Melusine's Personal Name List

Atticus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature, Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ἀττικός(Ancient Greek)
Latinized form of Greek Ἀττικός (Attikos) meaning "from Attica", referring to the region surrounding Athens in Greece. This name was borne by a few notable Greeks from the Roman period (or Romans of Greek background). The author Harper Lee used the name in her novel To Kill a Mockingbird (1960) for an Alabama lawyer who defends a black man accused of raping a white woman.
Bellona
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology
Pronounced: behl-LO-na(Latin) bə-LON-ə(English)
Derived from Latin bellare meaning "to fight". This was the name of the Roman goddess of war, a companion of Mars.
Benjamin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Slovene, Croatian, Biblical
Other Scripts: בִּנְיָמִין(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: BEHN-jə-min(English) BEHN-ZHA-MEHN(French) BEHN-ya-meen(German)
From the Hebrew name בִּנְיָמִין (Binyamin) meaning "son of the south" or "son of the right hand", from the roots בֵּן (ben) meaning "son" and יָמִין (yamin) meaning "right hand, south". Benjamin in the Old Testament was the twelfth and youngest son of Jacob and the founder of one of the southern tribes of the Hebrews. He was originally named בֶּן־אוֹנִי (Ben-'oni) meaning "son of my sorrow" by his mother Rachel, who died shortly after childbirth, but it was later changed by his father (see Genesis 35:18).

As an English name, Benjamin came into general use after the Protestant Reformation. A famous bearer was Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), an American statesman, inventor, scientist and philosopher.

Bijou
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various
Means "jewel" in French.
Blaine
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BLAYN
From a Scottish surname that was derived from the Old Irish given name Bláán.
Blaise
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: BLEHZ
From the Roman name Blasius, which was derived from Latin blaesus meaning "lisping". A famous bearer was the French mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal (1623-1662).
Blodwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: BLOD-wehn
Means "white flowers" from Welsh blodau "flowers" combined with gwen "white, blessed". This is the name of an 1878 Welsh opera by Joseph Parry.
Blossom
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BLAH-səm
From the English word blossom, ultimately from Old English blóstm. It came into use as a rare given name in the 19th century.
Brenna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BREHN-ə
Possibly a variant of Brenda or a feminine form of Brennan.
Caroline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch
Pronounced: KA-RAW-LEEN(French) KAR-ə-lien(English) KAR-ə-lin(English) ka-ro-LEE-nə(German)
French feminine form of Carolus.
Cathán
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Old Irish
Derived from Old Irish cath "battle" combined with a diminutive suffix. Saint Cathán was a 6th-century Irish monk, a missionary to the Isle of Bute.
Catharina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch, Swedish
Pronounced: ka-ta-REE-na(Dutch)
Dutch and Swedish form of Katherine.
Cecelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: seh-SEE-lee-ə, seh-SEEL-yə
Variant of Cecilia.
Clive
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KLIEV
From an English surname derived from Old English clif meaning "cliff", originally belonging to a person who lived near a cliff.
Colette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: KAW-LEHT
Short form of Nicolette. Saint Colette was a 15th-century French nun who gave her money to the poor. This was also the pen name of the French author Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette (1873-1954).
Constantine
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History
Pronounced: KAHN-stən-teen(English)
From the Latin name Constantinus, a derivative of Constans. Constantine the Great (272-337), full name Flavius Valerius Constantinus, was the first Roman emperor to adopt Christianity. He moved the capital of the empire from Rome to Byzantium, which he renamed Constantinople (modern Istanbul).
Cora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Κόρη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: KAWR-ə(English) KO-ra(German)
Latinized form of Kore. It was not used as a given name in the English-speaking world until after it was employed by James Fenimore Cooper for a character in his novel The Last of the Mohicans (1826). In some cases it may be a short form of Cordula, Corinna and other names beginning with a similar sound.
Coralie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: KAW-RA-LEE
Either a French form of Koralia, or a derivative of Latin corallium "coral" (see Coral).
Cordelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, English
Pronounced: kawr-DEE-lee-ə(English) kawr-DEEL-yə(English)
From Cordeilla, a name appearing in the 12th-century chronicles [1] of Geoffrey of Monmouth, borne by the youngest of the three daughters of King Leir and the only one to remain loyal to her father. Geoffrey possibly based her name on that of Creiddylad, a character from Welsh legend.

The spelling was later altered to Cordelia when Geoffrey's story was adapted by others, including Edmund Spenser in his poem The Faerie Queene (1590) and Shakespeare in his tragedy King Lear (1606).

Cosmo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Italian, English
Pronounced: KAWZ-mo(Italian) KAHZ-mo(English)
Italian variant of Cosimo. It was introduced to Britain in the 18th century by the second Scottish Duke of Gordon, who named his son and successor after his friend Cosimo III de' Medici. On the American sitcom Seinfeld (1989-1998) this was the seldom-used first name of Jerry's neighbour Kramer.
Cressida
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: KREHS-i-də(English)
Form of Criseida used by Shakespeare in his play Troilus and Cressida (1602).
Delilah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, Biblical Hebrew, English
Other Scripts: דְּלִילָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: di-LIE-lə(English)
Means "delicate, weak, languishing" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament she is the lover of Samson, whom she betrays to the Philistines by cutting his hair, which is the source of his power. Despite her character flaws, the name began to be used by the Puritans in the 17th century. It has been used occasionally in the English-speaking world since that time.
Desmond
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Irish
Pronounced: DEHZ-mənd(English)
Anglicized form of Irish Deasmhumhain meaning "south Munster", referring to the region of Desmond in southern Ireland, formerly a kingdom. It can also come from the related surname (an Anglicized form of Ó Deasmhumhnaigh), which indicated a person who came from that region. A famous bearer is the South African archbishop and activist Desmond Tutu (1931-2021).
Despina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek
Other Scripts: Δέσποινα(Greek)
Pronounced: DHEH-spee-na
Modern Greek form of Despoina.
Eileen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, English
Pronounced: ie-LEEN(English) IE-leen(English)
Anglicized form of Eibhlín. It is also sometimes considered an Irish form of Helen. It first became popular in the English-speaking world outside of Ireland near the end of the 19th century.
Emilia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, Romanian, Finnish, Polish, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, English, Greek, Bulgarian
Other Scripts: Αιμιλία(Greek) Емилия(Bulgarian)
Pronounced: eh-MEE-lya(Italian, Spanish) EH-mee-lee-ah(Finnish) ehn-MYEE-lya(Polish) eh-MEE-lee-ah(Swedish) i-MEE-lee-ə(English) eh-mee-LEE-a(Greek)
Feminine form of Aemilius (see Emily). In Shakespeare's tragedy Othello (1603) this is the name of the wife of Iago.
Éowyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: AY-ə-win(English)
Means "horse joy" in Old English. This name was invented by J. R. R. Tolkien who used Old English to represent the Rohirric language. In his novel The Lord of the Rings (1954) Eowyn is the niece of King Theoden of Rohan. She slays the Lord of the Nazgul in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields.
Esmeralda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Portuguese, English, Albanian, Literature
Pronounced: ehz-meh-RAL-da(Spanish) izh-mi-RAL-du(European Portuguese) ehz-meh-ROW-du(Brazilian Portuguese) ehz-mə-RAHL-də(English)
Means "emerald" in Spanish and Portuguese. Victor Hugo used this name in his novel The Hunchback of Notre-Dame (1831), in which Esmeralda is the Gypsy girl who is loved by Quasimodo. It has occasionally been used in the English-speaking world since that time.
Faramond
Gender: Masculine
Usage: History
Variant of Faramund.
Felicity
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: fə-LIS-i-tee
From the English word felicity meaning "happiness", which ultimately derives from Latin felicitas "good luck". This was one of the virtue names adopted by the Puritans around the 17th century. It can sometimes be used as an English form of the Latin name Felicitas. This name jumped in popularity in the United States after the premiere of the television series Felicity in 1998. It is more common in the United Kingdom.
Floriana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Romanian, Ancient Roman
Feminine form of Florianus (see Florian).
Ginevra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: jee-NEH-vra
Italian form of Guinevere. This is also the Italian name for the city of Geneva, Switzerland. It is also sometimes associated with the Italian word ginepro meaning "juniper".
Gloriana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: glawr-ee-AN-ə
Elaborated form of Latin gloria meaning "glory". In Edmund Spenser's poem The Faerie Queene (1590) this was the name of the title character, a representation of Queen Elizabeth I.
Graham
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: GRAY-əm(English) GRAM(English)
From a Scottish surname, originally derived from the English place name Grantham, which probably meant "gravelly homestead" in Old English. The surname was first taken to Scotland in the 12th century by the Norman baron William de Graham [1]. A famous bearer of the surname was Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922), the Scottish-Canadian-American inventor who devised the telephone. A famous bearer of the given name was the British author Graham Greene (1904-1991).

During the 20th century, Graham was more common in the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada than it was in the United States. However, it has been rising on the American charts since around 2006.

Gráinne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology, Old Irish [1]
Pronounced: GRA-nyə(Irish)
Possibly derived from Old Irish grán meaning "grain" or gráin meaning "hatred, fear". In the Irish legend The Pursuit of Diarmaid and Gráinne she escaped from her arranged marriage to Fionn mac Cumhaill by fleeing with her lover Diarmaid. Another famous bearer was the powerful 16th-century Irish landowner and seafarer Gráinne Ní Mháille (known in English as Grace O'Malley), who was sometimes portrayed as a pirate queen in later tales.
Gwyneira
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: gwi-NAY-ra
Means "white snow" from the Welsh element gwyn meaning "white, blessed" combined with eira meaning "snow". This is a recently created Welsh name.
Helena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Icelandic, Portuguese, Catalan, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Finnish, Estonian, Slovene, Croatian, Sorbian, English, Ancient Greek (Latinized), Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ἑλένη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: HEH-leh-na(German, Czech) heh-LEH-na(German) heh-LEH-nah(Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian) i-LEH-nu(European Portuguese) eh-LEH-nu(Brazilian Portuguese) ə-LEH-nə(Catalan) kheh-LEH-na(Polish) HEH-leh-nah(Finnish) HEHL-ə-nə(English) hə-LAYN-ə(English) hə-LEEN-ə(English)
Latinate form of Helen. This is the name of the heroine of William Shakespeare's play All's Well That Ends Well (1603).
Hyacinthe
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: YA-SEHNT
French masculine and feminine form of Hyacinthus.
Iria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Portuguese, Galician
Pronounced: EE-ryu(Galician)
Possibly a Portuguese and Galician form of Irene. This was the name of a 7th-century saint (also known as Irene) from Tomar in Portugal. This is also the name of an ancient town in Galicia (now a district of Padrón).
Isabell
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German
Pronounced: ee-za-BEHL
German variant of Isabel.
Ivy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: IE-vee
From the English word for the climbing plant that has small yellow flowers. It is ultimately derived from Old English ifig.
June
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JOON
From the name of the month, which was originally derived from the name of the Roman goddess Juno. It has been used as a given name since the 19th century.
Kaori
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Japanese
Other Scripts: 香, 香織, etc.(Japanese Kanji) かおり(Japanese Hiragana)
Pronounced: KA-O-REE
From Japanese (kaori) meaning "fragrance". It can also come from an alternate reading of (ka) combined with (ori) meaning "weaving". Other kanji combinations are possible. It is often written using the hiragana writing system.
Laetitia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Late Roman, French
Pronounced: LEH-TEE-SYA(French)
Original Latin form of Letitia, as well as a French variant. This name began rising in popularity in France around the same time that Serge Gainsbourg released his 1963 song Elaeudanla Téïtéïa (this title is a phonetic rendering of the letters in the name Lætitia). It peaked in 1982 as the fourth most common name for girls.
Laurent
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: LAW-RAHN
French form of Laurentius (see Laurence 1).
Lilac
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: LIE-lək
From the English word for the shrub with purple or white flowers (genus Syringa). It is derived via Arabic from Persian.
Lilia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Italian, Russian, Ukrainian
Other Scripts: Лилия(Russian) Лілія(Ukrainian)
Pronounced: LEE-lya(Spanish) LYEE-lyi-yə(Russian)
Spanish and Italian form of Lily, as well as an alternate transcription of Russian Лилия or Ukrainian Лілія (see Liliya).
Lily
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LIL-ee
From the name of the flower, a symbol of purity. The word is ultimately derived from Latin lilium. This is the name of the main character, Lily Bart, in the novel The House of Mirth (1905) by Edith Wharton. A famous bearer is the American actress Lily Tomlin (1939-).
Lisette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: LEE-ZEHT(French)
Diminutive of Élisabeth.
Livia 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Romanian, German, Dutch, Swedish, Finnish, Ancient Roman
Pronounced: LEE-vya(Italian)
Feminine form of Livius. This was the name of the wife of the Roman emperor Augustus, Livia Drusilla.
Liviana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Ancient Roman
Pronounced: lee-VYA-na(Italian)
Feminine form of the Roman family name Livianus, which was itself derived from the family name Livius.
Loretta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian
Pronounced: lə-REHT-ə(English) lo-REHT-ta(Italian)
Perhaps a variant of Lauretta or Loreto. A famous bearer was the American actress Loretta Young (1913-2000), whose birth name was Gretchen.
Louise
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Dutch, German
Pronounced: LWEEZ(French) loo-EEZ(English) loo-EE-sə(Danish) loo-EE-zə(German)
French feminine form of Louis.
Mabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAY-bəl
Medieval feminine form of Amabilis. This spelling and Amabel were common during the Middle Ages, though they became rare after the 15th century. It was revived in the 19th century after the publication of C. M. Yonge's 1854 novel The Heir of Redclyffe [1], which featured a character named Mabel (as well as one named Amabel).
Maisie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: MAY-zee(English)
Scottish diminutive of Mairead. It was long used in the United Kingdom and Australia, becoming popular at the end of the 20th century. In the United States it was brought to public attention by the British actress Maisie Williams (1997-), who played Arya Stark on the television series Game of Thrones beginning 2011. Her birth name is Margaret.
Marie
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: French, Czech, German, English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Albanian
Pronounced: MA-REE(French) MA-ri-yeh(Czech) ma-REE(German) mə-REE(English)
French and Czech form of Maria. It has been very common in France since the 13th century. At the opening of the 20th century it was given to approximately 20 percent of French girls. This percentage has declined steadily over the course of the century, and it dropped from the top rank in 1958.

