ADAM m English, French, German, Polish, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Czech, Slovak, Russian, Ukrainian, Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian, Romanian, Catalan, Hebrew, Arabic, Georgian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek, Biblical HebrewThis is the Hebrew word for
"man". It could be ultimately derived from Hebrew
אדם ('adam) meaning
"to be red", referring to the ruddy colour of human skin, or from Akkadian
adamu meaning
"to make".
... [more] ALEXANDRA f English, German, Dutch, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Greek, Portuguese, Romanian, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Catalan, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Ukrainian, Ancient Greek, Greek MythologyFeminine form of
ALEXANDER. In Greek mythology this was a Mycenaean epithet of the goddess
Hera, and an alternate name of
Cassandra. It was borne by several early Christian saints, and also by the wife of Nicholas II, the last czar of Russia. She was from Germany and had the birth name
Alix, but was renamed
Александра (Aleksandra) upon joining the Russian Church.
ANDREA (2) f English, German, Spanish, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Dutch, Croatian, SerbianFeminine form of
ANDREW. As an English name, it has been used since the 17th century, though it was not common until the 20th century.
ANGELA f English, Italian, German, Dutch, Romanian, Slovene, Slovak, Russian, Macedonian, Late RomanFeminine form of
Angelus (see
ANGEL). As an English name, it came into use in the 18th century.
BARBARA f English, Italian, French, German, Polish, Hungarian, Slovene, Croatian, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Late RomanDerived from Greek
βάρβαρος (barbaros) meaning
"foreign". According to legend, Saint Barbara was a young woman killed by her father Dioscorus, who was then killed by a bolt of lightning. She is the patron of architects, geologists, stonemasons and artillerymen. Because of her renown, the name came into general use in the Christian world in the Middle Ages. In England it became rare after the Protestant Reformation, but it was revived in the 19th century.
BRENDA f EnglishPossibly a feminine form of the Old Norse name
Brandr, meaning
"sword", which was brought to Britain in the Middle Ages. This name is sometimes used as a feminine form of
BRENDAN.
CHRISTINA f English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, GreekFrom
Christiana, the Latin feminine form of
CHRISTIAN. This was the name of an early, possibly legendary, saint who was tormented by her pagan father. It was also borne by a 17th-century Swedish queen and patron the arts who gave up her crown in order to become a Roman Catholic.
DANIELLE f French, EnglishFrench feminine form of
DANIEL. It has been commonly used in the English-speaking world only since the 20th century.
DOREEN f EnglishCombination of
DORA and the name suffix
een. The name was (first?) used by novelist Edna Lyall in her novel
Doreen (1894).
DOUGLAS m Scottish, EnglishAnglicized form of the Scottish surname
Dubhghlas, meaning
"dark river" from Gaelic
dubh "dark" and
glais "water, river" (an archaic word related to
glas "grey, green"). Douglas was originally a place name (for example, a tributary of the River Clyde), which then became a Scottish clan name borne by a powerful line of earls. It has been used as a given name since the 16th century.
EDITH f English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, DutchFrom the Old English name
Eadgyð, derived from the elements
ead "wealth, fortune" and
gyð "war". It was popular among Anglo-Saxon royalty, being borne for example by Saint Eadgyeth;, the daughter of King Edgar the Peaceful. The name remained common after the Norman Conquest. It became rare after the 15th century, but was revived in the 19th century.
ERIN f English, IrishAnglicized form of
EIREANN. It has been used as a given name since the middle of the 20th century.
GORDON m Scottish, EnglishFrom a Scottish surname that was originally derived from a place name in Berwickshire meaning
"spacious fort". It was originally used in honour of Charles George Gordon (1833-1885), a British general who died defending the city of Khartoum in Sudan.
HAROLD m EnglishFrom the Old English name
Hereweald, derived from the elements
here "army" and
weald "power, leader, ruler". The Old Norse cognate
Haraldr was also common among Scandinavian settlers in England. This was the name of five kings of Norway and three kings of Denmark. It was also borne by two kings of England, both of whom were from mixed Scandinavian and Anglo-Saxon backgrounds, including Harold II who lost the Battle of Hastings (and was killed in it), which led to the Norman Conquest. After the conquest the name died out, but it was eventually revived in the 19th century.
HUNTER m & f EnglishFrom an occupational English surname for a hunter, derived from Old English
hunta. A famous bearer was the eccentric American journalist Hunter S. Thompson (1937-2005).
IRENE f English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, German, Dutch, Ancient Greek (Latinized), Greek Mythology (Latinized)From Greek
Εἰρήνη (Eirene), derived from a word meaning
"peace". This was the name of the Greek goddess who personified peace, one of the
Ὥραι (Horai). It was also borne by several early Christian saints. The name was common in the Byzantine Empire, notably being borne by an 8th-century empress, who was the first woman to lead the empire. She originally served as regent for her son, but later had him killed and ruled alone.
