Behind the Name: Names Starting with B (page 4)

BROOKm & fEnglish
From an English surname which denoted one who lived near a brook.

BROOKEfEnglish
Variant of BROOK. The name came into use in the 1950s, probably influenced by American socialite Brooke Astor (1902-2007). It was further popularized by actress Brooke Shields (1965-).

BROOKLYNfEnglish (Modern)
From the name of the borough of New York City, originally derived from Dutch Breukelen meaning "broken land". It can also be viewed as a combination of BROOK and the popular name suffix lyn.

BROOKLYNNfEnglish (Modern)
Variant of BROOKLYN.

BROOKSmEnglish
From an English surname, a variant of BROOK.

BROOSmDutch, Limburgish
Dutch and Limburgish short form of AMBROOS.

BRUCEmScottish, English
From a Scottish surname, of Norman origin, which probably originally referred to the town of Brix in France. The surname was borne by Robert the Bruce, a Scottish hero of the 14th century who achieved independence from England and became the king of Scotland. It has been in use as a given name in the English-speaking world since the 19th century. A notable bearer is the American musician Bruce Springsteen (1949-).

BRUNAfItalian, Portuguese, Croatian
Feminine form of BRUNO.

BRUNELLAfItalian
Feminine diminutive of BRUNO.

BRÜNHILDfGerman, Germanic Mythology
Derived from the Germanic elements brun "armour, protection" and hild "battle". It is cognate with the Old Norse name Brynhildr (from the elements bryn and hildr). In Norse legend Brynhildr was the queen of the Valkyries who was rescued by the hero Sigurd. In the Germanic saga the 'Nibelungenlied' she was a queen of Iceland and the wife of Günther. Both of these characters were probably inspired by the eventful life of the 6th-century Frankish queen Brunhilda (of Visigothic birth).

BRUNHILDfGermanic Mythology, Ancient Germanic
Variant of BRÜNHILD.

BRUNHILDAfHistory
Variant of BRÜNHILD, referring to the Frankish queen.

BRUNHILDEfGerman, Ancient Germanic
Variant of BRÜNHILD.

BRUNIHILDfAncient Germanic
Old Germanic form of BRÜNHILD.

BRUNILDAfSpanish, Italian, Portuguese
Spanish, Italian and Portuguese form of BRÜNHILD.

BRUNOmGerman, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Croatian, Polish, Ancient Germanic
Derived from the Germanic element brun "armour, protection" or brun "brown". Saint Bruno of Cologne was a German monk of the 11th century who founded the Carthusian Order. The surname has belonged Giordano Bruno, a philosopher burned at the stake by the Inquisition.

BRUTUSmAncient Roman
Roman cognomen meaning "heavy" in Latin. Famous bearers include Lucius Junius Brutus, the traditional founder of the Roman Republic, and Marcus Junius Brutus, the statesman who conspired to assassinated Julius Caesar.

BRYANmEnglish
Variant of BRIAN.

BRYANAfEnglish (Modern)
Variant of BRIANA.

BRYANNAfEnglish (Modern)
Variant of BRIANA.

BRYANNEfEnglish (Rare)
Feminine form of BRIAN.

BRYANTmEnglish
From a surname which was derived from the given name BRIAN.

BRYCEmEnglish
Variant of BRICE.

BRYGIDAfPolish
Polish form of BRIDGET.

BRYNm & fWelsh, English
Means "hill, mound" in Welsh. It is now used as a feminine name as well.

BRYNHILDfNorwegian, Norse Mythology
Norwegian form of BRYNHILDR.

BRYNHILDRfNorse Mythology, Ancient Scandinavian
Old Norse cognate of BRÜNHILD. In the Norse legend the 'Volsungasaga' Brynhildr was rescued by the hero Sigurd in the guise of Gunnar. Brynhildr and Gunnar were married, but when Sigurd's wife Gudrun let slip that it was in fact Sigurd who had rescued her, Brynhildr plotted against him. She accused Sigurd of taking her virginity, spurring Gunnar to arrange Sigurd's murder.

BRYNHILDURfIcelandic
Icelandic form of BRYNHILDR.

BRYNJAfIcelandic, Ancient Scandinavian
Means "armour" in Old Norse.

BRYNJARmNorwegian, Icelandic
Derived from the Old Norse elements bryn "armour" and arr "warrior".

BRYNJARRmAncient Scandinavian
Old Norse form of BRYNJAR.

BRYNLEEfEnglish (Modern)
Combination of BRYN and the popular name suffix lee.

BRYNMORmWelsh
From a Welsh place name meaning "great hill".

BRYNNfEnglish (Modern)
Feminine variant of BRYN.

BRYNNEfEnglish (Rare)
Feminine variant of BRYN.

BRYONmEnglish
Variant of BRIAN.

