ING m Germanic MythologyFrom the Germanic *
Ingwaz, possibly meaning
"ancestor". This was the name of an obscure old Germanic fertility god who was considered the ancestor of the tribe the Ingaevones. It is possible he was an earlier incarnation of the god
Freyr.
INGA f Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Icelandic, Estonian, Finnish, Latvian, Lithuanian, German, Polish, Russian, Ancient Scandinavian, Ancient GermanicStrictly feminine form of
INGE.
INGE f & m Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, German, DutchShort form of Scandinavian and German names beginning with the element
ing, which refers to the Germanic god
ING. In Sweden and Norway this is primarily a masculine name, elsewhere it is usually feminine.
INGEMAR m SwedishFrom the Old Norse name
Ingimárr, derived from the name of the Germanic god
ING combined with
mærr "famous".
INGMAR m SwedishVariant of
INGEMAR. This name was borne by the Swedish film director Ingmar Bergman (1918-2007).
INGRID f Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, DutchFrom the Old Norse name
Ingríðr meaning
"Ing is beautiful", derived from the name of the Germanic god
ING combined with
fríðr "beautiful". A famous bearer was the Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman (1915-1982).
ÍÑIGO m SpanishMedieval Spanish form of
ENEKO. This was the birth name of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, who changed it in honour of Saint Ignatius of Antioch. As such, this name is sometimes regarded as a form of
IGNATIUS.
INIGO m English (Rare)English form of
ÍÑIGO. It became well-known in Britain due to the 17th-century English architect Inigo Jones. He was named after his father, a Catholic who was named for Saint Ignatius of Loyola.
INJA f SloveneSlovene short form of names ending with
ina.
INMACULADA f SpanishMeans
"immaculate" in Spanish. This name is given to commemorate the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin
Mary.
INNA f Russian, UkrainianMeaning unknown. This was the name of an early Scythian saint and martyr, a male, supposedly a disciple of Saint
Andrew.
INNOCENT m HistoryFrom the Late Latin name
Innocentius, which was derived from
innocens "innocent". This was the name of several early saints. It was also borne by 13 popes including Innocent III, a politically powerful ruler and organizer of the Fourth Crusade.
IO f Greek MythologyMeaning unknown. In Greek mythology Io was a princess loved by
Zeus, who changed her into a heifer in order to hide her from
Hera. A moon of Jupiter bears this name in her honour.
IOLANTHE f VariousProbably a variant of
YOLANDA influenced by the Greek words
ἰόλη (iole) meaning "violet" and
ἄνθος (anthos) meaning "flower". This name was (first?) used by Gilbert and Sullivan in their comic opera
Iolanthe (1882).
ION (2) m Greek MythologyOf unknown etymology, possibly pre-Greek. According to Greek mythology he was a son of Creusa and Xuthus (or alternatively the god
Apollo). He was said to be the ancestor of the Greek tribe of the Ionians.
IONA (1) f English, ScottishFrom the name of the island off Scotland where Saint Columba founded a monastery. The name of the island is Old Norse in origin, and apparently derives simply from
ey meaning "island".
IONE f Greek Mythology, EnglishFrom Ancient Greek
ἴον (ion) meaning
"violet flower". This was the name of a sea nymph in Greek mythology. It has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since the 19th century, though perhaps based on the Greek place name
Ionia, a region on the west coast of Asia Minor.
IORWERTH m WelshMeans
"handsome lord" from Welsh
ior "lord" and
berth "handsome". This name is used in the Mabinogion, a collection of tales from Welsh myth, where it belongs to a son of Maredudd. This name is sometimes used as a Welsh form of
EDWARD.
IPHIGENEIA f Greek MythologyDerived from Greek
ἴφιος (iphios) meaning "strong, stout" and
γενής (genes) meaning "born". In Greek myth Iphigenia was the daughter of King
Agamemnon. When her father offended
Artemis it was divined that the only way to appease the goddess was to sacrifice Iphigenia. Just as Agamemnon was about to sacrifice his daughter she was magically transported to the city of Taurus.
... [more] IQBAL m ArabicMeans
"fortunate" in Arabic. Allama Muhammad Iqbal (1877-1938) was a poet, philosopher, and scholar from Pakistan.
IQRA f UrduFrom Arabic
إقرا (iqra) meaning
"read, recite, confess". This is another name of the 96th chapter of the Quran.
IRA (1) m Biblical, English, HebrewMeans
"watchful" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this is the name of King
David's priest. As an English Christian given name,
Ira began to be used after the Protestant Reformation. In the 17th century the Puritans brought it to America, where remained moderately common into the 20th century.
