HINATAf & mJapaneseFrom Japanese
日向 (hinata) meaning "sunny place",
陽向 (hinata) meaning "toward the sun", or a non-standard reading of
向日葵 (himawari) meaning "sunflower". Other kanji compounds are also possible. Because of the irregular readings, this name is often written using the hiragana writing system.
HINDfArabicPossibly means "group of camels" in Arabic. Hind bint Abi Umayyah, also known as Umm Salama, was one of the wives of the Prophet
Muhammad. This is also the Arabic name for the country of India.
HIRAHmBiblicalMeans "splendour" in Hebrew. This was the name of the father-in-law of Judah in the Old Testament.
HIRAKUmJapaneseFrom Japanese
拓 (hiraku) meaning "expand, open, support". Other kanji can also form this name.
HIRAMmBiblical, Biblical Hebrew, EnglishProbably of Phoenician origin, though it could be from Hebrew meaning "exalted brother". This was the name of a king of Tyre in the Old Testament. As an English given name,
Hiram came into use after the Protestant Reformation. In the 17th century the Puritans brought it to America, where it gained some currency.
HIROKImJapaneseFrom Japanese
大 (hiro) meaning "big, great" and
輝 (ki) meaning "brightness" or
樹 (ki) meaning "tree". Other kanji combinations are also possible.
HIROKOfJapaneseFrom Japanese
寛 (hiro) meaning "tolerant, generous",
裕 (hiro) meaning "abundant" or
浩 (hiro) meaning "prosperous" combined with
子 (ko) meaning "child". Other kanji combinations are possible.
HIROSHImJapaneseFrom Japanese
寛 (hiroshi) meaning "tolerant, generous",
浩 (hiroshi) meaning "prosperous", or other kanji and kanji combinations which are read the same way.
HIROTOmJapaneseFrom Japanese
大 (hiro) meaning "big, great" or
博 (hiro) meaning "command, esteem" combined with
翔 (to) meaning "soar, glide" or
斗 (to), which refers to a Chinese constellation. Other kanji combinations can also form this name.
HIRSHmYiddishMeans "deer" in Yiddish. The deer is particularly associated with the tribe of
Naphtali (see Genesis 49:21).
HIRUNEfBasqueMeans "trinity" in Basque, derived from
hiru meaning "three".
HISHAMmArabicMeans "generous" in Arabic, ultimately from
hashama "to crush". The meaning derives from the traditional Arab act of crushing bread into crumbs in order to share it. This was the name of an 8th-century caliph of the Umayyad dynasty in Spain.
HITOMIfJapaneseFrom Japanese
瞳 (hitomi) meaning "pupil of the eye". It can also come from
史 (hito) meaning "history" and
美 (mi) meaning "beautiful", as well as other kanji combinations. This name is often written with the hiragana writing system.
HLAm & fBurmeseMeans "pretty, favourable" in Burmese.
HOEBAERmLimburgishLimburgish form of
HUBERT. Its spelling has been influenced by the French pronunciation of Hubert.
HOKULANIfHawaiianMeans "heavenly star" from Hawaiian
hōkū "star" and
lani "heaven, sky, royal, majesty".
HOLDENmEnglish (Modern)From a surname which was originally derived from a place name meaning "deep valley" in Old English. This is the name of the main character in J. D. Salinger's novel 'The Catcher in the Rye' (1951), Holden Caufield.
HOLLISm & fEnglishFrom an English surname which was derived from Middle English
holis "holly trees". It was originally given to a person who lived near a group of those trees.
HOLLYfEnglishFrom the English word for the holly tree, ultimately derived from Old English
holen.
HOMERmEnglish, Ancient Greek (Anglicized)From the Greek name
‘Ομηρος (Homeros), derived from
‘ομηρος (homeros) meaning "hostage, pledge". Homer was the Greek epic poet who wrote the 'Iliad', about the Trojan War, and the 'Odyssey', about
Odysseus's journey home after the war. There is some debate about when he lived, or if he was even a real person, though most scholars place him in the 8th century BC. In the modern era,
Homer has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world (chiefly in America) since the 18th century. This name is borne by the cartoon father on the television series 'The Simpsons'.
HONEYfEnglish (Rare)Simply from the English word
honey, ultimately from Old English
hunig. This was originally a nickname for a sweet person.
