Previous Names of the Day

ISRAEL m Jewish, English, Biblical, Biblical Greek	Jul 10th
From the Hebrew name יִשְׂרָאֵל (Yisra'el) meaning "God contends", from the roots שָׂרָה (sarah) meaning "to contend, to fight" and אֵל ('el) meaning "God". In the Old Testament, Israel (who was formerly named Jacob; see Genesis 32:28) wrestles with an angel.

DOROTHEA f German, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, English, Late Greek	Jul 9th
Feminine form of the Late Greek name Δωρόθεος (Dorotheos), which meant "gift of God" from Greek δῶρον (doron) meaning "gift" and θεός (theos) meaning "god". The name Theodore is composed of the same elements in reverse order.

LORENZO m Italian, Spanish	Jul 8th
Italian and Spanish form of Laurentius (see LAURENCE (1)). Lorenzo de' Medici (1449-1492), known as the Magnificent, was a ruler of Florence during the Renaissance. He was also a great patron of the arts who employed Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Botticelli and other famous artists.

TIRZAH f Biblical	Jul 7th
From the Hebrew name תִּרְצָה (Tirtzah) meaning "favourable". Tirzah is the name of one of the daughters of Zelophehad in the Old Testament. It also occurs in the Old Testament as a place name, the early residence of the kings of the northern kingdom.

BORIS m Bulgarian, Russian, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian, Czech, Slovak, Georgian, German	Jul 6th
From 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.

HOREA m Romanian	Jul 5th
From Romanian horă, a type of circle dance. This was the nickname of Vasile Ursu Nicola (1731-1785), a leader of a peasant rebellion in Romania. He was eventually captured, tortured and executed.

AMERIGO m Italian	Jul 4th
Medieval Italian form of EMMERICH. Amerigo Vespucci (1451-1512) was the Italian explorer who gave the continent of America its name (from Americus, the Latin form of his name).