skinnyminnie's Personal Name List

Means "open space, sky" in Sanskrit.

Latinized form of the Greek name Ἀλέξανδρος (Alexandros), which meant "defending men" from Greek ἀλέξω (alexo) meaning "to defend, help" and ἀνήρ (aner) meaning "man" (genitive ἀνδρός). In Greek mythology this was another name of the hero Paris, and it also belongs to several characters in the New Testament. However, the most famous bearer was Alexander the Great, king of Macedon. In the 4th century BC he built a huge empire out of Greece, Egypt, Persia, and parts of India. Due to his fame, and later medieval tales involving him, use of his name spread throughout Europe.

The name has been used by kings of Scotland, Poland and Yugoslavia, emperors of Russia, and eight popes. Other notable bearers include English poet Alexander Pope (1688-1744), American statesman Alexander Hamilton (1755-1804), Scottish-Canadian explorer Alexander MacKenzie (1764-1820), Russian poet Alexander Pushkin (1799-1837), and Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922), the Scottish-Canadian-American inventor of the telephone.

From French alizé meaning "trade wind".

Means "cheerful, lively" in Italian. It was borne by a short-lived illegitimate daughter of Lord Byron (1817-1822).

Means "the flyer" in Arabic. This is the name of a star in the constellation Aquila.

Czech form of Elizabeth.

From the name of the purple semi-precious stone, which is derived from the Greek negative prefix ἀ (a) and μέθυστος (methystos) meaning "intoxicated, drunk", as it was believed to be a remedy against drunkenness. It is the traditional birthstone of February.

Russian and Ukrainian form of Anatolius.

From the name of the anemone flower, which is derived from Greek ἄνεμος (anemos) meaning "wind".

Form 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 England, this Latin form has been used alongside the vernacular forms Ann and Anne since the late Middle Ages. Anna is currently the most common of these spellings in all English-speaking countries (since the 1970s), however the biblical form Hannah is presently more popular than all three.

The name was borne by several Russian royals, including an 18th-century empress of Russia. It is also the name of the main character in Leo Tolstoy's novel Anna Karenina (1877), about a married aristocrat who begins an ultimately tragic relationship with Count Vronsky.

Alternate transcription of Russian Аркадий (see Arkadiy).

Probably created by the 16th-century Italian poet Torquato Tasso for his epic poem Jerusalem Delivered (1580). In the poem Armida is a beautiful enchantress who bewitches many of the crusaders.

Originally a Latinized diminutive form of names beginning with the element arn-, such as Arnhild, this name is used as a given name in its own right. It coincides with German Arnika "arnica, leopard's bane".

From the Old Norse name Arnviðr, derived from the elements ǫrn "eagle" and viðr "tree".

Possibly means "enduring" from Greek τλάω (tlao) meaning "to endure". In Greek mythology he was a Titan punished by Zeus by being forced to support the heavens on his shoulders.

German, Polish, Scandinavian and Catalan form of Augustus. This was the name of three Polish kings.

As an English name it can also derive from the month of August, which was named for the Roman emperor Augustus.

Form of Augustinus (see Augustine 1) in several languages.

Late Latin name that was derived from aureus "golden". This was the name of a 3rd-century saint from Ostia (near Rome), as well as an 11th-century Spanish saint.

From the English word meaning "radiant halo", ultimately derived from Latin aureolus "golden".

Hebrew form of Abital, sometimes used as a masculine name in modern times.

French form of April. A famous bearer is the Canadian musician Avril Lavigne (1984-).

Czech, Slovak and Lithuanian form of Barbara.

From a surname that was from a place name, itself derived from Old English beonet "bent grass" and leah "woodland, clearing". Various towns in England bear this name.

From the English word for the colour, derived via Norman French from a Frankish word (replacing the native Old English cognate blaw). Despite the fact that this name was used by the American musicians Beyoncé and Jay-Z in 2012 for their first daughter, it has not come into general use in the United States.

Means "storm, squall" in Turkish, ultimately related to Greek Βορέας (Boreas), the name of the god of the north wind.

