AISHAfArabic, Urdu, AmericanMeans "alive" in Arabic. This was the name of
Muhammad's third wife, the daughter of
Abu Bakr. Some time after Muhammad's death she went to war against
Ali, the fourth caliph, but was defeated. This name is used more by Sunni Muslims and less by Shias.
... [more] ALISONfEnglish, FrenchNorman French diminutive of
Aalis (see
ALICE). It was common in England, Scotland and France in the Middle Ages, and was later revived in England in the 20th century via Scotland. Unlike most other English names ending in
son, it is not derived from a surname.
ALMA (1)fEnglish, Spanish, Italian, DutchThis name became popular after the Battle of Alma (1854), which took place near the River Alma in Crimea and ended in a victory for Britain and France. However, the name was in rare use before the battle; it was probably inspired by Latin
almus "nourishing". It also coincides with the Spanish word meaning "the soul".
AUSTINmEnglishMedieval contracted form of
AUGUSTINE (1). Modern use of the name is probably also partly inspired by the common surname
Austin, which is of the same origin. This is also the name of a city in Texas.
BUCKmEnglishFrom an English nickname meaning simply "buck, male deer", ultimately from Old English
bucc.
CAINmBiblical, Biblical LatinMeans "acquired" in Hebrew. In Genesis in the Old Testament Cain is the first son of
Adam and
Eve. He killed his brother
Abel after God accepted Abel's offering of meat instead of his offering of plant-based foods. After this Cain was banished to be a wanderer.
CECILIAfEnglish, Italian, Spanish, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Dutch, Romanian, Finnish, GermanLatinate feminine form of the Roman family name
Caecilius, which was derived from Latin
caecus "blind". Saint Cecilia was a semi-legendary 2nd- or 3rd-century martyr who was sentenced to die because she refused to worship the Roman gods. After attempts to suffocate her failed, she was beheaded. She was later regarded as the patron saint of music and musicians.
... [more] CHESTERmEnglishFrom a surname which originally belonged to a person who came from Chester, an old Roman settlement in Britain. The name of the settlement came from Latin
castrum "camp, fortress".
CLIVEmEnglishFrom a surname meaning "cliff" in Old English, originally belonging to a person who lived near a cliff.
DANA (2)m & fEnglishFrom a surname which originally belonged to a person who was Danish. It was originally given in honour of American lawyer Richard Henry Dana (1815-1882), the author of 'Two Years Before the Mast'.
DRAKEmEnglishFrom an English surname derived from the Old Norse byname
Draki or the Old English byname
Draca both meaning "dragon", both via Latin from Greek
δρακων (drakon) meaning "dragon, serpent". This name coincides with the unrelated English word
drake meaning "male duck".
ELENAfItalian, Spanish, Romanian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Slovak, Lithuanian, Russian, Greek, German, Medieval SlavicCognate of
HELEN, and a variant transcription of Russian
YELENA.
EPONAfCeltic MythologyDerived from Gaulish
epos meaning "horse". This was the name of the Celtic goddess of horses.
FRANZmGermanGerman form of
Franciscus (see
FRANCIS). This name was borne by the influential author Franz Kafka (1883-1924), writer of 'The Trial' and 'The Castle' among other works. Also, rulers of Austria and the Holy Roman Empire have had this name.
GEORGEmEnglish, RomanianFrom the Greek name
Γεωργιος (Georgios) which was derived from the Greek word
γεωργος (georgos) meaning "farmer, earthworker", itself derived from the elements
γη (ge) "earth" and
εργον (ergon) "work". Saint George was a 3rd-century Roman soldier from Palestine who was martyred during the persecutions of Emperor Diocletian. Later legends describe his defeat of a dragon, with which he was often depicted in medieval art.
... [more] GERALDmEnglish, GermanFrom a Germanic name meaning "rule of the spear", from the elements
ger meaning "spear" and
wald meaning "rule". The Normans brought this name to Britain. Though it died out in England during the Middle Ages, it remained common in Ireland. It was revived in the English-speaking world in 19th century.
GRISELDAfEnglish, Scottish, Spanish, LiteraturePossibly derived from the Germanic elements
gris "grey" and
hild "battle". It is not attested as a Germanic name. This was the name of a patient wife in medieval tales by Boccaccio and Chaucer.