A notable bearer of this name was Marie Antoinette, a queen of France who was executed by guillotine during the French Revolution. Another was Marie Curie (1867-1934), a physicist and chemist who studied radioactivity with her husband Pierre.

In France it is occasionally used as a masculine name in pairings such as Jean-Marie.

May
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAY
Derived from the name of the month of May, which derives from Maia, the name of a Roman goddess. May is also another name of the hawthorn flower. It is also used as a diminutive of Mary, Margaret or Mabel.
Maybelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Variant of Mabel.
Milo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: MIE-lo(English)
Old German form of Miles, as well as the Latinized form. This form was revived as an English name in the 19th century [2].
Minerva
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology, English, Spanish
Pronounced: mee-NEHR-wa(Latin) mi-NUR-və(English) mee-NEHR-ba(Spanish)
Possibly derived from Latin mens meaning "intellect", but more likely of Etruscan origin. Minerva was the Roman goddess of wisdom and war, approximately equivalent to the Greek goddess Athena. It has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since after the Renaissance.
Miranda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Dutch
Pronounced: mi-RAN-də(English)
Derived from Latin mirandus meaning "admirable, wonderful". The name was created by Shakespeare for the heroine in his play The Tempest (1611), in which Miranda and her father Prospero are stranded on an island. It did not become a common English given name until the 20th century. This is also the name of one of the moons of Uranus, named after the Shakespearean character.
Mireille
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, Dutch
Pronounced: MEE-RAY(French)
From the Occitan name Mirèio, which was first used by the poet Frédéric Mistral for the main character in his poem Mirèio (1859). He probably derived it from the Occitan word mirar meaning "to admire". It is spelled Mirèlha in classical Occitan orthography. A notable bearer is the French singer Mireille Mathieu (1946-).
Moira
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Scottish, English
Pronounced: MOI-rə(English)
Anglicized form of Máire. It also coincides with Greek Μοῖρα (Moira) meaning "fate, destiny", the singular of Μοῖραι, the Greek name for the Fates. They were the three female personifications of destiny in Greek mythology.
Myfanwy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: mə-VAH-nwee
From the Welsh prefix my- meaning "my, belonging to me" (an older form of fy) combined with either manwy meaning "fine, delicate" or banwy meaning "woman" (a variant of banw). This was the name of an 1875 Welsh song composed by Joseph Parry.
Narcissa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Late Roman
Pronounced: nahr-SIS-ə(English)
Feminine form of Narcissus.
Natalia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Polish, Italian, Spanish, Romanian, English, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Greek, Georgian, Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Late Roman
Other Scripts: Ναταλία(Greek) ნატალია(Georgian) Наталия(Russian, Bulgarian) Наталія(Ukrainian)
Pronounced: na-TA-lya(Polish, Spanish) na-ta-LEE-a(Italian) na-TA-lee-a(Romanian) nə-TAHL-ee-ə(English)
Latinate form of Natalia (see Natalie).
Nathan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Hebrew, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek
Other Scripts: נָתָן(Hebrew) Ναθάν(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: NAY-thən(English) NA-TAHN(French)
From the Hebrew name נָתָן (Natan) meaning "he gave". In the Old Testament this is the name of a prophet during the reign of King David. He chastised David for his adultery with Bathsheba and for the death of Uriah the Hittite. Later he championed Solomon as David's successor. This was also the name of a son of David and Bathsheba.

It has been used as a Christian given name in the English-speaking world since the Protestant Reformation. A famous bearer was Nathan Hale (1755-1776), an American spy executed by the British during the American Revolution.

Nerissa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: nə-RIS-ə(English)
Created by Shakespeare for a character in his play The Merchant of Venice (1596). He possibly took it from Greek Νηρηΐς (Nereis) meaning "nymph, sea sprite", ultimately derived from the name of the Greek sea god Nereus, who supposedly fathered them.
Nina 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, Italian, English, German, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Lithuanian, Dutch, Polish, Slovene, Czech, Slovak, Croatian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Belarusian
Other Scripts: Нина(Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian) Ніна(Ukrainian, Belarusian)
Pronounced: NYEE-nə(Russian) NEE-na(Italian, German, Slovak) NEE-nə(English) NEE-NA(French) NEE-nah(Finnish) nyi-NU(Lithuanian) NYEE-na(Polish) NI-na(Czech)
Short form of names that end in nina, such as Antonina or Giannina. It was imported to Western Europe from Russia and Italy in the 19th century. This name also nearly coincides with the Spanish word niña meaning "little girl". A famous bearer was the American musician Nina Simone (1933-2003).
Octavia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Romanian, Ancient Roman
Pronounced: ahk-TAY-vee-ə(English) ok-TA-bya(Spanish) ok-TA-wee-a(Latin)
Feminine form of Octavius. Octavia was the wife of Mark Antony and the sister of the Roman emperor Augustus. In 19th-century England it was sometimes given to the eighth-born child.
Odessa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various
From the name of a Ukrainian city that sits on the north coast of the Black Sea, which was named after the ancient Greek city of Ὀδησσός (Odessos), of uncertain meaning. This name can also be used as a feminine form of Odysseus.
Odin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Norse Mythology, English (Modern)
Pronounced: O-din(English)
Anglicized form of Old Norse Óðinn, which was derived from óðr meaning "inspiration, rage, frenzy". It ultimately developed from Proto-Germanic *Wōdanaz. The name appears as Woden in Anglo-Saxon sources (for example, as the founder of several royal lineages in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle) and in forms such as Wuotan, Wotan or Wodan in continental Europe, though he is best known from Norse sources.

In Norse mythology Odin is the highest of the gods, presiding over war, wisdom and death. He is the husband of Frigg and resides in Valhalla, where warriors go after they are slain. He is usually depicted as a one-eyed older man, carrying two ravens on his shoulders who inform him of all the events of the world. At the time of Ragnarök, the final battle, it is told that he will be killed fighting the great wolf Fenrir.

Oliver
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Catalan, Serbian, Croatian, Macedonian, Czech, Slovak
Other Scripts: Оливер(Serbian, Macedonian)
Pronounced: AHL-i-vər(English) O-lee-vu(German) O-lee-vehr(Finnish) oo-lee-BEH(Catalan) O-li-vehr(Czech) AW-lee-vehr(Slovak)
From Old French Olivier, possibly derived from a Germanic name, perhaps Old Norse Áleifr (see Olaf) or Frankish Alawar (see Álvaro). 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.

In England Oliver was a common medieval name, however it became rare after the 17th century because of the military commander Oliver Cromwell, who ruled the country following the civil war. The name was revived in the 19th century, perhaps due in part to the title character in Charles Dickens' novel Oliver Twist (1838), which was about a poor orphan living on the streets of London. It became very popular at the beginning of the 21st century, reaching the top rank for boys in England and Wales in 2009 and entering the top ten in the United States in 2017.

Olivia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, French, German, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
Pronounced: o-LIV-ee-ə(English) o-LEE-vya(Italian, German) o-LEE-bya(Spanish) AW-LEE-VYA(French) O-lee-vee-ah(Finnish)
This name was used in this spelling by William Shakespeare for a character in his comedy Twelfth Night (1602). This was a rare name in Shakespeare's time [1] that may have been based on Oliva or Oliver, or directly from the Latin word oliva meaning "olive". In the play Olivia is a noblewoman who is wooed by Duke Orsino but instead falls in love with his messenger Cesario, who is actually Viola in disguise.

Olivia has been used in the English-speaking world since the 18th century, though it did not become overly popular until the last half of the 20th century. Its rise in popularity in the 1970s may have been inspired by a character on the television series The Waltons (1972-1982) [2] or the singer Olivia Newton-John (1948-2022). In 1989 it was borne by a young character on The Cosby Show, which likely accelerated its growth. It reached the top rank in England and Wales by 2008 and in the United States by 2019.

A famous bearer was the British-American actress Olivia de Havilland (1916-2020).

Olivier
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French, Dutch
Pronounced: AW-LEE-VYEH(French) O-lee-veer(Dutch)
French and Dutch form of Oliver. This is also the French word meaning "olive tree".
Olwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, Welsh Mythology, Arthurian Romance
Pronounced: OL-wehn(English)
Means "white footprint" from Welsh ol "footprint, track" and gwen "white, blessed". In the Welsh tale Culhwch and Olwen she was a beautiful maiden, the lover of Culhwch and the daughter of the giant Yspaddaden. Her father insisted that Culhwch complete several seemingly impossible tasks before he would allow them to marry.
Oriana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish
Pronounced: o-RYA-na
Possibly derived from Latin aurum "gold" or from its derivatives, Spanish oro or French or. In medieval legend Oriana was the daughter of a king of England who married the knight Amadis.
Orinthia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Possibly related to Greek ὀρίνω (orino) meaning "to excite, to agitate". George Bernard Shaw used this name in his play The Apple Cart (1929).
Órlaith
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Old Irish [1]
Pronounced: OR-lə(Irish)
Means "golden ruler", from Old Irish ór "gold" combined with flaith "ruler, sovereign, princess". This name was borne by several medieval Irish royals, including a sister of the king Brian Boru.
Oscar
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Irish, Portuguese (Brazilian), Italian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, French, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: AHS-kər(English) AWS-kar(Italian, Swedish) AWS-KAR(French)
Possibly means "deer friend", derived from Old Irish oss "deer" and carae "friend". Alternatively, it may derive from the Old English name Osgar or its Old Norse cognate Ásgeirr, which may have been brought to Ireland by Viking invaders and settlers. In Irish legend Oscar was the son of the poet Oisín and the grandson of the hero Fionn mac Cumhaill.

This name was popularized in continental Europe by the works of the 18th-century Scottish poet James Macpherson [1]. Napoleon was an admirer of Macpherson, and he suggested Oscar as the second middle name of his godson, who eventually became king of Sweden as Oscar I. Other notable bearers include the Irish writer and humourist Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) and the Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer (1907-2012).

