Names Categorized "rare english"

ACACIA f English (Rare)
From the name of a type of tree, ultimately derived from Greek ἀκή (ake) meaning "thorn, point".

ADAIR m & f English (Rare)
From an English surname that was derived from the given name EDGAR.

ADAMINA f English (Rare)
Feminine form of ADAM.

ADENA f English (Rare)
Possibly a variant of ADINA (1).

ALANIS f English (Rare)
Feminine form of ALAN. Canadian musician Alanis Morissette (1974-) was named after her father Alan. Her parents apparently decided to use this particular spelling after seeing this word in a Greek newspaper.

ALDOUS m English (Rare)
Probably a diminutive of names beginning with the Old English element eald "old". It has been in use as an English given name since the Middle Ages, mainly in East Anglia. The British author Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) was a famous bearer of this name.

ALEXANDRINA f Portuguese, English (Rare)
Elaborated form of ALEXANDRA. This was the first name of Queen Victoria; her middle name was Victoria.

ALGAR m English (Rare)
Means "elf spear" from Old English ælf "elf" and gar "spear". This Old English name was rarely used after the Norman Conquest, being absorbed by similar-sounding names and Norman and Scandinavian cognates. It was briefly revived in the 19th century.

ALITA f English (Rare)
Possibly a variant of ALETHEA.

AMABEL f English (Rare)
Medieval feminine form of AMABILIS.

AMETHYST f English (Rare)
From the name of the purple semi-precious stone, which is derived from the Greek negative prefix ἀ (a) and μέθυστος (methystos) meaning "intoxicated, drunk", as it was believed to be a remedy against drunkenness.

AMITY f English (Rare)
From the English word meaning "friendship", ultimately deriving from Latin amicitia.

ANDRINA f English (Rare)
Feminine form of ANDREW.

ANEMONE f English (Rare)
From the name of the anemone flower, which is derived from Greek ἄνεμος (anemos) meaning "wind".

ANGELLE f English (Rare)
Feminine variant of ANGEL.

ANIMA (2) f English (Rare)
Means "soul, spirit" in Latin. In Jungian psychology the anima is an individual's true inner self, or soul.

ANISE f English (Rare)
From the English word for the herb, also called aniseed.

ANNORA f English (Rare)
Medieval English variant of HONORA.

ARAMINTA f English (Rare)
Meaning unknown. This name was (first?) used by William Congreve in his comedy The Old Bachelor (1693) and later by Sir John Vanbrugh in his comedy The Confederacy (1705). This was the real name of abolitionist Harriet Tubman (1820-1913), who was born Araminta Ross.

ASTER f English (Rare)
From the name of the flower, which is derived via Latin from Greek ἀστήρ (aster) meaning "star".

ASTRA f English (Rare)
Means "star", ultimately from Greek ἀστήρ (aster). This name has only been (rarely) used since the 20th century.

ATHELSTAN m English (Archaic)
Modern form of ÆÐELSTAN. This name was revived in Britain the latter half of the 19th century.

AUBERON m English (Rare)
Norman French derivative of a Germanic name, probably ALBERICH.

AUDREA f English (Rare)
Variant of AUDREY.

AUREOLE f English (Rare)
From the English word meaning "radiant halo", ultimately derived from Latin aureolus "golden".

AVERILL m & f English (Rare)
From a surname that was originally derived from the feminine given name EOFORHILD.

AZURA f English (Rare)
Elaboration of AZURE.

AZURE f English (Rare)
From the English word that means "sky blue". It is ultimately (via Old French, Latin and Arabic) from Persian لاجورد (lajvard) meaning "azure, lapis lazuli".

BALFOUR m English (Rare)
From a Scottish surname, originally from various place names, which meant "village pasture" in Gaelic.

BERRY (2) f English (Rare)
From the English word referring to the small fruit. It is ultimately derived from Old English berie. This name has only been in use since the 20th century.

BETONY f English (Rare)
From the name of the minty medicinal herb.

BLYTHE f & m English (Rare)
From a surname meaning "cheerful" in Old English.

BRAND m English (Rare)
From a surname, a variant of BRANT.

BRANDA f English (Rare)
Perhaps a variant of BRANDY or a feminine form of BRAND.

BRIONY f English (Rare)
Variant of BRYONY.

BRYONY f English (Rare)
From the name of a type of Eurasian vine, formerly used as medicine. It ultimately derives from Greek βρύω (bryo) meaning "to swell".

