Browse Names - Behind the Name

Aanakwad m & f Ojibwe
Means "cloud" in Ojibwe.

Adawosgi m Cherokee
Means "he is swimming" in Cherokee, from ᎠᏓᏬᏍᎬ (adawosgun) meaning "swimming".

Aenoheso m Cheyenne
Means "little hawk", from Cheyenne aénohe "hawk" and the diminutive suffix -so.

Ameohne'e f Cheyenne
Means "walks along woman", from Cheyenne ame- "along, by" and -ehné "walk" combined with the feminine suffix -e'é.

Ameyalli f Nahuatl
Means "spring, fountain" in Nahuatl.

Animikii m Ojibwe, New World Mythology
Means "thunder, thunderer" in Ojibwe. In Anishinaabe mythology this is the name of the thunderbird, an immense flying creature that makes thunder with its flapping wings.

Aputsiaq m Greenlandic
Means "snowflake" in Greenlandic.

Aqissiaq m Greenlandic
Means "young ptarmigan" in Greenlandic (a ptarmigan is a type of bird that lives in cold regions).

Calfuray f Mapuche (Hispanicized)
Means "violet flower" in Mapuche, from kallfü "purple, blue" and rayen "flower".

Cipactli m & f Nahuatl
Means "crocodile, alligator, caiman, monster" in Nahuatl. This is the name of the first day in the tonalpohualli, the Aztec 260-day calendar.

Citlalli f Nahuatl
Means "star" in Nahuatl.

Degataga m Cherokee
Derived from Cherokee ᎦᏙᎦ (gadoga) meaning "standing". This was the name of a Cherokee chief, also called Stand Watie (1806-1871).

Galilahi f Cherokee
Possibly from Cherokee ᎤᎵᎶᎯ (ulilohi) meaning "attractive, adorable".

Giiwedin m Ojibwe
Means "north" in Ojibwe.

Ha-o-zinne f Apache
Means "standing up straight" in Apache. This was the name of a wife of the Chiricahua Apache chief Naiche.

Hiawatha m History, Iroquois (Anglicized)
Meaning uncertain, of Iroquois origin, possibly meaning "he who combs". This was the name of a Mohawk or Onondaga leader who founded the Iroquois Confederacy around the 15th century. He was later the subject of a fictionalized 1855 poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

Itzcoatl m Nahuatl
Means "obsidian snake" in Nahuatl, from itztli "obsidian" and cōātl "snake". Itzcoatl was the fourth king of Tenochtitlan and the first emperor of the Aztec Empire (15th century).

Kenojuak f & m Inuit (Anglicized)
Variant of Qinnuajuaq.

Kimimela f Sioux
From Lakota kimímela meaning "butterfly".

Lef-Traru m Mapuche
Mapuche form of Lautaro.

Mahihkan m Cree
Means "wolf" in Cree.

Maquinna m Nuu-chah-nulth (Anglicized)
From Nuu-chah-nulth Mukwina, possibly meaning "possessor of pebbles". This was the name of a late 18th-century chief of the Mowachaht people.

Mekaisto m Siksika
From Siksika Mí'kiai'stoowa meaning "red crow", from mi'ki "red" and mai'stóó "crow". Red Crow (1830-1900) was a chief of the Kainai Blackfoot.

Millaray f Mapuche
Means "golden flower" in Mapuche, from milla "gold" and rayen "flower".

Sacnicte f Mayan (Hispanicized)
Means "white plumeria flower", from Yucatec Maya sak "white" and nikte' "plumeria flower".

Sequoyah m Cherokee
Probably derived from Cherokee ᏏᏆ (siqua) meaning "hog". This was the name of the Cherokee man (also known as George Guess) who devised the Cherokee writing system in the 19th century.

Shandiin f & m Navajo
From Navajo sháńdíín meaning "sunshine".

Tayanita f Cherokee
Means "young beaver" in Cherokee, derived from ᏙᏯ (doya) meaning "beaver".

Tecumseh m Shawnee
Means "panther passing across" in Shawnee. This name was borne by the Shawnee leader Tecumseh (1768-1813), who resisted American expansion along with his brother the spiritual leader Tenskwatawa.

Tessouat m Algonquin
Meaning unknown. This was the name of several 17th-century Algonquin chiefs.

Tonatiuh m Aztec and Toltec Mythology, Nahuatl
Means "sun" in Nahuatl. This was the name of the Aztec sun god.

Topʉsana f Comanche
Means "prairie flower" in Comanche.

Ulloriaq m & f Greenlandic
Means "star" in Greenlandic.

Vanaheo'o f Cheyenne
Means "sage woman" in Cheyenne.

Voestaa'e f Cheyenne
Means "white bison calf woman" in Cheyenne, derived from vóésta "white bison calf" and the feminine suffix -e'é. Because white bison calves were rare they were considered sacred.

Xitlalli f Nahuatl (Hispanicized)
Variant of Citlalli.

Yolotzin f & m Nahuatl
Means "beloved heart" in Nahuatl, from yōllōtl "heart" and the suffix tzin "beloved, revered".

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