BRYONYfEnglish (Rare)
From the name of a type of Eurasian vine, formerly used as medicine. It ultimately derives from Greek βρυω (bryo) "to swell".

BRYSONmEnglish
From an English surname meaning "son of BRICE".

BUANAmIndonesian
Means "the world" in Indonesian, ultimately from Sanskrit भुवन (bhuvana).

BUCKmEnglish
From an English nickname meaning simply "buck, male deer", ultimately from Old English bucc.

BUDmEnglish
Short form of BUDDY.

BUDDHAmHistory
Means "enlightened" in Sanskrit. This is a title applied to Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, as well as to a handful of other enlightened individuals.

BUDDYmEnglish
From the English word meaning "friend". It probably originated as a nursery form of the word brother.

BUDImIndonesian
Means "reason, mind, character" in Indonesian, ultimately from Sanskrit बुद्धि (buddhi) meaning "intellect" (related to Buddha).

BUDURfArabic
Strictly feminine form of BADR.

BUENAVENTURAmSpanish
Spanish form of BONAVENTURA.

BUFFYfEnglish
Diminutive of ELIZABETH, from a child's pronunciation of the final syllable. It is now associated with the main character from the television series 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' (1997-2003).

BUĞRAmTurkish
Means "baby camel" in Turkish.

BUHLEf & mSouthern African, Xhosa, Ndebele
From Xhosa and Ndebele buhle "beautiful, handsome", from the root hle.

BÚImAncient Scandinavian
Old Norse form of BO (1).

BULANfIndonesian
Means "moon" (or "month") in Indonesian.

BULATmKazakh
Variant transcription of BOLAT.

BÜLENTmTurkish
Means "high, mighty" in Turkish.

BULUSmArabic
Arabic form of PAUL.

BULUTmTurkish
Means "cloud" in Turkish.

BUNNYfEnglish
Diminutive of BERENICE.

BÜNYAMİNmTurkish
Turkish form of BENJAMIN.

BURAKmTurkish
From Arabic براق (Buraq), the name of the legendary creature that, according to Islamic tradition, transported the Prophet Muhammad. Its name is derived from Arabic برق (barq) "lightning".

BURCHARDmGerman (Rare), Ancient Germanic
Variant of BURKHARD.

BURÇİNf & mTurkish
Means "hind, doe" in Turkish.

BURCUfTurkish
Means "sweet smelling, fragrant" in Turkish.

BURGUNDYfEnglish (Rare)
This name can refer either to the region in France, the wine (which derives from the name of the region), or the colour (which derives from the name of the wine).

BURHANmArabic, Turkish
Means "proof" in Arabic.

BURIMmAlbanian
Means "spring, well, water source" in Albanian.

BURKEmEnglish
From an English surname which was derived from Old English burg meaning "fortress".

BURKHARDmGerman, Ancient Germanic
Derived from the Germanic elements burg meaning "protection" and hard "brave, hardy". Saint Burkhard was a bishop who founded several monasteries in Germany in the 8th century.

BURKHARTmGerman, Ancient Germanic
Variant of BURKHARD.

BURTmEnglish
Short form of BURTON.

BURTONmEnglish
From a surname which was originally taken from an Old English place name meaning "fortified town". A famous bearer of the surname was Sir Richard Burton (1821-1890), an explorer of Africa and Asia.

BUSINGEm & fEastern African, Kiga
Means "peace" in Rukiga.

BUSTERmEnglish
Originally a nickname denoting a person who broke things, from the word bust. A famous bearer was the silent movie star Buster Keaton (1895-1966).

BUTRUSmArabic, Coptic
Arabic form of PETER.

BUZmBiblical
Means "contempt" in Hebrew. This is the name of a son of ABRAHAM's brother Nahor in the Old Testament.

BYELOBOGmSlavic Mythology
Means "the white god" from Slavic byelo "white" and bogu "god". This was the name of the Slavic god of the sun, happiness and fortune.

BYEONG-HOmKorean
From Sino-Korean 炳 (byeong) meaning "bright, luminous, glorious" combined with 浩 (ho) meaning "great, numerous, vast" or 昊 (ho) meaning "summer, sky, heaven". Other hanja character combinations are possible.

BYRNEmEnglish (Rare)
From an Irish surname which was derived from Ó Broin meaning "descendant of BRAN (1)".

BYRONmEnglish
From a surname which was originally from a place name meaning "place of the cow sheds" in Old English. This was the surname of the romantic poet Lord Byron (1788-1824), the writer of 'Don Juan' and many other works.

BYSSHEmEnglish (Rare)
From an English surname, a variant of the surname Bush, which originally indicated a person who lived near a bush. This was the middle name of the romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822).

BYUNG-HOmKorean
Variant transcription of BYEONG-HO.

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