ALANNAH f English (Modern), IrishVariant of
ALANA. It has been influenced by the affectionate Anglo-Irish word
alannah, from the Irish Gaelic phrase
a leanbh meaning "O child".
ALARIC m Ancient GermanicFrom the Gothic name
Alareiks which meant "ruler of all", derived from the Germanic element
ala "all" combined with
ric "ruler, power". This was the name of a king of the Visigoths who sacked Rome in the 5th century.
ALBA (1) f Italian, Spanish, CatalanThis name is derived from two distinct names,
ALBA (2) and
ALBA (3), with distinct origins, Latin and Germanic. Over time these names have become confused with one another. To further complicate the matter,
alba means "dawn" in Italian, Spanish and Catalan. This may be the main inspiration behind its use in Italy and Spain.
ALBAER m LimburgishLimburgish form of
ALBERT. Its spelling has been influenced by the French pronunciation of Albert.
ALBAN m German, French, Albanian, English (Rare)From the Roman cognomen
Albanus which meant "from Alba". Alba (from Latin
albus "white") was the name of various places within the Roman Empire, including the city Alba Longa. This name was borne by Saint Alban, the first British martyr (4th century). According to tradition, he sheltered a fugitive priest in his house. When his house was searched, he disguised himself as the priest, was arrested in his stead, and was beheaded. As an English name,
Alban was occasionally used in the Middle Ages and was revived in the 18th century, though it is now uncommon.
ALBENA f BulgarianCreated by Bulgarian writer Yordan Yovkov for the heroine in his drama 'Albena' (1930). He may have based it on
ablen, the name of a type of peony (a flowering plant).
ALBERICH m Ancient Germanic, Germanic MythologyDerived from the Germanic elements
alf "elf" and
ric "power". Alberich was the name of the sorcerer king of the dwarfs in Germanic mythology. He also appears in the 'Nibelungenlied' as a dwarf who guards the treasure of the Nibelungen.
ALBERT m English, French, Catalan, German, Polish, Russian, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Romanian, Hungarian, Ancient GermanicFrom the Germanic name
Adalbert, which was composed of the elements
adal "noble" and
beraht "bright". This name was common among medieval German royalty. The Normans introduced it to England, where it replaced the Old English cognate
Æðelberht. Though it became rare in England by the 17th century, it was repopularized in the 19th century by the German-born Prince Albert, the husband of Queen Victoria.
... [more] ALBINUS m Ancient RomanRoman cognomen which was a derivative of
ALBUS. Saint Albinus (also called Aubin) was a 6th-century bishop of Angers in Brittany.
ALBORZ m PersianFrom the name of a mountain range (of unknown etymology) in northern Iran.
ALCIBIADES m Ancient Greek (Latinized)Latinized form of the Greek name
Αλκιβιαδης (Alkibiades), derived from
αλκη (alke) "strength" and
βια (bia) "force" with the patronymic suffix
ιδης (ides). This was the name of a notable Greek statesman and general during the Peloponnesian War. He changed allegiance from Athens to Sparta and back again during the course of the war.
ALCYONE f Greek Mythology (Latinized)Latinized form of Greek
Αλκυονη (Alkyone), derived from the word
αλκυων (alkyon) meaning "kingfisher". In Greek myth this name belonged to a daughter of Aeolus and the wife of Ceyx. After her husband was killed in a shipwreck she threw herself into the water, but the gods saved her and turned them both into kingfishers. This is also the name of the brightest of the Pleiades, the seven stars in the constellation Taurus.
ALDEBRAND m Ancient GermanicGermanic name derived from the elements
ald meaning "old" and
brand meaning "sword" or "fire". Saint Aldebrand was a 12th-century bishop of Fossombrone in Italy.
ALDEGUND f Ancient GermanicGermanic name, derived from the elements
ald "old" and
gund "war". Saint Algegund (or Aldegundis) was a 7th-century Frankish abbess.
ALDONA f Lithuanian, PolishMeaning unknown. This was the name of a 14th-century Polish queen, the daughter of a Grand Duke of Lithuania.
ALDOUS m English (Rare)Probably a diminutive of names beginning with the Old English element
eald "old". It has been in use as an English given name since the Middle Ages, mainly in East Anglia. The British author Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) was a famous bearer of this name.
ALE (2) m FrisianOriginally a short form of Germanic names beginning with the element
adal meaning "noble".