Ottilie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German
Pronounced: aw-TEE-lyə
German form of Odilia.
Persephone
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Περσεφόνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: PEHR-SEH-PO-NEH(Classical Greek) pər-SEHF-ə-nee(English)
Meaning unknown, probably of Pre-Greek origin, but perhaps related to Greek πέρθω (pertho) meaning "to destroy" and φόνος (phonos) meaning "murder". In Greek myth she was the daughter of Demeter and Zeus. She was abducted to the underworld by Hades, but was eventually allowed to return to the surface for part of the year. The result of her comings and goings is the changing of the seasons. With her mother she was worshipped in the Eleusinian Mysteries, which were secret rites practiced at the city of Eleusis near Athens.
Piers
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (British), Medieval French
Pronounced: PEERZ(English)
Medieval form of Peter. This is the name of the main character in the 14th-century poem Piers Plowman [1] by William Langland.
Primrose
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: PRIM-roz
From the English word for the flower, ultimately deriving from Latin prima rosa "first rose".
Priscilla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, French, Ancient Roman, Biblical Latin, Biblical
Pronounced: pri-SIL-ə(English) preesh-SHEEL-la(Italian)
Roman name, a diminutive of Prisca. In Acts in the New Testament Paul lived with Priscilla (also known as Prisca) and her husband Aquila in Corinth for a while. It has been used as an English given name since the Protestant Reformation, being popular with the Puritans. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow used it in his 1858 poem The Courtship of Miles Standish [1].
Rebecca
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Swedish, German, Dutch, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: רִבְקָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: rə-BEHK-ə(English) reh-BEHK-ka(Italian)
From the Hebrew name רִבְקָה (Rivqah), probably from a Semitic root meaning "join, tie, snare". This is the name of the wife of Isaac and the mother of Esau and Jacob in the Old Testament. It came into use as an English Christian name after the Protestant Reformation, and it was popular with the Puritans in the 17th century. It has been consistently used since then, becoming especially common in the second half of the 20th century.

This name is borne by a Jewish woman in Walter Scott's novel Ivanhoe (1819), as well as the title character (who is deceased and unseen) in Daphne du Maurier's novel Rebecca (1938).

Rémy
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: REH-MEE
French form of the Latin name Remigius, which was derived from Latin remigis "oarsman, rower". Saint Rémy was a 5th-century bishop who converted and baptized Clovis, king of the Franks.
Rhiannon
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, English, Welsh Mythology
Pronounced: ree-AN-awn(Welsh) ree-AN-ən(English)
Probably derived from an unattested Celtic name *Rīgantonā meaning "great queen" (Celtic *rīganī "queen" and the divine or augmentative suffix -on). It is speculated that Rigantona was an old Celtic goddess, perhaps associated with fertility and horses like the Gaulish Epona. As Rhiannon, she appears in Welsh legend in the Mabinogi [1] as a beautiful magical woman who rides a white horse. She was betrothed against her will to Gwawl, but cunningly broke off that engagement and married Pwyll instead. Their son was Pryderi.

As an English name, it became popular due to the Fleetwood Mac song Rhiannon (1976), especially in the United Kingdom and Australia.

Rónán
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Old Irish [1]
Pronounced: RO-nan(Irish)
Means "little seal", derived from Old Irish rón "seal" combined with a diminutive suffix. This was the name of several early Irish saints, including a pilgrim to Brittany who founded the hermitage at Locronan in the 6th century.
Rosalie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, German, Dutch, English
Pronounced: RAW-ZA-LEE(French) ro-za-LEE(German) RO-zə-lee(English)
French, German and Dutch form of Rosalia. In the English-speaking this name received a boost after the release of the movie Rosalie (1938), which was based on an earlier musical.
Rosamond
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RO-zə-mənd, RAHZ-ə-mənd
Variant of Rosamund, in use since the Middle Ages.
Rosamund
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: RO-zə-mənd, RAHZ-ə-mənd
Derived from the Old German elements hros "horse" and munt "protection". This name was borne by the wife of the Lombard king Alboin in the 6th century. The Normans introduced it to England. It was subsequently interpreted as coming from Latin rosa munda "pure rose" or rosa mundi "rose of the world". This was the name of the mistress of Henry II, the king of England in the 12th century. According to legends she was murdered by his wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine.
Rose
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: ROZ
Originally a Norman French form of the Germanic name Hrodohaidis meaning "famous type", composed of the elements hruod "fame" and heit "kind, sort, type". The Normans introduced it to England in the forms Roese and Rohese. From an early date it was associated with the word for the fragrant flower rose (derived from Latin rosa). When the name was revived in the 19th century, it was probably with the flower in mind.
Rosemary
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ROZ-mə-ree, ROZ-mehr-ee
Combination of Rose and Mary. This name can also be given in reference to the herb, which gets its name from Latin ros marinus meaning "dew of the sea". It came into use as a given name in the 19th century.
Rowan
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Irish, English (Modern)
Pronounced: RO-ən(English)
Anglicized form of the Irish name Ruadhán. As an English name, it can also be derived from the surname Rowan, itself derived from the Irish given name. It could also be given in reference to the rowan tree, a word of Old Norse origin (coincidentally sharing the same Indo-European root meaning "red" with the Irish name).
Rupert
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, English
Pronounced: ROO-pehrt(German) ROO-pərt(English)
German variant form of Robert, from the Old German variant Hrodperht. It was borne by the 7th century Saint Rupert of Salzburg and the 8th-century Saint Rupert of Bingen. The military commander Prince Rupert of the Rhine, a nephew of Charles I, introduced this name to England in the 17th century.
Seren
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: SEH-rehn
Means "star" in Welsh. This is a recently created Welsh name.
Sigrun
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian, German
Norwegian form of Sigrún.
Síofra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: SHEE-frə
Means "elf, sprite" in Irish. This name was created in the 20th century.
Solveig
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian, Swedish, Danish
Pronounced: SOOL-vie(Norwegian) SOOL-vay(Swedish)
From an Old Norse name, which was derived from the elements sól "sun" and veig "strength". This is the name of the heroine in Henrik Ibsen's play Peer Gynt (1876).
Sonia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Polish
Pronounced: SON-yə(English) SAWN-yə(English) SAW-nya(Italian) SO-nya(Spanish)
Variant of Sonya.
Summer
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SUM-ər
From the name of the season, ultimately from Old English sumor. It has been in use as a given name since the 1970s.
Sylvia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish
Pronounced: SIL-vee-ə(English) SUYL-vee-ah(Finnish)
Variant of Silvia. This has been the most common English spelling since the 19th century.
Synnöve
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish
Swedish form of Sunniva.
Wren
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: REHN
From the English word for the small songbird. It is ultimately derived from Old English wrenna.
Zéphyrine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Rare)
French feminine form of Zephyrinus (see Zeferino).
Esmée
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (British), Dutch
Pronounced: EHZ-may(English) EHZ-mee(English) ehs-MEH(Dutch)
Personal remark: ...with love and squalor. this is functional but charmingly funky.
Feminine form of Esmé.
Carlotta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: kar-LAWT-ta
Personal remark: a bit eccentric, but the POTO connection is great and Lottie is an adorable nn.
Italian form of Charlotte.
Martha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, German, Greek, Biblical, Old Church Slavic, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek
Other Scripts: Μάρθα(Greek) Марѳа(Church Slavic)
Pronounced: MAHR-thə(English) MAR-ta(German)
Personal remark: a bit heavy, but I have such great associations with it (Martha Stewart, The Secret Garden, etc.)
From Aramaic מַרְתָּא (marta') meaning "the lady, the mistress", feminine form of מַר (mar) meaning "master". In the New Testament this is the name of the sister of Lazarus and Mary of Bethany (who is sometimes identified with Mary Magdalene). She was a witness to Jesus restoring her dead brother to life.

The name was not used in England until after the Protestant Reformation. A notable bearer was Martha Washington (1731-1802), the wife of the first American president George Washington. It is also borne by the media personality Martha Stewart (1941-).

Virginia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Greek, Ancient Roman
Other Scripts: Βιργινία(Greek)
Pronounced: vər-JIN-yə(English) veer-JEE-nya(Italian) beer-KHEE-nya(Spanish)
Personal remark: a bit maiden-aunt-like, but it would be so refreshing to see on a little girl today.
Feminine form of the Roman family name Verginius or Virginius, which is of unknown meaning, but long associated with Latin virgo "maid, virgin". According to a legend, it was the name of a Roman woman killed by her father so as to save her from the clutches of a crooked official.

This was the name of the first English baby born in the New World: Virginia Dare in 1587 on Roanoke Island. Perhaps because of this, the name has generally been more popular in America than elsewhere in the English-speaking world, though in both Britain and America it was not often used until the 19th century. The baby was named after the Colony of Virginia, which was itself named for Elizabeth I, the Virgin Queen. A more recent bearer was the English novelist Virginia Woolf (1882-1941).

Annabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Dutch
Pronounced: AN-ə-behl(English)
Personal remark: a bit more modest and pastoral than Annabelle.
Variant of Amabel, with the spelling altered as if it were a combination of Anna and French belle "beautiful". This name appears to have arisen in Scotland in the Middle Ages.
Hortensia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Roman, Spanish
Pronounced: or-TEHN-sya(Spanish)
Personal remark: a bit much, you say? precisely why I chose it!
Feminine form of the Roman family name Hortensius, possibly derived from Latin hortus meaning "garden".
Eloise
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHL-o-eez, ehl-o-EEZ
Personal remark: a bit plain, but very sweetly old-fashioned.
From the Old French name Héloïse, which was probably from the Germanic name Helewidis, composed of the elements heil meaning "healthy, whole" and wit meaning "wide". It is sometimes associated with the Greek word ἥλιος (helios) meaning "sun" or the name Louise, though there is no etymological connection. This name was borne by the 12th-century French scholar and philosopher Héloïse. Secretly marrying the theologian Peter Abelard at a young age, she became a nun (and eventually an abbess) after Abelard was violently castrated by order of her uncle Fulbert.

There was a medieval English form of this name, Helewis, though it died out after the 13th century. In the 19th century it was revived in the English-speaking world in the form Eloise.

Araminta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Personal remark: a bit venomous in sound, but that's what makes it pretty.
Meaning unknown. This name was (first?) used by William Congreve in his comedy The Old Bachelor (1693) and later by Sir John Vanbrugh in his comedy The Confederacy (1705). This was the original given name of abolitionist Harriet Tubman (1820-1913), who was born Araminta Ross.
Aurélien
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: O-REH-LYEHN
Personal remark: a little girly. but feminine-sounding names on guys are cute.
French form of Aurelianus.
Gemma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Catalan, English (British), Dutch
Pronounced: JEHM-ma(Italian) ZHEHM-mə(Catalan) JEHM-ə(English) GHEH-ma(Dutch)
Personal remark: a little tacky, but that's why I love it.
Medieval Italian nickname meaning "gem, precious stone". It was borne by the wife of the 13th-century Italian poet Dante Alighieri.
Ephraim
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, Hebrew, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek
Other Scripts: אֶפְרָיִם(Hebrew) Ἐφραίμ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: EEF-ree-əm(English) EEF-rəm(English)
Personal remark: a little too much, perhaps, but I love it. this is one of the least pretentious Biblical names. XD
From the Hebrew name אֶפְרָיִם ('Efrayim) meaning "fruitful". In the Old Testament Ephraim is a son of Joseph and Asenath and the founder of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. This name was also borne by two early saints: Ephraim or Ephrem the Syrian, a 4th-century theologian, and Ephraim of Antioch, a 6th-century patriarch of Antioch.
Lucia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, German, Dutch, English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Romanian, Slovak, Ancient Roman
Pronounced: loo-CHEE-a(Italian) LOO-tsya(German) loo-TSEE-a(German) LOO-shə(English) loo-SEE-ə(English) luy-SEE-a(Swedish) LOO-chya(Romanian) LOO-kee-a(Latin)
Personal remark: a more obvious Lucy.
Feminine form of Lucius. Saint Lucia was a 4th-century martyr from Syracuse. She was said to have had her eyes gouged out, and thus she is the patron saint of the blind. She was widely revered in the Middle Ages, and her name has been used throughout Christian Europe (in various spellings). It has been used in the England since the 12th century, usually in the spellings Lucy or Luce.
Henry
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HEHN-ree
Personal remark: again, thank you Oscar Wilde. this is charming and intellectual.
From the Germanic name Heimirich meaning "home ruler", composed of the elements heim "home" and rih "ruler". It was later commonly spelled Heinrich, with the spelling altered due to the influence of other Germanic names like Haganrich, in which the first element is hag "enclosure".

