Browse Names

ADETOKUNBO m & f Western African, Yoruba
Means "the crown came from over the sea" in Yoruba.

AERON m & f Welsh
Derived either from Welsh aeron meaning "berry" or else from the name of the River Aeron in Wales.

AFON f & m Welsh
Means "river" in Welsh. This is a Welsh name of recent origin.

AGAM f & m Hebrew
Means "lake" in Hebrew.

ALTON m English
From an Old English surname that was derived from a place name meaning "town at the source of the river".

ANAT (1) f Semitic Mythology
Possibly derived from a Semitic root meaning "water spring". Anat was a goddess of fertility, hunting and war worshipped by the Semitic peoples of the Levant. She was the sister and consort of the god Hadad.

ANUP m Indian, Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Malayalam
Means "watery, place near the water, lagoon" in Sanskrit.

ARDALION m Late Greek, Russian (Rare)
Probably derived from Greek ἀρδάλιον (ardalion) meaning "water pot". This was the name of a 4th-century saint and martyr from Asia Minor.

ARETHUSA f Greek Mythology (Latinized)
From Greek Ἀρέθουσα (Arethousa) meaning "quick water", which is possibly derived from ἄρδω (ardo) meaning "water" and θοός (thoos) meaning "quick, nimble". This was the name of a nymph in Greek mythology who was transformed into a fountain.

ASHERAH f Semitic Mythology
Perhaps derived from Semitic roots meaning "she who walks in the sea". This was the name of a Semitic mother goddess. She was worshipped by the Israelites before the advent of monotheism.

AYSEL f Turkish, Azerbaijani
Means "moon flood" in Turkish and Azerbaijani, from Turkic ay "moon" and sel "flood, stream".

AYSU f Turkish
Derived from Turkish ay meaning "moon" and su meaning "water".

BECKETT m English (Modern)
From an English surname that could be derived from various sources, including from Middle English beke meaning "beak" or bekke meaning "stream, brook".

BELİNAY f Turkish
Means "reflection of the moon on a lake" in Turkish.

BEVERLY f & m English
From a surname that was originally derived from the name of an English city, itself meaning "beaver stream" in Old English. It came into use as a masculine given name in the 19th century, and it became common as an American feminine name after the publication of George Barr McCutcheon's 1904 novel Beverly of Graustark.

BOLÍVAR m Spanish (Latin American)
From a surname that was taken from the Basque place name Bolibar, which was derived from bolu "mill" and ibar "riverside". A famous bearer of the surname was Simón Bolívar (1783-1830), a South American revolutionary leader, after whom the country of Bolivia is named.

BURIM m Albanian
Means "spring, well, water source" in Albanian.

CANSU f Turkish
From Turkish can meaning "soul, life" and su meaning "water".

CLINTON m English
From a surname that was originally from an Old English place name meaning "settlement on the River Glyme". A famous bearer of the surname is former American president Bill Clinton (1946-).

CONWAY m English
From a surname that was derived from the name of the River Conwy, which possibly means "holy water" in Welsh.

DACRE m English (Rare)
From a surname that was originally derived from a place name in Cumbria, of Brythonic origin meaning "trickling stream".

DAMLA f Turkish
Means "water drop" in Turkish.

DARYA (2) f Persian
Means "sea, ocean" in Persian.

DENİZ f & m Turkish
Means "sea" in Turkish.

DERYA f & m Turkish
Means "sea, ocean" in Turkish, ultimately from Persian.

DOUGLAS m Scottish, English
Anglicized form of the Scottish surname Dubhghlas, meaning "dark river" from Gaelic dubh "dark" and glais "water, river" (an archaic word related to glas "grey, green"). Douglas was originally a place name (for example, a tributary of the River Clyde), which then became a Scottish clan name borne by a powerful line of earls. It has been used as a given name since the 16th century.

EA (1) m Semitic Mythology
Meaning unknown, perhaps from Sumerian meaning "house of water", or perhaps of Akkadian or Hurrian origin. This was the Akkadian, Assyrian, Hurrian and Babylonian name of the Sumerian water god Enki.