Previously a short form of Briseida, though it is now regarded as an independent name directly from the Spanish word brisa "breeze". In Mexico this name was popularized by a character named Brisa (played by actress Margarita Magaña) on the telenovela "Por tu amor" (1999).

Transferred use of the surname Calder.

From the Latin name of Scotland, which may be derived from Caledones, the Latin name of a tribe that inhabited the region during the Roman era, which is of unknown origin, though some Celtic roots have been suggested; it is possible that the exonym means "tough person" from Brythonic caled "hard, tough" and a suffix (unknown to me) meaning either "great" or "person". The name Caledonia has been applied poetically to Scotland since the 18th century.

Used by author C. S. Lewis for a character in his Chronicles of Narnia series, first appearing in 1950. Prince Caspian first appears in the fourth book, where he is the rightful king of Narnia driven into exile by his evil uncle Miraz. Lewis probably based the name on the Caspian Sea, which was named for the city of Qazvin, which was itself named for the ancient Cas tribe.

Italian feminine and masculine form of Caelestis. It is also the Portuguese, Spanish and English feminine form.

Variant of Sierra.

Means "little ashes", in part from the French name Cendrillon. This is the main character in the folktale Cinderella about a maltreated young woman who eventually marries a prince. This old story is best known in the English-speaking world from the French author Charles Perrault's 1697 version. She has other names in other languages, usually with the meaning "ashes", such as German Aschenputtel and Italian Cenerentola.

From a surname that was originally from a place name meaning "ford by a cliff" in Old English.

Derived from the English word cloud. In Popular Culture, this is the name of the main protagonist (Cloud Strife) in "Final Fantasy VII", who also makes an appearance in "Dissidia: Final Fantasy".

Means "harmony" in Latin. This was the name of the Roman goddess of harmony and peace.

French form of the Breton name Kaourintin, possibly from korventenn meaning "hurricane, storm". Alternatively, it could be connected to the Brythonic root *karid meaning "love" (modern Breton karout). This was the name of a 5th-century bishop of Quimper in Brittany.

From the Old Norse name Dagmær, derived from the elements dagr "day" and mær "maid". This was the name adopted by the popular Bohemian wife of the Danish king Valdemar II when they married in 1205. Her birth name was Markéta.

From the Hebrew name דָּנִיֵּאל (Daniyyel) meaning "God is my judge", from the roots דִּין (din) meaning "to judge" and אֵל ('el) meaning "God". Daniel was a Hebrew prophet whose story is told in the Book of Daniel in the Old Testament. He lived during the Jewish captivity in Babylon, where he served in the court of the king, rising to prominence by interpreting the king's dreams. The book also presents Daniel's four visions of the end of the world.

Due to the popularity of the biblical character, the name came into use in England during the Middle Ages. Though it became rare by the 15th century, it was revived after the Protestant Reformation. Famous bearers of this name include English author Daniel Defoe (1660-1731), Swiss mathematician Daniel Bernoulli (1700-1782), and American frontiersman Daniel Boone (1734-1820).

Feminine form of Daniel.

From the Hebrew name דָּוִד (Dawid), which was derived from Hebrew דּוֹד (dod) meaning "beloved" or "uncle". David was the second and greatest of the kings of Israel, ruling in the 10th century BC. Several stories about him are told in the Old Testament, including his defeat of Goliath, a giant Philistine. According to the New Testament, Jesus was descended from him.

This name has been used in Britain since the Middle Ages. It has been especially popular in Wales, where it is used in honour of the 5th-century patron saint of Wales (also called Dewi), as well as in Scotland, where it was borne by two kings. Over the last century it has been one of the English-speaking world's most consistently popular names, never leaving the top 30 names for boys in the United States, and reaching the top rank in England and Wales during the 1950s and 60s. In Spain it was the most popular name for boys during the 1970s and 80s.

Famous bearers include empiricist philosopher David Hume (1711-1776), explorer David Livingstone (1813-1873), musician David Bowie (1947-2016), and soccer player David Beckham (1975-). This is also the name of the hero of Charles Dickens' semi-autobiographical novel David Copperfield (1850).

French form of Delphina.

From the name of the fourth letter in the Greek alphabet, Δ. It is also the name for an island formed at the mouth of a river.