Heinrich was popular among continental royalty, being the name of seven German kings, starting with the 10th-century Henry I the Fowler (the first of the Saxon kings), and four French kings. In France it was usually rendered Henri from the Latin form Henricus.

The Normans introduced the French form to England, and it was subsequently used by eight kings, ending with the infamous Henry VIII in the 16th century. During the later Middle Ages it was fairly popular, and was generally rendered as Harry or Herry in English pronunciation. Notable bearers include arctic naval explorer Henry Hudson (1570-1611), British novelist Henry James (1843-1916), American automobile manufacturer Henry Ford (1863-1947), and American actor Henry Fonda (1905-1982).

Anneliese
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Dutch
Pronounced: A-nə-lee-zə(German) ah-nə-LEE-sə(Dutch)
Personal remark: ah-nah-LEE-sah. failure to pronounce the last E will result in defenestration.
Combination of Anne 1 and Liese.
Alistair
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish
Pronounced: AL-i-stər(English)
Personal remark: Alastair looks more aristocratic.
Anglicized form of Alasdair.
Ambrose
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AM-broz
Personal remark: almost disgustingly elegant. that's the best kind of name though.
From the Late Latin name Ambrosius, which was derived from the Greek name Ἀμβρόσιος (Ambrosios) meaning "immortal". Saint Ambrose was a 4th-century theologian and bishop of Milan, who is considered a Doctor of the Church. Due to the saint, the name came into general use in Christian Europe, though it was never particularly common in England.
Sophronia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, Late Greek
Other Scripts: Σωφρονία(Ancient Greek)
Personal remark: almost ridiculously opulent. gotta love the Greeks.
Feminine form of Sophronius. Torquato Tasso used it in his epic poem Jerusalem Delivered (1580), in which it is borne by the lover of Olindo.
Idril
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Personal remark: another LOTR name. I can't see this on a real person, but it has a lovely sound.
Means "sparkle brilliance" in the fictional language Sindarin. In the Silmarillion (1977) by J. R. R. Tolkien, Idril was the daughter of Turgon, the king of Gondolin. She escaped the destruction of that place with her husband Tuor and sailed with him into the west.
Zelda 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Yiddish
Other Scripts: זעלדאַ(Yiddish)
Personal remark: another one where I really just like the sentiment.
Possibly a feminine form of Zelig.
Ethan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: אֵיתָן(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: EE-thən(English) EH-TAN(French)
Personal remark: another very elegant name that is too popular to use.
From the Hebrew name אֵיתָן ('Eitan) meaning "solid, enduring, firm". In the Old Testament this name is borne by a few minor characters, including the wise man Ethan the Ezrahite, supposedly the author of Psalm 89.

After the Protestant Reformation it was occasionally used as a given name in the English-speaking world, and it became somewhat common in America due to the fame of the revolutionary Ethan Allen (1738-1789). It only became popular towards the end of the 20th century. It is the name of the main character in Edith Wharton's novel Ethan Frome (1911), about a man in love with his wife's cousin.

Arwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Personal remark: aren't we not supposed to use Tolkein names on real people? this is gorgeous though.
Means "noble maiden" in the fictional language Sindarin. In The Lord of the Rings (1954) by J. R. R. Tolkien, Arwen was the daughter of Elrond and the lover of Aragorn.
Gwendolen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: GWEHN-də-lin(English)
Personal remark: because I hate -lyn names. thank you Oscar Wilde.
Possibly means "white ring", derived from Welsh gwen meaning "white, blessed" and dolen meaning "ring, loop". This name appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's 12th-century chronicles, written in the Latin form Guendoloena, where it belongs to an ancient queen of the Britons who defeats her ex-husband in battle [1]. Geoffrey later used it in Vita Merlini for the wife of the prophet Merlin [2]. An alternate theory claims that the name arose from a misreading of the masculine name Guendoleu by Geoffrey [3].

This name was not regularly given to people until the 19th century [4][3]. It was used by George Eliot for a character in her novel Daniel Deronda (1876).

Saga
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norse Mythology, Swedish, Icelandic
Pronounced: SAH-gah(Swedish) SA-gha(Icelandic)
Personal remark: breathtaking. completely impractical, but breathtaking all the same.
From Old Norse Sága, possibly meaning "seeing one", derived from sjá "to see". This is the name of a Norse goddess, possibly connected to Frigg. As a Swedish and Icelandic name, it is also derived from the unrelated word saga "story, fairy tale, saga".
Wolfgang
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: VAWLF-gang(German) WUWLF-gang(English)
Personal remark: can't decide how I would pronounce this...
Derived from the Old German elements wolf meaning "wolf" and gang meaning "path, way". Saint Wolfgang was a 10th-century bishop of Regensburg. Two other famous bearers of this name were Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) and German novelist and poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832).
Elliot
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHL-ee-ət
Personal remark: can't decide whether I want one T or two. either way, incredibly sophisticated name. nn Otto or Eli?
From a surname that was a variant of Elliott.
Astrophel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature
Personal remark: can't explain it. don't even ask.
Probably intended to mean "star lover", from Greek ἀστήρ (aster) meaning "star" and φίλος (philos) meaning "lover, friend". This name was first used by the 16th-century poet Sir Philip Sidney in his collection of sonnets Astrophel and Stella.
Ffion
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: FEE-awn, FI-awn
Personal remark: can't use this. impossible in the USA. however I used to know a lovely Welsh girl with the name.
Means "foxglove" in Welsh (species Digitalis purpurea). This is a recently created Welsh name.
Scarlett
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SKAHR-lit
Personal remark: cannot imagine this name on a real person in modern society. however, it looks awesome.
From an English surname that denoted a person who sold or made clothes made of scarlet (a kind of cloth, possibly derived from Persian سقرلاط (saqrelat)). Margaret Mitchell used it for the main character, Scarlett O'Hara, in her novel Gone with the Wind (1936). Her name is explained as having come from her grandmother. Despite the fact that the book was adapted into a popular movie in 1939, the name was not common until the 21st century. It started rising around 2003, about the time that the career of American actress Scarlett Johansson (1984-) started taking off.
Ciarán
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Old Irish [1]
Pronounced: KYEE-ran(Irish)
Personal remark: Ciaran Hinds much? it's also just a very dapper, classy name.
Diminutive of Ciar. This was the name of two 6th-century Irish saints: Ciarán the Elder, the founder of the monastery at Saighir, and Ciarán the Younger, the founder of the monastery at Clonmacnoise.
Alaric
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Gothic (Anglicized)
Other Scripts: 𐌰𐌻𐌰𐍂𐌴𐌹𐌺𐍃(Gothic)
Pronounced: AL-ə-rik(English)
Personal remark: cold, elegant and slightly intimidating. perfect name.
From the Gothic name *Alareiks meaning "ruler of all", derived from the element alls "all" combined with reiks "ruler, king". This was the name of a king of the Visigoths who sacked Rome in the 5th century.
Euphemia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Greek, English (Archaic)
Other Scripts: Εὐφημία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: yoo-FEE-mee-ə(English) yoo-FEH-mee-ə(English)
Personal remark: completely impractical, but come on, I could call her Effie!
Means "to use words of good omen" from Greek εὐφημέω (euphemeo), a derivative of εὖ (eu) meaning "good" and φημί (phemi) meaning "to speak, to declare". Saint Euphemia was an early martyr from Chalcedon.
Alastair
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish
Pronounced: AL-i-stər(English)
Personal remark: could never go by a nickname, but still fantastic.
Anglicized form of Alasdair.
Mirabelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Rare), English (Rare)
Personal remark: dainty and exquisitely feminine. this is almost ridiculously beautiful, and Mira is a gorgeous nn.
Derived from Latin mirabilis meaning "wonderful". This name was coined during the Middle Ages, though it eventually died out. It was briefly revived in the 19th century.
Violette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: VYAW-LEHT
Personal remark: dainty. would make a fantastic mn.
French form of Violet.
Lucasta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Personal remark: darkly luxurious. Lucy as a nn takes some of the edge off--I'd probably use Casta.
This name was first used by the poet Richard Lovelace for a collection of poems called Lucasta (1649). The poems were dedicated to Lucasta, a nickname for the woman he loved Lucy Sacheverel, whom he called lux casta "pure light".
Lilith
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Semitic Mythology, Judeo-Christian-Islamic Legend
Pronounced: LIL-ith(English)
Personal remark: delicate, almost, but very powerful at the same time. and she could go by Lily.
Derived from Akkadian lilitu meaning "of the night". This was the name of a demon in ancient Assyrian myths. In Jewish tradition she was Adam's first wife, sent out of Eden and replaced by Eve because she would not submit to him. The offspring of Adam (or Samael) and Lilith were the evil spirits of the world.
Chester
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: CHEHS-tər
Personal remark: domestic, really, and very charming.
From an English surname that originally belonged to a person who came from Chester, an old Roman settlement in Britain. The name of the settlement came from Latin castrum "camp, fortress".
Clémence
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: KLEH-MAHNS
Personal remark: dunno why. it's just very sturdy and old-fashioned but still elegant.
French feminine form of Clementius (see Clement).
Cole
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KOL
Personal remark: eh. this is just a nice mn.
From an English surname, itself originally derived from either a medieval short form of Nicholas or the byname Cola. A famous bearer was the songwriter Cole Porter (1891-1964), while a bearer of the surname was the musician Nat King Cole (1919-1965).

This name got more popular in the early 1980s, then got a boost in 1990 when it was used by the main character in the movie Days of Thunder.

Rufus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman, English, Biblical
Pronounced: ROO-foos(Latin) ROO-fəs(English)
Personal remark: enchanting. no clue why.
Roman cognomen meaning "red-haired" in Latin. Several early saints had this name, including one mentioned in one of Paul's epistles in the New Testament. As a nickname it was used by William II Rufus, a king of England, because of his red hair. It came into general use in the English-speaking world after the Protestant Reformation.
Cecil
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SEE-səl, SEHS-əl
Personal remark: entirely because of William Cecil, in my opinion one of the greatest men who ever lived.
From the Roman name Caecilius (see Cecilia). This was the name of a 3rd-century saint, a companion of Saint Cyprian. Though it was in use during the Middle Ages in England, it did not become common until the 19th century when it was given in honour of the noble Cecil family, who had been prominent since the 16th century. Their surname was derived from the Welsh given name Seisyll, which was derived from the Roman name Sextilius, a derivative of Sextus.
Bridget
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, English
Pronounced: BRIJ-it(English)
Personal remark: feisty but still delicate. love it.
Anglicized form of the Irish name Brighid, Old Irish Brigit, from old Celtic *Brigantī meaning "the exalted one". In Irish mythology this was the name of the goddess of fire, poetry and wisdom, the daughter of the god Dagda. In the 5th century it was borne by Saint Brigid, the founder of a monastery at Kildare and a patron saint of Ireland. Because of the saint, the name was considered sacred in Ireland, and it did not come into general use there until the 17th century. In the form Birgitta this name has been common in Scandinavia, made popular by the 14th-century Saint Birgitta of Sweden, patron saint of Europe.
Eleanor
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: EHL-ə-nawr
Personal remark: flawlessly elegant, composed and dignified. no nn.
From the Old French form of the Occitan name Alienòr. Among the name's earliest bearers was the influential Eleanor of Aquitaine (12th century), who was the queen of Louis VII, the king of France, and later Henry II, the king of England. She was named Aenor after her mother, and was called by the Occitan phrase alia Aenor "the other Aenor" in order to distinguish her from her mother. However, there appear to be examples of bearers prior to Eleanor of Aquitaine. It is not clear whether they were in fact Aenors who were retroactively recorded as having the name Eleanor, or whether there is an alternative explanation for the name's origin.