GHADIR f Arabic
Means "stream" in Arabic.

GIANG f & m Vietnamese
From Sino-Vietnamese 江 (giang) meaning "river".

GLYNDWR m Welsh
From a Welsh surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "valley water". This name is often given in honour of Owain Glyndwr, a 14th-century Welsh patriot who led a revolt against England.

GÖKSU m & f Turkish
From Turkish gök meaning "sky" and su meaning "water".

GUADALUPE f & m Spanish
From 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.

GÜRSEL m Turkish
Means "flowing water" in Turkish.

GYATSO m Tibetan
From Tibetan རྒྱ་མཚོ (rgya-mtsho) meaning "ocean". This is one of the given names of the current Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso (1935-).

HẢI m Vietnamese
From Sino-Vietnamese 海 (hải) meaning "sea, ocean".

HAI m & f Chinese
From Chinese 海 (hǎi) meaning "sea, ocean" or other characters that are pronounced similarly.

HALCYONE f Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Latinized form of Greek Ἀλκυόνη (see ALCYONE), via the misspelled variant Ἁλκυόνη (Halkyone). The spelling variation was due to a false association with ἅλς (hals) meaning "salt, sea".

HE f & m Chinese
From Chinese 河 (hé) meaning "river, stream", 和 (hé) meaning "harmony, peace", or 荷 (hé) meaning "lotus, water lily" (which is usually only feminine). Other characters can form this name as well. A famous bearer was the 15th-century explorer Zheng He.

HEREMOANA m Tahitian
From Tahitian here "loved, dear" and moana "ocean".

IARA f Indigenous American, Tupi
Means "lady of the water", from Tupi y "water" and îara "lady, mistress". In Brazilian folklore this is the name of a beautiful river nymph who would lure men into the water. She may have been based upon earlier Tupi legends.

IBAI m Basque
Means "river" in Basque.

INDIA f English
From the name of the country, which is itself derived from the name of the Indus River. The river's name is ultimately from Sanskrit सिन्धु (Sindhu) meaning "body of trembling water, river".

IRMAK f Turkish
Means "river" in Turkish.

IRVING m English, Scottish, Jewish
From 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.

ITSASO f Basque
Means "ocean" in Basque.

JAFAR m Arabic, Persian
Means "stream" in Arabic. Jafar ibn Abi Talib was a cousin of the Prophet Muhammad who was killed fighting against Byzantium in the 7th century. Another notable bearer was Jafar al-Sadiq, the sixth Shia imam.

JIANG m & f Chinese
From Chinese 江 (jiāng) meaning "river, Yangtze", as well as other characters with a similar pronunciation.

JUBAL m Biblical
Means "stream" in Hebrew. This name is mentioned in Genesis in the Old Testament as belonging to the first person to be a musician.

JŪRATĖ f Lithuanian
From Lithuanian jūra meaning "sea". This is the name of a sea goddess who falls in love with a fisherman in the Lithuanian folk tale Jūratė and Kastytis.

KAI (3) m & f Hawaiian
Means "sea" in Hawaiian.

KAILANI f Hawaiian
From Hawaiian kai "ocean, sea" and lani "sky, heaven".

KAIMANA m & f Hawaiian
From Hawaiian kai "ocean, sea" and mana "power". It is also Hawaiian meaning "diamond", derived from the English word diamond.

KAITO m Japanese
From Japanese 海 (kai) meaning "sea, ocean" combined with 斗 (to), which refers to a Chinese constellation, or 翔 (to) meaning "soar, fly". Other kanji combinations are also possible.

KAREN (3) f Japanese
From Japanese 華 (ka) meaning "flower" and 蓮 (ren) meaning "lotus, water lily". Other combinations of kanji can also form this name.

KELVIN m English
From the name of a Scottish river, perhaps meaning "narrow water". As a title it was borne by the Irish-Scottish physicist William Thomson, Lord Kelvin (1824-1907), who acquired his title from the river.

KENDALL m & f English
From a surname that comes from the name of the city of Kendale in northwest England meaning "valley on the river Kent".

