ADOLFmGerman, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Czech, Hungarian, Ancient GermanicFrom the Germanic name
Adalwolf, which meant "noble wolf" from the Germanic elements
adal "noble" and
wulf. It was borne by several Swedish kings as a first or second name, most notably by Gustav II Adolf in the 17th century. Association with Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), the leader of the Nazi party in Germany during World War II, has lessened the use of this name.
AGILULFmAncient GermanicGermanic name derived from the elements
agil "edge (of a sword), blade" and
wulf "wolf". This name was borne by a 6th-century king of the Lombards and by an 8th-century bishop of Cologne and saint.
BEOWULFmAnglo-Saxon MythologyPossibly means "bee wolf" (in effect equal to "bear") from Old English
beo "bee" and
wulf "wolf". Alternatively, the first element may be
beadu "battle". This is the name of the main character in the anonymous 8th-century epic poem 'Beowulf'. Set in Denmark, the poem tells how he slays the monster Grendel and its mother at the request of King
Hroðgar. After this Beowulf becomes the king of the Geats. The conclusion of the poem tells how Beawulf, in his old age, slays a dragon but is himself mortally wounded in the act.
BLEDDYNmWelshFrom Welsh
blaidd "wolf" combined with a diminutive suffix. This was the name of an 11th-century king of Gwynedd and Powys.
BORISmBulgarian, Russian, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian, Georgian, GermanFrom the Turkic name
Bogoris, perhaps meaning "short" or "wolf" or "snow leopard". It was borne by the 9th-century King Boris I of Bulgaria who converted his country to Christianity, as well as two later Bulgarian emperors. The name was popularized in the Slavic world due to the 11th-century Saint Boris, who was a Russian prince martyred with his brother Gleb. His mother may have been Bulgarian. Another famous bearer was the 16th-century Russian emperor Boris Godunov, later the subject of a play of that name by Aleksandr Pushkin.
CALEBmEnglish, BiblicalMost likely related to Hebrew
כֶּלֶב (kelev) meaning "dog". An alternate theory connects it to Hebrew
כָּל (kal) meaning "whole, all of" and
לֵב (lev) meaning "heart". In the Old Testament this is the name of one of the twelve spies sent by
Moses into Canaan. Of the Israelites who left Egypt with Moses, Caleb and
Joshua were the only ones who lived to see the Promised Land.
... [more] CONANmIrishMeans "little wolf" or "little hound" from Irish
cú "wolf, hound" combined with a diminutive suffix. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930) was the author of the Sherlock Holmes mystery stories.
CONORmIrish, English, Irish MythologyAnglicized form of the Gaelic name
Conchobhar, derived from Old Irish
con "hound, dog, wolf" and
cobar "desiring". It has been in use in Ireland for centuries and was the name of several Irish kings. It was also borne by the legendary Ulster king Conchobar mac Nessa, known for his tragic desire for
Deirdre.
CUÁNmIrishMeans "little wolf" or "little hound" from the Irish element
cú meaning "wolf, hound" combined with a diminutive suffix.
CÚCHULAINNmIrish MythologyMeans "hound of Culann" in Irish. This was the usual name of the warrior hero who was named Sétanta at birth, given to him because he took the place of one of Culann's hounds after he accidentally killed it. Irish legend tells of Cúchulainn's many adventures, including his single-handed defense of Ulster against the army of Queen
Medb.
CUNOBELINUSmAncient CelticPossibly means "hound of Belenus" from the old Celtic element
koun "hound" combined with the name of the god
BELENUS. This was the name of a 1st-century king of southeast Britain.
EADWULFmAnglo-SaxonDerived from the Old English elements
ead "wealth, fortune" and
wulf "wolf". This name fell out of use after the Norman conquest.
FAOLÁNmIrishMeans "little wolf", derived from Gaelic
fáel "wolf" combined with a diminutive suffix. This was the name of an Irish saint who did missionary work in Scotland.
