ZAAHIR (2)mArabicDerived from Arabic
ظهر (zahara) meaning "clear, evident, manifest, outward". In Islamic tradition
الظاهر (al-Zahir) is one of the 99 names of Allah.
ZABELfArmenianArmenian form of
ISABEL. A 13th-century ruling queen of Cilician Armenia bore this name.
ZACCAImBiblicalFrom the Hebrew name
זַכָּי (Zakkai) meaning "pure". This is the name of a minor character in the Old Testament.
ZACCHAEUSmBiblicalFrom
Ζακχαιος (Zakchaios), the Greek form of
ZACCAI. In the New Testament he is a tax collector in Jericho who gives half his possessions to charity.
ZACHARIAHmEnglish, BiblicalVariant of
ZECHARIAH. This spelling is used in the King James Version of the Old Testament to refer to one of the kings of Israel (called Zechariah in other versions).
ZACHARYmEnglish, BiblicalUsual English form of
ZACHARIAS, used in some English versions of the New Testament. This form has been in use since the Middle Ages, though it did not become common until after the Protestant Reformation. It was borne by American military commander and president Zachary Taylor (1784-1850).
ZADOKmBiblicalMeans "righteous" in Hebrew. This is the name of several characters in the Old Testament, most notably the high priest of Israel during the reigns of
David and
Solomon. Solomon was anointed by Zadok.
ZAHImArabicMeans "beautiful, brilliant" in Arabic.
ZAÏREfLiteratureUsed by Voltaire for the heroine of his tragic play 'Zaïre' (1732), about a Christian woman enslaved by Muslims. The heroine is named
Zara in some English translations. Voltaire may have based the name on
ZAHRAH.
ZALmPersian MythologyMeans "albino" in Persian. In the 11th-century Persian epic the 'Shahnameh' this is the name of a white-haired warrior.
ZALMONmBiblicalMeans "shady" in Hebrew. This is the name of one of
David's mighty men in the Old Testament.
ZANf & mChineseFrom Chinese
赞 (zàn) meaning "help, support", as well as other characters with a similar pronunciation.
ZANE (1)mEnglishFrom an English surname of unknown meaning. It was introduced as a given name by American author Zane Grey (1872-1939). Zane was in fact his middle name - it had been his mother's maiden name.
ZARA (1)fEnglish (Modern)English form of
ZAÏRE. In England it came to public attention when Princess Anne gave it to her daughter in 1981. Use of the name may also be influenced by the trendy Spanish clothing retailer Zara.
ZARATHUSTRAmHistoryPossibly means "golden camel" in Old Iranian, derived from
zarat meaning "golden" combined with
ushtra meaning "camel". Zarathustra was the Persian prophet who founded the ancient religion of Zoroastrianism about the 10th century BC.
ZÁVIŠmCzechDerived from a Slavic root meaning "envy".
ZAYDmArabicDerived from Arabic
زاد (zada) meaning "to increase". This was the name of a slave who became the adopted son of the Prophet
Muhammad.
ZAYNABfArabicMeaning uncertain. It is possibly related to Arabic
زين (zayn) meaning "beauty"; it could be from the name of a fragrant flowering tree; or it could be an Arabic form of
ZENOBIA, a name borne by a pre-Islamic queen of Palmyra. Zaynab was the name of a daughter, a granddaughter, and two wives of the Prophet
Muhammad.
ZDISLAVAfCzechCzech feminine form of
ZDZISŁAW. This name was borne by the 13th-century Czech saint Zdislava Berka.
ZEBADIAHmBiblicalMeans "
YAHWEH has bestowed" in Hebrew. This was the name of several Old Testament characters.
ZEBULUNmBiblicalPossibly derived from Ugartic
zbl meaning "prince". In the Old Testament Zebulun is the tenth son of
Jacob (his sixth son by
Leah) and the ancestor of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. Genesis 30:20 implies two different roots for the name:
זָבַל (zaval) meaning "to dwell" and
זֵבֵד (zeved) meaning "gift, dowry". These are probably only folk etymologies.
