English Names

English names are used in English-speaking countries. See also about English names.
gender
usage
Xavier m English, French, Portuguese, Catalan, Spanish
Derived from the Basque place name Etxeberria meaning "the new house". This was the surname of the Jesuit priest Saint Francis Xavier (1506-1552) who was born in a village by this name. He was a missionary to India, Japan, China, and other areas in East Asia, and he is the patron saint of the Orient and missionaries. His surname has since been adopted as a given name in his honour, chiefly among Catholics.
Xaviera f English (Rare)
Feminine form of Xavier.
Yale m English (Rare)
From a Welsh surname, which was itself derived from a place name meaning "fertile upland" (from Welsh ial).
Yancy m & f English
From a surname, which was an Americanized form of the Dutch surname Jansen meaning "Jan 1's son".
Yasmin f Arabic, Hebrew, Urdu, English (Modern), Spanish (Modern), Portuguese (Modern)
Means "jasmine" in Arabic and Hebrew, derived from Persian یاسمین (yasamin). In modern times it has been used in the western world, as an Arabic-influenced variant of Jasmine.
Yasmine f Arabic, French (Modern), English (Modern)
Alternate transcription of Arabic ياسمين (see Yasmin).
Yolanda f Spanish, English
From the medieval French name Yolande, which was probably a form of the name Violante, which was itself a derivative of Latin viola "violet". Alternatively it could be of Germanic origin.... [more]
Yolonda f English
Variant of Yolanda.
Yorick m Literature, English, Dutch
Altered form of Jørg. Shakespeare used this name for a deceased court jester in his play Hamlet (1600).
York m English
From an English surname that was derived from York, the name of a city in northern England. The city name was originally Eburacon, Latinized as Eboracum, meaning "yew" in Brythonic. In the Anglo-Saxon period it was corrupted to Eoforwic, as if from Old English eofor "boar" and wic "village". This was rendered as Jórvík by the Vikings and eventually reduced to York.
Yvette f French, English
French feminine form of Yves.
Yvonne f French, English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
French feminine form of Yvon. It has been regularly used in the English-speaking world since the late 19th century.
Zac m English
Short form of Zachary.
Zach m English
Short form of Zachary.
Zachariah m English, Biblical
Variant of Zechariah. This spelling is used in the King James Version of the Old Testament to refer to one of the kings of Israel (called Zechariah in other versions).
Zachary m English, Biblical
Usual English form of Zacharias, used in some English versions of the New Testament. This form has been in use since the Middle Ages, though it did not become common until after the Protestant Reformation. It was borne by American military commander and president Zachary Taylor (1784-1850).
Zachery m English
Variant of Zachary.
Zack m English
Short form of Zachary.
Zackary m English
Variant of Zachary.
Zackery m English
Variant of Zachary.
Zak m English
Short form of Zachary.
Zandra f English
Short form of Alexandra.
Zane 1 m English
From an English surname of unknown meaning. It was introduced as a given name by American author Zane Grey (1872-1939). Zane was in fact his middle name — it had been his mother's maiden name.
Zanna f English
Short form of Suzanna.
Zara 1 f Literature, English
Used by William Congreve for a character in his tragedy The Mourning Bride (1697), where it belongs to a captive North African queen. Congreve may have based it on the Arabic name Zahra. In 1736 the English writer Aaron Hill used it to translate Zaïre for his popular adaptation of Voltaire's French play Zaïre (1732).... [more]
Zaria f English (Modern)
Possibly based on Zahrah or the Nigerian city of Zaria.
Zavia f English (Rare)
Modern feminine form of Xavier.
Zayden m English (Modern)
An invented name, using the popular den suffix sound found in such names as Braden, Hayden, Jayden and Aidan.
Zeb m English
Short form of Zebulun or Zebedee.
Zechariah m Biblical, English
From the Hebrew name זְכַרְיָה (Zekharyah) meaning "Yahweh remembers", from זָכַר (zakhar) meaning "to remember" and יָה (yah) referring to the Hebrew God. This is the name of many characters in the Old Testament, including the prophet Zechariah, the author of the Book of Zechariah. The name also appears in the New Testament belonging to the father of John the Baptist, who was temporarily made dumb because of his disbelief. He is regarded as a saint by Christians. In some versions of the New Testament his name is spelled in the Greek form Zacharias or the English form Zachary. As an English given name, Zechariah has been in occasional use since the Protestant Reformation.
Zed m English
Short form of Zedekiah.
Zeke m English
Short form of Ezekiel.
Zelda 2 f English
Short form of Griselda. This is the name of a princess in the Legend of Zelda video games, debuting in 1986. According to creator Shigeru Miyamoto she was named after the American socialite Zelda Fitzgerald (1900-1948).
Zella f English
Meaning unknown, possibly an invented name. It arose in the 19th century.
Zelma f English
Variant of Selma 1.
Zena f English
Meaning unknown. It could be a variant of Xenia or a diminutive of names featuring this sound, such as Alexina, Rosina or Zenobia. This name has occasionally been used since the 19th century.
Zeph m English
Short form of Zephaniah.
Zinnia f English (Rare)
From the name of the flower, which was itself named for the German botanist Johann Zinn.
Zoe f English, Italian, German, Czech, Ancient Greek
Means "life" in Greek. From early times it was adopted by Hellenized Jews as a translation of Eve. It was borne by two early Christian saints, one martyred under Emperor Hadrian, the other martyred under Diocletian. The name was common in the Byzantine Empire, being borne by a ruling empress of the 11th century.... [more]
Zoë f Dutch, English
Dutch form and English variant of Zoe.
Zola 1 f English
Meaning unknown, perhaps an invented name. It has been in occasional use in the English-speaking world since the 19th century. It coincides with an Italian surname, a famous bearer being the French-Italian author Émile Zola (1840-1902).
Zowie f English (Rare)
Variant of Zoe.
Zula 2 f English
Meaning unknown. It has been in use since the 19th century. It is possibly related to the name of the African tribe that lives largely in South Africa, the Zulus. In the 19th century the Zulus were a powerful nation under their leader Shaka.