ALED m WelshFrom the name of a Welsh river, of uncertain meaning.
ALESIA f EnglishPossibly a variant of
ALICIA, or maybe from the ancient Gaulish city of Alesia.
ALESSANDRO m ItalianItalian form of
ALEXANDER. A famous bearer was Alessandro Volta (1745-1827), the Italian physicist who invented the battery.
ALETA f EnglishPossibly a variant of
ALETHEA. This was the name of the wife of the title character in the comic strip 'Prince Valiant' which first appeared in 1937.
ALETHEA f EnglishDerived from Greek
αληθεια (aletheia) meaning "truth". This name was coined in the 16th century.
ALEX m & f English, Dutch, German, French, Portuguese, Italian, Romanian, Greek, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Hungarian, RussianShort form of
ALEXANDER,
ALEXANDRA, and other names beginning with
Alex.
ALEXANDER m English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Hungarian, Slovak, Biblical, Ancient Greek (Latinized), Greek Mythology (Latinized)Latinized form of the Greek name
Αλεξανδρος (Alexandros), which meant "defending men" from Greek
αλεξω (alexo) "to defend, help" and
ανηρ (aner) "man" (genitive
ανδρος). In Greek mythology this was another name of the hero
Paris, and it also belongs to several characters in the New Testament. However, the most famous bearer was Alexander the Great, King of Macedon. In the 4th century BC he built a huge empire out of Greece, Egypt, Persia, and parts of India. Due to his fame, and later medieval tales involving him, use of his name spread throughout Europe.
... [more] ALEXANDRA f English, German, Dutch, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Greek, Portuguese, Romanian, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Catalan, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Ukrainian, Ancient Greek, Greek MythologyFeminine form of
ALEXANDER. In Greek mythology this was a Mycenaean epithet of the goddess
Hera, and an alternate name of
Cassandra. It was borne by several early Christian saints, and also by the wife of Nicholas II, the last czar of Russia. She was from Germany and had the birth name
Alix, but was renamed
Александра (Aleksandra) upon joining the Russian Church.
ALEXANDRIA f EnglishFeminine form of
ALEXANDER. Alexander the Great founded several cities by this name (or renamed them) as he extended his empire eastward. The most notable of these is Alexandria in Egypt, founded by Alexander in 331 BC.
ALEXIS m & f German, French, English, Greek, Ancient GreekFrom the Greek name
Αλεξις (Alexis), which meant "helper" or "defender", derived from Greek
αλεξω (alexo) "to defend, to help". This was the name of a 3rd-century BC Greek comic poet, and also of several saints. It is used somewhat interchangeably with the related name
Αλεξιος or
Alexius, borne by five Byzantine emperors. In the English-speaking world it is more commonly used as a feminine name.
ALEXIUS m Ancient Greek (Latinized)Latinized form of the Greek name
Αλεξιος (Alexios), a derivative of
Αλεξις (see
ALEXIS). This was the name of five Byzantine emperors. It was also borne by a 5th-century Syrian saint who is especially venerated in the Eastern Church.
ALF (1) m Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Norse MythologyDerived from Old Norse
alfr "elf". In Norse legend this was the name of king, the suitor of a reluctant maiden named Alfhild. She avoided marrying him by disguising herself as a warrior, but when they fought she was so impressed by his strength that she changed her mind.
ALFHILD f Norwegian, SwedishFrom the Old Norse name
Alfhildr which was composed of the elements
alfr "elf" and
hildr "battle". In Norse legend Alfhild was a maiden who disguised herself as a warrior in order to avoid marriage to king Alf. Her life was perhaps based on that of a 9th-century Viking pirate.
ALFONSO m Spanish, ItalianSpanish and Italian form of a Visigothic Germanic name, probably meaning "noble and ready", from the element
adal "noble" combined with
funs "ready". Other theories claim the first element is
hadu or
hild (see
ILDEFONSO), both of which mean "battle". It is possible that two or more names merged into a single form. This was the name of six kings of Portugal and kings of several ancient regions of Spain.
ALFRED m English, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Polish, DutchDerived from the Old English name
Ælfræd, composed of the elements
ælf "elf" and
ræd "counsel". Alfred the Great was a 9th-century king of Wessex who fought unceasingly against the Danes living in northeast England. He was also a scholar, and he translated many Latin books into Old English. His fame helped to ensure the usage of this name even after the Norman conquest, when most Old English names were replaced by Norman ones. It became rare by the end of the Middle Ages, but was revived in the 18th century.