KENTON m English
From a surname that was derived from an English place name meaning either "town on the River Kenn" or "royal town" in Old English.

LAKE m & f English (Rare)
From the English word lake, for the inland body of water. It is ultimately derived from Latin lacus.

LAMAR m English, African American
From a French and English surname, originally from a place name in Normandy, which was derived from Old French la mare meaning "the pool".

LIAN (2) m & f Chinese
From Chinese 莲 (lián) meaning "lotus, water lily", 濂 (lián) meaning "waterfall", or other Chinese characters that are pronounced similarly.

LIÊN f Vietnamese
From Sino-Vietnamese 蓮 (liên) meaning "lotus, water lily".

LINCOLN m English
From a surname that was originally from the name of a city in England, called Lindum Colonia by the Romans, derived from Brythonic lindo "lake, pool" and Latin colonia "colony". This name is usually given in honour of Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865), president of the United States during the American Civil War.

LINWOOD m English
From a surname that was originally from a place name meaning "stream forest" in Old English.

LLYR m Welsh Mythology
Means "the sea" in Welsh. This was the name of the Welsh god of the sea. He possibly forms the basis for the legendary King Lear of the Britons.

LYNN f & m English
From an English surname that was derived from Welsh llyn meaning "lake". Before the start of the 20th century it was primarily used for boys, but it has since come to be more common for girls. In some cases it may be thought of as a short form of LINDA or names that end in lyn or line.

MAAYAN f & m Hebrew
Means "spring of water" in Hebrew.

MANAMI f Japanese
From Japanese 愛 (mana) meaning "love, affection" combined with 美 (mi) meaning "beautiful" or 海 (mi) meaning "sea, ocean". Other kanji combinations are possible.

MAR f Spanish, Catalan
Means "sea" in Spanish and Catalan. It is from the title of the Virgin Mary, María del Mar.

MARAĴA f Esperanto
Means "made of the sea" in Esperanto, a derivative of maro "sea", ultimately from Latin mare.

MARINUS m Ancient Roman, Dutch
From the Roman family name Marinus, which derives either from the name MARIUS or from the Latin word marinus "of the sea".

MARIS f English (Rare)
Means "of the sea", taken from the Latin title of the Virgin Mary, Stella Maris, meaning "star of the sea".

MARISOL f Spanish
Combination of MARÍA and SOL (1) or SOLEDAD. It also resembles Spanish mar y sol "sea and sun".

MARISTELA f Spanish, Portuguese
From the title of the Virgin Mary, Stella Maris, meaning "star of the sea" in Latin. It can also be a combination of MARÍA and ESTELA.

MARLOWE f & m English (Modern)
From a surname that was derived from a place name meaning "remnants of a lake" in Old English. A famous bearer of the surname was the English playwright Christopher Marlowe (1564-1593).

MARY f English, Biblical
Usual English form of Maria, the Latin form of the New Testament Greek names Μαριάμ (Mariam) and Μαρία (Maria) - the spellings are interchangeable - which were from Hebrew מִרְיָם (Miryam), a name borne by the sister of Moses in the Old Testament. The meaning is not known for certain, but there are several theories including "sea of bitterness", "rebelliousness", and "wished for child". However it was most likely originally an Egyptian name, perhaps derived in part from mry "beloved" or mr "love".... [more]

MAXWELL m English
From a Scottish surname meaning "Mack's stream", from the name Mack, a short form of the Scandinavian name MAGNUS, combined with Old English wella "stream". A famous bearer of the surname was James Maxwell (1831-1879), a Scottish physicist who studied gases and electromagnetism.

MAYA (3) f Hebrew
Derived from Hebrew מַיִם (mayim) meaning "water".

MEHRAB m Persian, Literature
From مهر (Mehr), the Persian word for MITHRA, combined with Persian آب (ab) meaning "water". This is the name of the king of Kabul in the 10th-century Persian epic the Shahnameh.

MELTEM f Turkish
Means "sea wind" in Turkish.

MERAUD f Cornish
Meaning unknown, perhaps based on Cornish mor "sea".