Possibly means "earth mother", derived from Greek δᾶ (da) meaning "earth" and μήτηρ (meter) meaning "mother". In Greek mythology Demeter was the goddess of agriculture, the daughter of Cronus, the sister of Zeus, and the mother of Persephone. She was an important figure in the Eleusinian Mysteries, which were secret rites performed at Eleusis near Athens.

Feminine form of Demetrius.

Derived from Arabic ذنب (dhanab) meaning "tail". This is the name of a star in the constellation Cygnus.

German, Scandinavian and Czech feminine form of Aemilius (see Emily).

Form of Eve used in various languages. This form is used in the Latin translation of the New Testament, while Hava is used in the Latin Old Testament. A notable bearer was the Argentine first lady Eva Perón (1919-1952), the subject of the musical Evita. The name also appears in Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852) belonging to the character Little Eva, whose real name is in fact Evangeline.

This is also an alternate transcription of Russian Ева (see Yeva).

From Fredenandus, the Latinized form of a Gothic name composed of the elements friþus "peace" (or perhaps farþa "journey" [1]) and nanþa "boldness, daring". The Visigoths brought the name to the Iberian Peninsula, where it entered into the royal families of Spain and Portugal. From there it became common among the Habsburg royal family of the Holy Roman Empire and Austria, starting with the Spanish-born Ferdinand I in the 16th century. A notable bearer was Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan (1480-1521), called Fernão de Magalhães in Portuguese, who was the leader of the first expedition to sail around the earth.

Form of Philip in various languages.

From an English surname meaning "son of the king" in Old French, originally given to illegitimate sons of monarchs.

From the Latin name Florentius or the feminine form Florentia, which were derived from florens "prosperous, flourishing". Florentius was borne by many early Christian saints, and it was occasionally used in their honour through the Middle Ages. In modern times it is mostly feminine.

This name can also be given in reference to the city in Italy, as in the case of Florence Nightingale (1820-1910), who was born there to British parents. She was a nurse in military hospitals during the Crimean War and is usually considered the founder of modern nursing.

Czech and Slovak form of Franciscus (see Francis).

Means "valley, ravine" in Hebrew.

From the Greek word γαῖα (gaia), a parallel form of γῆ (ge) meaning "earth". In Greek mythology Gaia was the mother goddess who presided over the earth. She was the mate of Uranus and the mother of the Titans and the Cyclopes.

Possibly means "staff of the Geats", derived from the Old Norse elements gautr meaning "Geat" and stafr meaning "staff". However, the root name Gautstafr is not well attested in the Old Norse period. Alternatively, it might be derived from the Old Slavic name Gostislav.

This name has been borne by six kings of Sweden, including the 16th-century Gustav I Vasa. Another notable bearer was the Austrian painter Gustav Klimt (1862-1918).

Form of Hannah in several languages.

From the Hebrew name חַנָּה (Channah) meaning "favour, grace", derived from the root חָנַן (chanan). In the Old Testament this is the name of the wife of Elkanah. Her rival was Elkanah's other wife Peninnah, who had children while Hannah remained barren. After a blessing from Eli she finally became pregnant with Samuel.

As an English name, Hannah was not regularly used until after the Protestant Reformation, unlike the vernacular forms Anne and Ann and the Latin form Anna, which were used from the late Middle Ages. In the last half of the 20th century Hannah surged in popularity and neared the top of the name rankings for both the United States and the United Kingdom.

From the English word hazel for the tree or the light brown colour, derived ultimately from Old English hæsel. It was coined as a given name in the 19th century and quickly became popular, reaching the 18th place for girls in the United States by 1897. It fell out of fashion in the second half of the 20th century, but has since recovered.

Latinate form of Helen. This is the name of the heroine of William Shakespeare's play All's Well That Ends Well (1603).

From a surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "deep valley" in Old English. This is the name of the main character in J. D. Salinger's novel The Catcher in the Rye (1951), Holden Caulfield.

From an English surname meaning "son of Hudde". A famous bearer of the surname was the English explorer Henry Hudson (1570-1611).

