Ælfwynn f Anglo-SaxonDerived from the Old English elements
ælf "elf" and
wynn "joy". This name was borne by a daughter of
Æðelflæd who ruled Mercia briefly in the 10th century.
Bounmy m & f LaoMeans
"happy", from Lao
ບຸນ (boun) meaning "happiness, prosperity, goodness" combined with
ມີ (mi) meaning "to have".
Ctirad m CzechDerived from the Slavic elements
chisti meaning "honour" and
rad meaning "happy, willing". In Czech legend this was the name of one of the men tricked by
Šárka.
Delshad m & f Persian (Rare)Means
"happy heart, cheerful" in Persian, from
دل (del) meaning "heart" and
شاد (shad) meaning "happy".
Elşad m AzerbaijaniFrom Azerbaijani
el meaning "country, society" combined with
şad meaning "happy, glad" (from Persian
شاد).
Elşən m AzerbaijaniFrom Azerbaijani
el meaning "country, society" and
şən meaning "happy, cheerful" (of Armenian origin).
Elvira f Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, German, Dutch, Swedish, Hungarian, RussianSpanish form of a Visigothic name, recorded from the 10th century in forms such as
Geloyra or
Giluira. It is of uncertain meaning, possibly composed of the Gothic element
gails "happy" or
gails "spear" combined with
wers "friendly, agreeable, true". The name was borne by members of the royal families of León and Castille. This is also the name of a character in Mozart's opera
Don Giovanni (1787).
Éowyn f LiteratureMeans
"horse joy" in Old English. This name was invented by J. R. R. Tolkien who used Old English to represent the Rohirric language. In his novel
The Lord of the Rings (1954) Eowyn is the niece of King Theoden of Rohan. She slays the Lord of the Nazgul in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields.
Etsuko f JapaneseFrom Japanese
悦 (etsu) meaning "joy, pleased" and
子 (ko) meaning "child", as well as other kanji combinations.
Fortunato m Italian, Spanish, PortugueseItalian, Spanish and Portuguese form of the Late Latin name
Fortunatus meaning
"fortunate, blessed, happy". This was the name of several early saints and martyrs.
Gay f EnglishFrom the English word
gay meaning
"gay, happy". By the mid-20th century the word had acquired the additional meaning of "homosexual", and the name has subsequently dropped out of use.
Gioconda f ItalianFrom the Late Latin name
Iucunda, which meant
"pleasant, delightful, happy". Leonardo da Vinci's painting the
Mona Lisa is also known as
La Gioconda because its subject is Lisa del Giocondo.
Happy f & m English (Rare)From the English word
happy, derived from Middle English
hap "chance, luck", of Old Norse origin.
Huan f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
欢 (huān) meaning "happy, pleased", as well as other characters pronounced in a similar way.
Jingyi m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
静 (jìng) meaning "quiet, still, gentle" combined with
怡 (yí) meaning "joy, harmony". Other character combinations are possible as well.
Joy f EnglishSimply from the English word
joy, ultimately derived from Norman French
joie, Latin
gaudia. It has been regularly used as a given name since the late 19th century.
Kiyo f JapaneseFrom Japanese
清 (kiyo) meaning "clear, pure, clean" or other homophonic words. This was a popular name in the Edo period and remained common until the early 20th century, at which time it was usually spelled using katakana.
Letitia f EnglishFrom the Late Latin name
Laetitia meaning
"joy, happiness". This was the name of an obscure saint, who is revered mainly in Spain. It was in use in England during the Middle Ages, usually in the spelling
Lettice, and it was revived in the 18th century.
Liron m & f HebrewMeans
"song for me" or
"joy for me" in Hebrew.
Macario m SpanishSpanish form of the Latin name
Macarius, derived from the Greek name
Μακάριος (Makarios), which was in turn derived from Greek
μάκαρ (makar) meaning
"blessed, happy". This was the name of several early saints.
Mehetabel f BiblicalFrom the Hebrew name
מְהֵיטַבְאֵל (Meheitav'el) meaning
"God makes happy". This name is mentioned briefly in the Old Testament.
