Crispin m English (Rare)From the Roman cognomen
Crispinus, which was derived from the name
Crispus. Saint Crispin was a 3rd-century Roman who was martyred with his twin brother Crispinian in Gaul. They are the patrons of shoemakers. They were popular saints in England during the Middle Ages, and the name has occasionally been used since that time.
Crofton m English (Rare)From a surname that was derived from a place name meaning
"town with a small enclosed field" in Old English.
Cronus m Greek Mythology (Latinized)Latinized form of the Greek
Κρόνος (Kronos), possibly derived from the Indo-European root *
(s)ker- meaning
"to cut". Cronus was the Titan who fathered the Greek gods. As his wife
Rhea gave birth to the gods, Cronus swallowed them fearing the prophecy that he would be overthrown by one of his children. However Rhea hid
Zeus, her last child, who eventually forced his father to disgorge his siblings. Cronus and the rest of the Titans were then defeated by the gods and exiled.
Cúán m Old IrishMeans
"little wolf" or
"little hound" from Old Irish
cú meaning "wolf, hound" combined with a diminutive suffix. This was the name of an 8th-century saint.
Cúchulainn m Irish 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. The Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology tells of Cúchulainn's many adventures, including his single-handed defence of Ulster against the army of Queen
Medb.
Cuimín m Old IrishProbably from Old Irish
camm meaning
"bent, crooked". This was the name of a 6th-century Irish saint.
Culann m Irish MythologyMeaning unknown. This was the name of a smith in Irish legend. After Sétanta killed one of his dogs in self-defence, Sétanta took the place of the dog and was thereafter known as
Cúchulainn.
Cullen m EnglishFrom a surname, either
Cullen 1 or
Cullen 2. It jumped a little in popularity as a given name after Stephenie Meyer's novel
Twilight (2005), featuring a vampire named Edward Cullen, was adapted into a movie in 2008.
Cunobelinus m Brythonic (Latinized)Latinized form of a Brythonic name, possibly from old Celtic *
kū "dog, hound" (genitive *
kunos) combined with either the name of the god
Belenus or another Celtic root meaning "strong". This was the name of a 1st-century king of southeastern Britain. He is known from Roman historians such as Suetonius and medieval Welsh histories, as well as from coins bearing his name.
Curtis m EnglishFrom an English surname that originally meant
"courteous" in Old French.
Cyan f & m English (Rare)From the English word meaning
"greenish blue, cyan", ultimately derived from Greek
κύανος (kyanos).
Cyprian m Polish, History (Ecclesiastical)From the Roman family name
Cyprianus, which meant
"from Cyprus". Saint Cyprian was a 3rd-century bishop of Carthage who was martyred under the Roman emperor Valerian.
Cyriacus m Late RomanLatinized form of the Greek name
Κυριακός (Kyriakos), which meant
"of the lord" (derived from Greek
κύριος (kyrios) meaning "lord"). This was the name of a few early saints.
Cyrinus m Late RomanLatin name that was a derivative of
Cyrus. This is the name of several saints and martyrs from the 3rd and 4th centuries.
Dacian m RomanianDerived from
Dacia, the old Roman name for the region that is now Romania and Moldova.
Daedalus m Greek Mythology (Latinized)Latinized form of the Greek
Δαίδαλος (Daidalos), which was derived from
δαιδάλλω (daidallo) meaning
"to work cunningly". In Greek myth Daedalus was an Athenian inventor who was banished to Crete. There he designed the Labyrinth for King
Minos, but he and his son
Icarus were eventually imprisoned inside it because he had aided
Theseus in his quest against the Minotaur. Daedalus and Icarus escaped using wings fashioned from wax, but Icarus fell from the sky to his death.
Daenerys f LiteratureCreated by author George R. R. Martin for a character in his series
A Song of Ice and Fire, first published 1996, and the television adaptation
Game of Thrones (2011-2019). An explanation for the meaning of her name is not provided, though it is presumably intended to be of Valyrian origin. In the series Daenerys Targaryen is a queen of the Dothraki and a claimant to the throne of Westeros.
Dagfinn m NorwegianFrom the Old Norse name
Dagfinnr, which was composed of the elements
dagr "day" and
finnr "Sámi, person from Finland".
Dagon m Semitic MythologyPerhaps related to Ugaritic
dgn meaning
"grain". This was the name of a Semitic god of agriculture, usually depicted with the body of a fish.
Dagrun f NorwegianFrom the Old Norse name
Dagrún, which was derived from the Old Norse elements
dagr "day" and
rún "secret lore, rune".