HONGm & fChineseFrom Chinese
虹 (hóng) meaning "rainbow",
弘 (hóng) meaning "enlarge, expand, great" (which is usually only masculine) or
鸿 (hóng) meaning "wild swan, great, vast" (also usually only masculine). Other characters can also form this name.
HONOKAfJapaneseFrom Japanese
和 (hono) meaning "harmony" (using an obscure nanori reading) and
花 (ka) meaning "flower", as well as other combinations of kanji which have the same pronunciation. Very often it is written using the hiragana writing system.
HONORATUSmLate RomanLate Latin name which meant "esteemed, distinguished". This was the name of at least seven saints, including a 5th-century archbishop of Arles and a 6th-century bishop of Amiens who is the patron saint of bakers.
HONORINEfFrenchFrench form of
Honorina, a feminine form of the Roman name
Honorinus, a derivative of
HONORIUS. Saint Honorina was a 4th-century martyr from the Normandy region in France.
HONORIUSmLate RomanLate Latin name which meant "honour". This was the name of an emperor of the Western Roman Empire. It was also borne by a few early saints and four popes.
HONOURfEnglish (Rare)From the English word
honour, which is of Latin origin. This was one of the virtue names adopted by the Puritans in the 17th century. It can also be viewed as a form of
HONORIA or
HONORATA, which are ultimately derived from the same source.
HOPEfEnglishFrom the English word
hope, ultimately from Old English
hopian. This name was first used by the Puritans in the 17th century.
HORACEmEnglish, FrenchEnglish and French form of
HORATIUS, and the name by which the Roman poet Quintus Horatius Flaccus is commonly known those languages. In the modern era it has been used as a given name since the Renaissance, in honour of the poet.
HORATIOmEnglishVariant of
HORATIUS. It was borne by the British admiral Horatio Nelson (1758-1805), famous for his defeat of Napoleon's forces in the Battle of Trafalgar, in which he was himself killed. Since his time the name has been occasionally used in his honour.
HORATIUSmAncient RomanRoman family name which was possibly derived from Latin
hora "hour, time, season", though the name may actually be of Etruscan origin. A famous bearer was Quintus Horatius Flaccus, a Roman lyric poet of the 1st century BC who is better known as Horace in the English-speaking world.
HOREAmRomanianFrom Romanian
horă, a type of circle dance. This was the nickname of Vasile Ursu Nicola (1731-1785), a leader of a peasant rebellion in Romania. He was eventually captured, tortured and executed.
HORSAmAncient GermanicFrom the Germanic element
hros or
hors meaning "horse". Horsa and his brother Hengist were the leaders of the first Germanic settlers to arrive in Britain.
HORSTmGermanMeans "wood, thicket" in German. Alternatively, it may derive from the Germanic element
hros or
hors meaning "horse".
HORUSmEgyptian Mythology (Latinized)Latinized form of
‘Ωρος (Horos), the Greek form of Egyptian
Hrw (reconstructed as
Heru) possibly meaning "falcon" or "high". In Egyptian mythology Horus was the god of light, often depicted as a man with the head of a falcon. The son
Osiris and
Isis, he avenged his father's murder by killing
Seth.
HOSANNAfBiblicalFrom the Aramaic religious expression
הושע נא (Hosha' na') meaning "deliver us" in Hebrew. In the New Testament this is exclaimed by those around
Jesus when he first enters Jerusalem.
HOSEAmBiblicalVariant transcription of
Hoshe'a (see
HOSHEA). Hosea is one of the twelve minor prophets of the Old Testament, the author of the Book of Hosea. Written in the northern kingdom, it draws parallels between his relationship with his unfaithful wife and the relationship between God and his people.
HOSHEAmBiblical, Biblical HebrewFrom the Hebrew name
הוֹשֵׁעַ (Hoshe'a) meaning "salvation", from the root
יָשַׁע (yasha'). In the Old Testament at Numbers 13:16,
Moses gives the spy Hoshea the new name
Yehoshu'a (see
JOSHUA), which has a related origin. This name was also borne by an 8th-century BC king of Israel, who was the last ruler of that state before it was conquered by Assyria.
HOSHIfJapaneseFrom Japanese
星 (hoshi) meaning "star" or other kanji with the same pronunciation.
HOSHIKOfJapaneseFrom Japanese
星 (hoshi) meaning "star" and
子 (ko) meaning "child". Other kanji combinations are possible.
