Enki m Sumerian MythologyFrom Sumerian
𒂗 (en) meaning "lord" and
𒆠 (ki) meaning "earth, ground" (though maybe originally from
𒆳 (kur) meaning "underworld, mountain"). Enki, called
Ea by the Akkadians, Assyrians and Babylonians, was the Sumerian god of water and wisdom and the keeper of the Me, the divine laws.
Enkidu m Sumerian Mythology, Semitic MythologyProbably means
"lord of the good place", from Sumerian
𒂗 (en) meaning "lord",
𒆠 (ki) meaning "place" and
𒄭 (du) meaning "good". This was the name of a wild man who became a companion of the Sumerian hero
Gilgamesh, notably appearing in the Akkadian poem the
Epic of Gilgamesh.
Enlil m Sumerian Mythology, Semitic MythologyFrom Sumerian
𒂗 (en) meaning "lord" and possibly
𒆤 (lil) meaning "wind". Enlil was the Sumerian god of the wind and storms, the son of
An and
Ki. He was later worshipped by the Akkadians, Assyrians, Babylonians, and other Mesopotamian peoples.
Eos f Greek MythologyMeans
"dawn" in Greek. This was the name of the Greek goddess of the dawn.
Epaphroditos m Ancient Greek, Biblical GreekMeans
"lovely, charming", derived from Greek
ἐπί (epi) meaning "on" combined with the name of the Greek love goddess
Aphrodite. It appears in the epistle to the Philippians in the New Testament (as
Epaphroditus, the Latinized form, in the English version).
Epaphus m Greek Mythology (Latinized)Derived from Greek
ἐπαφή (epaphe) meaning
"touch". According to Greek mythology this was the name of a king of Egypt. He was the son of
Zeus and
Io, who became pregnant when Zeus touched her with his hand.
Epona f Gaulish MythologyDerived from Gaulish
epos meaning
"horse" with the divine or augmentative suffix
-on. This was the name of a Gaulish goddess of horses and fertility. She was worshipped not only in Gaul, but elsewhere in the Roman Empire.
Éponine f LiteratureFrench form of
Epponina. Victor Hugo used this name in his novel
Les Misérables (1862) for a daughter of the Thénardiers. Her mother got her name from a romance novel.
Epponina f Gaulish (Latinized)Probably related to the name of the goddess
Epona. Epponina was the virtuous wife of the 1st-century Gallo-Roman rebel Julius Sabinus.
Erato f Greek MythologyMeans
"lovely" in Greek. In Greek mythology she was one of the nine Muses, the muse of lyric poetry.
Erekle m GeorgianGeorgian form of
Herakleios (see
Heraclius). This name was borne by two Georgian kings of the Bagrationi dynasty.
Ereshkigal f Sumerian MythologyMeans
"lady of the great earth", from Sumerian
𒊩𒌆 (ereš) meaning "lady, queen" combined with
𒆠 (ki) meaning "earth" and
𒃲 (gal) meaning "great, big". In Sumerian mythology she was the goddess of death and the underworld.
Eris f Greek MythologyMeans
"strife, discord" in Greek. In Greek mythology Eris was the goddess of discord. She was the sister and companion of
Ares.
Ériu f Irish MythologyFrom the name of an Irish goddess, who according to legend gave her name to Ireland (which is called
Éire in Irish). In reality, the goddess probably got her name from that of the island, which may mean something like "abundant land" in Old Irish.
Ermete m ItalianDerived from
Hermetis, the Latin genitive form of
Hermes, the name of the Greek messenger god.
Eros m Greek MythologyMeans
"love" in Greek. In Greek mythology he was a young god, the son of
Aphrodite, who was armed with arrows that caused the victim to fall in love.
Estee f JewishDiminutive of
Esther. A famous bearer was the American businesswoman Estée Lauder (1908-2004), founder of the cosmetics company that bears her name. Her birth name was Josephine Esther Mentzer. Apparently she added the accent to her name
Estee in order to make it appear French.
Ester f Spanish, Catalan, Portuguese, Italian, Czech, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, Estonian, HebrewForm of
Esther used in several languages.