IRACEMA f Native American, TupiMeans
"honey lips" in Tupi. This is the name of an 1865 novel by José de Alencar, about the relationship between a Tupi woman and a Portuguese man during the early colonial period. Alencar may have constructed the name so that it would be an anagram of
America.
İRADƏ f AzerbaijaniMeans
"will, determination, decree" in Azerbaijani, derived from Arabic
إرادة (iradah).
IRELAND f English (Modern)From the name of the European island country, derived from Irish Gaelic
Éire, which may mean something like "abundant land" in Old Irish.
İREM f TurkishTurkish form of Arabic
إرَم (Iram), the name of a beautiful city mentioned in the 89th chapter (surah al-Fajr) of the Quran.
IRENE f English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, German, Dutch, Ancient Greek (Latinized), Greek Mythology (Latinized)From Greek
Εἰρήνη (Eirene), derived from a word meaning
"peace". This was the name of the Greek goddess who personified peace, one of the
Ὥραι (Horai). It was also borne by several early Christian saints. The name was common in the Byzantine Empire, notably being borne by an 8th-century empress, who was the first woman to lead the empire. She originally served as regent for her son, but later had him killed and ruled alone.
... [more] IRFAN m ArabicMeans
"knowledge, awareness, learning" in Arabic.
IRIA f Portuguese, GalicianPossibly a Portuguese and Galician form of
IRENE. This was the name of a 7th-century saint (also known as Irene) from Tomar in Portugal. This is also the name of an ancient town in Galicia (now a district of Padrón).
IRIS f Greek Mythology, English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, French, Spanish, Catalan, Italian, GreekMeans
"rainbow" in Greek. Iris was the name of the Greek goddess of the rainbow, also serving as a messenger to the gods. This name can also be given in reference to the word (which derives from the same Greek source) for the iris flower or the coloured part of the eye.
IRMA f German, English, Dutch, Finnish, Spanish, Italian, Georgian, Lithuanian, Hungarian (Rare), Ancient GermanicGerman short form of names beginning with the Germanic element
ermen, which meant
"whole, universal". It is thus related to
EMMA. It began to be regularly used in the English-speaking world in the 19th century.
IRNERIUS m HistoryPossibly from
Wernerius, a Latinized form of the Germanic name
WERNER. This was the name of a 12th-century Italian scholar and jurist.
IRODA f UzbekMeans
"will, determination, decree" in Uzbek, derived from Arabic
إرادة (iradah).
IRVING m English, Scottish, JewishFrom a Scottish surname that was in turn derived from a Scottish place name meaning
"green water". Historically this name has been relatively common among Jews, who have used it as an American-sounding form of Hebrew names beginning with
I such as
Isaac,
Israel and
Isaiah. A famous bearer was the Russian-American songwriter and lyricist Irving Berlin (1888-1989), whose birth name was Israel Beilin.
ISA (1) m Arabic, Persian, AlbanianArabic form of
JESUS. This form is found in the Quran and is used as a given name by Muslims. Arabic-speaking Christians instead use
يسوع (Yasu') to refer to Jesus Christ.
ISAAC m English, Spanish, Catalan, Jewish, Biblical, Biblical LatinFrom the Hebrew name
יִצְחָק (Yitzchaq) meaning
"he will laugh, he will rejoice", derived from
צָחַק (tzachaq) meaning "to laugh". The Old Testament explains this meaning, by recounting that
Abraham laughed when God told him that his aged wife
Sarah would become pregnant with Isaac (see
Genesis 17:17), and later Sarah laughed when overhearing the same prophecy (see
Genesis 18:12). When Isaac was a boy, God tested Abraham's faith by ordering him to sacrifice his son, though an angel prevented the act at the last moment. Isaac went on to become the father of
Esau and
Jacob with his wife
Rebecca.
... [more] ISABEL f Spanish, Portuguese, English, French, GermanMedieval Occitan form of
ELIZABETH. It spread throughout Spain, Portugal and France, becoming common among the royalty by the 12th century. It grew popular in England in the 13th century after Isabella of Angoulême married the English king John, and it was subsequently bolstered when Isabella of France married Edward II the following century.
... [more] ISABELLA f Italian, German, English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, RomanianLatinate form of
ISABEL. This name was borne by many medieval royals, including queen consorts of England, France, Portugal, the Holy Roman Empire and Hungary, as well as the powerful ruling queen Isabella of Castile (properly called
Isabel).
... [more] ISAGANI m Filipino, TagalogMeaning unknown. This is the name of a character in the novel
El Filibusterismo (1891) by José Rizal.
