Abital f BiblicalMeans
"my father is the night dew" in Hebrew. She is the fifth wife of
David in the Old Testament.
Arethusa f Greek Mythology (Latinized)From Greek
Ἀρέθουσα (Arethousa) meaning
"quick water", which is possibly derived from
ἄρδω (ardo) meaning "water" and
θοός (thoos) meaning "quick, nimble". This was the name of a nymph in Greek mythology who was transformed into a fountain.
Brennan m Irish, EnglishFrom an Irish surname derived from
Ó Braonáin meaning
"descendant of Braonán".
Braonán is a byname meaning "rain, moisture, drop" (with a diminutive suffix).
Brook m & f EnglishFrom an English surname that denoted one who lived near a brook.
Delta f EnglishFrom the name of the fourth letter in the Greek alphabet,
Δ. It is also the name for an island formed at the mouth of a river.
Ema 2 f JapaneseFrom Japanese
恵 (e) meaning "favour, benefit" or
江 (e) meaning "bay, inlet" combined with
麻 (ma) meaning "flax". Other kanji combinations can also form this name.
Endla f EstonianFrom the name of an Estonian lake, which often appears in folk poetry. The lake's name is ultimately derived from the medieval personal name
Ent or
Endo.
Glaw m & f WelshMeans
"rain" in Welsh. This is a modern Welsh name.
Hai m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
海 (hǎi) meaning "sea, ocean" or other characters that are pronounced similarly.
Hyeon-U m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
賢 (hyeon) meaning "virtuous, worthy, able" or
顯 (hyeon) meaning "manifest, clear" combined with
祐 (u) meaning "divine intervention, protection" or
雨 (u) meaning "rain". This name can be formed by other hanja character combinations as well.
Jiang m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
江 (jiāng) meaning "river, Yangtze", as well as other characters with a similar pronunciation.
Ji-U f & m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
芝 (ji) meaning "sesame" or
志 (ji) meaning "will, purpose, ambition" combined with
雨 (u) meaning "rain" or
宇 (u) meaning "house, eaves, universe". Other combinations of hanja characters can form this name as well.
Kasumi f JapaneseFrom Japanese
霞 (kasumi) meaning "mist". It can also come from
花 (ka) meaning "flower, blossom" combined with
澄 (sumi) meaning "clear, pure". Other kanji combinations are also possible.
Kelvin m EnglishFrom the name of a Scottish river, perhaps meaning
"narrow water". As a title it was borne by the Irish-Scottish physicist William Thomson, Lord Kelvin (1824-1907), who acquired his title from the river.
Kerr m Scottish, English (Rare)From a Scottish surname that was derived from a place name meaning
"rough wet ground" in Old Norse.
Khnum m Egyptian MythologyFrom Egyptian
ẖnmw (reconstructed as
Khenmu or
Khnemu), derived from
ẖnm meaning
"to unite". This was the name of an early Egyptian god associated with fertility, water and the Nile. He was often depicted as a man with the head of a ram, sometimes with a potter's wheel.
Lan 1 f & m Chinese, VietnameseFrom Chinese
兰 (lán) meaning "orchid, elegant" (which is usually only feminine) or
岚 (lán) meaning "mountain mist". Other Chinese characters can form this name as well. As a Vietnamese name, it is derived from Sino-Vietnamese
蘭 meaning "orchid".
Leili f EstonianProbably from
Laila 2, but also associated with Estonian
leil meaning
"vapour, steam". It became popular due to Andres Saal's novel
Leili (1892).
Leith m & f English (Rare)From a surname, originally from the name of a Scottish town (now a district of Edinburgh), which is derived from Gaelic
lìte "wet, damp". It is also the name of the river that flows though Edinburgh.
Melusine f MythologyMeaning unknown. In European folklore Melusine was a water fairy who turned into a serpent from the waist down every Saturday. She made her husband, Raymond of Poitou, promise that he would never see her on that day, and when he broke his word she left him forever.
Milford m EnglishFrom an English surname that was originally derived from various place names all meaning
"ford by a mill" in Old English.
Misty f EnglishFrom the English word
misty, ultimately derived from Old English. The jazz song
Misty (1954) by Erroll Garner may have helped popularize the name.
Mortimer m EnglishFrom an English surname that was derived from the name of a town in Normandy, itself meaning
"dead water, still water" in Old French.
Nada 1 f ArabicMeans either
"generosity" or
"dew" in Arabic.