Esther f English, French, Spanish, Dutch, German, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Jewish, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical GreekPossibly means
"star" in Persian. Alternatively it could be a derivative of the name of the Near Eastern goddess
Ishtar. The Book of Esther in the Old Testament tells the story of Queen Esther, the Jewish wife of the king of Persia. The king's advisor
Haman persuaded the king to exterminate all the Jews in the realm. Warned of this plot by her cousin
Mordecai, Esther revealed her Jewish ancestry and convinced the king to execute Haman instead. Her original Hebrew name was
Hadassah.
... [more] Étan f Irish MythologyPossibly a variant of
Étaín. In Irish mythology she was the daughter of Dian Cécht, the god of healing.
Eunomia f Greek MythologyMeans
"good order" in Greek, ultimately from
εὖ (eu) meaning "good" and
νόμος (nomos) meaning "law, custom". Eunomia was a Greek goddess, one of the
Ὥραι (Horai), presiding over law.
Euphrosyne f Greek MythologyMeans
"mirth, merriment, cheerfulness" in Greek, a derivative of
εὖ (eu) meaning "good" and
φρήν (phren) meaning "mind, heart". She was one of the three Graces or
Χάριτες (Charites) in Greek mythology.
Europa f Greek Mythology (Latinized)Latinized form of Greek
Εὐρώπη (Europe), which meant
"wide face" from
εὐρύς (eurys) meaning "wide" and
ὄψ (ops) meaning "face, eye". In Greek mythology Europa was a Phoenician princess who was abducted and taken to Crete by
Zeus in the guise of a bull. She became the first queen of Crete, and later fathered
Minos by Zeus. The continent of Europe said to be named for her, though it is more likely her name is from that of the continent. This is also the name of a moon of Jupiter.
Euterpe f Greek MythologyMeans
"delight" in Greek, ultimately from
εὖ (eu) meaning "good" and
τέρπω (terpo) meaning "to satisfy, to cheer". In Greek mythology she was one of the nine Muses, the muse of music and joy. She was said to have invented the double flute.
Fauna f Roman MythologyFeminine form of
Faunus. Fauna was a Roman goddess of fertility, women and healing, a daughter and companion of Faunus.
Faunus m Roman MythologyPossibly means
"to befriend" from Latin. Faunus was a Roman god of fertility, forests, and agriculture.
Felicitas f Late Roman, Roman Mythology, German, SpanishLatin name meaning
"good luck, fortune". In Roman mythology the goddess Felicitas was the personification of good luck. It was borne by a 3rd-century saint, a slave martyred with her master Perpetua in Carthage.
Fenrir m Norse MythologyFrom Old Norse
fen meaning
"marsh, fen". In Norse mythology Fenrir was a ferocious wolf, one of the offspring of
Loki and the giantess
Angrboða. Because it was foretold he would bring about disaster, the gods bound him with a magical fetter, though in the process
Tyr's hand was bitten off. At the time of Ragnarök, the end of the world, it is told that he will break free and kill
Odin.
Fereydoun m Persian, Persian MythologyModern Persian form of Old Iranian *
Thraitauna meaning
"the third". In the 10th-century Persian epic the
Shahnameh this is the name of a virtuous king who ruled for 500 years. The Avestan form of the name
𐬚𐬭𐬀𐬉𐬙𐬀𐬊𐬥𐬀 (Thraētaona) appears in the earlier texts of the
Avesta.
Fiore f & m ItalianMeans
"flower" in Italian. It can also be considered an Italian form of the Latin names
Flora and
Florus.
Flora f English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Dutch, French, Greek, Albanian, Roman MythologyDerived from Latin
flos meaning
"flower" (genitive case
floris). Flora was the Roman goddess of flowers and spring, the wife of Zephyr the west wind. It has been used as a given name since the Renaissance, starting in France. In Scotland it was sometimes used as an Anglicized form of
Fionnghuala.
Fortuna f Roman MythologyMeans
"luck" in Latin. In Roman mythology this was the name of the personification of luck.
Freya f Norse Mythology, English (Modern), GermanFrom Old Norse
Freyja meaning
"lady". This is the name of a goddess associated with love, beauty, war and death in Norse mythology. She claims half of the heroes who are slain in battle and brings them to her realm of Fólkvangr. Along with her brother
Freyr and father
Njord, she is one of the Vanir (as opposed to the Æsir). Some scholars connect her with the goddess
Frigg.