Meriwether m English (Rare)From a surname meaning
"happy weather" in Middle English, originally belonging to a cheery person. A notable bearer of the name was Meriwether Lewis (1774-1809), who, with William Clark, explored the west of North America.
Na'im m ArabicMeans
"tranquil, happy, at ease" in Arabic.
Nanda m & f Hinduism, Indian, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Odia, Nepali, Burmese, Hindi, MarathiMeans
"joy" in Sanskrit. This is a transcription of both the masculine form
नन्द and the feminine form
नन्दा (spelled with a long final vowel). In Hindu texts this is a name of
Vishnu and the foster-father of
Krishna, as well as various other characters. In Buddhist texts this is the name of both a half-brother and half-sister of Buddha. Nanda was also a 4th-century BC king who founded a dynasty in Magadha in India.
... [more] Obrad m SerbianPossibly derived from Serbian
obradovati meaning
"to make happy".
Radana f CzechDerived from the Slavic element
rad meaning
"happy, willing".
Radu m RomanianOld Romanian diminutive of Slavic names beginning with the element
rad "happy, willing". This was the name of a 13th-century ruler of Wallachia.
Radúz m Czech (Rare)Derived from the Czech word
rád "happy, glad". The Czech author Julius Zeyer probably created it for a character in his play
Radúz and Mahulena (1898).
Ramin m Persian, AzerbaijaniDerived from Middle Persian
𐭥𐭠𐭬 (rʾm) meaning
"peace, joy". This is the name of a character in the Persian epic
Vis and Ramin, written by the 11th-century poet Fakhruddin As'ad Gurgani.
Sa'id m ArabicMeans
"happy, lucky" in Arabic. This was the name of a companion of the Prophet
Muhammad.
Şener m TurkishFrom Turkish
şen meaning "happy" and
er meaning "man, hero, brave".
Şenol m & f TurkishMeans
"be happy", from Turkish
şen "happy".
Sok m & f KhmerMeans
"healthy, peaceful, happy, pleasant" in Khmer, ultimately from Sanskrit
सुख (sukha).
Suibhne m Irish MythologyFrom Old Irish
Suibne, possibly derived from
subae meaning
"joy, pleasure". This was the name of several figures from early Irish history, including a 7th-century high king and an 8th-century saint. It also appears in the Irish legend
Buile Suibhne (meaning "The Madness of Suibhne") about a king who goes insane after being cursed by Saint Rónán Finn.
Ülo m EstonianFrom the Livonian name
Ilo or
Ylo meaning
"joy", a name appearing in the 13th-century
Livonian Chronicle of Henry. It is now associated with the Estonian word
ülev meaning
"noble".
Xinyi m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
欣 (xīn) meaning "happy, joyous, delighted" or
心 (xīn) meaning "heart, mind, soul" combined with
怡 (yí) meaning "joy, harmony". This name can also be formed from other character combinations.
Yi f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
宜 (yí) meaning "suitable, proper",
毅 (yì) meaning "resolute, decisive, firm",
义 (yì) meaning "justice, righteousness",
益 (yì) meaning "profit, benefit",
怡 (yí) meaning "joy, harmony" (which is usually only feminine) or
仪 (yí) meaning "ceremony, rites" (also usually feminine). Other characters can also form this name.
Yijun m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
怡 (yí) meaning "joy, harmony" combined with
君 (jūn) meaning "king, ruler". This name can also be formed from other character combinations.
Yoshiko f JapaneseFrom Japanese
良 (yoshi) meaning "good, virtuous, respectable",
芳 (yoshi) meaning "fragrant, virtuous, beautiful" or
悦 (yoshi) meaning "joy, pleased" combined with
子 (ko) meaning "child". This name can be formed from other kanji combinations as well.
Yukiko f JapaneseFrom Japanese
幸 (yuki) meaning "happiness" or
雪 (yuki) meaning "snow" combined with
子 (ko) meaning "child". Alternatively, it can come from
由 (yu) meaning "reason, cause" with
喜 (ki) meaning "joy" or
貴 (ki) meaning "valuable" combined with
子 (ko) meaning "child". Other kanji combinations can also form this name.