Dainius m LithuanianMeans
"poet, singer" in Lithuanian, a derivative of
daina "song".
Dallas m & f EnglishFrom a surname that could either be of Old English origin meaning
"valley house" or of Scottish Gaelic origin meaning
"meadow dwelling". A city in Texas bears this name, probably in honour of American Vice President George M. Dallas (1792-1864).
Dalton m EnglishFrom an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning
"valley town" in Old English. A notable bearer of the surname was John Dalton (1766-1844), the English chemist and physicist who theorized about the existence of atoms.
Damhán m IrishFrom Old Irish
Damán meaning
"calf, fawn", derived from
dam "ox, deer" and a diminutive suffix. This was the name of an early Irish saint, a brother of Saint Abbán.
Damian m English, Polish, Romanian, Dutch (Modern)From the Greek name
Δαμιανός (Damianos), which was derived from Greek
δαμάζω (damazo) meaning
"to tame". Saint Damian was martyred with his twin brother
Cosmas in Syria early in the 4th century. They are the patron saints of physicians. Due to his renown, the name came into general use in Christian Europe. Another saint by this name was Peter Damian, an 11th-century cardinal and theologian from Italy.
Damocles m Greek Mythology (Latinized)Latinized form of the Greek name
Δαμοκλῆς (Damokles), which was derived from
δᾶμος (damos) meaning "the people", a Doric Greek variant of
δῆμος (demos), and
κλέος (kleos) meaning "glory". In Greek legend Damocles was a member of the court of Dionysius the Elder, the king of Syracuse. Damocles expressed envy of the king's station so Dionysius offered to switch roles with him for a day. To illustrate to Damocles the peril of a man in his position he suspended a sword over the throne.
Damon m Greek Mythology, EnglishDerived from Greek
δαμάζω (damazo) meaning
"to tame". According to Greek legend, Damon and Pythias were friends who lived on Syracuse in the 4th century BC. When Pythias was sentenced to death, he was allowed to temporarily go free on the condition that Damon take his place in prison. Pythias returned just before Damon was to be executed in his place, and the king was so impressed with their loyalty to one another that he pardoned Pythias. As an English given name, it has only been regularly used since the 20th century.
Dan 3 m Swedish, Danish, NorwegianFrom the Old Norse byname
Danr meaning
"a Dane". This was the name of several semi-legendary Danish kings.
Dardan m AlbanianFrom the name of the Dardani, an Illyrian tribe who lived on the Balkan Peninsula. Their name may derive from an Illyrian word meaning "pear". They were unrelated to the ancient people who were also called the Dardans who lived near Troy.
Daren m EnglishVariant of
Darren. In fact this form occurs earlier in American records, though
Darren eventually became more popular.
Darin m EnglishVariant of
Darren. This was the adopted surname of the singer Bobby Darin (1936-1973), who was born Robert Cassotto and chose his stage name from a street sign.
Darius m English, Lithuanian, Romanian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Old Persian (Latinized)Latin form of Greek
Δαρεῖος (Dareios), from the Old Persian name
𐎭𐎠𐎼𐎹𐎢𐏁 (Darayauš), shortened from
𐎭𐎠𐎼𐎹𐎺𐎢𐏁 (Darayavauš). It means
"possessing goodness", composed of
𐎭𐎠𐎼𐎹 (daraya) meaning "to possess, to hold" and
𐎺𐎢 (vau) meaning "good". Three ancient kings of Persia bore this name, including Darius the Great who expanded the Achaemenid Empire to its greatest extent. His forces invaded Greece but were defeated in the Battle of Marathon.
... [more] Darren m EnglishThe meaning of this name is not known for certain. In the spelling
Daren, it was used by the novelist Zane Grey for the central character in his novel
The Day of the Beast (1922). Grey may have based it on a rare Irish surname, or perhaps created it as a variant of
Darrell. It was brought to public attention in the late 1950s by the American actor Darren McGavin (1922-2006; born as William Lyle Richardson). It was further popularized in the 1960s by the character Darrin Stephens from the television show
Bewitched.
D'Artagnan m LiteratureMeans
"from Artagnan" in French, Artagnan being a town in southwestern France. This was the name of a character in the novel
The Three Musketeers (1884) by Alexandre Dumas. In the novel D'Artagnan is an aspiring musketeer who first duels with the three title characters and then becomes their friend.
Darwin m EnglishFrom a surname that was derived from the Old English given name
Deorwine. The surname was borne by the British naturalist Charles Darwin (1809-1882), the man who first proposed the theory of natural selection and subsequently revolutionized biology.
