ABEL m English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Georgian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical GreekFrom the Hebrew name
הֶבֶל (Hevel) meaning "breath". In the Old Testament he is the second son of
Adam and
Eve, murdered out of envy by his brother
Cain. In England, this name came into use during the Middle Ages, and it was common during the Puritan era.
ADELAIDE f English, Italian, PortugueseFrom the French form of the Germanic name
Adalheidis, which was composed of the elements
adal "noble" and
heid "kind, sort, type". It was borne in the 10th century by Saint Adelaide, the wife of the Holy Roman emperor Otto the Great. The name became common in Britain in the 19th century due to the popularity of the German-born wife of King William IV, for whom the city of Adelaide in Australia was named in 1836.
ALBINA f Russian, Ukrainian, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Slovene, Polish, German, Lithuanian, Ancient RomanFeminine form of
ALBINUS. This was the name of a few early saints, including a 3rd-century martyr from Caesarea.
ALEX m & f English, Dutch, German, French, Portuguese, Italian, Romanian, Greek, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Hungarian, Czech, RussianShort form of
ALEXANDER,
ALEXANDRA, and other names beginning with
Alex.
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.
ALICE f English, French, Portuguese, Italian, CzechFrom the Old French name
Aalis, a short form of
Adelais, itself a short form of the Germanic name
Adalheidis (see
ADELAIDE). This name became popular in France and England in the 12th century. It was borne by the heroine of Lewis Carroll's 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' (1865) and 'Through the Looking Glass' (1871).
AMANDA f English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Late RomanIn part this is a feminine form of
AMANDUS. However, it was not used during the Middle Ages. In the 17th century it was recreated by authors and poets who based it directly on Latin
amanda meaning "lovable, worthy of love". Notably, the playwright Colley Cibber used it for a character in his play 'Love's Last Shift' (1696). It came into regular use during the 19th century.
AMARO m Galician, Portuguese, SpanishPossibly from the Germanic name
ADELMAR, maybe influenced by Latin
amarus "bitter". This was the name of a legendary saint who was said to have sailed across the Atlantic to a paradise. He is especially popular in Galicia and Asturias in Spain.
ANITA (1) f Spanish, Portuguese, Croatian, Slovene, English, Dutch, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Polish, LatvianSpanish, Portuguese, Croatian and Slovene diminutive of
ANA.
BENIGNO m Italian, Spanish, PortugueseItalian, Spanish and Portuguese form of the Late Latin name
Benignus which meant "kind, friendly" in Latin. This was the name of several saints including a 5th-century disciple of Saint
Patrick who later became the chief Bishop of Ireland.
CARINA (1) f English, Portuguese, Spanish, German, Late RomanLate Latin name derived from
cara meaning "dear, beloved". This was the name of a 4th-century saint and martyr. It is also the name of a constellation in the southern sky, though in this case it means "keel" in Latin, referring to a part of
Jason's ship the Argo.
CARMINHO f PortugueseDiminutive of
CARMO. It has been popularized in Portual by the singer simply known as Carminho (1984-).
CASSANDRA f English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, German, Greek Mythology (Latinized)From the Greek name
Κασσανδρα (Kassandra), derived from possibly
κεκασμαι (kekasmai) "to excel, to shine" and
ανηρ (aner) "man" (genitive
ανδρος). In Greek myth Cassandra was a Trojan princess, the daughter of
Priam and
Hecuba. She was given the gift of prophecy by
Apollo, but when she spurned his advances he cursed her so nobody would believe her prophecies.
... [more] CLARA f German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, Catalan, Romanian, English, Swedish, Danish, Late RomanFeminine form of the Late Latin name
Clarus which meant "clear, bright, famous". The name
Clarus was borne by a few early saints. The feminine form was popularized by the 13th-century Saint Clare of Assisi (called
Chiara in Italian), a friend and follower of Saint Francis, who left her wealthy family to found the order of nuns known as the Poor Clares. As an English name it has been in use since the Middle Ages, originally in the form
Clare, though the Latinate spelling
Clara became more popular in the 19th century.
CLARISSA f English, Italian, Portuguese, SpanishLatinate form of
CLARICE. This was the name of the title character in a 1748 novel by Samuel Richardson. In the novel Clarissa is a virtuous woman who is tragically exploited by her family and her lover.
CLOTILDE f French, Italian, Portuguese, SpanishFrench form of the Germanic name
Chlotichilda which was composed of the elements
hlud "fame" and
hild "battle". Saint Clotilde was the wife of the Frankish king Clovis, whom she converted to Christianity.
CRUZ f & m Spanish, PortugueseMeans "cross" in Spanish or Portuguese, referring to the cross of the crucifixion.
DAN (2) m English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Romanian, Czech, German, Polish, Swedish, Danish, NorwegianShort form of
DANIEL.