... [more] Freyr m Norse Mythology, IcelandicMeans
"lord" in Old Norse, derived from the Germanic root *
fraujô. This is the name of a Norse god. He may have originally been called
Yngvi, with the name
Freyr being his title. Freyr is associated with fertility, sunlight and rain, and is the husband of the giantess
Gerd. With his twin sister
Freya and father
Njord he is one of the group of deities called the Vanir.
Friday m English (African)From the English word for the day of the week, which was derived from Old English
frigedæg meaning "
Frig's day". Daniel Defoe used it for a character in his novel
Robinson Crusoe (1719). As a given name, it is most often found in parts of Africa, such as Nigeria and Zambia.
Frigg f Norse MythologyMeans
"beloved", from Proto-Germanic *
Frijjō, derived from the root *
frijōną meaning "to love". In Norse mythology she was the wife of
Odin and the mother of
Balder. Some scholars believe that she and the goddess
Freya share a common origin (though their names are not linguistically related).
Fūjin m Japanese MythologyFrom Japanese
風 (fū) meaning "wind" and
神 (jin) meaning "god, spirit". This is the name of the Japanese wind god, who carries the wind in a bag over his shoulders.
Fulgora f Roman MythologyFrom Latin
fulgur meaning
"lightning", derived from
fulgeo "to flash, to shine". In Roman mythology this was the name of a goddess who presided over lightning, equivalent to the Greek goddess
Astrape.
Fuxi m Chinese MythologyFrom Chinese
伏 (fú) meaning "prostrate, lying down" and
羲 (xī), a character that refers to the god himself. In Chinese mythology Fuxi is the twin brother and husband of
Nüwa. He is said to have taught humans how to hunt and cook, as well as devising the trigrams. He is sometimes depicted with the body of a snake.
Gabija f Lithuanian, Baltic MythologyProbably from Lithuanian
gaubti meaning
"to cover". In Lithuanian mythology this was the name of the goddess of fire and the home.
Gaia f Greek Mythology, ItalianFrom the Greek word
γαῖα (gaia), a parallel form of
γῆ (ge) meaning
"earth". In Greek mythology Gaia was the mother goddess who presided over the earth. She was the mate of
Uranus and the mother of the Titans and the Cyclopes.
Gaiana f Ancient Greek (Latinized)Latinized form of the Greek name
Γαϊανή (Gaiane), a derivative of
Gaia. This was the name of a (perhaps fictional) martyr who was killed in Armenia during the persecutions of Emperor Diocletian in the late 3rd century.
Galatea f Greek Mythology (Latinized)Latinized form of Greek
Γαλάτεια (Galateia), probably derived from
γάλα (gala) meaning
"milk". This was the name of several characters in Greek mythology including a sea nymph who was the daughter of
Doris and
Nereus and the lover of Acis. According to some sources, this was also the name of the ivory statue carved by
Pygmalion that came to life.
Gandalf m Norse Mythology, LiteratureMeans
"wand elf" in Old Norse, from the elements
gandr "wand, staff, magic, monster" and
alfr "elf". This name belongs to a dwarf (Gandálfr) in the
Völuspá, a 13th-century Scandinavian manuscript that forms part of the
Poetic Edda. The author J. R. R. Tolkien borrowed the name for a wizard in his novels
The Hobbit (1937) and
The Lord of the Rings (1954).
Ganesha m HinduismMeans
"lord of hordes" from Sanskrit
गण (gana) meaning "horde, multitude" and
ईश (isha) meaning "lord, ruler". This is the name of the Hindu god of wisdom and good luck, the son of
Shiva and
Parvati. He is often depicted as a stout man with the head of an elephant.
Gargi f Hinduism, Hindi, BengaliMeaning unknown. This was the name of a 7th-century BC Indian philosopher who appears in the Upanishads, which are parts of Hindu scripture.
Gautama m Sanskrit, BuddhismIn the case of Siddhartha Gautama, it was a patronymic form of
Gotama. Siddhartha Gautama, also known as the
Buddha, was the founder of Buddhism. He was a 6th-century BC nobleman who left his family in order to lead a life of meditation and poverty.
Gavin m English, ScottishMedieval form of
Gawain. Though it died out in England, it was reintroduced from Scotland in the 20th century.
Gawain m Arthurian CycleMeaning uncertain, from the Latin form
Gualguainus used in the 12th-century chronicles of Geoffrey of Monmouth (appearing also as
Walganus,
Gwalguanus and other spellings in different copies of the text), where he is one of the knights who serve his uncle King
Arthur. He can be identified with the earlier Welsh hero Gwalchmai, and it is possible that the name derives from
Gwalchmai or a misreading of it.