The popularity of the name Eleanor in England during the Middle Ages was due to the fame of Eleanor of Aquitaine, as well as two queens of the following century: Eleanor of Provence, the wife of Henry III, and Eleanor of Castile, the wife of Edward I. More recently, it was borne by first lady Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962), the wife of American president Franklin Roosevelt.

Carlisle
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: kahr-LIEL
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
From a surname that was derived from the name of a city in northern England. The city was originally called by the Romans Luguvalium meaning "stronghold of Lugus". Later the Brythonic element ker "fort" was appended to the name of the city.
Lucius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman, Biblical, English
Pronounced: LOO-kee-oos(Latin) LOO-shəs(English) LOO-si-əs(English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Roman praenomen, or given name, which was derived from Latin lux "light". This was the most popular of the praenomina. Two Etruscan kings of early Rome had this name as well as several prominent later Romans, including Lucius Annaeus Seneca (known simply as Seneca), a statesman, philosopher, orator and tragedian. The name is mentioned briefly in the New Testament belonging to a Christian in Antioch. It was also borne by three popes, including the 3rd-century Saint Lucius. Despite this, the name was not regularly used in the Christian world until after the Renaissance.
Miriam
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Italian, Portuguese, Czech, Slovak, Polish, Biblical, Biblical Hebrew
Other Scripts: מִרְיָם(Hebrew)
Pronounced: MIR-ee-əm(English) MI-ryam(German) MI-ri-yam(Czech) MEE-ree-am(Slovak)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Hebrew form of Mary. It is used in the Old Testament, where it belongs to the elder sister of Moses and Aaron. She watched over the infant Moses as the pharaoh's daughter drew him from the Nile. The name has long been popular among Jews, and it has been used as an English Christian name (alongside Mary) since the Protestant Reformation.
Morwenna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Cornish, Welsh
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
From Old Cornish moroin meaning "maiden, girl" (related to the Welsh word morwyn [1]). This was the name of a 6th-century Cornish saint, said to be one of the daughters of Brychan Brycheiniog.
Ophelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Literature, Ancient Greek
Other Scripts: Ὠφελία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: o-FEEL-ee-ə(English) o-FEEL-yə(English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Derived from Greek ὠφέλεια (opheleia) meaning "help, advantage". This was a rare ancient Greek name, which was either rediscovered or recreated by the 15th-century poet Jacopo Sannazaro for a character in his poem Arcadia. It was borrowed by Shakespeare for his play Hamlet (1600), in which it belongs to the daughter of Polonius and the potential love interest of Hamlet. She eventually goes insane and drowns herself after Hamlet kills her father. In spite of this negative association, the name has been in use since the 19th century.
Orson
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AWR-sən
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
From a Norman nickname derived from a diminutive of Norman French ors "bear", ultimately from Latin ursus. American actor and director Orson Welles (1915-1985) was a famous bearer of this name.
Peregrine
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: PEHR-ə-grin
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
From the Late Latin name Peregrinus, which meant "traveller". This was the name of several early saints.
Remus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Roman Mythology, Romanian
Pronounced: REH-moos(Latin) REE-məs(English)
Personal remark: from Baby Name Expert
Meaning unknown. In Roman legend Romulus and Remus were the founders of Rome. Remus was later slain by Romulus.
Athanasius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ἀθανάσιος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ath-ə-NAY-shəs(English)
Personal remark: ha ha ha haaaa it sounds like a wise old sage. love it.
From the Greek name Ἀθανάσιος (Athanasios) meaning "immortal", from Greek (a), a negative prefix, combined with θάνατος (thanatos) meaning "death". Saint Athanasius was a 4th-century bishop of Alexandria who strongly opposed Arianism.
Søren
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Danish
Pronounced: SUUW-ən
Personal remark: HANDSOME. *faints*
Danish form of Severinus. Søren Kierkegaard (1813-1855) was a Danish philosopher who is regarded as a precursor of existentialism.
Cornelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Romanian, Italian, Dutch, English, Ancient Roman
Pronounced: kawr-NEH-lya(German) kor-NEH-lya(Italian) kawr-NEH-lee-a(Dutch) kawr-NEE-lee-ə(English) kor-NEH-lee-a(Latin)
Personal remark: harshly, unforgivingly elegant. love it.
Feminine form of Cornelius. In the 2nd century BC it was borne by Cornelia Scipionis Africana (the daughter of the military hero Scipio Africanus), the mother of the two reformers known as the Gracchi. After her death she was regarded as an example of the ideal Roman woman. The name was revived in the 18th century.
Leander
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Λέανδρος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: lee-AN-dər(English)
Personal remark: Hero on a girl doesn't work, but this is slightly more practical...
Latinized form of the Greek name Λέανδρος (Leandros), derived from λέων (leon) meaning "lion" and ἀνήρ (aner) meaning "man" (genitive ἀνδρός). In Greek legend Leander was the lover of Hero. Every night he swam across the Hellespont to meet her, but on one occasion he was drowned when a storm arose. When Hero saw his dead body she threw herself into the waters and perished.
Geneviève
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: ZHU-NU-VYEHV, ZHUN-VYEHV
Personal remark: I actually think the GEN-e-veev pronounciation is prettier.
From the medieval name Genovefa, which is of uncertain origin. It could be derived from the Germanic elements *kunją "clan, family, lineage" and *wībą "wife, woman". Alternatively it could be of Gaulish origin, from the related Celtic element *genos "kin, family" combined with a second element of unknown meaning. This name was borne by Saint Geneviève, the patron saint of Paris, who inspired the city to resist the Huns in the 5th century.
Elias
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Portuguese, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, English, Dutch, Greek, Eastern African, Amharic, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek
Other Scripts: Ηλίας(Greek) ኤልያስ(Amharic) Ἠλίας(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: i-LEE-ush(European Portuguese) eh-LEE-us(Brazilian Portuguese) eh-LEE-as(German) EH-lee-ahs(Finnish) i-LIE-əs(English) ee-LIE-əs(English)
Personal remark: I adore the Eli names. I prefer to look at this one than to hear it.
Form of Elijah used in several languages. This is also the form used in the Greek New Testament.
Jack
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JAK
Personal remark: I hate John, but I love Jack. I think this can stand on its own.
Derived from Jackin (earlier Jankin), a medieval diminutive of John [1]. There could be some early influence from the unrelated French name Jacques [2]. It is often regarded as an independent name. During the Middle Ages it was very common, and it became a slang word meaning "man". It was frequently used in fairy tales and nursery rhymes, such as Jack and the Beanstalk, Little Jack Horner, and Jack Sprat.

American writers Jack London (1876-1916) and Jack Kerouac (1922-1969) were two famous bearers of this name. It is also borne by the actor Jack Nicholson (1937-) and the golfer Jack Nicklaus (1940-). Apart from Nicklaus, none of these famous bearers were given the name Jack at birth.

In the United Kingdom this form has been bestowed more frequently than John since the 1990s, being the most popular name for boys from 1996 to 2008.

Iseult
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arthurian Romance
Pronounced: i-SOOLT(English) i-ZOOLT(English) EE-ZUU(French)
Personal remark: I have always preferred this spelling over Isolde. the -ult ending makes it seem so princessy.
The origins of this name are uncertain, though some Celtic roots have been suggested. It is possible that the name is ultimately Germanic, from a hypothetical name like *Ishild, composed of the elements is "ice" and hilt "battle".

According to tales first recorded in Old French in the 12th century, Yseut or Ysolt was an Irish princess betrothed to King Mark of Cornwall. After accidentally drinking a love potion, she became the lover of his nephew Tristan. Their tragic story, which was set in the Arthurian world, was popular during the Middle Ages and the name became relatively common in England at that time. It was rare by the 19th century, though some interest was generated by Richard Wagner's opera Tristan und Isolde (1865).

Basil 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BAZ-əl
Personal remark: I have no idea why, but I adore this.
From the Greek name Βασίλειος (Basileios), which was derived from βασιλεύς (basileus) meaning "king". Saint Basil the Great was a 4th-century bishop of Caesarea and one of the fathers of the early Christian church. Due to him, the name (in various spellings) has come into general use in the Christian world, being especially popular among Eastern Christians. It was also borne by two Byzantine emperors.
Meriwether
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: MEHR-i-wedh-ər
Personal remark: I know, I know, this is weird. but I love the nn Merry on a guy, and Meriadoc is not an option.
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.
Meriel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Archaic)
Pronounced: MEHR-ee-əl
Personal remark: I like Miriel better actually. this is really lovely though.
Variant of Muriel.
Andromeda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἀνδρομέδα, Ἀνδρομέδη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: AN-DRO-MEH-DA(Classical Greek) an-DRAH-mi-də(English)
Personal remark: I like the sentiment.
Derived from Greek ἀνήρ (aner) meaning "man" (genitive ἀνδρός) combined with one of the related words μέδομαι (medomai) meaning "to be mindful of, to provide for, to think on" or μέδω (medo) meaning "to protect, to rule over". In Greek mythology Andromeda was an Ethiopian princess rescued from sacrifice by the hero Perseus. A constellation in the northern sky is named for her. This is also the name of a nearby galaxy, given because it resides (from our point of view) within the constellation.
Alcyone
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ἀλκυόνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: al-SIE-ə-nee(English)
Personal remark: I love all of these obscure Greek deities and their crazy names.
Latinized form of Greek Ἀλκυόνη (Alkyone), derived from the word ἀλκυών (alkyon) meaning "kingfisher". In Greek myth this name belonged to a daughter of Aeolus and the wife of Ceyx. After her husband was killed in a shipwreck she threw herself into the water, but the gods saved her and turned them both into kingfishers. This is also the name of the brightest of the Pleiades, a group of stars in the constellation Taurus, supposedly the daughters of Atlas and Pleione.
Clarisse
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: KLA-REES
Personal remark: I love frills.
French form of Clarice.
Hestia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἑστία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: HEHS-TEE-A(Classical Greek) HEHS-tee-ə(English)
Personal remark: I love it when mythological names actually have the potential to work in real life. makes my day.
Derived from Greek ἑστία (hestia) meaning "hearth, fireside". In Greek mythology Hestia was the goddess of the hearth and domestic activity.
Juliet
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: joo-lee-EHT, JOOL-yət
Personal remark: I say this with a heavy accent on the first syllable. JOO-lee-it. joo-lee-ETT would be Juliette, no?
Anglicized form of Giulietta or Juliette. This spelling was used for the ill-fated lover of Romeo in the play Romeo and Juliet (1596) by William Shakespeare. Shakespeare based his story on earlier Italian tales such as Giulietta e Romeo (1524) by Luigi Da Porto.
Aloisia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German (Rare)
Pronounced: a-LOI-zya
Personal remark: I think I got this from Amadeus? beautiful.
German feminine form of Aloysius.
Edmund
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Polish
Pronounced: EHD-mənd(English) EHT-muwnt(German) EHD-moont(Polish)
Personal remark: I think of Narnia. I love Narnia.
Means "rich protection", from the Old English elements ead "wealth, fortune" and mund "protection". This was the name of two Anglo-Saxon kings of England. It was also borne by two saints, including a 9th-century king of East Anglia who, according to tradition, was shot to death with arrows after refusing to divide his Christian kingdom with an invading pagan Danish leader. This Old English name remained in use after the Norman Conquest (even being used by King Henry III for one of his sons), though it became less common after the 15th century.

Famous bearers of the name include the English poet Edmund Spenser (1552-1599), the German-Czech philosopher Edmund Husserl (1859-1938) and New Zealand mountaineer Sir Edmund Hillary (1919-2008), the first person to climb Mount Everest.

Lucy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LOO-see
Personal remark: I think this can stand on its own, though. Dickensian!
English form of Lucia, in use since the Middle Ages.
Caspian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: KAS-pee-ən(English)
Personal remark: I'm in love with this name. it's just perfect. dashing and romantic and will never go out of style.
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.
Céleste
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: SEH-LEST
Personal remark: if I thought Caelestia were at all practical, I'd have that instead...
French feminine and masculine form of Caelestis.
Madeline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAD-ə-lin, MAD-lin, MAD-ə-lien
Personal remark: IN TWO STRAIGHT LINES THEY BROKE THEIR BREAD AND BRUSHED THEIR TEETH AND WENT TO BED
English form of Madeleine. This is the name of the heroine in a series of children's books by the Austrian-American author Ludwig Bemelmans, first published 1939.
Lorelei
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, English
Pronounced: LAWR-ə-lie(English)
Personal remark: is it okay that I got this from Pokemon? it's a little strange but very beautiful.
From German Loreley, the name of a rock headland on the Rhine River. It is of uncertain meaning, though the second element is probably old German ley meaning "rock" (of Celtic origin). German romantic poets and songwriters, beginning with Clemens Brentano in 1801, tell that a maiden named the Lorelei lives on the rock and lures boaters to their death with her song.