HOWARDmEnglishFrom an English surname which can derive from several different sources: the Anglo-Norman given name
Huard, which was from the Germanic name
HUGHARD; the Anglo-Scandinavian given name
Haward, from the Old Norse name
HÁVARÐR; or the Middle English term
ewehirde meaning "ewe herder". This is the surname of a British noble family, members of which have held the title Duke of Norfolk from the 15th century to the present. A famous bearer of the given name was the American industrialist Howard Hughes (1905-1976).
HOYTmEnglishFrom an English surname which was derived from Middle English
hoit "stick", originally a nickname for a thin person.
HRÓARRmAncient ScandinavianOld Norse name, derived from the element
hróðr "fame" combined with either
geirr "spear" (making it a relation of
HRÓÐGEIRR),
arr "warrior" or
varr "vigilant, cautious". This is the name of a legendary Danish king, the same one who is featured in the Anglo-Saxon poem 'Beowulf' with the name
Hroðgar.
HROÐGARmAnglo-SaxonOld English cognate of
Hrodger (see
ROGER). The name became unused after the Normans introduced
Hrodger after their invasion. In the Old English poem 'Beowulf' this is the name of the Danish king.
HUAf & mChineseFrom Chinese
华 (huá) meaning "splendid, illustrious, Chinese" or
花 (huā) meaning "flower, blossom" (which is usually only feminine). Other Chinese characters can form this name as well.
HUANf & mChineseFrom Chinese
欢 (huān) meaning "happy, pleased", as well as other characters pronounced in a similar way.
HUANGm & fChineseFrom Chinese
煌 (huáng) meaning "bright, shining, luminous" (which is usually only masculine) or
凰 (huáng) meaning "phoenix" (usually only feminine). Other Chinese characters are also possible.
HUBERTmEnglish, German, Dutch, French, Polish, Ancient GermanicMeans "bright heart", derived from the Germanic elements
hug "heart, mind" and
beraht "bright". Saint Hubert was an 8th-century bishop of Maastricht who is considered the patron saint of hunters. The Normans brought the name to England, where it replaced an Old English cognate
Hygebeorht. It died out during the Middle Ages but was revived in the 19th century.
HUDSONmEnglishFrom an English surname which meant "son of
HUDDE". A famous bearer of the surname was the English explorer Henry Hudson (1570-1611).
HUỆfVietnameseFrom Sino-Vietnamese
慧 (huệ) meaning "bright, intelligent" or
蕙 (huệ) meaning "orchid".
HUGHmEnglishFrom the Germanic element
hug, meaning "heart, mind, spirit". It was common among Frankish and French nobility, being borne by Hugh Capet, a 10th-century king of France who founded the Capetian dynasty. The Normans brought the name to England and it became common there, even more so after the time of the 12th-century bishop Saint Hugh of Lincoln, who was known for his charity. This was also the name of kings of Cyprus and the crusader kingdom of Jerusalem. The name is used in Ireland and Scotland as the Anglicized form of
Aodh and
Ùisdean.
HUGOmSpanish, Portuguese, English, Dutch, German, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Ancient Germanic (Latinized)Latinized form of
HUGH. As a surname it has belonged to the French author Victor Hugo (1802-1885), the writer of 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame' and 'Les Misérables'.
HUIf & mChineseFrom Chinese
慧 (huì) meaning "intelligent, wise" (which is usually only feminine),
辉 (huī) meaning "brightness", besides other characters which are pronounced similarly.
HUITZILOPOCHTLImAztec and Toltec MythologyMeans "southern hummingbird" or "left-handed hummingbird" in Nahuatl. In Aztec mythology he was the god of the sun and war. He was a patron deity of the city of Tenochtitlan (at the site of modern Mexico City).
HULDAHfBiblicalMeans "weasel, mole" in Hebrew. This name appears in the Old Testament belonging to a prophetess.
HUMBERTmFrench, German (Rare), English (Rare), Ancient GermanicMeans "bright warrior", derived from the Germanic elements
hun "warrior, bear cub" and
beraht "bright". The Normans introduced this name to England, though it has always been uncommon there. It was borne by two kings of Italy (called Umberto in Italian), who ruled in the 19th and 20th centuries.
HUMPHREYmEnglishMeans "peaceful warrior" from the Germanic elements
hun "warrior, bear cub" and
frid "peace". The Normans introduced this name to England, where it replaced the Old English cognate
Hunfrith, and it was regularly used through the Middle Ages. A famous bearer was the American actor Humphrey Bogart (1899-1957), who starred in 'The Maltese Falcon' and 'Casablanca'.