MEREDITH m & f Welsh, English
From the Welsh name Maredudd or Meredydd, possibly meaning "great lord" or "sea lord". Since the mid-1920s it has been used more often for girls than for boys in English-speaking countries, though it is still a masculine name in Wales. A famous bearer of this name as surname was the English novelist and poet George Meredith (1828-1909).

MERI (1) f Finnish
Means "sea" in Finnish.

MERIKE f Estonian
From Estonian meri "sea" with a diminutive suffix.

MERLIN m Arthurian Romance, English
Form of the Welsh name Myrddin (meaning "sea fortress") used by Geoffrey of Monmouth in his 12th-century Arthurian tales. Writing in Latin, he likely chose the form Merlinus over Merdinus in order to prevent associations with French merde "excrement".... [more]

MERTON m English
From a surname that was derived from a place name meaning "town on a lake" in Old English.

MILBURN m English
From an English surname that was from a place name meaning "mill stream" in Old English.

MIRA (1) f Indian, Hindi, Marathi, Malayalam, Tamil, Kannada
Means "sea, ocean" in Sanskrit. This was the name of a 16th-century Indian princess who devoted her life to the god Krishna.

MOANA f & m Maori, Hawaiian, Tahitian
Means "ocean, wide expanse of water, deep sea" in Maori and Hawaiian (as well as in other Polynesian languages).

MORGAN (1) m & f Welsh, English, French
From the Old Welsh masculine name Morcant, which was possibly derived from Welsh mor "sea" and cant "circle". Since the 1980s in America Morgan has been more common for girls than boys, perhaps due to stories of Morgan le Fay or the fame of actress Morgan Fairchild (1950-).

MORTIMER m English
From an English surname that was derived from a place name meaning "still water" in Old French.

MUIR m Scottish
From a surname that was originally taken from a Scottish place name meaning "moor, fen". It also means "sea" in Scottish Gaelic.

MUIRENN f Irish, Irish Mythology
Either derived from Gaelic muir "sea" and fionn "fair, white", or else a variant of MUIRNE.

MUIRGEL f Irish
Means "bright sea", derived from Gaelic muir "sea" and geal "bright".

MUIRGEN f Irish, Irish Mythology
Means "born of the sea" in Irish. In Irish legend this was the name of a woman (originally named Líban) who was transformed into a mermaid. After 300 years she was brought to shore, baptized, and transformed back into a woman.

MURCHADH m Irish, Scottish
Derived from Gaelic muir "sea" and cadh "warrior".

NAHAL f Hebrew
Means "stream" in Hebrew.

NAIA f Basque
Means "wave, sea foam" in Basque.

NANAMI f Japanese
From Japanese 七 (nana) meaning "seven" and 海 (mi) meaning "sea". It can also come from 菜 (na) meaning "vegetables, greens" duplicated and 美 (mi) meaning "beautiful". Other kanji combinations are also possible.

NEHİR f Turkish
Means "river" in Turkish.

NEILOS m Greek Mythology, Late Greek
Greek name of the Nile River, possibly of Semitic origin meaning "river". In Greek mythology he was the god of the Nile, the son of Okeanos and Tethys.... [more]

NEITH f Egyptian Mythology (Hellenized)
Greek form of Egyptian nt, possibly from nt "water" or nrw "fear, dread". This was the name of an early Egyptian goddess of weaving, hunting and war. Her character may have some correspondences with the goddesses Tanith, Anat or Athena.

NEREIDA f Spanish
Derived from Greek Νηρηΐδες (Nereides) meaning "nymphs, sea sprites", ultimately derived from the name of the Greek sea god NEREUS, who supposedly fathered them.

NEREUS m Greek Mythology, Ancient Greek, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek
Derived from Greek νηρός (neros) meaning "water". In Greek myth this was the name of a god of the sea, the father of the Nereids. It is mentioned briefly in the New Testament, belonging to a Christian in Rome. This was also the name of a Roman saint of the 1st century, a member of the army, who was martyred with his companion Achilleus because they refused to execute Christians.

