Browse Names

Sabella f English (Rare)
Short form of Isabella.

Sabrina f English, Italian, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese
Latinized form of Habren, the original Welsh name of the River Severn. According to Geoffrey of Monmouth, Sabrina was the name of a princess who was drowned in the Severn. Supposedly the river was named for her, but it is more likely that her name was actually derived from that of the river, which is of unknown meaning. She appears as a water nymph in John Milton's masque Comus (1634).... [more]

Sabryna f English (Rare)
Variant of Sabrina.

Salome f English (Rare), German (Rare), Georgian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek
From an Aramaic name that was related to the Hebrew word שָׁלוֹם (shalom) meaning "peace". According to the historian Josephus this was the name of the daughter of Herodias (the consort of Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee). In the New Testament, though a specific name is not given, it was a daughter of Herodias who danced for Herod and was rewarded with the head of John the Baptist, and thus Salome and the dancer have traditionally been equated.... [more]

Samantha f English, Italian, Dutch
Perhaps intended to be a feminine form of Samuel, using the name suffix antha (possibly inspired by Greek ἄνθος (anthos) meaning "flower"). It originated in America in the 18th century but was fairly uncommon until 1964, when it was popularized by the main character on the television show Bewitched.

Samuel m English, French, German, Dutch, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Romanian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Jewish, Amharic, Biblical
From the Hebrew name שְׁמוּאֵל (Shemuʾel) meaning "name of God", from the roots שֵׁם (shem) meaning "name" and אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God". Other interpretations have the first root being שָׁמַע (shamaʿ) meaning "to hear" leading to a meaning of "God has heard". As told in the Books of Samuel in the Old Testament, Samuel was the last of the ruling judges. He led the Israelites during a period of domination by the Philistines, who were ultimately defeated in battle at Mizpah. Later he anointed Saul to be the first king of Israel, and even later anointed his successor David.... [more]

Santana f & m Spanish (Latin American), Portuguese (Brazilian), English (Modern)
From a contraction of Santa Ana (referring to Saint Anna) or from a Spanish and Portuguese surname derived from any of the numerous places named for the saint. It can be given in honour of the Mexican-American musician Carlos Santana (1947-), the founder of the band Santana. The name received a boost in popularity for American girls after the character Santana Andrade began appearing on the soap opera Santa Barbara in 1984.

Sapphire f English (Modern)
From the name of the gemstone, typically blue, which is the traditional birthstone of September. It is derived from Greek σάπφειρος (sappheiros), ultimately from the Hebrew word סַפִּיר (sappir).

Saranna f English (Rare)
Combination of Sarah and Anna, in occasional use since the 18th century.

Savanna f English (Modern)
Variant of Savannah.

Savannah f English
From the English word for the large grassy plain, ultimately deriving from the Taino (Native American) word zabana. It came into use as a given name in America in the 19th century. It was revived in the 1980s by the movie Savannah Smiles (1982).

Sebastian m German, English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Finnish, Romanian, Czech
From the Latin name Sebastianus, which meant "from Sebaste". Sebaste was the name a town in Asia Minor, its name deriving from Greek σεβαστός (sebastos) meaning "venerable" (a translation of Latin Augustus, the title of the Roman emperors). According to Christian tradition, Saint Sebastian was a 3rd-century Roman soldier martyred during the persecutions of the emperor Diocletian. After he was discovered to be a Christian, he was tied to a stake and shot with arrows. This however did not kill him. Saint Irene of Rome healed him and he returned to personally admonish Diocletian, whereupon the emperor had him beaten to death.... [more]

Selena f Spanish, English, Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Latinized form of Selene. This name was borne by popular Mexican-American singer Selena Quintanilla (1971-1995), who was known simply as Selena. Another famous bearer is the American actress and singer Selena Gomez (1992-).

Selina f English, German
Variant of Celina or Selena. As an English name, it first came into use in the 17th century.

September f English (Rare)
From the name of the ninth month (though it means "seventh month" in Latin, since it was originally the seventh month of the Roman year), which is sometimes used as a given name for someone born in September.

Sequoia f & m English (Rare)
From the name of huge trees that grow in California. The tree got its name from the 19th-century Cherokee scholar Sequoyah (also known as George Guess), the inventor of the Cherokee writing system.

Serena f English, Italian, Late Roman
From a Late Latin name that was derived from Latin serenus meaning "clear, tranquil, serene". This name was borne by an obscure early saint. Edmund Spenser also used it in his poem The Faerie Queene (1590). A famous bearer from the modern era is tennis player Serena Williams (1981-).