From the name of the flower (or the precious stone that also bears this name), ultimately from Greek hyakinthos (see Hyacinthus).

Diminutive of Heinrich.

Hungarian, Slovak and Czech form of Ignatius.

Russian form of Ignatius.

Finnish and Frisian feminine form of Inge.

Russian form of Innocentius (see Innocent).

Form of Irene in several languages.

Variant of Islay, typically used as a feminine name. It also coincides with the Spanish word isla meaning "island".

Newer form of the Old Church Slavic name Іѡаннъ (Ioannŭ), which was derived from Greek Ioannes (see John). This was the name of six Russian rulers, including the 15th-century Ivan III the Great and 16th-century Ivan IV the Terrible, the first tsar of Russia. It was also borne by nine emperors of Bulgaria. Other notable bearers include the Russian author Ivan Turgenev (1818-1883), who wrote Fathers and Sons, and the Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936), who is best known for his discovery of the conditioned reflex.

Possibly means "rainbow lady", from Classic Maya ix "lady" and chel "rainbow". Ixchel was a Maya goddess associated with the earth, jaguars, medicine and childbirth. She was often depicted with a snake in her hair and crossbones embroidered on her skirt.

Polish, Czech and Slovak form of Jacob (or James). In Polish and Slovak this refers to both the Old Testament patriarch and the New Testament apostles, while in Czech this is used only for the apostles (with Jákob for the patriarch).

Form of Johannes used in various languages. This name was borne by the Czech church reformer Jan Hus (1370-1415), the Flemish painter Jan van Eyck (1390-1441), and the Dutch painters Jan Steen (1626-1679) and Jan Vermeer (1632-1675).

Feminine form of Jan 1.

Feminine diminutive form of Ján, Jan 1 or János.

Diminutive of names beginning with the Slavic element jarŭ meaning "fierce, energetic", such as Jarosław or Jaroslav. It is sometimes used independently.

Derived from the Slavic elements jarŭ "fierce, energetic" and mirŭ "peace, world". This name was borne by an 11th-century duke of Bohemia.

Czech form of Jasmine.

Means "glacier, ice" in Icelandic.

From the English word for the type of tree, derived ultimately from Latin iuniperus.

Dutch, Czech and Slovene form of Charles.

Feminine form of Ketil.

Anglicized form of Caitrìona.

Diminutive of Innokentiy.

Means "cherry" in Finnish.

From a Scots surname that was derived from various places named Knock, from Gaelic cnoc "round hill". It jumped in popularity after the actors Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt had a baby by this name in 2008.

German and Slovak form of Colmán. Saint Koloman (also called Coloman or Colman) was an Irish monk who was martyred in Stockerau in Austria.

Czech form of Kristina.

German form of Cyril.

Variant of Lacy. This is currently the most popular spelling of this name.

The name Laniakea means "immeasurable heaven" in Hawaiian, from "lani" for 'heaven' and "akea" for 'spacious' or 'immeasurable'. Laniakea is the galaxy supercluster that is home to the Milky Way, the Solar System and Earth. It was defined in September 2014 by Nawa'a Napoleon, an associate professor of Hawaiian Language at Kapiolani Community College. The name honors Polynesian navigators who used heavenly knowledge to navigate the Pacific Ocean.

From the English word, referring to a story about the past (or by extension, a heroic character in such a story), ultimately from Latin legere "to read".

From the Old Norse name Leifr meaning "descendant, heir". Leif Eriksson was a Norse explorer who reached North America in the early 11th century. He was the son of Erik the Red.

German, Portuguese and English variant and Galician, Romanian, Hungarian and Slovene form of Leopoldine. Leopoldina of Austria (1797 – 1826) was the first Brazilian empress.

Means "lion" in Russian, functioning as a vernacular form of Leo. This was the real Russian name of both author Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910) and revolutionary Leon Trotsky (1879-1940).

Czech form of Liberius.

Means "stone flower" in Mapuche, from likan "a type of black stone" and rayen "flower". According to a Mapuche legend this was the name of a maiden who sacrificed herself in order to stop the wrath of the evil spirit of a volcano.