BURGUNDY f English (Rare)
This name can refer either to the region in France, the wine (which derives from the name of the region), or the colour (which derives from the name of the wine).

CALANTHE f English (Rare)
From the name of a type of orchid, ultimately meaning "beautiful flower", derived from Greek καλός (kalos) meaning "beautiful" and ἄνθος (anthos) meaning "flower".

CALANTHIA f English (Rare)
Elaborated form of CALANTHE.

CARLISA f English (Rare)
Combination of CARLA and LISA.

CELANDINE f English (Rare)
From the name of the flower, which is derived from Greek χελιδών (chelidon) meaning "swallow (bird)".

CHARNETTE f English (Rare)
Probably an invented name.

CHRISTOBEL f English (Archaic)
Variant of CHRISTABEL.

CHRYSANTA f English (Rare)
Shortened form of the word chrysanthemum, the name of a flowering plant, which means "golden flower" in Greek.

CINDRA f English (Rare)
Combination of CINDY and SANDRA.

CYBILL f English (Rare)
Variant of SIBYL. This name was borne by actress Cybill Shepherd (1950-), who was named after her grandfather Cy and her father Bill.

CYPRIAN m Polish, English (Rare)
From the Roman family name Cyprianus, which meant "from Cyprus". Saint Cyprian was a 3rd-century bishop of Carthage and a martyr under the emperor Valerian.

DACIAN m Romanian
Derived from Dacia, the old Roman name for the region that is now Romania and Moldova.

DAFFODIL f English (Rare)
From the name of the flower, ultimately derived from Dutch de affodil meaning "the asphodel".

DEITRA f English (Rare)
Variant of DEIRDRE.

DIANTHA f Dutch, English (Rare)
From dianthus, the name of a type of flower (ultimately from Greek meaning "heavenly flower").

DIVINA f English (Rare)
From an elaboration of the English word divine meaning "divine, godlike".

DULCIBELLA f English (Archaic)
From Latin dulcis "sweet" and bella "beautiful". The usual medieval spelling of this name was Dowsabel, and the Latinized form Dulcibella was revived in the 18th century.

ELSDON m English (Rare)
From a surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "Elli's valley" in Old English.

EPIPHANY f English (Rare)
From the name of the Christian festival (January 6) that commemorates the visit of the Magi to the infant Jesus. It is also an English word meaning "sudden appearance" or "sudden perception", ultimately deriving from Greek ἐπιφάνεια (epiphaneia) meaning "manifestation".

ESMOND m English (Rare)
Derived from the Old English elements east "grace" and mund "protection". This Old English name was rarely used after the Norman Conquest. It was occasionally revived in the 19th century.

EUSTACE m English
English form of EUSTACHIUS or EUSTATHIUS, two names of Greek origin that have been conflated in the post-classical period. Saint Eustace, who is known under both spellings, was a 2nd-century Roman general who became a Christian after seeing a vision of a cross between the antlers of a stag he was hunting. He was burned to death for refusing to worship the Roman gods and is now regarded as the patron saint of hunters. Due to him, this name was common in England during the Middle Ages, though it is presently rare.

EUSTACIA f English (Rare)
Feminine form of EUSTACE.

EVERARD m English (Rare)
Means "brave boar", derived from the Germanic elements ebur "wild boar" and hard "brave, hardy". The Normans introduced it to England, where it joined the Old English cognate Eoforheard. It has only been rarely used since the Middle Ages. Modern use of the name may be inspired by the surname Everard, itself derived from the medieval name.

FANCY f English (Rare)
From the English word fancy, which means either "like, love, inclination" or "ornamental". It is derived from Middle English fantasie, which comes (via Norman French and Latin) from Greek φαίνω (phaino) meaning "to show, to appear".

FLOWER f English (Rare)
Simply from the English word flower for the blossoming plant. It is derived (via Old French) from Latin flos.

GARDENIA f English (Rare)
From the name of the tropical flower, which was named for the Scottish naturalist Alexander Garden (1730-1791).

GLADWIN m English (Rare)
From a surname that was derived from the Old English given name GLÆDWINE.

GLANVILLE m English (Rare)
From an English surname that was taken from a Norman place name, which possibly meant "domain of (a person named) Gland" in Old French.

GLORIANA f English (Rare)
Elaborated form of Latin gloria meaning "glory". In Edmund Spenser's poem The Faerie Queene (1590) this was the name of the title character, a representation of Queen Elizabeth I.

GOODWIN m English (Rare)
From a surname that was derived from the given name GODWINE.