HUNORmHungarianDerived from the ethnic term
Hun, which refers to the nomadic people from Central Asia who expanded into Europe in the 4th century. The word
Hun is from Latin
Hunnus, which is possibly of Turkic origin.
HUNTERm & fEnglishFrom an occupational English surname for a hunter, derived from Old English
hunta. A famous bearer was the eccentric American journalist Hunter S. Thompson (1937-2005).
HURImBiblicalMeans "linen weaver" in Hebrew. This was the name of the father of Abihail in the Old Testament.
HUSAMmArabicMeans "sword" in Arabic, a derivative of the verb
حسم (hasama) meaning "to sever, to finish, to decide".
HUSAYNmArabicDiminutive of
HASAN. Husayn ibn Ali (also commonly transliterated
Hussein) was the son of
Ali and the grandson of the Prophet
Muhammad. His older brother was named
Hasan. The massacre of Husayn and his family was a major event in the split between Shia and Sunni Muslims, which continues to this day. In more recent times this was the name of a king of Jordan (1935-1999).
HUSNIm & fArabicDerived from Arabic
حسن (husn) meaning "beauty, excellence, goodness".
HWANm & fKoreanFrom Sino-Korean
煥 (hwan) meaning "shining, brilliant, lustrous" or other characters which are pronounced similarly. It usually occurs in combination with another character.
HYACINTHAfHistoryLatinate feminine form of
HYACINTHUS, used to refer to the 17th-century Italian saint Hyacintha Mariscotti (real name Giacinta).
HYACINTHUSmGreek Mythology (Latinized), Ancient Greek (Latinized)Latinized form of the Greek name
‘Υακινθος (Hyakinthos), which was derived from the name of the hyacinth flower. In Greek legend Hyakinthos was accidentally killed by
Apollo, who caused a lily to arise from his blood. The name was also borne by several early saints, notably a 3rd-century martyr who was killed with his brother Protus.
HYEmKoreanFrom Sino-Korean
慧 (hye) meaning "bright, intelligent" or other characters which are pronounced in the same way. Although it does appear rarely as a single-character name, it is more often used in combination with another character. A notable bearer was a 6th-century king of Baekje.
HYE-JINfKoreanFrom Sino-Korean
慧 (hye) meaning "bright, intelligent" or
惠 (hye) meaning "favour, benefit" combined with
珍 (jin) meaning "precious, rare". This name can be formed by a variety of other hanja character combinations as well.
HYEONm & fKoreanFrom Sino-Korean
賢 (hyeon) meaning "virtuous, worthy, able" or other characters which are pronounced similarly. It usually occurs in combination with another character, though it is sometimes used as a stand-alone name.
HYEON-JEONGf & mKoreanFrom Sino-Korean
賢 (hyeon) meaning "virtuous, worthy, able" or
炫 (hyeon) meaning "shine, glitter" combined with
廷 (jeong) meaning "court" or
貞 (jeong) meaning "virtuous, chaste, loyal". This name can be formed by other hanja character combinations as well.
HYEON-JUf & mKoreanFrom Sino-Korean
賢 (hyeon) meaning "virtuous, worthy, able" and
珠 (ju) meaning "jewel, pearl". This name can be formed by other hanja character combinations as well.
HYEON-UmKoreanFrom Sino-Korean
賢 (hyeon) meaning "virtuous, worthy, able" or
顯 (hyeon) meaning "manifest, clear" combined with
祐 (u) meaning "divine intervention, protection" or
雨 (u) meaning "rain". This name can be formed by other hanja character combinations as well.
HYPATIAfAncient GreekDerived from Greek
‘υπατος (hypatos) meaning "highest, supreme". Hypatia of Alexandria was a 5th-century philosopher and mathematician, daughter of the mathematician Theon.
HYPERIONmGreek MythologyDerived from Greek
‘υπερ (hyper) "over". In Greek myth this was the name of a Titan who presided over the sun and light. By Theia he was the father of the sun god Helios, the moon goddess Selene, and the dawn goddess Eos.
HYRUMmEnglish (Rare)Variant of
HIRAM. This name was borne by Hyrum Smith (1800-1844), an early leader within the Mormon church.
HYWELmWelshMeans "eminent" in Welsh. This was the name of a 10th-century king of Wales.