From the name of the capital city of the United Kingdom, the meaning of which is uncertain. As a surname it was borne by the American author Jack London (1876-1916).

From the Germanic name Hlothar meaning "famous army", derived from the elements hlut "famous, loud" and heri "army". This was the name of medieval Frankish rulers of the Holy Roman Empire, Italy and France. It was also borne by four earlier Merovingian kings of the Franks, though their names are usually spelled as Chlothar.

French and Czech form of Lucia.

Latinized form of the Greek name Λύσανδρος (Lysandros), derived from Greek λύσις (lysis) meaning "a release, loosening" and ἀνήρ (aner) meaning "man" (genitive ἀνδρός). This was the name of a notable 5th-century BC Spartan general and naval commander.

Feminine form of Lysandros (see Lysander).

Latinized form of Lysistrate.

Latinate form of Magdalene.

Form of Maia 1 in various languages.

From the name of the month, which was derived from the name of the Roman god Mars.

This is perhaps best known as the name of Marcheline Bertrand (1950-2007), the mother of American actress Angelina Jolie, in whose case it was invented by combining her given names, Marcia and Lynne (with Marceline a likely influence). A middle name bearer is Jolie's daughter Vivienne Jolie-Pitt (2008-).

Feminine form of Marcius. It was borne by a few very minor saints. It has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since the 18th century [1].

Polish, Czech and Slovak form of Mark.

Slovak, Czech and Hungarian form of Marianus.

Slovene, Macedonian, Serbian and Croatian form of Marianus.

Form of Latin Marcus used in several languages. Saint Mark was the author of the second gospel in the New Testament. Though the author's identity is not certain, some traditions hold him to be the same person as the John Mark who appears in the Book of Acts. He is the patron saint of Venice, where he is supposedly buried. Though in use during the Middle Ages, Mark was not common in the English-speaking world until the 19th century, when it began to be used alongside the classical form Marcus.

In the medieval legend of Tristan and Iseult this was the name of a king of Cornwall. It was also borne by the American author Mark Twain (1835-1910), real name Samuel Clemens, the author of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. He took his pen name from a call used by riverboat workers on the Mississippi River to indicate a depth of two fathoms. This is also the usual English spelling of the name of the 1st-century BC Roman triumvir Marcus Antonius (Mark Antony).

Czech form of Margaret.

Czech form of Maximilianus (see Maximilian).

Variant of Mabel.

Derived from Latin melior meaning "better".

Meaning unknown. In European folklore Melusine was a water fairy who turned into a serpent from the waist down every Saturday. She made her husband, Raymond of Poitou, promise that he would never see her on that day, and when he broke his word she left him forever.

Means "mercies" (that is, the plural of mercy), from the Spanish title of the Virgin Mary, Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes, meaning "Our Lady of Mercies". It is ultimately from the Latin word merces meaning "wages, reward", which in Vulgar Latin acquired the meaning "favour, pity" [1].

From a surname meaning "happy weather" in Middle English, originally belonging to a cheery person. A notable bearer of the name was Meriwether Lewis (1774-1809), who, with William Clark, explored the west of North America.

From the Hebrew name מִיכָאֵל (Mikha'el) meaning "who is like God?". This is a rhetorical question, implying no person is like God. Michael is one of the archangels in Hebrew tradition and the only one identified as an archangel in the Bible. In the Book of Daniel in the Old Testament he is named as a protector of Israel (see Daniel 12:1). In the Book of Revelation in the New Testament he is portrayed as the leader of heaven's armies in the war against Satan, and is thus considered the patron saint of soldiers in Christianity.

The popularity of the saint led to the name being used by nine Byzantine emperors, including Michael VIII Palaeologus who restored the empire in the 13th century. It has been common in Western Europe since the Middle Ages, and in England since the 12th century. It has been borne (in various spellings) by rulers of Russia (spelled Михаил), Romania (Mihai), Poland (Michał), and Portugal (Miguel).

In the United States, this name rapidly gained popularity beginning in the 1930s, eventually becoming the most popular male name from 1954 to 1998. However, it was not as overwhelmingly common in the United Kingdom, where it never reached the top spot.

