Myrtle Loamsdown's Personal Name List

From Θαδδαῖος (Thaddaios), the Greek form of the Aramaic name Thaddai. It is possibly derived from a word meaning "heart", but it may in fact be an Aramaic form of a Greek name such as Θεόδωρος (see Theodore). In the Gospel of Matthew, Thaddaeus is listed as one of the twelve apostles, though elsewhere in the New Testament his name is omitted and Jude's appears instead. It is likely that the two names refer to the same person.

Probably a feminine form of Tyrone. Actors Tyrone Power and Linda Christian created it for their daughter Taryn Power (1953-).

Means "shining brow", derived from Welsh tal "brow, head" and iesin "shining, radiant". This was the name of a semi-legendary 6th-century Welsh poet and bard, supposedly the author of the collection of poems the Book of Taliesin. He appears briefly in the Welsh legend Culhwch and Olwen and the Second Branch of the Mabinogi. He is the central character in the Tale of Taliesin, a medieval legend recorded in the 16th century, which tells how Ceridwen's servant Gwion Bach was reborn to her as Taliesin; how he becomes the bard for Elffin; and how Taliesin defends Elffin from the machinations of the king Maelgwn Gwynedd.

From Old Norse svanr "swan" and hildr "battle", a Scandinavian cognate of Swanhild. In the Norse epic the Völsungasaga she is the daughter of Sigurd and Gudrun.

German and Dutch form of Stephen.

Feminine form of Severinus.

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.

Due to the saint's popularity, the name came into general use in medieval Europe, especially in Spain and France. It was also borne by a 16th-century king of Portugal who died in a crusade against Morocco.

Diminutive of Sarah.

Derived from Old Irish rígain meaning "queen". According to some sources, this was the name of a wife of the semi-legendary Irish king Niall of the Nine Hostages.

Variant of Reinhild.

The name of a hobbit in The Lord of the Rings (1954) by J. R. R. Tolkien. His full given name is Peregrin, a semi-translation into English of his true hobbit name Razanur meaning "traveller".

From an English occupational surname that meant "keeper of the park".

Simply from the English word myrtle for the evergreen shrub, ultimately from Greek μύρτος (myrtos). It was first used as a given name in the 19th century, at the same time many other plant and flower names were coined.

The name of a hobbit in J. R. R. Tolkien's novel The Lord of the Rings (1954). His full given name is Meriadoc; Merry is a semi-translation into English of his true hobbit-language name Kali meaning "jolly, merry" (in full Kalimac).

Form of the Welsh name Myrddin used by Geoffrey of Monmouth in his 12th-century chronicle. Writing in Latin, he likely chose the form Merlinus over Merdinus in order to prevent associations with French merde "excrement".

Geoffrey based parts of Merlin's character on Myrddin Wyllt, a legendary madman and prophet who lived in the Caledonian Forest. Other parts of his life were based on that of the historical 5th-century Romano-British military leader Ambrosius Aurelianus (also known as Emrys Wledig). In Geoffrey's version of the tales and later embellishments Merlin is a magician and counselor for King Arthur.

Originally a short form of names containing the Old Frankish element hildi, Old High German hilt, Old English hild meaning "battle" (Proto-Germanic *hildiz). The short form was used for both Old English and continental Germanic names. Saint Hilda (or Hild) of Whitby was a 7th-century English saint and abbess. The name became rare in England during the later Middle Ages, but was revived in the 19th century.

Derived from the Old German elements heil "healthy, whole" and wig "war".

Derived from Old Norse heiðr meaning "bright, clear" and rún meaning "secret lore, rune". In Norse mythology this was the name of a goat that would eat the leaves from the tree of life and produce mead in her udder.

German, Danish and Norwegian short form of Margaret.

Means "wand elf" in Old Norse, from the elements gandr "wand, staff, magic, monster" and alfr "elf". This name belongs to a dwarf (Gandálfr) in the Völuspá, a 13th-century Scandinavian manuscript that forms part of the Poetic Edda. The author J. R. R. Tolkien borrowed the name for a wizard in his novels The Hobbit (1937) and The Lord of the Rings (1954).

Derived from Old English froda meaning "wise". This is the name of the hobbit hero in The Lord of the Rings (1954) by J. R. R. Tolkien, who used Old English to translate some hobbit names (Frodo's true hobbit-language name is Maura). In the novel Frodo Baggins is the bearer of the One Ring on the quest to destroy it in Mount Doom.

Originally a short form of names containing the Old German element fridu meaning "peace" (Proto-Germanic *friþuz). A famous bearer was the Mexican painter Frida Kahlo (1907-1954).

Created by JRR Tolkien for his The Lord Of The Rings trilogy. This is the name, meaning Elfstone, given to Aragorn in Lórien by Galadriel and later adopted by him as King of Gondor.

Variant of Eleanor.

From the name of the flower, which was named for the Swedish botanist Anders Dahl.

French feminine and masculine form of Caelestis.

Means "Candlemas" in Spanish, ultimately derived from Spanish candela "candle". This name is given in honour of the church festival of Candlemas, which commemorates the presentation of Christ in the temple and the purification of the Virgin Mary.

Scottish Gaelic form of Katherine.

From the Old Norse name Bóthildr, derived from bót "remedy" and hildr "battle".

From a Scottish surname that was derived from Gaelic blàr meaning "plain, field, battlefield". In Scotland this name is typically masculine.

In the United States it became more common for girls in the early 1980s, shortly after the debut of the television sitcom The Facts of Life (1979-1988), which featured a character named Blair Warner. The name left the American top 1000 rankings two decades later, but was resurrected by another television character, this time Blair Waldorf from the series Gossip Girl (2007-2012).

This is the name of the hero of The Hobbit (1937) by J. R. R. Tolkien. His real hobbit name is Bilba, which is of unknown meaning, but this was altered by Tolkien in order to use the more masculine o ending. In the novel Bilbo Baggins is recruited by the wizard Gandalf to join the quest to retake Mount Erebor from the dragon Smaug.

Meaning unexplained, though the first element is presumably Sindarin ara "noble, kingly". This is the name of a character in The Lord of the Rings (1954) by J. R. R. Tolkien. In the book Aragorn is the heir of the Dúnedain kings of the north.

Derived from Old Norse alfr meaning "elf". In Norse legend this was the name of king, the suitor of a reluctant maiden named Alfhild. She avoided marrying him by disguising herself as a warrior, but when they fought she was so impressed by his strength that she changed her mind.