Dathan m BiblicalPossibly means
"fountain" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this is the name of one of the conspirators against
Moses.
Daumantas m LithuanianFrom Lithuanian
daug "much" combined with
mantus "intelligent" or
manta "property, wealth". This name was borne by a 13th-century Lithuanian ruler of Pskov who is venerated as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church.
Davis m EnglishFrom the English surname
Davis, which was derived from the given name
David. A famous bearer of the surname was Jefferson Davis (1808-1889), the only president of the Confederate States of America.
Dawn f EnglishFrom the English word
dawn, ultimately derived from Old English
dagung.
Dawson m EnglishFrom an English surname meaning
"son of David". As a given name, it was popularized in the late 1990s by the central character on the television drama
Dawson's Creek (1998-2003). In the United States the number of boys receiving the name increased tenfold between 1997 and 1999. It got another boost in 2014 after it was used for a main character in the movie
The Best of Me.
Dayton m EnglishFrom an English surname that was derived from places named
Deighton, meaning
"ditch town" in Old English. Dayton is also the name of a city in Ohio. As a given name, it gained a bit of popularity in the 1990s, probably because it shares a similar sound with names such as
Peyton and
Clayton.
Deacon m English (Modern)Either from the occupational surname
Deacon or directly from the vocabulary word
deacon, which refers to a cleric in the Christian church (ultimately from Greek
διάκονος (diakonos) meaning "servant").
Dean m EnglishFrom a surname, see
Dean 1 and
Dean 2. The actor James Dean (1931-1955) was a famous bearer of the surname.
Debdas m BengaliBengali form of
Devadas. This is the name of a 1917 novel by the Bengali author Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay.
Declan m Irish, EnglishAnglicized form of Irish
Deaglán, Old Irish
Declán, which is of unknown meaning. Saint Declan was a 5th-century missionary to the Déisi peoples of Ireland and the founder of the monastery at Ardmore.
... [more] Dehgewanus f SenecaFrom a name, also spelled as
Dickewamis or
Dehhewämis, which was given to the young British settler Mary Jemison (1743-1833) after she was captured and assimilated into the Seneca. Much later she claimed the name meant
"pretty girl, pleasant thing", though this interpretation does not seem to be valid.
Deimos m Greek MythologyMeans
"terror" in Greek. This was one of the sons of the Greek god
Ares. Also, a moon of Mars bears this name.
Delwyn m WelshFrom Welsh
del "pretty" combined with
gwyn "white, blessed". It has been used as a given name since the start of the 20th century.
Demetrius m Ancient Greek (Latinized)Latinized form of the Greek name
Δημήτριος (Demetrios), which was derived from the name of the Greek goddess
Demeter 1. Kings of Macedon and the Seleucid kingdom have had this name. This was also the name of several early saints including Demetrius of Thessalonica, a martyr of the 4th century who is regarded as a warrior.
Demosthenes m Ancient GreekMeans
"vigour of the people" from Greek
δῆμος (demos) meaning "the people" and
σθένος (sthenos) meaning "vigour, strength". This was the name of both an Athenian general of the 5th century and an Athenian orator of the 4th century.
Denis m French, Russian, English, German, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Romanian, Croatian, AlbanianFrom
Denys or
Denis, the medieval French forms of
Dionysius. Saint Denis was a 3rd-century missionary to Gaul and the first bishop of Paris. He was martyred by decapitation, after which legend says he picked up his own severed head and walked for a distance while preaching a sermon. He is credited with converting the Gauls to Christianity and is considered the patron saint of France.
... [more] Denton m EnglishFrom a surname, originally from a place name, which meant
"valley town" in Old English.
Derviş m TurkishFrom a Turkish word, which exists in English as
dervish, for a Sufi ascetic. It is derived from Persian, ultimately from Old Iranian *
drigu meaning "needy, poor".
Deryn f & m WelshPossibly from the Welsh word
deryn, a variant of
aderyn meaning
"bird".
Desamparados f SpanishMeans
"helpless, defenceless, forsaken" in Spanish. It is taken from an epithet of the Virgin
Mary,
Nuestra Señora de los Desamparados, meaning "Our Lady of the Helpless". She is the patron saint of Valencia, Spain.
Desideratus m Late RomanDerived from Latin
desideratum meaning
"desired". This was the name of a 6th-century French saint.
Desiderius m Late RomanDerived from Latin
desiderium meaning
"longing, desire". It was the name of several early saints. It was also borne in the 8th century by the last king of the Lombard Kingdom.
