DRUST m Ancient CelticPictish name probably derived from Celtic
drest meaning
"riot" or
"tumult". This name was borne by several kings of the Picts, including their last king Drust X, who ruled in the 9th century.
DRUSUS m Ancient RomanRoman family name, also sometimes used as a praenomen, or given name, by the Claudia family. Apparently the name was first assumed by a Roman warrior who killed a Gallic chieftain named Drausus in single combat.
Drausus possibly derives from a Celtic element meaning
"strong".
DUANE m English, IrishFrom an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of the Gaelic surname
Ó Dubhán meaning
"descendant of DUBHÁN".
DUARTE m PortuguesePortuguese form of
EDWARD. This name was borne by a 15th-century king of Portugal, who was named after his maternal ancestor Edward III of England.
DUBHÁN m IrishIrish name derived from
dubh "dark, black" combined with a diminutive suffix.
DUBHSHLÁINE m Ancient IrishOld Irish name derived from
dubh "dark, black" and either
slán "defiance" or
Sláine, the Irish name of the River Slaney.
DUBHTHACH m Ancient IrishOld Irish name derived from
dubh "dark, black" in combination with a second element of unknown meaning.
DUDLEY m EnglishFrom a surname that was originally from a place name meaning
"Dudda's clearing" in Old English. The surname was borne by a British noble family.
DUILIO m Italian, SpanishFrom the Roman name
Duilius, which is possibly derived from Latin
duellum "war". This was the name of a Roman consul who defeated the Carthaginians in a naval battle.
DUKE m EnglishFrom the noble title
duke, which was originally derived from Latin
dux "leader".
DUKVAKHA m ChechenMeans
"to live long", derived from Nakh
duqa "many" and
vakha "to live".
DULCIBELLA f English (Archaic)From Latin
dulcis "sweet" and
bella "beautiful". The usual medieval spelling of this name was
Dowsabel, and the Latinized form
Dulcibella was revived in the 18th century.
DULCIE f EnglishFrom Latin
dulcis meaning
"sweet". It was used in the Middle Ages in the spellings
Dowse and
Duce, and was recoined in the 19th century.
DULCINEA f LiteratureDerived from Spanish
dulce meaning
"sweet". This name was (first?) used by Miguel de Cervantes in his novel
Don Quixote (1605), where it belongs to the love interest of the main character, though she never actually appears in the story.
DUNCAN m Scottish, EnglishAnglicized form of the Gaelic name
Donnchadh, derived from Gaelic
donn "brown" and
cath "battle". This was the name of two kings of Scotland, including the one who was featured in Shakespeare's play
Macbeth (1606).
DUNJA f Serbian, Croatian, SloveneMeans
"quince" in the South Slavic languages, a quince being a type of fruit. It can also be a Serbian, Croatian and Slovene form of
DUNYA.
DUNSTAN m English (Rare), Anglo-SaxonFrom the Old English elements
dunn "dark" and
stan "stone". This name was borne by a 10th-century saint, the archbishop of Canterbury. It was occasionally used in the Middle Ages, though it died out after the 16th century. It was revived by the Tractarian movement in the 19th century.
DURANTE m ItalianItalian form of the Late Latin name
Durans, which meant
"enduring".
DURI f & m KoreanMeans
"two" in Korean (Gyeongsang dialect).
DURWARD m EnglishFrom an occupational surname meaning
"door guard" in Middle English.
DUSHYANTA m HinduismPossibly means
"destroyer of evil" in Sanskrit. In Hindu legend this is the name of a king who is the husband of
Shakuntala and the father of
Bharata.
DUSTIN m EnglishFrom an English surname that was derived from the Old Norse given name
Þórsteinn (see
TORSTEN). The name was popularized by the actor Dustin Hoffman (1937-), who was apparently named after the earlier silent movie star Dustin Farnum (1874-1929).
DUSTY m & f EnglishFrom a nickname originally given to people perceived as being dusty. It is also used a diminutive of
DUSTIN. A famous bearer was British singer Dusty Springfield (1939-1999), who acquired her nickname as a child.
DUTCH m EnglishFrom a nickname given to Americans of German descent. It is related to
deutsch, the German word for "German".
DUUK m Dutch (Modern)Probably a Dutch form of the English word
duke, which was originally derived from Latin
dux "leader". The equivalent Dutch word is
hertog.
DWI m & f IndonesianMeans
"two, second" in Indonesian, ultimately from Sanskrit
द्वि (dvi).
DWIGHT m EnglishFrom an English surname that was derived from the medieval feminine name
Diot, a diminutive of
Dionysia, the feminine form of
DIONYSIUS. In America it was sometimes given in honour of Yale president Timothy Dwight (1752-1817). A famous bearer was the American president Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890-1969).
DYMPHNA f IrishAnglicized form of
DAMHNAIT. This was the name of a 7th-century Irish saint who was martyred by her father. She is the patron saint of the mentally ill.
DŽENITA f BosnianFrom Bosnian
dženet meaning
"paradise, garden", derived from Arabic
جنّة (jannah).
DZHOKHAR m ChechenPossibly from Persian
گوهر (gohar) meaning
"jewel, essence" or
جوهر (johar) meaning
"essence, ink" (which comes from the same root, but via a loan to Arabic and retransmission to Persian).