In the English-speaking world this name has been occasionally given since the early 20th century. It started rising in America after the variant Lorelai was used for the main character (and her daughter, nicknamed Rory) on the television series Gilmore Girls (2000-2007).

Violet
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: VIE-lit, VIE-ə-lit
Personal remark: it looks funny, but I like the image it brings up. pretty, pale, dark-haired little thing.
From the English word violet for the purple flower, ultimately derived from Latin viola. It was common in Scotland from the 16th century, and it came into general use as an English given name during the 19th century.
Severin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Norwegian (Rare), Swedish (Rare), Danish (Rare)
Pronounced: zeh-veh-REEN(German) ZEH-veh-reen(German)
Personal remark: it's just like Severus, except practical!
German and Scandinavian form of Severinus.
Ghislaine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: ZHEES-LEHN, GEE-LEHN
Personal remark: it's just so funky and different, but also really elegant.
Feminine form of Ghislain.
Violetta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Russian, Hungarian
Other Scripts: Виолетта(Russian)
Pronounced: vyo-LEHT-ta(Italian) vyi-u-LYEHT-tə(Russian) VEE-o-leht-taw(Hungarian)
Personal remark: Italian names tend to overdo it, but they're fabulous.
Italian, Russian and Hungarian form of Violet.
Claire
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: KLEHR
Personal remark: just the picture of elegance. another one of those perfect names.
French form of Clara. This was a common name in France throughout the 20th century, though it has since been eclipsed there by Clara. It was also very popular in the United Kingdom, especially in the 1970s.
Crescentia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German (Rare), Late Roman
Personal remark: kind of gaudy. but that's why I like it.
Feminine form of Crescentius. Saint Crescentia was a 4th-century companion of Saint Vitus. This is also the name of the eponymous heroine of a 12th-century German romance.
Bellatrix
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Astronomy
Pronounced: bə-LAY-triks(English) BEHL-ə-triks(English)
Personal remark: kind of Harry Potterish, but very cool and independent-sounding.
Means "female warrior" in Latin. This is the name of the star that marks the left shoulder of the constellation Orion.
Clara
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, Catalan, Romanian, English, Swedish, Danish, Late Roman
Pronounced: KLA-ra(German, Spanish, Italian) KLA-ru(Portuguese) KLA-RA(French) KLEHR-ə(American English) KLAR-ə(American English) KLAH-rə(British English)
Personal remark: kind of pastoral... sweet and unassuming, but very strong.
Feminine form of the Late Latin name Clarus, which meant "clear, bright, famous". The name Clarus was borne by a few early saints. The feminine form was popularized by the 13th-century Saint Clare of Assisi (called Chiara in Italian), a friend and follower of Saint Francis, who left her wealthy family to found the order of nuns known as the Poor Clares.

As an English name it has been in use since the Middle Ages, originally in the form Clare, though the Latinate spelling Clara overtook it in the 19th century and became very popular. It declined through most of the 20th century (being eclipsed by the French form Claire in English-speaking countries), though it has since recovered somewhat.

Letitia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: li-TISH-ə
Personal remark: Laetitia perhaps, but that's just so much... I'd call her Lettice.
From the Late Latin name Laetitia meaning "joy, happiness". This was the name of an obscure saint, who is revered mainly in Spain. It was in use in England during the Middle Ages, usually in the spelling Lettice, and it was revived in the 18th century.
Hudson
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HUD-sən
Personal remark: LONG story. I don't even like this name, but it is a necessity that I use it.
From an English surname meaning "son of Hudde". A famous bearer of the surname was the English explorer Henry Hudson (1570-1611).
Aurélie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: O-REH-LEE
Personal remark: looks nice. that's about it.
French feminine form of Aurelius.
Siobhán
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: SHI-wan, SHUW-wan, SHI-van, shə-VAN
Personal remark: looks really pretty. sounds less pretty, but still lovely.
Irish form of Jehanne, a Norman French variant of Jeanne.
Byron
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BIE-rən
Personal remark: Lord Byron. Byron Nease. well maybe not that last one, but still, a noble, gentlemanly name.
From a surname that was originally from a place name meaning "place of the cow sheds" in Old English. This was the surname of the romantic poet Lord Byron (1788-1824), the writer of Don Juan and many other works.
Lothaire
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: LAW-TEHR
Personal remark: love -aire names on guys. this is so darkly handsome.
French form of Lothar.
Freya
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norse Mythology, English (Modern), German
Pronounced: FRAY-ə(English) FRAY-a(German)
Personal remark: love Norse mythology. this is one of the very few practical girls' names in the pantheon.
From Old Norse Freyja meaning "lady". This is the name of a goddess associated with love, beauty, war and death in Norse mythology. She claims half of the heroes who are slain in battle and brings them to her realm of Fólkvangr. Along with her brother Freyr and father Njord, she is one of the Vanir (as opposed to the Æsir). Some scholars connect her with the goddess Frigg.

This is not the usual spelling in any of the Scandinavian languages (in Sweden and Denmark it is Freja and in Norway it is Frøja) but it is the common spelling of the goddess's name in English. In the 2000s it became popular in Britain.

Loki
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Norse Mythology
Pronounced: LO-kee(English)
Personal remark: mn only. like I said, Norse mythology is fantastic.
Meaning unknown, possibly derived from the Germanic root *luką meaning "lock". In Norse mythology Loki was a trickster god associated with magic and shape shifting. Loki's children include the wolf Fenrir, the sea serpent Jörmungandr, and the queen of the dead Hel. After he orchestrated the death of Balder, the other gods tied him to a rock below a snake that dripped venom onto his face. It is told that he will break free during Ragnarök, the final battle, and slay and be slain by Heimdall.
Alastríona
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: ə-ləs-TRYEE-nə, A-ləs-tryee-nə
Personal remark: mn possibilities. mostly a leftover from Clara.
Feminine form of Alastar.
Connor
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, English (Modern)
Pronounced: KAHN-ər(English)
Personal remark: modern. also sweet and youthful.
Variant of Conor, based on the usual spelling of the surname that is derived from the name. This is currently the most common way of spelling it in the English-speaking world, apart from Ireland.
Aonghas
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish Gaelic [1]
Personal remark: mostly from that painting... yeah, you know the one. with the dude on the rocks.
Scottish Gaelic form of Aonghus.
Beatrice
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, English, Swedish, Romanian
Pronounced: beh-a-TREE-cheh(Italian) BEE-ə-tris(English) BEET-ris(English) BEH-ah-trees(Swedish) beh-ah-TREES(Swedish)
Personal remark: much better than Beatrix because it's so much softer. just a lovely classic.
Italian form of Beatrix. Beatrice Portinari (1266-1290) was the woman who was loved by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri. She serves as Dante's guide through paradise in his epic poem the Divine Comedy (1321). This is also the name of a character in Shakespeare's comedy Much Ado About Nothing (1599), in which Beatrice and Benedick are fooled into confessing their love for one another.
Luna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, English
Pronounced: LOO-na(Latin, Spanish, Italian) LOO-nə(English)
Personal remark: mystical, feminine and very uncommon. love it.
Means "the moon" in Latin (as well as Italian, Spanish and other Romance languages). Luna was the Roman goddess of the moon, frequently depicted driving a white chariot through the sky.
Edgar
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Portuguese, German
Pronounced: EHD-gər(English) EHD-GAR(French)
Personal remark: never thought I liked the Ed names, but I do. this is kind of gaunt.
Derived from the Old English elements ead "wealth, fortune" and gar "spear". This was the name of a 10th-century English king, Edgar the Peaceful. The name did not survive long after the Norman Conquest, but it was revived in the 18th century, in part due to a character by this name in Walter Scott's novel The Bride of Lammermoor (1819), which tells of the tragic love between Edgar Ravenswood and Lucy Ashton [1]. Famous bearers include author and poet Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849), French impressionist painter Edgar Degas (1834-1917), and author Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875-1950).
Edward
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Polish
Pronounced: EHD-wərd(English) EHD-vart(Polish)
Personal remark: now I'm starting to hate this because of Twilight.
Means "rich guard", derived from the Old English elements ead "wealth, fortune" and weard "guard". This was the name of several Anglo-Saxon kings, the last being Saint Edward the Confessor shortly before the Norman Conquest in the 11th century. He was known as a just ruler, and because of his popularity his name remained in use after the conquest when most other Old English names were replaced by Norman ones. The 13th-century Plantagenet king Henry III named his son and successor after the saint, and seven subsequent kings of England were also named Edward.

This is one of the few Old English names to be used throughout Europe (in various spellings). A famous bearer was the British composer Edward Elgar (1857-1934). It was also used by author Charlotte Brontë for the character Edward Rochester, the main love interest of the title character in her novel Jane Eyre (1847).

Olympia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek, Slovak
Other Scripts: Ολυμπία(Greek)
Personal remark: oh-LAMP-ee-ah. soooo pretty.
Feminine form of Olympos.
Sinclair
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: sin-KLEHR
Personal remark: oh, I don't know why. it just seems classy.
From a Scottish surname that was derived from a Norman French town called "Saint Clair". A notable bearer was the American author Sinclair Lewis (1885-1951).
Circe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Κίρκη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: SUR-see(English)
Personal remark: okay, completely unusable. but also highly romantic.
Latinized form of Greek Κίρκη (Kirke), possibly from κίρκος (kirkos) meaning "hawk". In Greek mythology Circe was a sorceress who changed Odysseus's crew into hogs, as told in Homer's Odyssey. Odysseus forced her to change them back, then stayed with her for a year before continuing his voyage.
Colm
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Personal remark: okay, I'd never use it. I would never even consider it. but come on!
Variant of Colum.
Arthur
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Welsh Mythology, Arthurian Romance
Pronounced: AHR-thər(English) AR-TUYR(French) AR-tuwr(German) AHR-tuyr(Dutch)
Personal remark: okay, Monty Python aside, this is one of those unexpected classics that needs to see more use.
The meaning of this name is unknown. It could be derived from the Celtic elements *artos "bear" (Old Welsh arth) combined with *wiros "man" (Old Welsh gur) or *rīxs "king" (Old Welsh ri). Alternatively it could be related to an obscure Roman family name Artorius.

Arthur is the name of the central character in Arthurian legend, a 6th-century king of the Britons who resisted Saxon invaders. He may or may not have been based on a real person. He first appears in Welsh poems and chronicles (perhaps briefly in the 7th-century poem Y Gododdin and more definitively and extensively in the 9th-century History of the Britons [1]). However, his character was not developed until the chronicles of the 12th-century Geoffrey of Monmouth [2]. His tales were later taken up and expanded by French and English writers.

The name came into general use in England in the Middle Ages due to the prevalence of Arthurian romances, and it enjoyed a surge of popularity in the 19th century. Famous bearers include German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860), mystery author and Sherlock Holmes creator Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930), and science-fiction author Arthur C. Clarke (1917-2008).