DANIEL m English, Hebrew, French, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovene, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Croatian, Armenian, Georgian, Biblical, Biblical GreekFrom the Hebrew name
דָּנִיֵּאל (Daniyyel) meaning "God is my judge", from the roots
דִּין (din) meaning "to judge" and
אֵל ('el) meaning "God". Daniel was a Hebrew prophet whose story is told in the Book of Daniel in the Old Testament. He lived during the Jewish captivity in Babylon, where he served in the court of the king, rising to prominence by interpreting the king's dreams. The book also presents Daniel's four visions of the end of the world.
... [more] DAVID m English, Hebrew, French, Scottish, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Czech, Slovene, Russian, Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian, Romanian, Biblical, Biblical LatinFrom the Hebrew name
דָּוִד (Dawid), which was derived from Hebrew
דּוֹד (dod) meaning "beloved" or "uncle". David was the second and greatest of the kings of Israel, ruling in the 10th century BC. Several stories about him are told in the Old Testament, including his defeat of
Goliath, a giant Philistine. According to the New Testament,
Jesus was descended from him.
... [more] DIANA f English, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Catalan, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Russian, Bulgarian, Lithuanian, Polish, Czech, Roman MythologyProbably derived from an old Indo-European root meaning "heavenly, divine", related to
dyeus (see
ZEUS). Diana was a Roman goddess of the moon, hunting, forests, and childbirth, often identified with the Greek goddess
Artemis.
... [more] DIOGO m PortuguesePortuguese form of
DIEGO. This name was borne by the 15th-century Portuguese explorer Diogo Cão.
DONATO m Italian, Spanish, PortugueseFrom the Late Latin name
Donatus meaning "given". Several early saints had this name. The name was also borne by two Renaissance masters: the sculptor Donato di Niccolo di Bette Bardi (also known as Donatello), and the architect Donato Bramante.
DUARTE m PortuguesePortuguese form of
EDWARD. This name was borne by a 15th-century king of Portugal, who was named after his maternal ancestor Edward III of England.
ELIAS m Portuguese, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, English, Dutch, Greek, Biblical Latin, Biblical GreekCognate of
ELIJAH. This is the form used in the Greek New Testament.
ESMERALDA f Spanish, Portuguese, English, LiteratureMeans "emerald" in Spanish and Portuguese. Victor Hugo used this name in his novel 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame' (1831), in which Esmeralda is the Gypsy girl who is loved by Quasimodo. It has occasionally been used in the English-speaking world since that time.
ESTER f Spanish, Catalan, Portuguese, Italian, Czech, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, HebrewCognate of
ESTHER.
EVA f Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, English, Czech, Slovak, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Greek, Slovene, Bulgarian, Croatian, Russian, Georgian, Old Church Slavic, Biblical LatinForm of
EVE used in various languages. This form is used in the Latin translation of the New Testament, while
Hava is used in the Latin Old Testament. The name appears in Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' (1852) belonging to the character Little Eva, whose real name is in fact Evangeline.
... [more] FÁTIMA f Portuguese, SpanishFrom the name of a town in Portugal, which is derived from the Arabic feminine name
FATIMAH, apparently after a Moorish princess who converted to Christianity during the Reconquista. The town became an important Christian pilgrimage center after 1917 when three local children reported witnessing repeated apparitions of the Virgin
Mary.
FAUSTINO m Spanish, Italian, PortugueseSpanish, Italian and Portuguese form of the Roman cognomen
Faustinus, which was itself derived from the Roman name
FAUSTUS. Faustinus was the name of several early saints.
FERNÃO m PortuguesePortuguese form of
FERDINAND. This name was borne by the Portuguese explorer Fernão de Magalhães (1480-1521), better known in English as Ferdinand Magellan.
FORTUNATO m Italian, Spanish, PortugueseItalian, Spanish and Portuguese form of the Late Latin name
Fortunatus meaning "fortunate, blessed, happy". This was the name of several early saints and martyrs.
FRANCISCO m Spanish, PortugueseSpanish and Portuguese form of
Franciscus (see
FRANCIS). A notable bearer was Francisco de Goya, a Spanish painter and engraver. The name was also borne by Spanish dictator Francisco Franco.
GABRIEL m French, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Catalan, English, Romanian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Georgian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical GreekFrom the Hebrew name
גַבְרִיאֵל (Gavri'el) meaning "God is my strong man", derived from
גֶּבֶר (gever) meaning "strong man, hero" and
אֵל ('el) meaning "God". Gabriel is an archangel in Hebrew tradition, often appearing as a messenger of God. In the Old Testament he is sent to interpret the visions of the prophet
Daniel, while in the New Testament he serves as the announcer of the births of
John to
Zechariah and
Jesus to
Mary. According to Islamic tradition he was the angel who dictated the Quran to
Muhammad.
... [more]