FOXmEnglish (Modern)Either from the English word
fox or the surname
Fox, which originally given as a nickname. The surname was borne by George Fox (1624-1691), the founder of the Quakers.
GUADALUPEf & mSpanishFrom a Spanish title of the Virgin
Mary,
Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, meaning "Our Lady of Guadalupe". Guadalupe is a Spanish place name, the site of a famous convent, derived from Arabic
وادي (wadi) meaning "valley, river" possibly combined with Latin
lupus meaning "wolf". In the 16th century Our Lady of Guadalupe supposedly appeared in a vision to a native Mexican man, and she is now regarded as a patron saint of the Americas.
GURGENmArmenian, GeorgianDerived from Middle Persian
gurg "wolf" combined with a diminutive suffix. This name was borne by several Georgian kings and princes.
IVAYLOmBulgarianPerhaps derived from an old Bulgar name meaning "wolf". This was the name of a 13th-century emperor of Bulgaria. It is possible that this spelling was the result of a 15th-century misreading of his real name
Vulo from historical documents.
LOUPmFrenchFrench form of the Late Latin name
Lupus which meant "wolf". Lupus was the name of several early saints, including a 5th-century bishop of Troyes who apparently convinced
Attila to spare the city.
LOWELLmEnglishFrom an English surname which was derived from a Norman French nickname, from
lou "wolf" and a diminutive suffix. The surname was borne by American poet and satirist James Russell Lowell (1819-1891).
LYALLmEnglish (Rare)From a Scottish surname which was derived from the Old Norse given name
Liulfr (which was derived in part from
úlfr "wolf").
RANDOLFmEnglishFrom the Germanic elements
rand meaning "rim (of a shield)" and
wulf meaning "wolf". The Normans brought this name to England, where there existed already an Old Norse cognate
Randúlfr, which had been introduced by Scandinavian settlers.
Randolf became rare after the Middle Ages, though it was revived in the 18th century (usually in the spelling
Randolph).
RENARDmFrench (Rare)French form of
REYNARD. Because of the medieval character Reynard the Fox,
renard became a French word meaning "fox".
REYNARDmEnglish (Rare)From the Germanic name
Raginhard, composed of the elements
ragin "advice" and
hard "brave, hardy". The Normans brought it to England in the form
Reinard, though it never became very common there. In medieval fables the name was borne by the sly hero Reynard the Fox (with the result that
renard has become a French word meaning "fox").
RUDOLFmGerman, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Slovene, Croatian, Russian, ArmenianFrom the Germanic name
Hrodulf, which was derived from the elements
hrod "fame" and
wulf "wolf". It was borne by three kings of Burgundy, as well as several Habsburg rulers of the Holy Roman Empire and Austria. Anthony Hope used this name for the hero in his popular novel 'The Prisoner of Zenda' (1894).
SANDALIOmSpanishSpanish form of
Sandalius, a Latinized form of the Gothic name
Sandulf which meant "true wolf" from
sand "true" and
ulf "wolf". This was the name of a 9th-century Spanish saint martyred by the Moors.
TODDmEnglishFrom a surname meaning "fox", derived from Middle English
todde.
ULRICmEnglish (Rare)Middle English form of the Old English name
Wulfric meaning "wolf power". When it is used in modern times, it is usually as a variant of
ULRICH.
VAKHTANGmGeorgianDerived from Old Persian
varka-tanu meaning "wolf-bodied". This name was borne by several kings of Georgia.
VUKAŠINmSerbianDerived from Serbian
vuk "wolf". This was the name of a 14th-century Serbian ruler.
WOLFGANGmGerman, Ancient GermanicDerived from the Germanic elements
wulf meaning "wolf" and
gang "path". Two famous bearers of this name were Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) and German novelist and poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832).
WULFNOÐmAnglo-SaxonDerived from the Old English elements
wulf "wolf" and
noð "boldness, daring". This name became rare after the Norman Conquest.