... [more] Gayatri f Hinduism, Marathi, HindiFrom Sanskrit
गायत्र (gayatra), which refers to a type of song or hymn with a particular meter. It is also the name of a Hindu goddess who is a personification of this song.
Geb m Egyptian MythologyFrom Egyptian
𓎼𓃀𓃀 (gbb) meaning
"earth". In Egyptian mythology he was the god of the earth and crops. His consort was his sister the sky goddess
Nut.
Gefjon f Norse MythologyProbably means
"the giving one", from Old Norse
gefa "to give". Gefjon or Gefion was a Norse goddess associated with ploughing and fertility.
Gerd 2 f Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Norse MythologyFrom Old Norse
Gerðr, derived from
garðr meaning
"enclosure, yard". According to Norse myth, Gerd was a beautiful giantess (jǫtunn). After
Freyr fell in love with her, he had his servant Skírnir convince her to marry him.
Gilgamesh m Sumerian Mythology, Semitic MythologyPossibly means
"the ancestor is a hero", from Sumerian
𒉋𒂵 (bilga) meaning "ancestor" and
𒈩 (mes) meaning "hero, young man". This was the name of a Sumerian hero, later appearing in the Akkadian poem the
Epic of Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh, with his friend
Enkidu, battled the giant Humbaba and stopped the rampage of the Bull of Heaven, besides other adventures. Gilgamesh was probably based on a real person: a king of Uruk who ruled around the 27th century BC.
Ginevra f ItalianItalian form of
Guinevere. This is also the Italian name for the city of Geneva, Switzerland. It is also sometimes associated with the Italian word
ginepro meaning "juniper".
Girisha m HinduismMeans
"lord of the mountain" in Sanskrit. This is a name of the Hindu god
Shiva, given because of his abode in the Himalayan Mountains.
Giv m Persian MythologyMeaning unknown. This is the name of a hero in the 10th-century Persian epic the
Shahnameh.
Glooscap m New World MythologyDerived from an Eastern Algonquian phrase meaning
"man from nothing". Glooscap (or Gluskabe) was a hero involved in the creation myths of the Wabanaki people of eastern North America.
Gobán m Irish (Rare)From Old Irish
Gobbán, derived from
gobae "smith" and a diminutive suffix. It could also be a derivative of the name of the Irish smith god
Goibniu (from the same root). This was the name of a few early saints, such as a 7th-century abbot of Killamery. In later folklore, the smith god and the saints seem to have conflated into the legendary figure Gobán Saor ("Gobán the builder"), a master architect and builder of churches.
Gobannos m Gaulish MythologyFrom old Celtic *
goban meaning
"smith". This was the name of a scantily attested Gaulish smith god.
Gobnait f IrishFeminine form of
Gobán. This was the name of a 6th-century Irish saint, the founder of a monastery at Ballyvourney.
Gofannon m Welsh MythologyFrom Welsh
gof meaning
"smith". This was the name of a smith in Welsh legends. He is possibly a later development of an earlier Celtic god (seen also in Gaulish
Gobannos and Irish
Goibniu).
Goibniu m Irish MythologyDerived from Old Irish
gobae meaning
"smith". In Irish mythology this was the name of a divine metalsmith and weapon maker of the Tuatha Dé Danann. He also provided them with feasts that protected them from old age. He may be derived from an earlier Celtic smith god (seen also in Gaulish
Gobannos and Welsh
Gofannon).
Goldilocks f FolkloreFrom the English words
gold and
locks, referring to blond hair. This is best known as the name of the trespassing girl in the English fairy tale
Goldilocks and the Three Bears.
Gonggong m Chinese MythologyMeaning unknown, though usually spelled using the Chinese characters
共 (gòng) meaning "together" and
工 (gōng) meaning "work". This is the name of a Chinese water god, depicted as a serpent with a human head. He damaged the heavenly pillar Mount Buzhou, making the sky tilt to the northwest and the earth tilt to the southeast. A dwarf planet in the outer solar system was named for him in 2019.
Gopala m HinduismMeans
"cow protector" from Sanskrit
गो (go) meaning "cow" and
पाल (pala) meaning "guard, protector". This is another name of the Hindu god
Krishna. This name was also borne by the 8th-century founder of the Pala Empire in Bengal.