ZECHARIAHmBiblical, EnglishFrom the Hebrew name
זְכַרְיָה (Zekharyah) meaning "
YAHWEH remembers", from
זָכַר (zakhar) meaning "to remember" and
יָה (yah) referring to the Hebrew God. This is the name of many characters in the Old Testament, including the prophet Zechariah, the author of the Book of Zechariah. The name also appears in the New Testament belonging to the father of
John the Baptist, who was temporarily made dumb because of his disbelief. He is regarded as a saint by Christians. In some versions of the New Testament his name is spelled in the Greek form
Zacharias or the English form
Zachary. As an English given name,
Zechariah has been in occasional use since the Protestant Reformation.
ZEDONGm & fChineseFrom Chinese
泽 (zé) meaning "moist, grace, brilliance" combined with
东 (dōng) meaning "east", as well as other character combinations. A notable bearer was the founder of the People's Republic of China, Mao Zedong (1893-1976).
ZEFERINOmPortuguesePortuguese form of the Roman name
Zephyrinus, which was derived from the Greek
Zephyros (see
ZEPHYR). Saint Zephyrinus was a 3rd-century pope.
ZEKİmTurkishMeans "intelligent" in Turkish, ultimately from Arabic
ذكيّ (dhakiy).
ZELOPHEHADmBiblicalPossibly means either "first born" or "shadow from terror" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament, Zelophehad is a man who dies while the Israelites are wandering in the wilderness, leaving five daughters as heirs.
ZEMFIRAfTatar, Bashkir, LiteratureMeaning unknown, possibly of Romani origin. This name was (first?) used by Aleksandr Pushkin in his poem 'The Gypsies' (1827).
ZENAfEnglishMeaning unknown. It could be a variant of
XENIA or a diminutive of names featuring this sound, such as
ALEXINA,
ROSINA or
ZENOBIA. This name has occasionally been used since the 19th century.
ZENAIDAfLate GreekApparently a Greek derivative of
Ζηναις (Zenais), which was derived from the name of the Greek god
ZEUS. This was the name of a 1st-century saint who was a doctor with her sister Philonella.
ZENOmAncient Greek (Latinized), ItalianFrom the Greek name
Ζηνων (Zenon), which was derived from the name of the Greek god
ZEUS. Zeno was the name of two famous Greek philosophers: Zeno of Elea and Zeno of Citium, the founder of the Stoic school in Athens.
ZENOBIAfAncient GreekMeans "life of Zeus", derived from Greek
Ζηνο (Zeno), a prefix form of the name of
ZEUS, combined with
βιος (bios) "life". This was the name of a 3rd-century queen of Palmyra. After claiming the title 'Queen of the East' and expanding her realm into Roman territory she was defeated by Emperor Aurelian. Her Greek name was used as an approximation of her native Aramaic name.
ZEPHANIAHmBiblicalFrom the Hebrew name
ץְפַןְיָה (Tzefanyah) meaning "
YAHWEH has hidden", derived from
צָפַן (tzafan) meaning "to hide" and
יָה (yah) referring to the Hebrew God. This is the name of one of the twelve minor prophets of the Old Testament, the author of the Book of Zephaniah.
ZERACHIELmJudeo-Christian LegendPossibly means "command of God" in Hebrew. The Book of Enoch names him as one of the seven archangels. His name is sometimes rendered as
Sarakiel.
ZERAHmBiblicalMeans "dawning, shining" in Hebrew. This is the name of a son of
Judah and the twin of
Perez in the Old Testament.
ZEUSmGreek MythologyThe name of a Greek god, related to the old Indo-European god *
Dyeus, from a root meaning "shine" or "sky". In Greek mythology he was the highest of the gods. After he and his siblings defeated the Titans, Zeus ruled over the earth and humankind from atop Mount Olympus. He had control over the weather and his weapon was a thunderbolt.
ZHENf & mChineseFrom Chinese
珍 (zhēn) meaning "precious, rare",
真 (zhēn) meaning "real, genuine",
贞 (zhēn) meaning "virtuous, chaste, loyal", or other Chinese characters which are pronounced similarly.
ZHENGm & fChineseFrom Chinese
正 (zhèng) meaning "right, proper, correct" or
政 (zhèng) meaning "government", as well as other hanja characters with a similar pronunciation.