Napoleon m History, EnglishFrom the old Italian name
Napoleone, used most notably by the French emperor Napoléon Bonaparte (1769-1821), who was born on Corsica. The etymology is uncertain, but it is possibly derived from the Germanic
Nibelungen meaning
"sons of mist", a name used in Germanic mythology to refer to the keepers of a hoard of treasure (often identified with the Burgundians). Alternatively, it could be connected to the name of the Italian city of Napoli (Naples).
Nechtan m Irish Mythology, Ancient CelticCeltic name of uncertain meaning, possibly meaning
"damp" (cognate with
Neptune). In Irish mythology Nechtan was the husband of Boand, the goddess of the River Boyne. This name was also borne by the 5th-century Saint Nectan of Hartland in Devon, who was supposedly born in Ireland. It was also the name of several kings of the Picts.
Neith f Egyptian Mythology (Hellenized)Greek form of Egyptian
nt, possibly from
nt "water" or
nrw "fear, dread". This was the name of an early Egyptian goddess of weaving, hunting and war. Her character may have some correspondences with the goddesses
Tanith,
Anat or
Athena.
Nerina f ItalianProbably from Greek
Νηρηΐδες (see
Nereida). This name was used by Torquato Tasso for a character in his play
Aminta (1573), and subsequently by Giacomo Leopardi in his poem
Le Ricordanze (1829).
Ngaire f MaoriPossibly from the name of the town of
Ngaere in New Zealand, of Maori origin meaning
"wetland".
Noelani f HawaiianMeans
"heavenly mist" from Hawaiian
noe "mist" and
lani "heaven, sky, royal, majesty".
Phirun m KhmerMeans
"rain" in Khmer, from the name of a rain god in the mythologies of southeast Asia. The god's name is possibly derived from
Varuna.
Poseidon m Greek MythologyPossibly derived from Greek
πόσις (posis) meaning "husband, lord" and
δᾶ (da) meaning "earth". The name first appears in Mycenaean Greek inscriptions as
po-se-da-o. In Greek mythology Poseidon was the unruly god of the sea and earthquakes, the brother of
Zeus. He was often depicted carrying a trident and riding in a chariot drawn by white horses.
Rafferty m EnglishFrom an Irish surname that was an Anglicized form of
Ó Rabhartaigh meaning
"descendant of Rabhartach". The given name
Rabhartach means "flood tide".
Rocío f SpanishMeans
"dew" in Spanish. It is taken from the title of the Virgin
Mary María del Rocío meaning "Mary of the Dew".
Rosemary f EnglishCombination of
Rose and
Mary. This name can also be given in reference to the herb, which gets its name from Latin
ros marinus meaning "dew of the sea". It came into use as a given name in the 19th century.
Roswell m EnglishFrom a surname that was derived from an Old English place name meaning
"horse spring".
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.
Si-U m KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
始 (si) meaning "begin, start" combined with
祐 (u) meaning "divine intervention, protection" or
雨 (u) meaning "rain". Other combinations of hanja characters can form this name as well.
Takumi m JapaneseFrom Japanese
匠 (takumi) meaning "artisan" or
巧 (takumi) meaning "skillful". It can also come from
拓 (taku) meaning "expand, open, support" combined with
海 (mi) meaning "sea, ocean" or
実 (mi) meaning "fruit, good result, truth". This name can also be formed of other kanji combinations.
Talia 2 f English (Australian)From the name of a town in South Australia, perhaps meaning
"near water" in an Australian Aboriginal language.
Terhi f FinnishShort form of
Terhenetär, which was derived from Finnish
terhen meaning
"mist". In the Finnish epic the
Kalevala Terhenetär is a sprite associated with mist and forests.
Undine f LiteratureDerived from Latin
unda meaning
"wave". The word
undine was created by the 16th-century Swiss author Paracelsus, who used it for female water spirits.
Walton m EnglishFrom a surname that was originally taken from various Old English place names meaning
"stream town",
"wood town", or
"wall town".
Yu f & m ChineseFrom Chinese
玉 (yù) meaning "jade, precious stone, gem",
愉 (yú) meaning "pleasant, delightful" or
雨 (yǔ) meaning "rain". Other characters can form this name as well.
Zedong m & f ChineseFrom Chinese
泽 (zé) meaning "moist, grace, brilliance" combined with
东 (dōng) meaning "east", as well as other character combinations. A notable bearer was the founder of the People's Republic of China, Mao Zedong (1893-1976).