NERIDA f Indigenous Australian
Possibly means "water lily" in an Australian Aboriginal language.

NERISSA f Literature
Created by Shakespeare for a character in his play The Merchant of Venice (1596). He possibly took it from Greek Νηρηΐς (nereis) meaning "nymph, sea sprite", ultimately derived from the name of the Greek sea god NEREUS, who supposedly fathered them.

NİL f Turkish
From the Turkish name for the Nile River, derived from Greek Νεῖλος (Neilos), possibly of Semitic origin meaning "river".

NILOUFAR f Persian
Means "water lily" in Persian.

NIRAJ m Indian, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Nepali
Means "water-born, lotus" in Sanskrit.

OCEAN m & f English (Rare)
Simply from the English word ocean for a large body of water. It is ultimately derived from Greek Ὠκεανός (Okeanos), the name of the body of water thought to surround the Earth.

OCÉANE f French
Derived from French océan meaning "ocean".

OKEANOS m Greek Mythology
From the name of the river or body of water thought by the ancient Greeks to surround the Earth. In Greek mythology Okeanos was the Titan who personified this body of water.

PEGASUS m Greek Mythology (Latinized)
From the Greek Πήγασος (Pegasos), possibly either from πηγός (pegos) meaning "strong" or πηγαῖος (pegaios) meaning "from a water spring". In Greek mythology Pegasus was the winged horse that sprang from the blood of Medusa after she was killed by Perseus. There is a constellation in the northern sky named after the horse.

PELAGIUS m Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Latinized form of the Greek name Πελάγιος (Pelagios), which was derived from πέλαγος (pelagos) meaning "the sea". This was the name of several saints and two popes.

PONTIUS m Ancient Roman, Biblical Latin, Biblical
Roman family name. The family had Samnite roots so the name probably originated from the Oscan language, likely meaning "fifth" (a cognate of Latin Quintus). Alternatively, it could be derived from the name of the ancient province of Pontus in Asia Minor, itself probably from Greek πόντος (pontos) meaning "sea". A notable bearer of this name was Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea who appears in the New Testament.

PONTUS (2) m Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Latinized form of Greek Πόντος (Pontos) meaning "sea". This was the name of a Greek god of the sea. He was the son of Gaia.

RAEBURN m English (Rare)
From a surname that was originally derived from a Scottish place name meaning "stream where does drink" in Middle English. A famous bearer of the surname was Scottish portrait painter Sir Henry Raeburn (1756-1823).

RAYYAN m & f Arabic
Means "watered, luxuriant" in Arabic. According to Islamic tradition this is the name of one of the gates of paradise.

REMINGTON m & f English
From an English surname that was derived from the name of the town of Rimington in Lancashire, itself meaning "settlement on the Riming stream". It may be given in honour of the American manufacturer Eliphalet Remington (1793-1861) or his sons, founders of the firearms company that bears their name.

RIO (1) m & f Various
Means "river" in Spanish or Portuguese. A city in Brazil bears this name. Its full name is Rio de Janeiro, which means "river of January", so named because the first explorers came to the harbour in January and mistakenly thought it was a river mouth.

RITIKA f Indian, Hindi
Means either "movement, stream" or "brass" in Sanskrit.

RIVER m & f English (Modern)
From the English word that denotes a flowing body of water. The word is ultimately derived (via Old French) from Latin ripa "riverbank".

ROSEMARY f English
Combination of ROSE and MARY. This name can also be given in reference to the herb, which gets its name from Latin ros marinus meaning "dew of the sea". It came into use as a given name in the 19th century.

SÆWINE m Anglo-Saxon
Derived from the Old English elements sæ "sea" and wine "friend".

SARASWATI f Hinduism, Indian, Hindi, Marathi
Means "possessing water" from Sanskrit सरस् (saras) meaning "fluid, water, lake" and वती (vati) meaning "having". This is the name of a Hindu river goddess, also associated with learning and the arts, who is the wife of Brahma.

SEVAN f & m Armenian
From the name of the largest lake in Armenia, which may be from the Urartian word suinia simply meaning "lake".