ZHIm & fChineseFrom Chinese
志 (zhì) meaning "will, purpose, ambition" or
智 (zhì) meaning "wisdom, intellect", as well as other characters which are pronounced similarly.
ZHIHAOm & fChineseFrom Chinese
志 (zhì) meaning "will, purpose, ambition" or
智 (zhì) meaning "wisdom, intellect" combined with
豪 (háo) meaning "brave, heroic, chivalrous". Many other character combinations are possible.
ZHONGm & fChineseFrom Chinese
中 (zhōng) meaning "middle" or
忠 (zhōng) meaning "loyalty, devotion". Other characters can form this name as well.
ZHOUm & fChineseFrom Chinese
舟 (zhōu) meaning "boat, ship", in addition to other characters which are pronounced similarly.
ZHUBINmPersianMeans "spear" in Persian, ultimately from Sanskrit.
ZIBA (2)mBiblicalMeans "station" in Hebrew. This was the name of a servant of Saul in the Old Testament.
ZIBIAHfBiblicalMeans "gazelle, doe" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this is the name of the mother of King Joash of Judah.
ZIEMOWITmPolishFrom an old Slavic name derived from the elements
sem "family" and
vit "lord, master". This was the name of a legendary Piast prince of Poland. It was also borne by several other Piast rulers.
ZIMRImBiblicalMeans "my praise" or "my music" in Hebrew. This is the name of a king of Israel in the Old Testament. He ruled for only seven days, when he was succeeded by the commander of the army
Omri.
ZINNIAfEnglish (Rare)From the name of the flower, which was itself named for the German botanist Johann Zinn.
ZIONmJewish, BiblicalFrom the name of a citadel which was in the center of Jerusalem. Zion is also used to refer to a Jewish homeland and to heaven.
ZIVm & fHebrewMeans "bright, radiant" in Hebrew. This was the ancient name of the second month of the Jewish calendar.
ŽIVAfSlavic Mythology, SloveneMeans "living, alive" in Slavic. This was the name of a Slavic goddess associated with life, fertility and spring.
ZIYAmArabicDerived from Arabic
ضياء (diya) meaning "splendour, light, glow". This was the name of a 14th-century Islamic Indian historian.
ZIYA AL-DINmArabicMeans "splendour of religion" from Arabic
ضياء (diya) meaning "splendour, light, glow" combined with
دين (din) meaning "religion, faith".
ZOEfEnglish, Italian, Ancient GreekMeans "life" in Greek. From early times it was adopted by Hellenized Jews as a translation of
EVE. It was borne by two early Christian saints, one martyred under Emperor Hadrian, the other martyred under Diocletian. The name was common in the Byzantine Empire, being borne by a ruling empress of the 11th century. As an English name,
Zoe has only been in use since the 19th century. It has generally been more common among Eastern Christians (in various spellings).
ZOLA (1)fEnglishMeaning unknown, perhaps an invented name. It has been in occasional use in the English-speaking world since the 19th century. It coincides with an Italian surname, a famous bearer being the French-Italian author Émile Zola (1840-1902).
ZOLTÁNmHungarianPossibly related to the Turkish title
sultan meaning "king, sultan". This was the name of a 10th-century ruler of Hungary, also known as Zsolt.
ZONAfVariousMeans "girdle, belt" in Greek. This name was made popular by the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist and poet Zona Gale.
ZOPYROSmAncient GreekMeans "glowing" in Greek. This was the name of a Persian nobleman who aided his king Darius in the capture of Babylon. He did this by mutilating himself and then going to the Babylonians claiming that it had been Darius who did it to him. After gaining their trust he betrayed them.
ZORAIDAfSpanishPerhaps means "enchanting" or "dawn" in Arabic. This was the name of a minor 12th-century Spanish saint, a convert from Islam. The name was used by Cervantes for a character in his novel 'Don Quixote' (1606), in which Zoraida is a beautiful Moorish woman of Algiers who converts to Christianity and elopes with a Spanish officer.
ZRINKAfCroatianPossibly from
Zrin, the name of a village in Croatia, or from the noble Zrinski family which originated there.