Devon m & f EnglishVariant of
Devin. It may also be partly inspired by the name of the county of Devon in England, which got its name from the Dumnonii, a Celtic tribe.
Diadumenian m HistoryFrom the Roman cognomen
Diadumenianus, which was derived from the Greek name
Diadumenus. This was the name of a Roman Emperor who reigned briefly in the 3rd century.
Dillon m EnglishVariant of
Dylan based on the spelling of the surname
Dillon, which has an unrelated origin.
Dilwyn m WelshFrom Welsh
dilys "genuine" and
gwyn "white, blessed". It has been used since the late 19th century.
Dilys f WelshMeans
"genuine" in Welsh. It has been used since the late 19th century.
Dinis m PortuguesePortuguese form of
Denis, used mainly in Portugal as opposed to Brazil (where
Dênis is more common). This name was borne by a well-regarded Portuguese king of the 13th and 14th centuries.
Diocletian m HistoryFrom the Roman cognomen
Diocletianus, a derivative of
Diokles. This was the name of a Roman emperor of the 3rd and 4th centuries (Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus). He is remembered for persecuting Christians, but he also reformed and stabilized the crumbling Empire.
Diomedes m Greek MythologyDerived from Greek
Διός (Dios) meaning "of
Zeus" and
μήδεα (medea) meaning "plans, counsel, cunning". In Greek legend Diomedes was one of the greatest heroes who fought against the Trojans. With
Odysseus he entered Troy and stole the Palladium. After the Trojan War he founded the cities of Brindisi and Arpi in Italy.
Dion m Ancient Greek, EnglishDerived from the Greek element
Διός (Dios) meaning "of
Zeus". This was the name of a 4th-century BC tyrant of Syracuse. It has been used as an American given name since the middle of the 20th century.
Dionysios m Greek, Ancient GreekGreek personal name derived from the name of the Greek god
Dionysos. Famous bearers include two early tyrants of Syracuse and a 1st-century BC Greek rhetorician.
Dionysos m Greek MythologyFrom Greek
Διός (Dios) meaning "of
Zeus" combined with
Nysa, the name of the region where young Dionysos was said to have been raised. In Greek mythology Dionysos was the god of wine, revelry, fertility and dance. He was the son of
Zeus and
Semele.
Doğukan m TurkishFrom Turkish
doğu "east" combined with either
kan "blood" or
han "khan, leader".
Do-Hyeon m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
度 (do) meaning "size, extent, limit" and
賢 (hyeon) meaning "virtuous, worthy, able", as well as many other hanja character combinations.
Doireann f Irish, Irish MythologyPossibly from the Old Irish prefix
der "daughter" and
finn "white, blessed". Alternatively it may be derived from Irish
doireann "sullen, tempestuous". This was the name of several characters in Irish legend, including a daughter of Bodb Derg who poisoned
Fionn mac Cumhaill after he spurned her advances.
Dolores f Spanish, EnglishMeans
"sorrows", taken from the Spanish title of the Virgin
Mary Nuestra Señora de los Dolores, meaning "Our Lady of Sorrows". It has been used in the English-speaking world since the 19th century, becoming especially popular in America during the 1920s and 30s.
Domantas m LithuanianFrom the Lithuanian root
do- "to give" combined with
mantus "intelligent" or
manta "property, wealth". It is sometimes conflated with
Daumantas.
Domitian m HistoryFrom the Roman cognomen
Domitianus, itself derived from the family name
Domitius. This was the name of a 1st-century Roman emperor, born as Titus Flavius Domitianus.
Domitius m Ancient RomanRoman family name that was probably derived from Latin
domitus meaning
"having been tamed".
Domninus m Late RomanLatin name that was a derivative of
Domnus. This name was borne by several early saints, including the 4th-century martyr Domninus of Fidenza.
Domnius m Late RomanLatin name that was a derivative of
Domnus. Saint Domnius was a bishop of Split in Croatia who was martyred during the persecutions of
Diocletian in the early 4th century.
Domnus m Late RomanFrom Vulgar Latin
domnus, from Latin
dominus meaning
"lord, master". This name was borne by the 6th-century saint Domnus of Vienne (also called Domninus).
Dong-Geun m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
東 (dong) meaning "east" and
根 (geun) meaning "root, foundation", as well as other hanja character combinations.
Donovan m EnglishFrom an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of
Ó Donndubháin, itself derived from the given name
Donndubán. This name is borne by the Scottish folk musician Donovan Leitch (1946-), known simply as Donovan.
Doran m English (Rare)From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of
Ó Deoradháin, from the byname
Deoradhán, derived from Irish
deoradh meaning "exile, wanderer" combined with a diminutive suffix.
