Ælfwine m Anglo-SaxonDerived from the Old English elements
ælf "elf" and
wine "friend". This name was not commonly used after the Norman Conquest.
Æðelwine m Anglo-SaxonDerived from the Old English elements
æðel "noble" and
wine "friend". This name became rare after the Norman Conquest. Saint Æðelwine was a 7th-century bishop of Lindsey, England.
Alvin m English, SwedishFrom a medieval form of any of the Old English names
Ælfwine,
Æðelwine or
Ealdwine. It was revived in the 19th century, in part from a surname that was derived from the Old English names. As a Scandinavian name it is derived from
Alfvin, an Old Norse cognate of
Ælfwine.
Amice f Medieval EnglishMedieval name derived from Latin
amicus meaning
"friend". This was a popular name in the Middle Ages, though it has since become uncommon.
Amika f EsperantoMeans
"friendly" in Esperanto, ultimately from Latin
amicus "friend".
Amista f ChamorroMeans
"loyalty" in Chamorro, derived from Spanish
amistad "friendship".
Amity f English (Rare)From the English word meaning
"friendship", ultimately deriving from Latin
amicitia.
Amyas m English (Rare)Meaning unknown, perhaps a derivative of
Amis. Alternatively, it may come from a surname that originally indicated that the bearer was from the city of Amiens in France. Edmund Spenser used this name for a minor character in his epic poem
The Faerie Queene (1590).
Anas m ArabicMeans
"friendliness" in Arabic. This was the name of one of the Prophet
Muhammad's companions.
Anissa f EnglishThis name was first brought to public attention in 1966 by the child actress Anissa Jones (1958-1976). In her case it was a transcription of the Arabic name
أنيسة (see
Anisa), given to honour her Lebanese heritage. Other parents who have since used this name may view it simply as an elaboration of
Anna using the popular name suffix
issa.
Astrophel m LiteratureProbably intended to mean "star lover", from Greek
ἀστήρ (aster) meaning "star" and
φίλος (philos) meaning "lover, friend". This name was first used by the 16th-century poet Sir Philip Sidney in his collection of sonnets
Astrophel and Stella.
Baldwin m English, Ancient GermanicMeans
"bold friend", derived from the Germanic elements
bald "bold, brave" and
win "friend". In the Middle Ages this was a popular name in Flanders and among the Normans, who brought it to Britain. It was borne by one of the leaders of the First Crusade, an 11th-century nobleman from Flanders. After the crusaders conquered Jerusalem, he was crowned as the king of the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
Benigno m Spanish, Italian, Portuguese (Rare)Spanish, Italian and Portuguese form of the Late Latin name
Benignus, which meant
"kind, friendly". This was the name of several saints including a 5th-century disciple of Saint
Patrick who later became the chief Bishop of Ireland.
Buddy m EnglishFrom the English word meaning
"friend". It probably originated as a nursery form of the word
brother.
Cara f EnglishFrom an Italian word meaning
"beloved" or an Irish word meaning
"friend". It has been used as a given name since the 19th century, though it did not become popular until after the 1950s.
Dakota m & f English (Modern)From the name of the Native American people of the northern Mississippi Valley, or from the two American states that were named for them: North and South Dakota (until 1889 unified as the Dakota Territory). The tribal name means
"allies, friends" in the Dakota language.
... [more] Edwin m English, DutchMeans
"rich friend", from the Old English elements
ead "wealth, fortune" and
wine "friend". This was the name of a 7th-century Northumbrian king, regarded as a saint. After the Norman Conquest the name was not popular, but it was eventually revived in the 19th century. A notable bearer was the astronaut Edwin Aldrin (1930-), also known as Buzz, the second man to walk on the moon.
Emre m TurkishMeans
"friend, brother" in Turkish. This name was borne by the 13th-century Turkish poet Yunus Emre.
Eoforwine m Anglo-SaxonDerived from the Old English elements
eofor "boar" and
wine "friend". This name was rarely used after the Norman Conquest.
