BERTRAMmEnglish, German, Ancient GermanicMeans "bright raven", derived from the Germanic element
beraht "bright" combined with
hramn "raven". The Normans introduced this name to England. Shakespeare used it in his play 'All's Well That Ends Well' (1603).
BLAKEmEnglishFrom a surname which was derived from Old English
blæc "black" or
blac "pale". A famous bearer of the surname was the poet and artist William Blake (1757-1827).
BRAN (2)mWelsh, Welsh MythologyMeans "raven" in Welsh. In Welsh legend Bran the Blessed (called also Bendigeid Vran) was the son of the god
Llyr. Later Welsh legends describe him as a king of Britain who was killed attacking Ireland.
BRENNUSmAncient Celtic (Latinized)Latinized form of a Celtic name (or title) that possibly meant either "king, prince" or "raven". Brennus was a Gallic leader of the 4th century BC who attacked and sacked Rome.
CHERNOBOGmSlavic MythologyMeans "the black god" from Slavic
cherno "black" and
bogu "god". Chernobog was the Slavic god of darkness, evil and grief.
CIARmIrishDerived from Irish
ciar meaning "black".
CIARA (1)fIrishFeminine form of
CIAR. Saint Ciara was an Irish nun who established a monastery at Kilkeary in the 7th century.
CIARÁNmIrishDiminutive of
CIAR. This was the name of two Irish saints: Saint Ciarán the Elder, the patron of the Kingdom of Munster, and Saint Ciarán of Clonmacnoise, the founder of a monastery in the 6th century.
COLAmAnglo-SaxonOld English byname meaning "charcoal", originally given to a person with dark features.
COLBYmEnglishFrom a surname, originally from various English place names, derived from the Old Norse nickname
Koli (meaning "coal, dark") and
býr "town".
CORBINmEnglishFrom a French surname which was derived from
corbeau "raven", originally denoting a person who had dark hair. The name was probably popularized in America by actor Corbin Bernsen (1954-).
CORMACmIrishPossibly derived from Irish Gaelic
corb "raven" or "wheel" and
mac "son". This was the name of a 3rd-century king of Ireland.
CRAWFORDmEnglishFrom a surname which was derived from a place name meaning "crow ford" in Old English.
DOUGALmScottish, IrishAnglicized form of the Gaelic name
Dubhghall, which meant "dark stranger" from
dubh "dark" and
gall "stranger".
DUANEmEnglish, IrishFrom an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of the Gaelic surname
Ó Dubhán meaning "descendant of
DUBHÁN".
DUBHÁNmIrishIrish name derived from
dubh "dark, black" combined with a diminutive suffix.
DUBHSHLÁINEmAncient IrishOld Irish name derived from
dubh "dark, black" and either
slán "defiance" or
Sláine, the Gaelic name of the River Slaney.
DUBHTHACHmAncient IrishOld Irish name derived from
dubh "dark, black" in combination with a second element of unknown meaning.
EBONYfEnglishFrom the English word
ebony for the black wood which comes from the ebony tree. It is ultimately from the Egyptian word
hbnj. In America this name is most often used by black parents.
EMERYm & fEnglishNorman form of
EMMERICH. The Normans introduced it to England, and though it was never popular, it survived until the end of the Middle Ages. As a modern given name, it is likely inspired by the surname
Emery, which was itself derived from the medieval given name. It can also be given in reference to the hard black substance called emery.
ENGUERRANDmMedieval FrenchMedieval French form of the Germanic name
Engilram, which was composed of the elements
Angil, the name of a Germanic tribe known in English as the Angles, and
hramn "raven". This was the name of several French nobles from Picardy.
FECHÍNmIrishMeans "little raven" from Irish
fiach "raven" combined with a diminutive suffix. This was the name of an Irish saint of the 7th century who died of the yellow plague.
FERRERmVariousFrom a surname which meant "blacksmith" in Catalan. This name is often given in honour of Saint Vicente Ferrer, a 14th-century missionary who is the patron saint of builders.
FIACHNAmIrishDerived from Gaelic
fiach meaning "raven". This was the name of a king in Irish legend.
FIACHRAmIrish, Irish MythologyDerived from Gaelic
fiach meaning "raven". In Irish legend Fiachra was one of the four children of
Lir transformed into swans for a period of 900 years. This is also the name of the patron saint of gardeners, a 7th-century Irish abbot who settled in France.
GUNTRAMmGermanMeans "war raven" from the Germanic elements
gund "war" and
hramn "raven". This was the name of a 6th-century Frankish king.
JETTmEnglish (Modern)From the English word
jet, which denotes either a jet aircraft or an intense black colour (the words derive from different sources).