Famous bearers of this name include the British chemist/physicist Michael Faraday (1791-1867), musician Michael Jackson (1958-2009), and basketball player Michael Jordan (1963-).

Feminine form of Michael.

Czech and Slovak form of Michael.

Slovak and Czech form of Nicholas.

From the Slavic element milŭ meaning "gracious, dear", originally a short form of names that began with that element. It was originally used in Czech, Slovak, and the South Slavic languages, though it has recently become popular elsewhere in Europe.

A city in Italy bears this name, though in this case it originates from Latin Mediolanum, perhaps ultimately of Celtic origin meaning "middle of the plain". In some cases the city name may be an influence on the use of the given name.

Derived from the Slavic elements mojĭ meaning "my" and mirŭ meaning "peace" or "world". This was the name of a 9th-century ruler of Moravia.

From the name of a mountain near Barcelona, the site of a monastery founded in the 10th century. The mountain gets its name from Latin mons serratus meaning "jagged mountain".

Means "daffodil, narcissus" in Persian, ultimately derived from Greek (see Narcissus).

Modern Greek transcription of Nephele.

From the name of the American state, which means "snow-capped" in Spanish.

From the Latin word novem, meaning "nine". November was the ninth month of the Roman calendar before January and February were added around 713 BC. It is now the eleventh month of the year.

This is the name of one of the main adult female characters in Catherynne M. Valente's adult fantasy novel "Palimpsest" (2009). In the novel November remembers having read a book called "The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making" when she was a child, and the heroine of that book was called September. Valente later wrote that book as a crowd-funded work. It became the first volume in her bestselling "Fairyland" series.

From the name of the tenth month. It is derived from Latin octo meaning "eight", because it was originally the eighth month of the Roman year.

Czech form of Andrew.

Greek form of Uranus.

Means "of the mountains" in Sanskrit. Parvati is a Hindu goddess of love and power, the wife of Shiva and the mother of Ganesha.

Russian, Czech, Bulgarian, Slovene, Macedonian and Belarusian form of Paul.

Czech and Slovene feminine form of Paul.

Created by the 12th-century French poet Chrétien de Troyes for his poem Perceval, the Story of the Grail. Chrétien may have derived the name from Old French perce val "pierce the valley", or he may have based it loosely on the Welsh name Peredur [1]. In the poem Perceval is a boy from Wales who hopes to become a knight under King Arthur. Setting out to prove himself, he eventually comes to the castle of the Fisher King and is given a glimpse of the Grail.

From Old Slavic perunŭ meaning "thunder". In Slavic mythology Perun was the god of lightning and the sky, sometimes considered to be the supreme god. Oak trees were sacred to him.

Feminine form of Peter. This was also the name of an ancient city in the region that is now Jordan.

Finnish form of Peter.

From the name of a beautiful immortal bird that appears in Egyptian and Greek mythology. After living for several centuries in the Arabian Desert, it would be consumed by fire and rise from its own ashes, with this cycle repeating every 500 years. The name of the bird was derived from Greek φοῖνιξ (phoinix) meaning "dark red".

Derived from Vulgar Latin prīmavēra "spring". The descendant word primavera is used in Asturian, Catalan, Galician, Italian, Portuguese (and Old Portuguese), Sicilian, and Spanish.

From the English word for the flower, ultimately deriving from Latin prima rosa "first rose".

From Slavic radǔ (content, glad), or rad (kind, willing, happy), and gostŭ (host). Old god of Slavic mythology. He is considered to be a deity of hospitality, or host or leader of an assembly or council.

Serbian name, Macedonian, Ukranian,: Radgost/Radogost
English, Bulgarian, Russian, Swedish, French, Danish, Slovenian, Czech: Radegast
Italian: Radigost
Turkish: Radagast

Originally a diminutive of names beginning with the Slavic element radŭ meaning "happy, willing".

Feminine form of Radko.

Serbian, Croatian and Czech feminine form of Radomil.

Czech and Slovak form of Radomir.

Derived from the Slavic element radŭ "happy, willing" and mirŭ "peace, world".

From Japanese 雷 (rai) meaning "thunder" and 電 (den) meaning "lightning". This is a regional epithet of the Japanese god Raijin.