Crocifissa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian (Rare)
Pronounced: kro-chee-FEES-sa
Personal remark: okay, so this is completely and utterly unsuitable for any living creature. however, it is FABULOUS.
Means "crucifix" in Italian, derived from Latin crucifixus "fixed to a cross", from crux "cross" and fixus "fixed, fastened".
Aislinn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: ASH-lyən
Personal remark: old favorite of mine... Ashlyn is just so unrefined.
Variant of Aisling.
Rohan 2
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature
Personal remark: once again, a name we aren't supposed to use... but it's so strong and rugged.
From the novel The Lord of the Rings (1954) by J. R. R. Tolkien, where it is a place name meaning "horse country" in the fictional language Sindarin.
Elijah
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Hebrew, Biblical
Other Scripts: אֱלִיָּהוּ(Hebrew)
Pronounced: i-LIE-jə(English) i-LIE-zhə(English)
Personal remark: one of my very favorites. I can't place it, but there's some magic here.
From the Hebrew name אֱלִיָּהוּ ('Eliyyahu) meaning "my God is Yahweh", derived from the elements אֵל ('el) and יָה (yah), both referring to the Hebrew God. Elijah was a Hebrew prophet and miracle worker, as told in the two Books of Kings in the Old Testament. He was active in the 9th century BC during the reign of King Ahab of Israel and his Phoenician-born queen Jezebel. Elijah confronted the king and queen over their idolatry of the Canaanite god Ba'al and other wicked deeds. At the end of his life he was carried to heaven in a chariot of fire, and was succeeded by Elisha. In the New Testament, Elijah and Moses appear next to Jesus when he is transfigured.

Because Elijah was a popular figure in medieval tales, and because his name was borne by a few early saints (who are usually known by the Latin form Elias), the name came into general use during the Middle Ages. In medieval England it was usually spelled Elis. It died out there by the 16th century, but it was revived by the Puritans in the form Elijah after the Protestant Reformation. The name became popular during the 1990s and 2000s, especially in America where it broke into the top ten in 2016.

Evelina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Swedish, Lithuanian, Greek, Russian, Bulgarian
Other Scripts: Εβελίνα(Greek) Эвелина(Russian) Евелина(Bulgarian)
Pronounced: ehv-ə-LEE-nə(English) eh-veh-LEE-na(Italian, Swedish)
Personal remark: one of the better Eve names. this is kind of small-seeming, but it's pretty.
Latinate form of Aveline. It was revived by the author Fanny Burney for the heroine of her first novel Evelina (1778). It is often regarded as a variant of the related name Evelyn or an elaboration of Eve.
Gregory
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: GREHG-ə-ree
Personal remark: only as a mn. it's really a lovely name though. very classy.
English form of Latin Gregorius, which was from the Late Greek name Γρηγόριος (Gregorios), derived from γρήγορος (gregoros) meaning "watchful, alert". This name was popular among early Christians, being borne by a number of important saints including Saint Gregory Thaumaturgus (3rd century), Saint Gregory the Illuminator (4th century), Saint Gregory of Nyssa (4th century), Saint Gregory of Nazianzus (4th century), and Saint Gregory of Tours (6th century). It was also borne by the 6th-century pope Saint Gregory I the Great, a reformer and Doctor of the Church, as well as 15 subsequent popes.

Due to the renown of the saints by this name, Gregory (in various spellings) has remained common in the Christian world through the Middle Ages and to the present day. It has been used in England since the 12th century. A famous bearer from the modern era was American actor Gregory Peck (1916-2003).

Annabelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: AN-ə-behl(English)
Personal remark: opulent and glamorous. love it.
Variant of Annabel. It can also be interpreted as a combination of Anna and French belle "beautiful".
Honoria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Late Roman
Personal remark: or maybe just Honora? the "honor" root is the draw here.
Feminine form of Honorius. This name was borne by the sister of the Western Roman emperor Valentinian III. After her brother had her engaged to a man she did not like, she wrote to Attila the Hun asking for help. Attila interpreted this as a marriage proposal and subsequently invaded.
Elisabetta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: eh-lee-za-BEHT-ta
Personal remark: overkill. also gorgeous.
Italian form of Elizabeth.
Mary
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Biblical
Pronounced: MEHR-ee(English) MAR-ee(English)
Personal remark: perfect. sweet, unassuming, very feminine but not frilly, powerful but not too forthright.
Usual English form of Maria, the Latin form of the New Testament Greek names Μαριάμ (Mariam) and Μαρία (Maria) — the spellings are interchangeable — which were from Hebrew מִרְיָם (Miryam), a name borne by the sister of Moses in the Old Testament. The meaning is not known for certain, but there are several theories including "sea of bitterness", "rebelliousness", and "wished for child". However it was most likely originally an Egyptian name, perhaps derived in part from mry "beloved" or mr "love".

This is the name of several New Testament characters, most importantly Mary the mother of Jesus. According to the gospels, Jesus was conceived in her by the Holy Spirit while she remained a virgin. This name was also borne by Mary Magdalene, a woman cured of demons by Jesus. She became one of his followers and later witnessed his crucifixion and resurrection.

Due to the Virgin Mary this name has been very popular in the Christian world, though at certain times in some cultures it has been considered too holy for everyday use. In England it has been used since the 12th century, and it has been among the most common feminine names since the 16th century. In the United States in 1880 it was given more than twice as often as the next most popular name for girls (Anna). It remained in the top rank in America until 1946 when it was bumped to second (by Linda). Although it regained the top spot for a few more years in the 1950s it was already falling in usage, and has since dropped out of the top 100 names.

This name has been borne by two queens of England, as well as a queen of Scotland, Mary Queen of Scots. Another notable bearer was Mary Shelley (1797-1851), the author of Frankenstein. A famous fictional character by this name is Mary Poppins from the children's books by P. L. Travers, first published in 1934.

The Latinized form of this name, Maria, is also used in English as well as in several other languages.

Lettice
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Archaic)
Personal remark: perhaps this could stand on its own though.
Medieval form of Letitia.
Jemima
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, English
Other Scripts: יְמִימָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: jə-MIE-mə(English)
Personal remark: quite aware that I could never ever use this. love it anyway.
Means "dove" in Hebrew. This was the oldest of the three daughters of Job in the Old Testament. As an English name, Jemima first became common during the Puritan era.
Anastasia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek, Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, English, Spanish, Italian, Georgian, Ancient Greek
Other Scripts: Αναστασία(Greek) Анастасия(Russian) Анастасія(Ukrainian, Belarusian) ანასტასია(Georgian) Ἀναστασία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: a-na-sta-SEE-a(Greek) u-nu-stu-SYEE-yə(Russian) u-nu-stu-SYEE-yu(Ukrainian) a-na-sta-SYEE-ya(Belarusian) an-ə-STAY-zhə(English) a-na-STA-sya(Spanish) a-na-STA-zya(Italian) A-NA-STA-SEE-A(Classical Greek)
Personal remark: rich and luxurious. Stasia is a cute nn.
Feminine form of Anastasius. This was the name of a 4th-century Dalmatian saint who was martyred during the persecutions of the Roman emperor Diocletian. Due to her, the name has been common in Eastern Orthodox Christianity (in various spellings). As an English name it has been in use since the Middle Ages. A famous bearer was the youngest daughter of the last Russian tsar Nicholas II, who was rumoured to have escaped the execution of her family in 1918.
Rosalind
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAHZ-ə-lind
Personal remark: ROZ-a-lind, not ROSE-a-lind. something about this seems windblown, almost harried, but very lovely.
Derived from the Old German elements hros meaning "horse" and lind meaning "soft, flexible, tender". The Normans introduced this name to England, though it was not common. During the Middle Ages its spelling was influenced by the Latin phrase rosa linda "beautiful rose". The name was popularized by Edmund Spencer, who used it in his poetry, and by William Shakespeare, who used it for the heroine in his comedy As You Like It (1599).
Sévérine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Rare)
Personal remark: see Sebastienne.
Variant of Séverine.
Arista
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Astronomy
Pronounced: ə-RIS-tə(English)
Personal remark: seems very thin, but pointed... like a pencil, but a lovely one.
Means "ear of grain" in Latin. This is the name of a star, also known as Spica, in the constellation Virgo.
Ian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: EE-ən(English)
Personal remark: short and sweet. very handsome.
Anglicized form of Scottish Gaelic Iain, itself from Latin Iohannes (see John). It became popular in the United Kingdom outside of Scotland in the first half of the 20th century, but did not begin catching on in America until the 1960s.
Belle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BEHL
Personal remark: simple and gorgeous. also the Beauty and the Beast connection has some meaning for me.
Short form of Isabella or names ending in belle. It is also associated with the French word belle meaning "beautiful". A famous bearer was Belle Starr (1848-1889), an outlaw of the American west, whose real given name was Maybelle.
Anna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Latvian, Greek, Hungarian, Polish, Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Czech, Slovak, Bulgarian, Armenian, Icelandic, Faroese, Catalan, Occitan, Breton, Scottish Gaelic, Biblical, Old Church Slavic, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek
Other Scripts: Άννα(Greek) Анна(Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Bulgarian, Church Slavic) Աննա(Armenian) Ἄννα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: AN-ə(English) AN-na(Italian, Polish, Icelandic) A-na(German, Swedish, Danish, Greek, Czech) AH-na(Dutch) AHN-na(Norwegian) AHN-nah(Finnish) AWN-naw(Hungarian) AN-nə(Russian, Catalan)
Personal remark: simple, elegant and versatile.
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.

Isobel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish
Personal remark: so much more interesting than boring old Isabella.
Anglicized form of Iseabail.
Eleanora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ehl-ə-NAWR-ə
Personal remark: so queenly!
Latinate form of Eleanor.
Jude 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical
Pronounced: JOOD(English)
Personal remark: sometimes shorter is better. this is nice and not too pretentious, so it balances out crazier names.
Variant of Judas. It is used in many English versions of the New Testament to denote the second apostle named Judas, in order to distinguish him from Judas Iscariot. He was supposedly the author of the Epistle of Jude. In the English-speaking world, Jude has occasionally been used as a given name since the time of the Protestant Reformation.
Ariadne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Ἀριάδνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: A-REE-AD-NEH(Classical Greek) ar-ee-AD-nee(English)
Personal remark: spindly. that's a good one for this name.
Means "most holy", composed of the Greek prefix ἀρι (ari) meaning "most" combined with Cretan Greek ἀδνός (adnos) meaning "holy". In Greek mythology, Ariadne was the daughter of King Minos. She fell in love with Theseus and helped him to escape the Labyrinth and the Minotaur, but was later abandoned by him. Eventually she married the god Dionysus.
Fiona
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: fee-O-nə(English)
Personal remark: spunky. cute, but ages well.
Feminine form of Fionn. This name was (first?) used by the Scottish poet James Macpherson in his poem Fingal (1761), in which it is spelled as Fióna.
Alexander
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Hungarian, Slovak, Biblical, Ancient Greek (Latinized), Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Ἀλέξανδρος(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: al-ig-ZAN-dər(English) a-leh-KSAN-du(German) a-lehk-SAHN-dər(Dutch) a-lehk-SAN-dehr(Swedish, Latin) A-lehk-san-tehr(Icelandic) AW-lehk-sawn-dehr(Hungarian) A-lehk-san-dehr(Slovak)
Personal remark: strong, handsome, normal.
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 Sir Alexander MacKenzie (1764-1820), Russian poet Alexander Pushkin (1799-1837), and Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922), the Scottish-Canadian-American inventor of the telephone.

Leda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, Italian
Other Scripts: Λήδα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: LEH-DA(Classical Greek) LEE-də(English) LAY-də(English) LEH-da(Italian)
Personal remark: swanlike. HA HA HA. okay. anyway, this is very elegant and timeless and rarely sees any use.
Meaning unknown. In Greek myth she was a Spartan queen and the mother of Castor, Pollux, Helen and Clytemnestra by the god Zeus, who came upon her in the form of a swan.
Melantha
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: mə-LAN-thə
Personal remark: TH in a girl's name is so weighted. this is really nice though.
Probably a combination of Mel (from names such as Melanie or Melissa) with the suffix antha (from Greek ἄνθος (anthos) meaning "flower"). John Dryden used this name in his play Marriage a la Mode (1672).
Sébastienne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: SEH-BAS-TYEHN
Personal remark: the French have the best middle names.
French feminine form of Sebastianus (see Sebastian).
Charlotte
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch
Pronounced: SHAR-LAWT(French) SHAHR-lət(English) shar-LAW-tə(German) sha-LOT(Swedish) shahr-LAW-tə(Dutch)
Personal remark: the perfect name. soft, feminine, classic, dignified but with great nn potential.
French feminine diminutive of Charles. It was introduced to Britain in the 17th century. It was the name of a German-born 18th-century queen consort of Great Britain and Ireland. Another notable bearer was Charlotte Brontë (1816-1855), the eldest of the three Brontë sisters and the author of Jane Eyre and Villette. A famous fictional bearer is the spider in the children's novel Charlotte's Web (1952) by E. B. White.