HANSmGerman, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, DanishGerman, Dutch and Scandinavian short form of
JOHANNES. Two famous bearers were Hans Holbein (1497-1543), a Renaissance portrait painter from Germany, and Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875), a Danish writer of fairy tales.
HARRISONmEnglishFrom an English surname which meant "son of
HARRY". This was the surname of two American presidents, William Henry Harrison (1773-1841) and his grandson Benjamin Harrison (1833-1901). The actor Harrison Ford (1942-), who starred in such movies as 'Star Wars' and 'Indiana Jones', is a famous bearer.
HUGOmSpanish, Portuguese, English, Dutch, German, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Ancient Germanic (Latinized)Latinized form of
HUGH. As a surname it has belonged to the French author Victor Hugo (1802-1885), the writer of 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame' and 'Les Misérables'.
IOfGreek MythologyMeaning unknown. In Greek mythology Io was a princess loved by
Zeus, who changed her into a heifer in order to hide her from
Hera. A moon of Jupiter bears this name in her honour.
IRISfGreek Mythology, English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, French, Spanish, GreekMeans "rainbow" in Greek. Iris was the name of the Greek goddess of the rainbow, also serving as a messenger to the gods. This name can also be given in reference to the word (which derives from the same Greek source) for the iris flower or the coloured part of the eye.
ISHAf & mIndian, Hindi, Marathi, HinduismMeans "master, lord" in Sanskrit. This is a transcription of both the feminine form
ईशा and the masculine form
ईश (an epithet of the Hindu god
Shiva). It is also the name of one of the Upanishads, which are parts of Hindu scripture.
JACOBmEnglish, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Jewish, BiblicalFrom the Latin
Iacobus, which was from the Greek
Ιακωβος (Iakobos), which was from the Hebrew name
יַעֲקֹב (Ya'aqov). In the Old Testament Jacob (later called
Israel) is the son of
Isaac and
Rebecca and the father of the twelve founders of the twelve tribes of Israel. He was born holding his twin brother
Esau's heel, and his name is explained as meaning "holder of the heel" or "supplanter", because he twice deprived his brother of his rights as the firstborn son (see Genesis 27:36). Other theories claim that it is in fact derived from a hypothetical name like
יַעֲקֹבְאֵל (Ya'aqov'el) meaning "may God protect".
... [more] JOHANNmGermanGerman form of
Iohannes (see
JOHN). Famous bearers include German composer Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), German novelist and poet Johann Goethe (1749-1832), and Austrian composers Johann Strauss the Elder (1804-1849) and his son Johann Strauss the Younger (1825-1899).
JULIUSmAncient Roman, English, GermanFrom a Roman family name which was possibly derived from Greek
ιουλος (ioulos) meaning "downy-bearded". Alternatively, it could be related to the name of the Roman god
JUPITER. This was a prominent patrician family of Rome, who claimed descent from the mythological Julus, son of
Aeneas. Its most notable member was Gaius Julius Caesar, who gained renown as a military leader for his clever conquest of Gaul. After a civil war he became the dictator of the Roman Republic, but was eventually stabbed to death in the senate.
... [more] LEOmGerman, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, English, Croatian, Late RomanDerived from Latin
leo meaning "lion", a cognate of
LEON. It was popular among early Christians and was the name of 13 popes, including Saint Leo the Great who asserted the dominance of the Roman bishops (the popes) over all others in the 5th century. It was also borne by six Byzantine emperors and five Armenian kings. Another famous bearer was Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910), a Russian novelist whose works include 'War and Peace' and 'Anna Karenina'. Leo is also the name of a constellation and the fifth sign of the zodiac.
LINDAfEnglish, Dutch, German, Italian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, French, Latvian, Finnish, 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".
LISAfEnglish, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, ItalianShort form of
ELIZABETH,
ELISABETH,
ELISABET or
ELISABETTA. This is the name of the subject of one of the world's most famous paintings, the 'Mona Lisa', the portrait of Lisa del Giocondo by Leonardo da Vinci.