Gopinatha m HinduismMeans
"leader of the gopis" in Sanskrit. This is another name of the Hindu god
Krishna, acquired because of his association with the gopis, who are cow-herding girls.
Gotama m HinduismMeans
"the best ox" from Sanskrit
गो (go) meaning "ox, cow" and
तम (tama) meaning "best". In Hindu texts this is the name of one of the Saptarshis, or seven sages. This name was also borne by an early Indian philosopher who wrote the Nyaya Sutras.
Grid f Norse MythologyFrom Old Norse
Gríðr, probably derived from either
gríð "zeal, vehemence" or
grið "peace". In Norse myth she was a giantess (jǫtunn), the mother of
Vidar by
Odin. She aided
Thor in his fight against the giant Geirrod.
Gronw m Welsh MythologyMeaning unknown, perhaps from Old Welsh
gur "man". According to the Fourth Branch of the
Mabinogi he was the lover of
Blodeuwedd. He attempted to murder her husband
Lleu Llaw Gyffes with a special spear he crafted over the course of a year, but Lleu transformed into an eagle. After he was restored to human form he killed Gronw.
Guanyin f BuddhismMeans
"one who observes sounds", from Chinese
观 (guān) meaning "to observe, to see" and
音 (yīn) meaning "sound, tone", referring to prayers. This is the Chinese name of
Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion (who is regarded as female in China). It originated as a calque of Sanskrit
अवलोकितस्वर (Avalokitasvara), an earlier form of Avalokiteshvara's name.
Guinevere f Arthurian CycleFrom the Norman French form of the Welsh name
Gwenhwyfar meaning
"white phantom", ultimately from the old Celtic roots *
windos meaning "white" (modern Welsh
gwen) and *
sēbros meaning "phantom, magical being". In Arthurian legend she was the beautiful wife of King
Arthur. According to the 12th-century chronicler Geoffrey of Monmouth, she was seduced by
Mordred before the battle of Camlann, which led to the deaths of both Mordred and Arthur. According to the 12th-century French poet Chrétien de Troyes, she engaged in an adulterous affair with Sir
Lancelot.
... [more] Gula f Sumerian MythologyMeans
"the great" in Sumerian. This may have originally been a title rather then a name. Gula was a Sumerian and Akkadian goddess of healing, medicine and midwifery. She was often depicted alongside dogs. In later periods she was equated with other healing goddesses such as
Ninisina.
Gwalchmai m Welsh MythologyDerived from Welsh
gwalch "hawk", possibly combined with
Mai "May (month)" or
mai "field, plain". This is the name of a character in Welsh legend (appearing in
Culhwch and Olwen for example). He is probably the antecedent of
Gawain from later Arthurian romance.
Gwydion m Welsh, Welsh MythologyProbably means
"born of trees" from Old Welsh
guid "trees" and the suffix
gen "born of". In the Fourth Branch of the
Mabinogi, Gwydion is the nephew of King
Math of Gwynedd, and like him a powerful magician. In an elaborate plot to give his brother a chance to rape his uncle's footbearer, he arranged a war between Gwynedd and the neighbouring kingdom of Dyfed. Gwydion himself killed King
Pryderi of Dyfed at the end of the war. In punishment for the rape, Math transformed Gwydion and his brother into different animals over the course of three years. Gwydion was the uncle of
Lleu Llaw Gyffes, whom he fostered. Math and Gwydion fashioned Lleu a wife,
Blodeuwedd, out of flowers and they later aided him after her betrayal. Gwydion also appears in older Welsh poetry such as the
Book of Taliesin.
Gwyn m Welsh, Welsh MythologyMeans
"white, blessed" in Welsh. In Welsh legend Gwyn was a king of the Otherworld and the leader of the Wild Hunt. He appears in the Welsh tale
Culhwch and Olwen, where he is one of the many who help
Culhwch hunt the monstrous boar Trwyth. The story also tells of his rivalry with
Gwythyr for the beautiful
Creiddylad.
Hadad m Semitic MythologyDerived from a Semitic root meaning
"thunder". Hadad was a Western Semitic (Levantine) god of thunder and storms, often called
Ba'al. He was imported to Mesopotamia by the Amorites, where he was known as
Adad to the Assyrians and Babylonians.