Erwin m German, Dutch, Polish, Ancient GermanicDerived from the Germanic name
Hariwini, composed of the elements
hari "army" and
win "friend". It may have merged somewhat with the Germanic name
Eburwin. A notable bearer was Erwin Schrödinger (1887-1961), an Austrian physicist who made contributions to quantum theory.
Faunus m Roman MythologyPossibly means
"to befriend" from Latin. Faunus was a Roman god of fertility, forests, and agriculture.
Glædwine m Anglo-SaxonOld English name derived from the elements
glæd "bright" and
wine "friend". This name was not actually recorded in the Old English era, though it is attested starting in the 11th century.
Godwine m Anglo-SaxonMeans
"friend of god", derived from Old English
god combined with
wine "friend". This was the name of the powerful 11th-century Earl of Wessex, the father of King Harold II of England.
Leofwine m Anglo-SaxonMeans
"dear friend", derived from the Old English elements
leof "dear, agreeable, beloved" and
wine "friend". This was the name of an 8th-century English saint, also known as
Lebuin, who did missionary work in Frisia.
Ludivine f FrenchPossibly from a feminine form of
Leutwin. It was popularized in the 1970s by a character from the television miniseries
Les Gens de Mogador.
Maldwyn m WelshFrom
Maldwyn, another name for the old Welsh county of Montgomeryshire. It is so called from
Trefaldwyn, the Welsh name for the county town of Montgomery, misinterpreting it as if meaning "town of Maldwyn". In fact it means "town of
Baldwin" (in Welsh both
m and
b mutate to
f).
Marvin m English, GermanFrom an English surname that was derived from the Welsh given name
Merfyn or the Old English name
Mærwine. As an American given name, it steadily rose in popularity through the beginnings of the 20th century and peaked in the early 1930s (closely mirroring the similar-sounding but unrelated name
Melvin). A famous bearer was the American musician Marvin Gaye (1939-1984).
Mehr m & f Persian, Persian MythologyModern Persian form of
Mithra. As a Persian vocabulary word it means
"friendship" and
"sun". It is also the name of the seventh month of the Persian calendar. All these derive from the same source: the Indo-Iranian root *
mitra meaning "oath, covenant, agreement".
Mehrnaz f PersianFrom Persian
مهر (mehr) meaning "friendship" or "sun" and
ناز (naz) meaning "delight, comfort". This is the name of a character in the 10th-century Persian epic the
Shahnameh.
Mithra m Persian MythologyDerived from an Indo-Iranian root *
mitra meaning
"oath, covenant, agreement". In Persian mythology he was a god of light and friendship, the son of the supreme god
Ahura Mazda. Worship of him eventually spread outside of Persia, where it was known as Mithraism.
Mitra 1 m & f Hinduism, Indian, HindiMeans
"friend" in Sanskrit, a cognate of
Mithra. This is a transcription of both the feminine form
मित्रा and the masculine form
मित्र, which is the name of a Hindu god of friendship and contracts who appears in the Rigveda.
Mitra 2 f PersianModern variant of
Mithra used as a feminine name. The true Modern Persian form of
Mithra is in fact
Mehr.
Nadim m Arabic, UrduMeans
"drinking companion", derived from Arabic
ندم (nadima) meaning "to drink together".
Naji m ArabicMeans
"intimate friend" in Arabic. This can also be another way of transcribing the name
ناجي (see
Naaji).
Oswin m English (Rare)From the Old English elements
os "god" and
wine "friend". Saint Oswin was a 7th-century king of Northumbria. After the Norman Conquest this name was used less, and it died out after the 14th century. It was briefly revived in the 19th century.
Panfilo m ItalianItalian form of
Pamphilos. The Italian novelist Boccaccio used this name in his work
The Decameron (1350).
Phil m EnglishShort form of
Philip and various other names beginning with
Phil, often a Greek element meaning "friend, dear, beloved".
Philibert m FrenchEarly variant of
Filibert altered by association with Greek
φίλος (philos) meaning "friend, lover". This was the name of a 7th-century Frankish saint. Another famous bearer was Philibert de l'Orme (1510-1570), a French Renaissance architect.