LUCIAfItalian, German, English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Romanian, Slovak, Ancient RomanFeminine form of
LUCIUS. Saint Lucia was a 4th-century martyr from Syracuse. She was said to have had her eyes gouged out, and thus she is the patron saint of the blind. She was widely revered in the Middle Ages, and her name has been used throughout Christian Europe (in various spellings). It has been used in the England since the 12th century, usually in the spellings
Lucy or
Luce.
MARCOmItalian, Spanish, Portuguese, German, DutchItalian form of
MARK. During the Middle Ages this name was common in Venice, where Saint Mark was supposedly buried. A famous bearer was the Venetian explorer Marco Polo, who travelled across Asia to China in the 13th century.
MARKmEnglish, Russian, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, BiblicalForm of
MARCUS. Saint Mark was the author of the second gospel in the New Testament. Though the author's identity is not certain, some traditions hold him to be the same person as the John Mark who appears in the Book of Acts. He is the patron saint of Venice, where he is supposedly buried. Though in use during the Middle Ages,
Mark was not common in the English-speaking world until the 19th century, when it began to be used alongside the classical form
Marcus.
... [more] MARTHAfEnglish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, German, Greek, Biblical, Old Church Slavic, Biblical Latin, Biblical GreekFrom Aramaic
מַרְתָּא (marta') meaning "the lady, the mistress", feminine form of
מַר (mar) meaning "master". In the New Testament this is the name of the sister of
Lazarus and
Mary of Bethany (who is sometimes identified with Mary Magdalene). She was a witness to
Jesus restoring her dead brother to life.
... [more] MASONmEnglishFrom an English surname meaning "stoneworker", from an Old French word of Germanic origin (akin to Old English
macian "to make").
MAYA (2)fEnglishVariant of
MAIA (1). This name can also be given in reference to the Maya peoples, a Native American culture who built a great civilization in southern Mexico and Latin America.
MINOSmGreek MythologyPossibly from a Cretan word or title meaning "king". This was the name of a king of Crete in Greek mythology. He was the son of
Zeus and
Europa. Because Minos had refused to sacrifice a certain bull to
Poseidon, the god had caused his wife Pasiphaë to mate with the bull, which produced the half-bull creature called the Minotaur. Minos had
Daedalus construct the Labyrinth to house the beast, but it was eventually slain by
Theseus.
MORGAN (1)m & fWelsh, English, FrenchFrom the Old Welsh masculine name
Morcant, which was possibly derived from Welsh
mor "sea" and
cant "circle". Since the 1980s in America
Morgan has been more common for girls than boys, perhaps due to stories of
Morgan le Fay or the fame of actress Morgan Fairchild (1950-).
MUSTAFAmArabic, TurkishMeans "the chosen one" in Arabic, an epithet of
Muhammad. This was the name of four Ottoman sultans. Another famous bearer was Mustafa Kemal (1881-1938), also known as Atatürk, the founder of modern Turkey.
NELLfEnglishMedieval diminutive of names beginning with
El, such as
ELEANOR,
ELLEN (1) or
HELEN. It may have arisen from the medieval affectionate phrase
mine El, which was later reinterpreted as
my Nel.
NESTORmGreek Mythology, RussianMeans "homecoming" in Greek. In
Homer's 'Iliad' this was the name of the king of Pylos, famous for his great wisdom and longevity, who acted as a counselor to the Greek allies.
OLGAfRussian, Ukrainian, Polish, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Latvian, Hungarian, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Czech, Slovene, Serbian, Bulgarian, GreekRussian form of
HELGA. The Varangians brought it from Scandinavia to Russia. The 10th-century Saint Olga was the wife of Igor I, grand prince of Kievan Rus (a state based around the city of Kiev). Following his death she ruled as regent for her son for 18 years. After she was baptized in Constantinople she attempted to convert her subjects to Christianity.
PABLOmSpanishSpanish form of
Paulus (see
PAUL). Spanish painter and sculptor Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) was a famous bearer of this name.
PAMELAfEnglishThis name was invented in the late 16th century by the poet Sir Philip Sidney for use in his poem 'Arcadia'. He possibly intended it to mean "all sweetness" from Greek
παν (pan) "all" and
μελι (meli) "honey". It was later employed by author Samuel Richardson for the heroine in his novel 'Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded' (1740), after which time it became used as a given name. It did not become popular until the 20th century.