HAMNET m English (Archaic)
Diminutive of HAMO. This was the name of a son of Shakespeare who died in childhood. His death may have provided the inspiration for his father's play Hamlet.

HYACINTH (2) f English (Rare)
From the name of the flower (or the precious stone that also bears this name), ultimately from Greek hyakinthos (see HYACINTHUS).

JONQUIL f English (Rare)
From the English word for the type of flower, derived ultimately from Latin iuncus "reed".

JOSEPHA f German (Archaic), English (Rare)
Feminine form of JOSEPH.

KELIA f English (Rare)
Meaning unknown, perhaps an invented name.

KESTREL f English (Rare)
From the name of the bird of prey, ultimately derived from Old French crecelle "rattle", which refers to the sound of its cry.

LAURENCIA f English (Rare)
Feminine form of LAURENCE (1).

LEMOINE m English (Rare)
From a French surname meaning "the monk" in French.

LEWIN m English (Rare)
From an English surname that was derived from the given name LEOFWINE.

LOLICIA f English (Rare)
Elaborated form of LOLA.

LUVENIA f English
Possibly a form of LAVINIA. It has been used in America since the 19th century.

MAITLAND m & f English (Rare)
From an English surname that was from a Norman French place name possibly meaning "inhospitable".

MALANDRA f English (Rare)
Invented name using the popular name suffix andra, from names such as SANDRA or ALEXANDRA.

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

MARVYN m English (Rare)
Variant of MARVIN.

MELESINA f English (Rare)
Perhaps a form of MILLICENT. It was borne by the Irish writer and socialite Melesina Trench (1768-1827).

MERCIA f English (Rare)
Latinate form of MERCY. This was also the name of an old Anglo-Saxon kingdom, though it has a different origin.

NORMINA f English (Rare)
Elaborated form of NORMA.

OTTOLINE f English (Rare)
Diminutive of OTTILIE. A famous bearer was the British socialite Lady Ottoline Morrell (1873-1938).

PERMELIA f English (Archaic)
Meaning unknown, possibly an early American alteration of PAMELA.

PETULA f English (Rare)
Meaning unknown, created in the 20th century. The name is borne by the British singer Petula Clark (1932-), whose name was invented by her father.

PETUNIA f English (Rare)
From the name of the flower, derived ultimately from a Tupi (South American) word.

PRIMULA f English (Rare)
From the name of a genus of several species of flowers, including the primrose. It is derived from the Latin word primulus meaning "very first".

QUINTELLA f English (Rare)
Feminine diminutive of QUINTUS.

RICHARDINE f English (Rare)
Feminine form of RICHARD.

RONNETTE f English (Rare)
Feminine form of RONALD.

RYANA f English (Rare)
Feminine variant of RYAN.

SABELLA f English (Rare)
Short form of ISABELLA.

SAPPHIRE f English (Rare)
From the name of the gemstone, the blue birthstone of September, which is derived from Greek σάπφειρος (sappheiros), ultimately from the Hebrew word סַפִּיר (sappir).

SELA f English (Rare)
From the name of a city, the capital of Edom, which appears in the Old Testament. It means "rock" in Hebrew.

SIMONETTE f English (Rare)
Diminutive of SIMONE (1).

SINCLAIR m & f English (Rare)
From a surname that was derived from a Norman French town called "Saint CLAIR". A notable bearer was the American author Sinclair Lewis (1885-1951).

TACEY f English (Archaic)
Derived from Latin tace meaning "be silent". It was in use from the 16th century, though it died out two centuries later.

TEMPEST f English (Rare)
From the English word meaning "storm". It appears in the title of William Shakespeare's play The Tempest (1611).

TOPAZ f English (Rare)
From the English word for the yellow precious stone, the birthstone of November, ultimately derived from Greek τόπαζος (topazos).

ULYSSA f English (Rare)
Feminine form of ULYSSES.

VENETIA f English (Rare), Greek
Originally this was probably a Latinized form of GWYNEDD or GWYNETH. It also coincides with the Latin name of the city of Venice in Italy. This name was borne by the celebrated beauty Venetia Stanley (1600-1633). Benjamin Disraeli used it in his novel entitled Venetia (1837).... [more]

XANTHIA f English (Rare)
Modern elaborated form of XANTHE.

XAVIA f English (Rare)
Modern feminine form of XAVIER.

XAVIERA f English (Rare)
Feminine form of XAVIER.

ZAVIA f English (Rare)
Modern feminine form of XAVIER.

ZENIA f English (Rare)
Variant of XENIA.