Serina f English
Variant of Serena.

Serrena f English (Rare)
Variant of Serena.

Shania f English (Modern)
In the case of singer Shania Twain (1965-), who chose it as her stage name, it was apparently based on an Ojibwe phrase meaning "on my way".

Sharona f English (Rare)
Elaborated form of Sharon.

Sheridan m & f English
From an Irish surname (Anglicized from Irish Gaelic Ó Sirideáin), which was derived from the given name Sirideán possibly meaning "searcher".

Sherilyn f English
Variant of Cherilyn.

Siena f English (Modern)
Variant of Sienna, with the spelling perhaps influenced by that of the Italian city.

Sienna f English (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.

Sierra f English (Modern)
Means "mountain range" in Spanish, referring specifically to a mountain range with jagged peaks.

Sigourney f English
From an English surname that was derived from the French town of Sigournais, called Segurniacum in medieval Latin, itself of unknown meaning. The American actress Sigourney Weaver (1949-), real name Susan, adopted this name in 1963 after the minor character Sigourney Howard in F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel The Great Gatsby (1925).

Silvester m Slovak, Slovene, Serbian, German, English, Late Roman
From a Latin name meaning "wooded, wild", derived from silva "wood, forest". This was the name of three popes, including Saint Silvester I who supposedly baptized the first Christian Roman emperor, Constantine the Great. As an English name, Silvester (or Sylvester) has been in use since the Middle Ages, though it became less common after the Protestant Reformation.

Silvia f Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, German, Dutch, English, Late Roman, Roman Mythology
Feminine 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.

Solomon m Biblical, English, Jewish, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek
From the Hebrew name שְׁלֹמֹה (Shelomo), which was derived from שָׁלוֹם (shalom) meaning "peace". As told in the Old Testament, Solomon was a king of Israel, the son of David and Bathsheba. He was renowned for his wisdom and wealth. Towards the end of his reign he angered God by turning to idolatry. Supposedly, he was the author of the Book of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and the Song of Solomon.... [more]

Sophia f English, Greek, German, Ancient Greek
Means "wisdom" in Greek. This was the name of an early, probably mythical, saint who died of grief after her three daughters were martyred during the reign of the emperor Hadrian. Legends about her probably arose as a result of a medieval misunderstanding of the phrase Hagia Sophia "Holy Wisdom", which is the name of a large basilica in Constantinople.... [more]

Stefani f English, Bulgarian
English variant and Bulgarian form of Stephanie. A notable bearer is Stefani Germanotta (1986-), an American singer better known as Lady Gaga.

Stephani f English (Modern)
Variant of Stephanie.

Stephania f English
Latinate feminine form of Stephen.

Stephanie f English, German
Feminine form of Stephen.

Stephany f English
Variant of Stephanie.

Suellen f English
Contraction of Susan and Ellen 1. Margaret Mitchell used this name in her novel Gone with the Wind (1936), where it belongs to Scarlett's sister.

Sullivan m English, French
From an Irish surname, the Anglicized form of Ó Súileabháin, itself from the given name Súileabhán, which was derived from Irish súil "eye" and dubh "dark, black" combined with a diminutive suffix. This name has achieved a moderate level of popularity in France since the 1970s. In the United States it was rare before the 1990s, after which it began climbing steadily. A famous fictional bearer of the surname was James P. Sullivan from the animated movie Monsters, Inc. (2001).

Susanna f Italian, Catalan, Swedish, Finnish, Russian, Ukrainian, Dutch, English, Armenian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Old Church Slavic
From Σουσάννα (Sousanna), the Greek form of the Hebrew name שׁוֹשַׁנָּה (Shoshanna). This was derived from the Hebrew word שׁוֹשָׁן (shoshan) meaning "lily" (in modern Hebrew this also means "rose"), perhaps ultimately from Egyptian sšn "lotus". In the Old Testament Apocrypha this is the name of a woman falsely accused of adultery. The prophet Daniel clears her name by tricking her accusers, who end up being condemned themselves. It also occurs in the New Testament belonging to a woman who ministers to Jesus.... [more]

Suzanna f English
Variant of Susanna.

Sybella f English (Rare)
Variant of Sibylla.

Sylvester m English, German, Danish
Medieval variant of Silvester. This is currently the usual English spelling of the name. A famous bearer is the American actor Sylvester Stallone (1946-).

Sylvia f English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish
Variant of Silvia. This has been the most common English spelling since the 19th century.

Symphony f English (Rare)
Simply from the English word, ultimately deriving from Greek σύμφωνος (symphonos) meaning "concordant in sound".