ALBENA Албена f BulgarianCreated by Bulgarian writer Yordan Yovkov for the heroine in his drama 'Albena' (1930). He may have based it on
ablen, the name of a type of peony (a flowering plant).
ANGEL Ангел m & f English, Bulgarian, MacedonianFrom the medieval Latin masculine name
Angelus which was derived from the name of the heavenly creature (itself derived from the Greek word
αγγελος (angelos) meaning "messenger"). It has never been very common in the English-speaking world, where it is sometimes used as a feminine name in modern times.
ANNA Анна f English, Italian, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Latvian, Greek, Hungarian, Polish, Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Czech, Slovak, Bulgarian, Icelandic, Faroese, Catalan, Occitan, Breton, Biblical, Old Church Slavic, Biblical Latin, Biblical GreekForm of
Channah (see
HANNAH) used in the Greek and Latin Old Testament. Many later Old Testament translations, including the English, use the
Hannah spelling instead of
Anna. The name appears briefly in the New Testament belonging to a prophetess who recognized
Jesus as the Messiah. It was a popular name in the Byzantine Empire from an early date, and in the Middle Ages it became common among Western Christians due to veneration of Saint Anna (usually known as Saint Anne in English), the name traditionally assigned to the mother of the Virgin
Mary. In the English-speaking world, this form came into general use in the 18th century, joining
Ann and
Anne.
... [more] ANTON Антон m German, Russian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Dutch, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Slovene, Macedonian, Croatian, Romanian, Estonian, Finnish, EnglishForm of
Antonius (see
ANTHONY).
ANTONIA Антония f Italian, Spanish, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Romanian, Greek, Croatian, Bulgarian, Ancient RomanFeminine form of
Antonius (see
ANTHONY).
ASEN Асен m BulgarianMeaning unknown, probably of Turkic origin. This was the name of a 12th-century Bulgarian emperor (Ivan Asen I) and several of his successors.
BLAGOY Благой m BulgarianDerived from South Slavic
благ (blag) meaning "sweet, pleasant, good".
BORIS Борис m Bulgarian, Russian, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian, Czech, Slovak, Georgian, GermanFrom the Turkic name
Bogoris, perhaps meaning "short" or "wolf" or "snow leopard". It was borne by the 9th-century King Boris I of Bulgaria who converted his country to Christianity, as well as two later Bulgarian emperors. The name was popularized in the Slavic world due to the 11th-century Saint Boris, who was a Russian prince martyred with his brother Gleb. His mother may have been Bulgarian. Another famous bearer was the 16th-century Russian emperor Boris Godunov, later the subject of a play of that name by Aleksandr Pushkin.
BOYKO Бойко m BulgarianOriginally a diminutive of names containing the Slavic element
boji meaning "battle".
CHAVDAR Чавдар m BulgarianDerived from a Persian word meaning "leader, dignitary".
DANIEL Даниел 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] DIANA Диана 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] ELENA Елена f Italian, Spanish, Romanian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Slovak, Lithuanian, Russian, Greek, German, Medieval SlavicCognate of
HELEN, and an alternate transcription of Russian
Елена (see
YELENA).
ELEONORA Елеонора f Italian, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Bulgarian, Russian, Ukrainian, GreekCognate of
ELEANOR.
EMIL Емил m Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Romanian, Bulgarian, Czech, Slovak, Polish, Russian, Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Macedonian, Hungarian, Icelandic, EnglishFrom the Roman family name
Aemilius, which was derived from Latin
aemulus meaning "rival".
EVA Ева 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] FILIP Филип m Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Czech, Slovak, Bulgarian, Polish, Croatian, Serbian, Slovene, Macedonian, Hungarian, Romanian, FinnishCognate of
PHILIP.
GORAN Горан m Croatian, Serbian, Slovene, Macedonian, Bulgarian (Rare)Means "mountain man", derived from South Slavic
gora meaning "mountain". It was popularized by the Croatian poet Ivan Goran Kovačić (1913-1943), who got his middle name because of the mountain town where he was born.
IVAN Иван m Russian, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Serbian, Croatian, Czech, Slovak, Macedonian, Slovene, English, Italian, Danish, Swedish, NorwegianNewer form of the old Slavic name
Іѡаннъ (Ioannu), which was derived from Greek
Ioannes (see
JOHN). This was the name of six Russian rulers, including the 15th-century Ivan III the Great and 16th-century Ivan IV the Terrible, the first tsar of Russia. It was also borne by nine emperors of Bulgaria. Other notable bearers include the Russian author Ivan Turgenev (1818-1883), who wrote 'Fathers and Sons', and the Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936), who is best known for his discovery of the conditioned reflex.
IVAYLO Ивайло m BulgarianPerhaps derived from an old Bulgar name meaning "wolf". This was the name of a 13th-century emperor of Bulgaria. It is possible that this spelling was the result of a 15th-century misreading of his real name
Vulo from historical documents.
KALOYAN Калоян m BulgarianFrom Greek
καλος Ιωαννης (kalos Ioannes) meaning "handsome
JOHN", the nickname of a 13th-century emperor of Bulgaria. He successfully defended the empire from the Fourth Crusade.