Hades m Greek MythologyFrom Greek
Ἅιδης (Haides), derived from
ἀϊδής (aides) meaning
"unseen". In Greek mythology Hades was the dark god of the underworld, a place that also came to be called Hades. His brothers were
Zeus and
Poseidon and his wife was
Persephone, whom he had abducted.
Haides m Greek MythologyAncient Greek form of
Hades. After the classical period, the
ι in the sequence
αι (often written as a subscript like
ᾳ) was not pronounced.
Haldor m NorwegianFrom the Old Norse name
Hallþórr, which meant
"Thor's rock" from
hallr "rock" combined with the name of the Norse god
Þórr (see
Thor).
Hama m Anglo-Saxon MythologyFrom Old English
ham meaning
"home". This is the name of a Gothic warrior who appears with his companion of Wudga in some Anglo-Saxon tales (briefly in
Beowulf).
Hamilcar m Phoenician (Latinized), HistoryPossibly means
"brother of Melqart", derived from Phoenician
𐤀𐤇 (ʾaḥ) meaning "brother" combined with the name of the god
Melqart. This was a common Punic name. Among the notable bearers was Hamilcar Barca, a 3rd-century BC Carthaginian general who was the father of
Hannibal and
Hasdrubal.
Hannibal m Phoenician (Latinized), HistoryFrom the Punic name
𐤇𐤍𐤁𐤏𐤋 meaning
"grace of Ba'al", derived from Phoenician
𐤇𐤍 (ḥan) meaning "grace, favour" combined with the name of the god
Ba'al. This name occurs often in Carthaginian history. It was most notably borne by the famed general and tactician Hannibal Barca, who threatened Rome during the Second Punic War in the 3rd century BC. It is also associated with the fictional villain Hannibal Lecter from the books by Thomas Harris (debuting 1981) and subsequent movie adaptations.
Hari m Hinduism, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, NepaliMeans
"brown, yellow, tawny" in Sanskrit, and by extension
"monkey, horse, lion". This is another name of the Hindu god
Vishnu, and sometimes of
Krishna. It is also borne by the son of the Garuda, the bird-like mount of Vishnu.
Hasdrubal m Phoenician (Latinized), HistoryMeans
"Ba'al helps", derived from Phoenician
𐤏𐤆𐤓 (ʿazru) meaning "to help" combined with the name of the god
Ba'al. This name was borne by several figures from Carthaginian history, including the 3rd-century BC general Hasdrubal Barca (brother of
Hannibal) who fought in the Second Punic War.
Hathor f Egyptian Mythology (Hellenized)Greek form of Egyptian
ḥwt-ḥrw (reconstructed as
Hut-Heru) meaning
"the house of Horus", derived from Egyptian
ḥwt "house" combined with the god
Horus. In Egyptian mythology she was the goddess of love, often depicted with the head of a cow.
Haumea f Polynesian MythologyMeans
"red ruler", from Hawaiian
hau "ruler" and
mea "reddish brown". Haumea is the Hawaiian goddess of fertility and childbirth. A dwarf planet in the outer solar system was named for her in 2008.
Haurvatat f Persian MythologyMeans
"health, perfection, wholeness" in Avestan. This was the name of a Zoroastrian goddess (one of the Amesha Spenta) associated with health and water. She was often mentioned with
Ameretat.
Hebe f Greek MythologyDerived from Greek
ἥβη (hebe) meaning
"youth". In Greek mythology Hebe was the daughter of
Zeus and
Hera. She was a goddess of youth who acted as the cupbearer to the gods.
Hecate f Greek Mythology (Latinized)From the Greek
Ἑκάτη (Hekate), possibly derived from
ἑκάς (hekas) meaning
"far off". In Greek mythology Hecate was a goddess associated with witchcraft, crossroads, tombs, demons and the underworld.
Hector m English, French, Greek Mythology (Latinized), Arthurian CycleLatinized form of Greek
Ἕκτωρ (Hektor), which was derived from
ἕκτωρ (hektor) meaning
"holding fast", ultimately from
ἔχω (echo) meaning "to hold, to possess". In Greek legend Hector was one of the Trojan champions who fought against the Greeks. After he killed
Achilles' friend
Patroclus in battle, he was himself brutally slain by Achilles, who proceeded to tie his dead body to a chariot and drag it about. This name also appears in Arthurian legends where it belongs to King
Arthur's foster father.
