AELIUSmAncient RomanRoman family name which was possibly derived from the Greek word
‘ηλιος (helios) meaning "sun". This was the family name of the Roman emperor Hadrian.
ATONmEgyptian MythologyMeans "solar disk" in Egyptian. Aton was an Egyptian god of the sun, depicted as a solar disk with long rays extending downwards. The worship of Aton was especially extensive during the reign of the pharaoh
Akhenaton, who proclaimed Aton was the only god.
ELANORfLiteratureMeans "star sun" in Sindarin. In 'The Lord of the Rings' (1954) by J. R. R. Tolkien this is Sam's eldest daughter, named after a type of flower.
ELOISEfEnglishFrom the Old French name
Héloïse, which is probably from the Germanic name
Helewidis, composed of the elements
heil "hale, healthy" and
wid "wide". It is sometimes associated with the Greek word
‘ηλιος (helios) "sun" or the name
Louise, though there is not likely an etymological connection. This name was borne in the 12th century by Saint Eloise, the wife of the French theologian Peter Abelard. She became a nun after her husband was castrated by her uncle.
... [more] HARUm & fJapaneseFrom Japanese
陽 (haru) meaning "light, sun, male",
春 (haru) meaning "spring" or
晴 (haru) meaning "clear weather". Other kanji or kanji combinations can form this name as well.
HARUKImJapaneseFrom Japanese
晴 (haru) meaning "clear weather" or
陽 (haru) meaning "light, sun, male" combined with
輝 (ki) meaning "brightness" or
生 (ki) meaning "living". Other kanji combinations are possible.
HARUKOfJapaneseFrom Japanese
春 (haru) meaning "spring" or
陽 (haru) meaning "light, sun, male" combined with
子 (ko) meaning "child", as well as other kanji combinations.
HARUTOmJapaneseFrom Japanese
陽 (haru) meaning "light, sun, male",
遥 (haru) meaning "distant, remote" or
晴 (haru) meaning "clear weather" combined with
斗 (to), which refers to a Chinese constellation, or
翔 (to) meaning "soar, fly". Other kanji combinations can also form this name.
HAULmWelshMeans "sun" in Welsh. This is a modern Welsh name.
HELIOSmGreek MythologyMeans "sun" in Greek. This was the name of the young Greek sun god, who rode across the sky each day in a chariot pulled by four horses.
HINAfJapaneseFrom Japanese
陽 (hi) meaning "light, sun, male" or
日 (hi) meaning "sun, day" combined with
菜 (na) meaning "vegetables, greens". Other kanji combinations are possible.
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.
IL-SEONGmKoreanFrom Sino-Korean
日 (il) meaning "sun, day" and
成 (seong) meaning "completed, finished, succeeded". Other hanja character combinations are possible. A notable bearer was Kim Il-sung (1912-1994), the first leader of North Korea.
KHURSHIDm & fPersian, Urdu, Persian MythologyModern Persian form of Avestan
Hvare Khshaeta meaning "shining sun". In Zoroastrianism this was the name of a Yazata (or angel) who was associated with the sun.
RAmEgyptian MythologyPossibly means "sun" in Egyptian. Ra was an important Egyptian sun god originally worshipped in Heliopolis in Lower Egypt. He was usually depicted as a man with the head of a falcon crowned with a solar disc. In later times his attributes were often merged with those of other deities, such as
Amon,
Atum and
Horus.
RAVImHinduism, Indian, Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Odia, Gujarati, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, NepaliMeans "sun" in Sanskrit. Ravi is a Hindu god of the sun, sometimes equated with
Surya. A famous bearer was the musician Ravi Shankar (1920-2012).
SAMSONmBiblical, English, French, Biblical LatinFrom the Hebrew name
שִׁמְשׁוֹן (Shimshon), derived from
שֶׁמֶשׁ (shemesh) meaning "the sun". Samson was an Old Testament hero granted exceptional strength by God. His mistress
Delilah betrayed him and cut his hair, stripping him of his power. Thus he was captured by the Philistines, blinded, and brought to their temple. However, in a final act of strength, he pulled down the pillars of the temple upon himself and his captors.
... [more] SAVITRIfHinduism, Indian, Hindi, MarathiMeans "relating to the sun" in Sanskrit. This is the name of a hymn dedicated to Savitr, a Hindu sun god, and it is also the name of his daughter. It is borne by several other characters in Hindu epics, including a wife of
Brahma, a wife of
Shiva, and a daughter of Daksha. In the Hindu epic the 'Mahabharata' it is borne by King Satyavan's wife, who successfully pleas with Yama, the god of death, to restore her husband to life.
SHAMSfSemitic MythologyMeans "the sun" in Arabic. This was a pre-Islamic Arabian goddess of the sun, identified with the Akkadian sun god
Shamash (whose name is related) and the northern Arabian goddess
Nuha.
SOLEILfVariousMeans "sun" in French. It is not commonly used as a name in France itself.
SOLFRIDfNorwegianFrom the Old Norse elements
sól "sun" and
fríðr "beautiful". This name was apparently coined in the 19th century.
SOLVEIGfNorwegian, SwedishFrom an Old Norse name which was derived from the elements
sól "sun" and
veig "strength". This is the name of the heroine in Henrik Ibsen's play 'Peer Gynt' (1876).
SORINmRomanianPossibly derived from Romanian
soare meaning "sun".
SUNDAYfEnglishFrom the name of the day of the week, which ultimately derives from Old English
sunnandæg, which was composed of the elements
sunne "sun" and
dæg "day".
SUNNIVAfNorwegianScandinavian form of the Old English name
Sunngifu, which meant "sun gift" from the Old English elements
sunne "sun" and
giefu "gift". This was the name of a legendary English saint who was shipwrecked in Norway and killed by the inhabitants.
SUNSHINEfEnglishFrom the English word, ultimately from Old English
sunne "sun" and
scinan "shine".
UTUmSumerian MythologyDerived from Sumerian
𒌓 (ud) meaning "sun". In Sumerian mythology this was the name of the god of the sun. He was the son of the moon god
Nanna and
Ningal.
YANGm & fChineseFrom Chinese
洋 (yáng) meaning "ocean" or
阳 (yáng) meaning "light, sun, male" (which is typically only masculine), as well as other Chinese characters pronounced similarly.
YOUKOfJapaneseFrom Japanese
陽 (you) meaning "light, sun, male" or
洋 (you) meaning "ocean" combined with
子 (ko) meaning "child". Other combinations of kanji characters are possible.
YOUTAmJapaneseFrom Japanese
陽 (you) meaning "light, sun, male" and
太 (ta) meaning "thick, big". Other character combinations are possible.