KALIf & mHinduism, Bengali, TamilMeans "the black one" in Sanskrit. The Hindu goddess Kali is the fierce destructive form of the wife of
Shiva. She is usually depicted with black skin and four arms, holding a severed head and brandishing a sword. As a personal name, it is generally masculine in India.
KERRYm & fEnglishFrom the name of the Irish county, called
Ciarraí in Irish Gaelic, which means "
CIAR's people".
KIARAfEnglish (Modern)Variant of
CIARA (1) or
CHIARA. This name was brought to public attention in 1988 after the singing duo Kiara released their song 'This Time'. It was further popularized by a character in the animated movie 'The Lion King II' (1998).
KORBINIANmGermanDerived from Latin
corvus meaning "raven". This was the name of an 8th-century Frankish saint who was sent by Pope Gregory II to evangelize in Bavaria. His real name may have been
Hraban (see
Raban).
KRISHNAmHinduism, Indian, Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Gujarati, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, NepaliMeans "black, dark" in Sanskrit. This is the name of a Hindu god believed to be an incarnation of the god
Vishnu. He was the youngest of King Vasudeva's eight children, six of whom were killed by King Kamsa because of a prophecy that a child of Vasudeva would kill Kamsa. Krishna however was saved and he eventually killed the king as well as performing many other great feats. In some Hindu traditions, Krishna is regarded as the supreme deity. He is usually depicted with blue skin.
LI (1)f & mChineseFrom Chinese
理 (lǐ) meaning "reason, logic",
立 (lì) meaning "stand, establish",
黎 (lí) meaning "black, dawn",
力 (lì) meaning "power, capability, influence" (which is usually only masculine) or
丽 (lì) meaning "beautiful" (usually only feminine). Other Chinese characters are also possible.
LONÁNmIrishMeans "little blackbird", derived from Irish Gaelic
lon "blackbird" combined with a diminutive suffix.
MELANIEfEnglish, German, DutchFrom
Mélanie, the French form of the Latin name
Melania, derived from Greek
μελαινα (melaina) meaning "black, dark". This was the name of a Roman saint who gave all her wealth to charity in the 5th century. Her grandmother was also a saint with the same name.
... [more] MELINAfEnglish, GreekElaboration of
Mel, either from names such as
MELISSA or from Greek
μελι (meli) meaning "honey". A famous bearer was Greek-American actress Melina Mercouri (1920-1994), who was born Maria Amalia Mercouris.
MELINDAfEnglish, HungarianCombination of
Mel (from names such as
MELANIE or
MELISSA) with the popular name suffix
inda. It was created in the 18th century, and may have been inspired by the similar name
Belinda. In Hungary, the name was popularized by the 1819 play 'Bánk Bán' by József Katona.
MERLEf & mEnglishVariant of
MERRILL or
MURIEL. The spelling has been influenced by the word
merle meaning "blackbird" (via French, from Latin
merula).
NIGELmEnglishFrom
Nigellus, a medieval Latinized form of
NEIL. It was commonly associated with Latin
niger "black". It was revived in the 19th century, perhaps in part due to Sir Walter Scott's novel 'The Fortunes of Nigel' (1822).
RAVENf & mEnglishFrom the name of the bird, ultimately from Old English
hræfn. The raven is revered by several Native American groups of the west coast. It is also associated with the Norse god
Odin.
RONNEmFrisianFrisian short form of Germanic names beginning with the element
hraban meaning "raven".
SABLEfEnglish (Modern)From the English word meaning "black", derived from the name of the black-furred mammal native to Northern Asia, ultimately of Slavic origin.
SHYAMAm & fHinduism, Indian, HindiDerived from Sanskrit
श्याम (shyama) meaning "dark, black, blue". This is a transcription of the masculine form
श्याम, which is another name of the Hindu god
Krishna, as well as the feminine form
श्यामा, one of the many names of the wife of the god
Shiva. It is also the name of a Jain goddess.
SIAVASHmPersian, Persian MythologyMeans "possessing black stallions" in Avestan. This is the name of a prince in the 11th-century Persian epic the 'Shahnameh'.
SOLONmAncient GreekPossibly from Greek
σολος (solos) meaning "lump of iron". This was the name of an Athenian statesman who reformed the laws and government of the city.
TRAHAEARNmWelshMeans "very much like iron", derived from Welsh
tra "very, over" and
haearn "iron".
VASCOmSpanish, Portuguese, ItalianFrom the medieval Spanish name
Velasco which possibly meant "crow" in Basque. A famous bearer was the 15th-century Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama, the first person to sail from Europe around Africa to India.