMeans
"lion" in Swahili. This is the name of the main character in the Disney movie
The Lion King (1994), about a lion cub who exiles himself after his father is murdered.
Simón m SpanishSpanish form of
Simon 1. This name was borne by the South American revolutionary Simón Bolívar (1783-1830).
Simonides m Ancient GreekDerived from Greek
σιμός (simos) meaning "flat-nosed" and the patronymic suffix
ἴδης (ides). This name was borne by the 7th-century BC iambic poet Simonides of Amorgos and the 6th-century BC lyric poet Simonides of Ceos.
Sin m Semitic MythologyFrom earlier Akkadian
Su'en, of unknown meaning. This was the name of the Akkadian, Assyrian and Babylonian god of the moon. He was closely identified with the Sumerian god
Nanna.
Sinclair m & f English (Rare)From a Scottish surname that was derived from a Norman French town called "Saint
Clair". A notable bearer was the American author Sinclair Lewis (1885-1951).
Sindri m Norse Mythology, Old Norse, IcelandicMeans
"sparkle" in Old Norse. In Norse mythology this was the name of a dwarf, also named Eitri. With his brother
Brokkr he made several magical items for the gods, including
Odin's ring Draupnir and
Thor's hammer Mjölnir.
Síofra f IrishMeans
"elf, sprite" in Irish. This name was created in the 20th century.
Siriporn f ThaiDerived from Thai
ศิริ (sir) meaning "glory, splendour" and
พร (phon) meaning "blessing".
Sirius m AstronomyThe name of a bright star in the constellation Canis Major, derived via Latin from Greek
σείριος (seirios) meaning
"burning".
Sisu m FinnishMeans
"willpower, determination, strength" in Finnish.
Sitara f UrduMeans
"star" in Urdu, ultimately from Persian.
Si-U m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
始 (si) meaning "begin, start" combined with
祐 (u) meaning "divine intervention, protection" or
雨 (u) meaning "rain". Other combinations of hanja characters can form this name as well.
Siv f Swedish, Norwegian, Norse MythologyFrom Old Norse
Sif, which meant
"bride, kinswoman". In Norse mythology she was the wife of
Thor. After the trickster
Loki cut off her golden hair, an angry Thor forced him to create a replacement.
Sixten m SwedishFrom the Old Norse name
Sigsteinn, which was derived from the elements
sigr "victory" and
steinn "stone".