... [more] Heilyn m Welsh MythologyMeans
"winebearer, dispenser" in Welsh. According to the Second Branch of the
Mabinogi he was one of only seven warriors to return from
Brân's invasion of Ireland.
Heimdall m Norse MythologyFrom Old Norse
Heimdallr, derived from Old Norse
heimr "home, house" and
dallr, possibly meaning "glowing, shining". In Norse mythology he is the god who guards the Bifröst, the bridge that connects Asgard to the other worlds. It is foretold that he will blow the Gjallarhorn to wake the gods for the final battle at the end of the world, Ragnarök. During this battle, he will fight
Loki and they will slay one another.
Hel f Norse MythologyIn Norse mythology this was the name of the daughter of
Loki. She got her name from the underworld, also called Hel, where she ruled, which meant "to conceal, to cover" in Old Norse (related to the English word
hell).
Helen f English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Estonian, Greek Mythology (Anglicized)English form of the Greek
Ἑλένη (Helene), probably from Greek
ἑλένη (helene) meaning
"torch" or
"corposant", or possibly related to
σελήνη (selene) meaning
"moon". In Greek mythology Helen was the daughter of
Zeus and
Leda, whose kidnapping by
Paris was the cause of the Trojan War. The name was also borne by the 4th-century Saint Helena, mother of the Roman emperor
Constantine, who supposedly found the True Cross during a trip to Jerusalem.
... [more] Helena f German, Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Icelandic, Portuguese, Catalan, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Finnish, Estonian, Slovene, Croatian, Sorbian, English, Ancient Greek (Latinized), Greek Mythology (Latinized)Latinate form of
Helen. This is the name of the heroine of William Shakespeare's play
All's Well That Ends Well (1603).
Helios m Greek MythologyMeans
"sun" in Greek. This was the name of the young Greek sun god, a Titan, who rode across the sky each day in a chariot pulled by four horses. His sister was the moon goddess
Selene.
Helle 2 f Greek MythologyMeaning unknown. In Greek mythology Helle was the daughter of Athamus and Nephele. She and her brother Phrixus escaped sacrifice by fleeing on the back of a golden ram, but during their flight she fell off and drowned in the strait that connects the Aegean Sea with the Sea of Marmara, which was thereafter called the Hellespont ("the sea of Helle").
Hemera f Greek MythologyMeans
"day" in Greek. This was the name of the Greek goddess who personified the daytime. According to Hesiod she was the daughter of
Nyx, the personification of the night.
Hengist m Anglo-Saxon MythologyMeans
"stallion" in Old English or Old Saxon. According to medieval histories (recorded by Bede in the 8th century), Hengist and his brother
Horsa were the leaders of the first Saxon settlers in Britain. Hengist established a kingdom in Kent in the 5th century.
Hephaestus m Greek Mythology (Latinized)Latinized form of Greek
Ἥφαιστος (Hephaistos), meaning unknown. It probably shares its origin with the Minoan city of
Φαιστός (Phaistos), which is of Pre-Greek origin. In Greek mythology Hephaestus was the god of fire and forging, the husband of the unfaithful
Aphrodite. It was said that when he was born
Hera, his mother, was so displeased with his physical deformities that she hurled him off the top of Mount Olympus.
Hera f Greek MythologyUncertain meaning, possibly from Greek
ἥρως (heros) meaning
"hero, warrior";
ὥρα (hora) meaning
"period of time"; or
αἱρέω (haireo) meaning
"to be chosen". In Greek mythology Hera was the queen of the gods, the sister and wife of
Zeus. She presided over marriage and childbirth.
Heraclius m Ancient Greek (Latinized)Latinized form of the Greek personal name
Ἡράκλειος (Herakleios), which was derived from the name of the Greek hero
Herakles. This was the name of a 7th-century Byzantine emperor, known for his victories over the Sasanian Persian Empire. This name was also borne by two early saints.
Herais f Ancient GreekAncient Greek personal name that was probably derived from the name of the Greek goddess
Hera. It was borne by a saint and martyr from Alexandria who was killed during the early 4th-century persecutions of the Roman emperor Diocletian.
Herakleides m Ancient GreekMeans
"son of Herakles" in Greek, derived from the name of the mythic hero
Herakles combined with the patronymic suffix
ἴδης (ides). This was the name of a 4th-century BC Greek astronomer who theorized the rotation of the earth.