French form of Renatus. A famous bearer was the French mathematician and rationalist philosopher René Descartes (1596-1650).

From the English vocabulary word denoting a continuous elevated mountain crest, or from the English surname derived from the word.

Derived from Arabic الرجل (al-Rijl) meaning "foot". This is the name of the star that forms the left foot of the constellation Orion.

Feminine form of Romanus (see Roman).

From the Germanic name Hrodulf, which was derived from the elements hruod meaning "fame" and wolf meaning "wolf". It was borne by three kings of Burgundy and a king of West Francia, as well as several Habsburg rulers of the Holy Roman Empire and Austria. Anthony Hope used this name for the hero in his popular novel The Prisoner of Zenda (1894).

Means "wind, air" in Sanskrit.

From a Dutch surname meaning "scholar". Dutch settlers brought the surname to America, where it was subsequently adopted as a given name in honour of the American general and senator Philip Schuyler (1733-1804) [1].

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.

Means "mountain range" in Spanish, referring specifically to a mountain range with jagged peaks.

Short form of Silviya or Silvija.

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.

Javanese form of Sita.

From an English surname that was derived from Old English slæd meaning "valley".

Possibly from Old Slavic sterti "to extend, to spread" and bogŭ "god". Alternatively it could come from strybati "to flow, to move quickly". Stribog was a Slavic god who was possibly associated with the wind.

From a surname that was a variant of the surname Sidney. This is the name of the largest city in Australia, which was named for Thomas Townshend, 1st Viscount Sydney in 1788. Formerly used by both genders, since the 1980s this spelling of the name has been mostly feminine.

Czech and Slovak form of Thaddeus.

From a Welsh place name meaning "front hill", derived from Welsh tal "front, extremity" and bryn "hill".

Derived from the old Celtic root *toranos meaning "thunder", cognate with Þórr (see Thor). This was the name of the Gaulish thunder god, who was often identified with the Roman god Jupiter.

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

Form of Theresa in various languages.

Czech form of Tobias.

Modern Scandinavian form of Þórr (see Thor). It was not used as a personal name until the 18th century. It is sometimes used as a short form of names of Old Norse origin that begin with the element Tor, which is also a derivative of Þórr.

Short form of Tracy.

Means "little wind" in Finnish, derived from tuuli "wind". This was the name of a Finnish forest goddess, the daughter of Tapio.

Contracted form of an older Czech name Veceslav, derived from the Slavic elements vęťĭjĭ "more, greater" and slava "glory". Saint Václav (known as Wenceslas or Wenceslaus in English) was a 10th-century Duke of Bohemia murdered by his brother. He is the patron saint of the Czech Republic. This was also the name of several Bohemian kings.

English and German form of Valeria, as well as a Czech variant of Valérie.

Feminine form of Varinius.

Means "knowledge" in Sanskrit.

From the name of the capital city of Austria, Vienna.

Form of Victor used in various languages.

Czech form of Victoria.

From the Roman name Vincentius, which was derived from Latin vincere meaning "to conquer". This name was popular among early Christians, and it was borne by many saints. As an English name, Vincent has been in use since the Middle Ages, though it did not become common until the 19th century. Famous bearers include the French priest Saint Vincent de Paul (1581-1660) and the Dutch post-impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890).

Russian form and Modern Greek transcription of Bessarion.

Czech and Slovak form of Vitus.

Feminine form of Vivianus (see Vivian). Saint Viviana (also known as Bibiana) was a Roman saint and martyr of the 4th century.

French form of Viviana.

Czech form of Wojciech.

From the name of the day of the week, which was derived from Old English wodnesdæg meaning "Woden's day". On the Addams Family television series (1964-1966) this was the name of the daughter, based on an earlier unnamed character in Charles Addams' cartoons. Her name was inspired by the popular nursery rhyme line Wednesday's child is full of woe.

Means "sandalwood" in Fijian.

From the Greek Ζέφυρος (Zephyros) meaning "west wind". Zephyros was the Greek god of the west wind.

Means "my rock is God" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this name is borne by a chief of the Merarite Levites at the time of the Exodus.