KAMEN Камен m BulgarianMeans "stone" in Bulgarian. This is a translation of the Greek name
Πετρος (Petros).
KRISTINA Кристина f Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Russian, German, Slovene, Czech, Lithuanian, Serbian, Croatian, Faroese, English, BulgarianForm of
CHRISTINA in various languages. It is also an English variant of
CHRISTINA and a Bulgarian variant of
HRISTINA.
LALA Лала f BulgarianFrom a South Slavic word meaning "tulip". It is derived via Turkish from Persian
لاله (laleh).
MAGDALENA Магдалена f Polish, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Spanish, Catalan, Occitan, Slovene, Czech, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Croatian, Serbian, Romanian, EnglishLatinate form of
MAGDALENE.
MARIA Мария f & m Italian, Portuguese, Catalan, Occitan, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Faroese, Dutch, Frisian, Greek, Polish, Romanian, English, Finnish, Corsican, Sardinian, Basque, Russian, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Biblical Greek, Biblical Latin, Old Church SlavicLatin form of Greek
Μαρια, from Hebrew
מִרְיָם (see
MARY).
Maria is the usual form of the name in many European languages, as well as a secondary form in other languages such as English (where the common spelling is
Mary). In some countries, for example Germany, Poland and Italy,
Maria is occasionally used as a masculine middle name.
... [more] MARINA Марина f Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, English, Greek, Russian, Ukrainian, Romanian, Bulgarian, Croatian, Serbian, Slovene, Macedonian, Georgian, Ancient RomanFeminine form of
MARINUS.
MARTA Марта f Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Catalan, Polish, Czech, Slovak, German, Dutch, Romanian, Slovene, Bulgarian, Serbian, Croatian, Macedonian, Russian, Swedish, Icelandic, Latvian, GeorgianCognate of
MARTHA.
MARTIN Мартин m English, French, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Russian, Romanian, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Croatian, Hungarian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, FinnishFrom the Roman name
Martinus, which was derived from
Martis, the genitive case of the name of the Roman god
MARS. Saint Martin of Tours was a 4th-century bishop who is the patron saint of France. According to legend, he came across a cold beggar in the middle of winter so he ripped his cloak in two and gave half of it to the beggar. He was a favourite saint during the Middle Ages, and his name has become common throughout the Christian world.
... [more] MIKHAIL Михаил m Russian, BulgarianRussian form of
MICHAEL, and an alternate transcription of Bulgarian
Михаил (see
MIHAIL). This was the name of two Russian tsars. Other notable bearers include the poet Mikhail Lermontov (1814-1841) and the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev (1931-).
MILAN Милан m Czech, Slovak, Russian, Serbian, Croatian, Slovene, Bulgarian, MacedonianFrom the Slavic element
milu meaning "gracious, dear", originally a short form of names that began with that element. A city in Italy bears this name, though it originates from a different source.
MILENA Милена f Bulgarian, Czech, Serbian, Croatian, Slovene, Macedonian, Polish, Russian, ItalianFeminine form of
MILAN. It began to be used in Italy in honour of Milena Vukotić (1847-1923), mother of Helen of Montenegro, the wife of the Italian king Victor Emmanuel III. In Italy it can also be considered a combination of
MARIA and
ELENA.
MILKO Милко m BulgarianDiminutive of Slavic names containing the element
milu "gracious, dear".
NADIA (1) Надя f French, Italian, English, Russian, Bulgarian, UkrainianVariant of
NADYA (1) used in the western world, as well as an alternate transcription of the Slavic name. It began to be used in France in the 19th century. The name received a boost in popularity from the Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci (1961-).
OLGA Олга f Russian, 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.
RUZHA Ружа f Bulgarian, MacedonianMeans "hollyhock" in Bulgarian and Macedonian (referring to flowering plants from the genera Alcea and Althaea).
SIMEON Симеон m Biblical, Bulgarian, SerbianFrom
Συμεων (Symeon), the Old Testament Greek form of the Hebrew name
Shim'on (see
SIMON (1)). In the Old Testament this is the name of the second son of
Jacob and
Leah and the founder of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. In the New Testament the Greek rendering
Σιμων (Simon) is more common, though
Συμεων occurs belonging to a man who blessed the newborn
Jesus. He is recognized as a saint in most Christian traditions.
... [more] SOFIA София f Norwegian, Swedish, German, Italian, Portuguese, Catalan, Greek, Finnish, Estonian, Slovak, Romanian, Russian, Ukrainian, BulgarianForm of
SOPHIA.
TATIANA Татяна f Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Polish, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, Greek, Georgian, English, Russian, Bulgarian, Ancient RomanFeminine form of the Roman name
Tatianus, a derivative of the Roman name
TATIUS. This was the name of a 3rd-century saint who was martyred in Rome under the emperor Alexander Severus. She was especially venerated in Orthodox Christianity, and the name has been common in Russia (as
Татьяна) and Eastern Europe. It was not regularly used in the English-speaking world until the 1980s.
TEODOR Теодор m Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Romanian, Bulgarian, Slovak, Czech, Polish, Serbian, Croatian, Slovene, MacedonianForm of
THEODORE.