ANNAfEnglish, 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] ANTONmGerman, Russian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Dutch, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Slovene, Macedonian, Croatian, Romanian, Estonian, FinnishForm of
Antonius (see
ANTHONY).
AVEfEstonianPossibly from the name of the prayer
Ave Maria, in which
Ave is Latin meaning "greetings, salutations".
EDUARDmGerman, Russian, Czech, Slovak, Croatian, Catalan, Dutch, Estonian, Romanian, Georgian, ArmenianForm of
EDWARD.
HELENAfGerman, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Portuguese, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Finnish, Estonian, Slovene, Croatian, English, Ancient Greek (Latinized), Greek Mythology (Latinized)Latinate form of
HELEN.
LAURAfEnglish, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Finnish, Estonian, Hungarian, Polish, Slovene, Croatian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, Late RomanFeminine form of the Late Latin name
Laurus, which meant "laurel". This meaning was favourable, since in ancient Rome the leaves of laurel trees were used to create victors' garlands. The name was borne by the 9th-century Spanish martyr Saint Laura, who was a nun thrown into a vat of molten lead by the Moors. It was also the name of the subject of poems by the 14th-century Italian poet Petrarch.
... [more] MARI (1)fWelsh, Breton, Estonian, Finnish, Hungarian, Swedish, Norwegian, DanishWelsh, Breton, Estonian and Finnish form of
MARIA, as well as a Hungarian diminutive of
MÁRIA. It is also a Scandinavian form of
MARIE.
OLIVERmEnglish, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Serbian, Croatian, Macedonian, Czech, SlovakFrom
Olivier, a Norman French form of a Germanic name such as
ALFHER or an Old Norse name such as
Áleifr (see
OLAF). The spelling was altered by association with Latin
oliva "olive tree". In the Middle Ages the name became well-known in Western Europe because of the French epic 'La Chanson de Roland', in which Olivier was a friend and advisor of the hero Roland.
... [more] SOFIAfNorwegian, Swedish, German, Italian, Portuguese, Catalan, Greek, Finnish, Estonian, Slovak, Romanian, Russian, Ukrainian, BulgarianForm of
SOPHIA.