SHUI m & f Chinese
From Chinese 水 (shuǐ) meaning "water", as well as other characters pronounced in a similar way.

SOHRAB m Persian, Persian Mythology
Probably from Middle Persian swhr "red" and ab "water". In the 10th-century Persian epic the Shahnameh this is the name of the son of the hero Rostam. He was tragically slain in battle by his father, who was unaware he was fighting his own son.

SU (1) f Turkish
Means "water" in Turkish.

SUIJIN m Japanese Mythology
From Japanese 水 (sui) meaning "water" and 神 (jin) meaning "god, spirit". This is the name of the god (or gods) of water, lakes and pools in Japanese mythology.

TAKUMI m Japanese
From Japanese 匠 (takumi) meaning "artisan" or 巧 (takumi) meaning "skillful". It can also come from 拓 (taku) meaning "expand, open, support" combined with 海 (mi) meaning "sea, ocean" or 実 (mi) meaning "fruit, good result, truth". This name can also be formed of other kanji combinations.

TALIA (2) f English (Australian)
From the name of a town in South Australia, perhaps meaning "near water" in an Australian Aboriginal language.

TALLULAH f English (Rare)
Popularly claimed to mean "leaping waters" in the Choctaw language, it may actually mean "town" in the Creek language. This is the name of waterfalls in Georgia. It was borne by American actress Tallulah Bankhead (1902-1968), who was named after her grandmother, who may have been named after the waterfalls.

TASI f & m Chamorro
Means "sea, ocean" in Chamorro.

TENGIZ m Georgian
Derived from Turkic tengiz meaning "sea, ocean".

TIAMAT f Semitic Mythology
From Akkadian tâmtu meaning "sea". In Babylonian myth Tiamat was the personification of the sea, appearing in the form of a huge dragon. By Apsu she gave birth to the first of the gods. Later, the god Marduk (her great-grandson) defeated her, cut her in half, and used the pieces of her body to make the earth and the sky.

TIRTA m & f Indonesian
Means "sacred water, place of pilgrimage" in Indonesian, ultimately from Sanskrit तीर्थ (tirtha).

VAIHERE f Tahitian
From Tahitian vai "water" and here "loved, dear".

VAIMITI f Tahitian
From Tahitian vai "water" and miti "sea, salt".

VÄINÄMÖINEN m Finnish Mythology
Derived from Finnish väinä meaning "wide and slow-flowing river". In Finnish mythology Väinämöinen was a wise old magician, the son of the primal goddess Ilmatar. He is the hero of the Finnish epic the Kalevala.

VAITIARE f Tahitian
From Tahitian vai "water" and tiare "flower".

VALE f English (Rare)
From the English word meaning "wide river valley".

WALTON m English
From a surname that was originally taken from various Old English place names meaning "stream town", "wood town", or "wall town".

WILBURN m English
From a surname that was probably originally derived from an unknown place name. The second element corresponds with Old English burne "stream".

WILTON m English
From a surname that was derived from the names of several English towns. The town names mean variously "willow town", "well town" or "town on the River Wylye" in Old English. The river name is itself of Celtic origin, possibly meaning "tricky".

WINDSOR m & f English (Rare)
From an English surname that was from a place name meaning "riverbank with a windlass" in Old English (a windlass is a lifting apparatus). This has been the surname of the royal family of the United Kingdom since 1917.

YAM m Semitic Mythology
Means "sea" in Ugaritic. Yam was the Ugaritic god of the sea, also associated with chaos, storms and destruction. He was a son of the chief god El.

YANG m & f Chinese
From 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.

YŌKO f Japanese
From Japanese 陽 (yō) meaning "light, sun, male" or 洋 (yō) meaning "ocean" combined with 子 (ko) meaning "child". Other combinations of kanji characters can also form this name.

YŌSUKE m Japanese
From Japanese 陽 (yō) meaning "light, sun, male" or 洋 (yō) meaning "ocean" combined with 介 (suke) meaning "forerunner, herald". This name can also be formed from other combinations of kanji characters.