This name was fairly common in France, England and the United States in the early 20th century. It became quite popular in France and England at the end of the 20th century, just when it was at a low point in the United States. It quickly climbed the American charts and entered the top ten in 2014.

Cosette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, Literature
Pronounced: KAW-ZEHT(French)
Personal remark: THERE IS A CASTLE ON A CLOUD
From French chosette meaning "little thing". This is the nickname of the illegitimate daughter of Fantine in Victor Hugo's novel Les Misérables (1862). Her real name is Euphrasie, though it is seldom used. In the novel young Cosette is the ward of the cruel Thénardiers until she is retrieved by Jean Valjean.
Caleb
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical
Other Scripts: כָּלֵב(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: KAY-ləb(English)
Personal remark: there's something faintly fantasy-like here, but it would still age well.
Most likely related to Hebrew כֶּלֶב (kelev) meaning "dog". An alternate theory connects it to Hebrew כָּל (kal) meaning "whole, all of" and לֵב (lev) meaning "heart". In the Old Testament this is the name of one of the twelve spies sent by Moses into Canaan. Of the Israelites who left Egypt with Moses, Caleb and Joshua were the only ones who lived to see the Promised Land.

As an English name, Caleb came into use after the Protestant Reformation. It was common among the Puritans, who introduced it to America in the 17th century.

Stellan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Swedish
Pronounced: STEHL-lan
Personal remark: there's something striking about this one. people would stop in the street to gaze at this guy.
Meaning unknown, perhaps related to Old Norse stilling "calm", or perhaps of German origin.
Rosaire
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: RO-ZEHR
Personal remark: this is perfect--I imagine a dark, roguish Casanova with a heart of gold.
Means "rosary" in French.
Emma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Italian, Spanish, Catalan, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, Latvian, Dutch, German, Hungarian, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: EHM-ə(English) EH-MA(French) EH-ma(Spanish, German) EHM-mah(Finnish) EHM-maw(Hungarian)
Personal remark: this is way too popular to use, but perhaps as a mn because I just love the novel.
Originally a short form of Germanic names that began with the element irmin meaning "whole" or "great" (Proto-Germanic *ermunaz). It was introduced to England by Emma of Normandy, who was the wife both of King Ethelred II (and by him the mother of Edward the Confessor) and later of King Canute. It was also borne by an 11th-century Austrian saint, who is sometimes called Hemma.

After the Norman Conquest this name became common in England. It was revived in the 18th century, perhaps in part due to Matthew Prior's 1709 poem Henry and Emma [2]. It was also used by Jane Austen for the central character, the matchmaker Emma Woodhouse, in her novel Emma (1816).

In the United States, it was third in rank in 1880 (behind only the ubiquitous Mary and Anna). It declined steadily over the next century, beginning another rise in the 1980s and eventually becoming the most popular name for girls in 2008. At this time it also experienced similar levels of popularity elsewhere, including the United Kingdom (where it began rising a decade earlier), Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Scandinavia and the Netherlands. Famous bearers include the actresses Emma Thompson (1959-), Emma Stone (1988-) and Emma Watson (1990-).

Alec
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AL-ik
Personal remark: this just radiates cool.
Short form of Alexander.
Émilie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: EH-MEE-LEE
Personal remark: this makes Emily seem boring. I'd never use either, though.
French feminine form of Aemilius (see Emily).
Felix
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, English, Romanian, Ancient Roman, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Pronounced: FEH-liks(German, Dutch, Swedish) FEE-liks(English) FEH-leeks(Latin)
Personal remark: this might be my favorite male name. it's feisty but sophisticated.
From a Roman cognomen meaning "lucky, successful" in Latin. It was acquired as an agnomen, or nickname, by the 1st-century BC Roman general Sulla. It also appears in the New Testament belonging to the governor of Judea who imprisoned Saint Paul.

Due to its favourable meaning, this name was popular among early Christians, being borne by many early saints and four popes. It has been used in England since the Middle Ages, though it has been more popular in continental Europe. A notable bearer was the German composer Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847).

Finn 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish Mythology, Old Irish [1], Irish, English, Dutch, German
Pronounced: FIN(English)
Personal remark: this, regrettably, is because of the gay guy with awful fashion sense in all those Susan Juby books.
Old Irish form of Fionn, as well as the usual Anglicized spelling (with the Irish hero's name Anglicized as Finn McCool). As a surname it is borne by Huckleberry Finn, a character in Mark Twain's novels.
Medea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized), Georgian
Other Scripts: Μήδεια(Ancient Greek) მედეა(Georgian)
Pronounced: mə-DEE-ə(English) MEH-DEH-AH(Georgian)
Personal remark: Tyler Perry movies and tearing your brother limb from limb--good associations y/n?
From Greek Μήδεια (Medeia), derived from μήδεα (medea) meaning "plans, counsel, cunning". In Greek mythology Medea was a sorceress from Colchis (modern Georgia) who helped Jason gain the Golden Fleece. They were married, but eventually Jason left her for another woman. For revenge Medea slew Jason's new lover and also had her own children by Jason killed.
Elizabeth
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Biblical
Pronounced: i-LIZ-ə-bəth(English)
Personal remark: versatile, classy, feminine, intelligent but innocent... this will never go out of style.
From Ἐλισάβετ (Elisabet), the Greek form of the Hebrew name אֱלִישֶׁבַע ('Elisheva') meaning "my God is an oath", derived from the roots אֵל ('el) referring to the Hebrew God and שָׁבַע (shava') meaning "oath". The Hebrew form appears in the Old Testament where Elisheba is the wife of Aaron, while the Greek form appears in the New Testament where Elizabeth is the mother of John the Baptist.

Among Christians, this name was originally more common in Eastern Europe. It was borne in the 12th century by Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, a daughter of King Andrew II who used her wealth to help the poor. In medieval England it was occasionally used in honour of the saint, though the form Isabel (from Occitan and Spanish) was more common. It has been very popular in England since the reign of Queen Elizabeth I in the 16th century. In American name statistics (as recorded since 1880) it has never ranked lower than 30, making it the most consistently popular name for girls in the United States.

Besides Elizabeth I, this name has been borne (in various spellings) by many other European royals, including a ruling empress of Russia in the 18th century. Famous modern bearers include the British queen Elizabeth II (1926-2022) and actress Elizabeth Taylor (1932-2011).

Lyra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Astronomy
Pronounced: LIE-rə(English)
Personal remark: very beautifully dark.
The name of the constellation in the northern sky containing the star Vega. It is said to be shaped after the lyre of Orpheus. This is the name of the main character in the His Dark Materials series of books by Philip Pullman (beginning 1995).
Sebastian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Finnish, Romanian, Czech
Pronounced: zeh-BAS-tee-an(German) sə-BAS-chən(American English) sə-BAS-tee-ən(British English) seh-BAS-dyan(Danish) seh-BAS-tyan(Polish) SEH-bahs-tee-ahn(Finnish) seh-bas-tee-AN(Romanian) SEH-bas-ti-yan(Czech)
Personal remark: very masculine, but classy instead of being too macho. love Seb.
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.

Aurelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Roman, Romanian, Italian, Spanish, Polish
Pronounced: ow-REH-lee-a(Latin) ow-REH-lya(Italian, Spanish, Polish)
Personal remark: very mystical-sounding, although for whatever reason I always think of a purple ostrich
Feminine form of Aurelius.
Cosima
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: KAW-zee-ma
Personal remark: very refined. and vaguely Wagnerian, though I can't decide whether that's a good thing.
Italian feminine form of Cosimo.
Bedivere
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh Mythology, Arthurian Romance
Personal remark: very romantic. I love Arthurian names.
From the Welsh name Bedwyr, possibly from bedwen "birch" and gwr "man". In Arthurian legends Bedivere was one of the original companions of King Arthur. He first appears in early Welsh tales, and his story was later expanded by Geoffrey of Monmouth in the 12th century. He is the one who throws the sword Excalibur into the lake at the request of the dying Arthur.
Léopold
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: LEH-AW-PAWLD, LEH-AW-PAWL
Personal remark: very suave. I like the -pold sound.
French form of Leopold.
Leila
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Persian, Arabic, Kurdish, English, French, Georgian
Other Scripts: لیلا(Persian) ليلى(Arabic) لەیلا(Kurdish Sorani) ლეილა(Georgian)
Pronounced: lay-LAW(Persian) LIE-la(Arabic) LAY-lə(English) LEE-lə(English) LIE-lə(English) LAY-LA(French)
Personal remark: very sweet and modest.
Variant of Layla, and the usual Persian transcription.

This spelling was used by Lord Byron for characters in The Giaour (1813) and Don Juan (1819), and it is through him that the name was introduced to the English-speaking world.

Ruby
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ROO-bee
Personal remark: very winsome. Ruby would have long golden hair and a bright smile. like the girl from Lufia, hahaaa
Simply from the name of the precious stone (which ultimately derives from Latin ruber "red"), which is the traditional birthstone of July. It came into use as a given name in the 16th century [1].
Drusilla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, Ancient Roman, Biblical Latin
Pronounced: droo-SIL-ə(English)
Personal remark: wasn't this one of Cinderella's evil stepsisters? oh well, it's pretty.
Feminine diminutive of the Roman family name Drusus. In Acts in the New Testament Drusilla is the wife of Felix.
Viola
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Swedish, Danish, Finnish, German, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak
Pronounced: vie-O-lə(English) vi-O-lə(English) VIE-ə-lə(English) VYAW-la(Italian) vi-OO-la(Swedish) VEE-o-la(German) vee-O-la(German) VEE-o-law(Hungarian) VI-o-la(Czech) VEE-aw-la(Slovak)
Personal remark: would always be subject to viola jokes. still an interesting name.
Means "violet" in Latin. This is the name of the heroine of William Shakespeare's comedy Twelfth Night (1602). In the play she is the survivor of a shipwreck who disguises herself as a man named Cesario. Working as a messenger for Duke Orsino, she attempts to convince Olivia to marry him. Instead Viola falls in love with the duke.
Guinevere
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arthurian Romance
Pronounced: GWIN-ə-vir(English)
Personal remark: would this kid be doomed from the start? it's a beautiful name. Gwen or Vera perhaps?
From the Norman French form of the Welsh name Gwenhwyfar meaning "white phantom", ultimately from the old Celtic roots *windos meaning "white" (modern Welsh gwen) and *sēbros meaning "phantom, magical being" [1]. In Arthurian legend she was the beautiful wife of King Arthur. According to the 12th-century chronicler Geoffrey of Monmouth, she was seduced by Mordred before the battle of Camlann, which led to the deaths of both Mordred and Arthur. According to the 12th-century French poet Chrétien de Troyes, she engaged in an adulterous affair with Sir Lancelot.

The Cornish form of this name, Jennifer, has become popular in the English-speaking world.

Xavier
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Portuguese, Catalan, Spanish
Pronounced: ZAY-vyər(English) ig-ZAY-vyər(English) GZA-VYEH(French) shu-vee-EHR(European Portuguese) sha-vee-EKH(Brazilian Portuguese) shə-bee-EH(Catalan)
Personal remark: yes, as in Charles. very cool and sci-fi without being overbearing.
Derived from the Basque place name Etxeberria meaning "the new house". This was the surname of the Jesuit priest Saint Francis Xavier (1506-1552) who was born in a village by this name. He was a missionary to India, Japan, China, and other areas in East Asia, and he is the patron saint of the Orient and missionaries. His surname has since been adopted as a given name in his honour, chiefly among Catholics.
Rowena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ro-EEN-ə
Personal remark: yes, yes, Ravenclaw. but R names still intrigue me.
Meaning uncertain. According to the 12th-century chronicler Geoffrey of Monmouth, this was the name of a daughter of the Saxon chief Hengist. It is possible (but unsupported) that Geoffrey based it on the Old English elements hroð "fame" and wynn "joy", or alternatively on the Old Welsh elements ron "spear" and gwen "white". It was popularized by Walter Scott, who used it for a character in his novel Ivanhoe (1819).
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