RAMONAfSpanish, Romanian, EnglishFeminine form of
RAMÓN. It was popularized in the English-speaking world by Helen Hunt Jackson's novel 'Ramona' (1884), as well as several subsequent movies based on the book.
REBECCAfEnglish, Italian, Swedish, Biblical, Biblical LatinFrom the Hebrew name
רִבְקָה (Rivqah) from an unattested root probably meaning "join, tie, snare". This is the name of the wife of
Isaac and the mother of
Esau and
Jacob in the Old Testament. It came into use as a Christian name after the Protestant Reformation, and it was popular with the Puritans in the 17th century.
REEDmEnglishFrom an English surname which is derived from Old English
read meaning "red", originally a nickname given to a person with red hair or a ruddy complexion.
ROYmScottish, English, DutchAnglicized form of
RUADH. A notable bearer was the Scottish outlaw and folk hero Rob Roy (1671-1734). It is often associated with French
roi "king".
SANCHOmSpanish, PortuguesePossibly a Spanish and Portuguese form of the Late Latin name
Sanctius, which was derived from the word
sanctus meaning "saintly, holy". Alternatively,
Sancho and
Sanctius may be derived from an older Iberian name. This was the name of a 9th-century saint who was martyred by the Moors at Cordoba. It was also borne by several Spanish and Portuguese kings. Miguel de Cervantes used it in his novel 'Don Quixote' (1605), where it belongs to the squire of Don Quixote.
SARAfGreek, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Catalan, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, German, French, Dutch, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian, Polish, English, Arabic, Persian, BosnianForm of
SARAH.
SAULmBiblical, Jewish, Biblical LatinFrom the Hebrew name
שָׁאוּל (Sha'ul) which meant "asked for, prayed for". This was the name of the first king of Israel, as told in the Old Testament. Before the end of his reign he lost favour with God, and after a defeat by the Philistines he was succeeded by
David as king. In the New Testament, Saul was the original Hebrew name of the apostle
Paul.
SIENNAfEnglish (Modern)From the English word meaning "orange-red". It is ultimately from the name of the city of Siena in Italy, because of the colour of the clay there.
SILVIAfItalian, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, English, German, Late Roman, Roman MythologyFeminine form of
SILVIUS.
Rhea Silvia was the mother of
Romulus and
Remus, the founders of Rome. This was also the name of a 6th-century saint, the mother of the pope Gregory the Great. It has been a common name in Italy since the Middle Ages. It was introduced to England by Shakespeare, who used it for a character in his play 'The Two Gentlemen of Verona' (1594). It is now more commonly spelled
Sylvia in the English-speaking world.
TABITHAfEnglish, Biblical, Biblical GreekMeans "gazelle" in Aramaic. Tabitha in the New Testament was a woman restored to life by Saint
Peter. Her name is translated into Greek as Dorcas (see Acts 9:36). As an English name,
Tabitha became common after the Protestant Reformation. It was popularized in the 1960s by the television show 'Bewitched', in which Tabitha (sometimes spelled Tabatha) is the daughter of the main character.
THANATOSmGreek MythologyMeans "death" in Greek. This was the name of the Greek god of death who resided with Hades in the underworld.
THEODOREmEnglishFrom the Greek name
Θεοδωρος (Theodoros), which meant "gift of god" from Greek
θεος (theos) "god" and
δωρον (doron) "gift". The name
Dorothea is derived from the same roots in reverse order. This was the name of several saints, including Theodore of Amasea, a 4th-century Greek soldier; Theodore of Tarsus, a 7th-century archbishop of Canterbury; and Theodore the Studite, a 9th-century Byzantine monk. It was also borne by two popes.
... [more] TIAfEnglishShort form of names ending with
tia. It has been suggested that its use since the 1950s is the result of the brand name for the coffee liqueur Tia Maria. In the brand name,
Tia is not a given name; rather, it means "aunt" in Spanish or Portuguese.
URSAfLate RomanFeminine form of
URSUS. This is the name of two constellations in the northern sky: Ursa Major and Ursa Minor.