... [more] ALGAR m English (Rare)Means "elf spear" from Old English
ælf "elf" and
gar "spear". This Old English name was rarely used after the Norman conquest, being absorbed by similar-sounding names and Norman and Scandinavian cognates. It was briefly revived in the 19th century.
ALGERNON m EnglishOriginally a Norman French nickname, derived from
aux gernons "having a moustache", which was applied to William de Percy, a companion of William the Conqueror. It was first used a given name in the 15th century (for a descendant of William de Percy).
ALICE f English, French, Portuguese, ItalianFrom the Old French name
Aalis, a short form of
Adelais, itself a short form of the Germanic name
Adalheidis (see
ADELAIDE). This name became popular in France and England in the 12th century. It was borne by the heroine of Lewis Carroll's 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' (1865) and 'Through the Looking Glass' (1871).
ALIKHAN m KazakhCombination of the name
ALI (1) and the Turkic title
khan which means "ruler, leader".
ALIN m RomanianPossibly a Romanian masculine form of
ALINA. Alternatively it may derive from Romanian
alina "to soothe".
ALISON f English, FrenchNorman French diminutive of
Aalis (see
ALICE). It was common in England, Scotland and France in the Middle Ages, and was later revived in England in the 20th century via Scotland. Unlike most other English names ending in
son, it is not derived from a surname.
ALIYAH (2) f HebrewMeans "to ascend" in Hebrew. This is also a Hebrew word referring to immigration to Israel.
ALJAŽ m SloveneDerived from a Slovene surname, which is of unknown meaning.
ALKE m FrisianOriginally a short form of Germanic names beginning with the element
adal meaning "noble".
ALLAH m TheologyDerived from Arabic
الإله (al-ilah) meaning "the deity". It is primarily used to refer to the Islamic God, though it was originally used by pre-Islamic Arabs, and is sometimes used by Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews.
ALLAN m English, Scottish, DanishVariant of
ALAN. The American author Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) got his middle name from the surname of the parents who adopted him.
ALLE m FrisianOriginally a short form of Germanic names beginning with the element
adal meaning "noble".
ALLEGRA f Italian, English (Rare)Means "cheerful, lively" in Italian. It was borne by a short-lived illegitimate daughter of Lord Byron (1817-1822).
ALLEN m English, ScottishVariant of
ALAN. A famous bearer of this name was Allen Ginsberg (1926-1997), an American beat poet. Another is the American film director and actor Woody Allen (1935-), who took the stage name Allen from his real first name.
ALLI f FinnishFinnish diminutive of names beginning with
Al. This is also the Finnish word for a type of duck.
ALLON m BiblicalMeans "oak" in Hebrew. This name is mentioned briefly in the Old Testament.
ALMA (1) f English, Spanish, Italian, DutchThis name became popular after the Battle of Alma (1854), which took place near the River Alma in Crimea and ended in a victory for Britain and France. However, the name was in rare use before the battle; it was probably inspired by Latin
almus "nourishing". It also coincides with the Spanish word meaning "the soul".
ALMAS f & m ArabicMeans "diamond" in Arabic, ultimately from Persian.
ALMAST f ArmenianMeans "diamond" in Armenian, ultimately from Persian.
ÁLMOS m HungarianPossibly from Hungarian
álom "dream", though perhaps of Turkic origin meaning "bought". This was the name of the semi-legendary father of Árpád, the founder of the Hungarian state. Álmos's mother Emese supposedly had a dream in which a turul bird impregnated her and foretold that her son would be the father of a great nation.
ALMUDENA f SpanishDerived from Arabic
المدينة (al-mudaynah) meaning "the citadel". It was in a building by this name that a concealed statue of the Virgin
Mary was discovered during the Reconquista in Madrid. The Virgin of Almudena, that is Mary, is the patron saint of Madrid.
ALODIA f Ancient Germanic (Latinized)Possibly from a Visigothic name derived from the Germanic elements
alja "other, foreign" and
aud "riches, wealth". Saint Alodia was a 9th-century Spanish martyr with her sister Nunilo.
ALOYSIUS m EnglishLatinized form of
Aloys, an old Occitan form of
LOUIS. This was the name of a 16th-century Italian saint, Aloysius Gonzaga. The name has been in occasional use among Catholics since his time.
ALPHA f & m EnglishFrom the name of the first letter in the Greek alphabet,
Α.