Philip m English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, BiblicalFrom the Greek name
Φίλιππος (Philippos) meaning
"friend of horses", composed of the elements
φίλος (philos) meaning "friend, lover" and
ἵππος (hippos) meaning "horse". This was the name of five kings of Macedon, including Philip II the father of Alexander the Great. The name appears in the New Testament belonging to two people who are regarded as saints. First, one of the twelve apostles, and second, an early figure in the Christian church known as Philip the Deacon.
... [more] Philomel f LiteratureFrom an English word meaning
"nightingale" (ultimately from
Philomela). It has been used frequently in poetry to denote the bird.
Philomela f Greek Mythology (Latinized)From Greek
Φιλομήλη (Philomele), derived from
φίλος (philos) meaning "lover, friend" and
μῆλον (melon) meaning "fruit". The second element has also been interpreted as Greek
μέλος (melos) meaning "song". In Greek myth Philomela was the sister-in-law of Tereus, who raped her and cut out her tongue. Prokne avenged her sister by killing her son by Tereus, after which Tereus attempted to kill Philomela. However, the gods intervened and transformed her into a nightingale.
Philomena f English, German, Ancient Greek (Latinized)From Greek
Φιλουμένη (Philoumene) meaning
"to be loved", an inflection of
φιλέω (phileo) meaning "to love". This was the name of an obscure early saint and martyr. The name came to public attention in 1802 after a tomb seemingly marked with the name
Filumena was found in Rome, supposedly belonging to another martyr named Philomena. This may have in fact been a representation of the Greek word
φιλουμένη, not a name.
Reuel m Biblical, Biblical HebrewMeans
"friend of God" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this is another name for
Jethro. The fantasy author John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (1892-1973) was a famous bearer.
Reut f HebrewMeans
"friendship" in Hebrew, making it a variant of the biblical name
Ruth.
Rūta f Lithuanian, LatvianMeans
"rue" in Lithuanian, the rue plant being a bitter medicinal herb that is a national symbol of Lithuania. This is also the Lithuanian form of
Ruth 1.
Selwyn m English (Rare)From a surname that was originally derived from an Old English given name, which was formed of the elements
sele "manor" and
wine "friend".
Tomoko f JapaneseFrom Japanese
智 (tomo) meaning "wisdom, intellect" or
朋 (tomo) meaning "friend" combined with
子 (ko) meaning "child". This name can be formed of other kanji characters as well.
Tomomi f & m JapaneseFrom Japanese
智 (tomo) meaning "wisdom, intellect" or
朋 (tomo) meaning "friend" combined with
美 (mi) meaning "beautiful" or
実 (mi) meaning "fruit, good result, truth". Other kanji combinations can also form this name.
Wenche f NorwegianNorwegian variant of
Wenke. A famous bearer is the Norwegian singer Wenche Myhre (1947-), known as
Wencke in some countries so as to avoid pronunciation confusion.
Wendy f EnglishIn the case of the character from J. M. Barrie's play
Peter Pan (1904), it was created from the nickname
fwendy "friend", given to the author by a young friend. However, the name was used prior to the play (rarely), in which case it could be related to the Welsh name
Gwendolen and other names beginning with the element
gwen meaning "white, fair, blessed". The name only became common after Barrie's play ran.
Wenke f Low GermanLow German diminutive of Germanic names containing the element
win meaning
"friend".
Winfred m EnglishMeans
"friend of peace" from the Old English elements
wine "friend" and
friþ "peace". This was the birth name of the 8th-century missionary Saint Boniface. It became rare after the Norman Conquest, though it was revived in the 19th century.
Yumi f JapaneseFrom Japanese
弓 (yumi) meaning "archery bow". It can also come from
由 (yu) meaning "reason, cause",
友 (yu) meaning "friend" or a nanori reading of
弓 (yu) meaning "archery bow" combined with
美 (mi) meaning "beautiful". Other kanji or kanji combinations are also possible.