ISAIAH m English, BiblicalFrom the Hebrew name
יְשַׁעְיָהוּ (Yesha'yahu) meaning
"YAHWEH is salvation", from the roots
יָשַׁע (yasha') meaning "to save" and
יָה (yah) referring to the Hebrew God. Isaiah is one of the four major prophets of the Old Testament, supposedly the author of the Book of Isaiah. He was from Jerusalem and probably lived in the 8th century BC, at a time when Assyria threatened the Kingdom of Judah. As an English Christian name,
Isaiah was first used after the Protestant Reformation.
ISAMU m JapaneseFrom Japanese
勇 (isamu) meaning "brave" or other kanji having the same pronunciation.
ISCAH f BiblicalFrom the Hebrew name
יִסְכָּה (Yiskah) meaning
"to behold". In the Old Testament this is the name of
Abraham's niece, mentioned only briefly. This is the basis of the English name
Jessica.
ISHA f & m Indian, Hindi, Marathi, HinduismMeans
"master, lord" in Sanskrit. This is a transcription of both the feminine form
ईशा and the masculine form
ईश (an epithet of the Hindu god
Shiva). It is also the name of one of the Upanishads, which are parts of Hindu scripture.
ISHKUR m Sumerian MythologyMeaning unknown, of Sumerian origin. This was the name of a Sumerian storm god, later identified by the Akkadians with
Adad.
ISHMAEL m BiblicalFrom the Hebrew name
יִשְׁמָעֵאל (Yishma'el) meaning
"God will hear", from the roots
שָׁמַע (shama') meaning "to hear" and
אֵל ('el) meaning "God". In the Old Testament this is the name of a son of
Abraham. He is the traditional ancestor of the Arab people. Also in the Old Testament, it is borne by a man who assassinates
Gedaliah the governor of Judah. The author Herman Melville later used this name for the narrator in his novel
Moby-Dick (1851).
ISHMERAI m BiblicalMeans
"he guards" in Hebrew. This name is mentioned briefly in the Old Testament.
ISHTAR f Semitic MythologyMeaning unknown. Ishtar was an Akkadian, Assyrian and Babylonian goddess who presided over love, war and fertility. She was cognate with the Canaanite and Phoenician
Ashtoreth, and she was also identified with the Sumerian goddess
Inanna.
ISHVI m BiblicalMeans
"he resembles me" in Hebrew. This is the name of a son of
Asher in the Old Testament.
ISIS f Egyptian Mythology (Hellenized)Greek form of Egyptian
Ist (reconstructed as
Iset or
Ueset), which possibly meant
"the throne". In Egyptian mythology Isis was the goddess of the sky and nature, the wife of
Osiris and the mother of
Horus. She was originally depicted wearing a throne-shaped headdress, but in later times she was conflated with the goddess
Hathor and depicted having the horns of a cow on her head. She was also worshipped by people outside of Egypt, such as the Greeks and Romans.
ISLA f Scottish, EnglishVariant of
ISLAY, typically used as a feminine name. It also coincides with the Spanish word
isla meaning "island".
ISLAMBEK m ChechenDerived from
Islam, the name of the religion (ultimately from Arabic
إسلام), combined with the Turkish military title
beg meaning "chieftain, master".
ISLAY m & f ScottishFrom the name of the island of Islay, which lies off of the west coast of Scotland.
ISLWYN m WelshFrom the name of a mountain in Wales that means "below the grove" from Welsh
is "below" and
llwyn "grove".
ISMENE f Greek MythologyPossibly from Greek
ἰσμή (isme) meaning
"knowledge". This was the name of the daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta in Greek legend.
ISOLDE f English (Rare), German, Arthurian RomanceThe origins of this name are uncertain, though some Celtic roots have been suggested. It is possible that the name is ultimately Germanic, perhaps from a hypothetic name like
Ishild, composed of the elements
is "ice, iron" and
hild "battle".
... [more] ISRA f ArabicMeans
"nocturnal journey", derived from Arabic
سرى (sara) meaning "to travel at night".
ISRAFIL m Judeo-Christian LegendMeaning unknown. In Islamic tradition this is the name of the angel who will blow the trumpet that signals the coming of Judgement Day. He is sometimes equated with the angels
Raphael or
Uriel from Judeo-Christian tradition.
ISSACHAR m Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical GreekPossibly means
"man of hire" or
"there is reward", from Hebrew
שָׁכַר (shakhar) meaning "hire, wage, reward". In the Old Testament this is the name of one of the twelve sons of
Jacob (by
Leah) and the founder of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. A justification for the name's meaning is given in
Genesis 30:18.
ISTVÁN m HungarianHungarian form of
STEPHEN. This was the name of the first king of Hungary. Ruling in the 11th century, he encouraged the spread of Christianity among his subjects and is considered the patron saint of Hungary.