Doreen f EnglishCombination of
Dora and the name suffix
een. This name first appeared in the 19th century. It was used by the novelist Edna Lyall in her novel
Doreen (1894).
Dorian m English, French, Romanian, PolishThe name was first used by Oscar Wilde in his novel
The Picture of Dorian Gray (1891), which tells the story of a man whose portrait ages while he stays young. Wilde may have taken it from the name of the ancient Greek tribe the Dorians.
Doris f English, German, Swedish, Danish, Croatian, Spanish, Ancient Greek, Greek MythologyFrom the Greek name
Δωρίς (Doris), which meant
"Dorian woman". The Dorians were a Greek tribe who occupied the Peloponnese starting in the 12th century BC. In Greek mythology Doris was a sea nymph, one of the many children of Oceanus and Tethys. It began to be used as an English name in the 19th century. A famous bearer is the American actress Doris Day (1924-2019).
Dornröschen f LiteratureFrom German
Dorn "thorn" and
Rose "rose" combined with the diminutive suffix
-chen. This is the name of Sleeping Beauty in the Brothers Grimm telling of the fairy tale.
Douglas m Scottish, EnglishFrom a Scottish surname that was from the name of a town in Lanarkshire, itself named after a tributary of the River Clyde called the Douglas Water. It means
"dark river", derived from Gaelic
dubh "dark" and
glais "water, river" (an archaic word related to
glas "grey, green"). This was a Scottish Lowland clan, the leaders of which were powerful earls in the medieval period. The Gaelic form is
Dùghlas or
Dùbhghlas. It has been used as a given name since the 16th century.
Do-Yun m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
道 (do) meaning "path, road, way" and
允 (yun) meaning "allow, consent", as well as other hanja character combinations.
Dragoș m RomanianOriginally a short form of Slavic names beginning with the element
dorgŭ meaning
"precious", such as
Dragomir. This was the name of a 14th-century ruler of Moldavia.
Dražen m Croatian, SerbianDerived from the Slavic element
dorgŭ (South Slavic
drag) meaning
"precious", originally a diminutive of names beginning with that element.
Drustan m PictishDiminutive of
Drust. This name was borne by a 7th-century Irish saint who was active among the Picts in Scotland.
Drusus m Ancient RomanRoman family name, also sometimes used as a praenomen, or given name, by the Claudia family. Apparently the name was first assumed by a Roman warrior who killed a Gallic chieftain named Drausus in single combat.
Drausus possibly derives from a Celtic element meaning
"strong".
Dubhán m Irish (Rare)From Old Irish
Dubán meaning
"little dark one", derived from
dub "dark, black" combined with a diminutive suffix. This was the name of a few early saints.
Duncan m Scottish, EnglishAnglicized form of the Scottish Gaelic name
Donnchadh, derived from Old Irish
donn "brown" and
cath "battle". This was the name of two kings of Scotland, including the one who was featured in Shakespeare's play
Macbeth (1606).
Dunstan m English (Rare), Anglo-SaxonFrom the Old English elements
dunn "dark" and
stan "stone". This name was borne by a 10th-century saint, the archbishop of Canterbury. It was occasionally used in the Middle Ages, though it died out after the 16th century. It was revived by the Tractarian movement in the 19th century.
Dursun m TurkishMeans
"allow to remain, allow to live" in Turkish.
Dustin m EnglishFrom the English surname
Dustin, which was itself derived from the Old Norse given name
Þórsteinn (see
Torsten). The name was popularized by the actor Dustin Hoffman (1937-), who was apparently named after the earlier silent movie star Dustin Farnum (1874-1929).
Dyaus m HinduismFrom Sanskrit
द्यु (dyu) meaning
"sky", ultimately connected to the name of the Indo-European god *
Dyēws. In the
Rigveda he is the sky god, the consort of the earth goddess
Prithvi. He is also called
Dyaus Pita meaning "father sky". His name is cognate with other Indo-European theonyms such as Greek
Zeus and Latin
Jupiter.
Dylan m Welsh, English, Welsh MythologyFrom the Welsh prefix
dy meaning "to, toward" and
llanw meaning "tide, flow". According to the Fourth Branch of the
Mabinogi, Dylan was a son of
Arianrhod and the twin brother of
Lleu Llaw Gyffes. Immediately after he was baptized he took to the sea, where he could swim as well as a fish. He was slain accidentally by his uncle
Gofannon. According to some theories the character might be rooted in an earlier and otherwise unattested Celtic god of the sea.
... [more]