... [more] JEAN (2) f English, ScottishMedieval English variant of
Jehanne (see
JANE). It was common in England and Scotland during the Middle Ages, but eventually became rare in England. It was reintroduced to the English-speaking world from Scotland in the 19th century.
JORDAN m & f English, French, Macedonian, SerbianFrom the name of the river that flows between the countries of Jordan and Israel. The river's name in Hebrew is
יַרְדֵן (Yarden), and it is derived from
יָרַד (yarad) meaning
"descend" or
"flow down". In the New Testament
John the Baptist baptizes
Jesus Christ in its waters, and it was adopted as a personal name in Europe after crusaders brought water back from the river to baptize their children. There may have been some influence from the Germanic name
JORDANES, notably borne by a 6th-century Gothic historian.
... [more] JUSTIN m English, French, SloveneFrom the Latin name
Iustinus, which was derived from
JUSTUS. This was the name of several early saints including Justin Martyr, a Christian philosopher of the 2nd century who was beheaded in Rome. It was also borne by two Byzantine emperors. As an English name, it has occasionally been used since the late Middle Ages, though it did not become common until the 20th century. Famous modern bearers include pop stars Justin Timberlake (1981-) and Justin Bieber (1994-).
KENNETH m Scottish, English, Swedish, Norwegian, DanishAnglicized form of both
COINNEACH and
CINÁED. This name was borne by the Scottish king Kenneth (Cináed) mac Alpin, who united the Scots and Picts in the 9th century. It was popularized outside of Scotland by Sir Walter Scott, who used it for the hero in his 1825 novel
The Talisman. A famous bearer was the British novelist Kenneth Grahame (1859-1932), who wrote
The Wind in the Willows.
KEVIN m English, Irish, French (Modern), Spanish (Modern), German (Modern), Dutch (Modern), Swedish (Modern), Norwegian (Modern), Danish (Modern)Anglicized form of the Irish name
Caoimhín meaning
"handsome birth", derived from the older
Cóemgein, composed of the Old Irish elements
cóem "kind, gentle, handsome" and
gein "birth". Saint Caoimhín established a monastery in Glendalough, Ireland in the 6th century and is the patron saint of Dublin. It became popular in the English-speaking world outside of Ireland in the middle of the 20th century, and elsewhere in Europe in the late 20th century.
KYLE m EnglishFrom a Scottish surname that was derived from Gaelic
caol meaning
"narrows, channel, strait".
LINDA f English, German, Dutch, Italian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, French, Latvian, Finnish, Estonian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, Ancient GermanicOriginally a medieval short form of Germanic names containing the element
lind meaning
"flexible, soft, mild". It also coincides with the Spanish and Portuguese word
linda meaning
"beautiful". In the English-speaking world this name experienced a spike in popularity beginning in the 1930s, peaking in the late 1940s, and declining shortly after that. It was the most popular name for girls in the United States from 1947 to 1952.
LINDSAY f & m English, ScottishFrom an English and Scottish surname that was originally derived from the name of the region
Lindsey, which means "
LINCOLN island" in Old English. As a given name it was typically masculine until the 1960s (in Britain) and 1970s (in America) when it became popular for girls, probably due to its similarity to
Linda and because of American actress Lindsay Wagner (1949-).
LOGAN m & f Scottish, EnglishFrom a surname that was originally derived from a Scottish place name meaning
"little hollow" in Scottish Gaelic.
MARILYN f EnglishCombination of
MARY and
lyn. It has been used since the start of the 20th century. A famous bearer was the American actress Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962).
MARJORIE f EnglishMedieval variant of
MARGERY, influenced by the name of the herb
marjoram. After the Middle Ages this name was rare, but it was revived at the end of the 19th century.
PHYLLIS f Greek Mythology, EnglishMeans
"foliage" in Greek. In Greek mythology this was the name of a woman who killed herself out of love for Demophon and was subsequently transformed into an almond tree. It began to be used as a given name in England in the 16th century, though it was often confused with
Felicia.
RONALD m Scottish, English, Dutch, GermanScottish form of
RAGNVALDR, a name introduced to Scotland by Scandinavian settlers and invaders. It became popular outside Scotland during the 20th century. A famous bearer was American actor and president Ronald Reagan (1911-2004).
SHANNON f & m EnglishFrom the name of the River Shannon, the longest river in Ireland, called
Abha an tSionainn in Irish. It is associated with the goddess
Sionann and is sometimes said to be named for her. However it is more likely the goddess was named after the river, which may be related to Old Irish
sen "old, ancient". As a given name, it first became common in America after the 1940s.
SHIRLEY f & m EnglishFrom a surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning
"bright clearing" in Old English. This is the name of a main character in Charlotte Brontë's semi-autobiographical novel
Shirley (1849). The child actress Shirley Temple (1928-2014) helped to popularize this name.
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.