BellamariafEnglish Combination of Bella and Maria, possibly inspired by the Virgin Mary (Bella Maria meaning "beautiful Mary").
BellariafLiterature Perhaps derived from Latin bellare meaning "to fight". This name was used by Robert Greene for a character in his prose romance 'Pandosto: The Triumph of Time' (1588). It was also used by Henry Fielding in his play 'The Temple Beau' (1730), and by Aaron Hill (1685-1750) in his poem 'Bellaria, at her Spinnet'.
BerinthiafTheatre, Literature, English (Rare) Meaning unknown, perhaps first used by Sir John Vanbrugh for a young widow in his play 'The Relapse' (1697). It was subsequently used by Richard Brinsley Sheridan for a widow in his play 'A Trip to Scarborough' (1777), and also appears in Dickens's 'Dombey and Son' (1848) belonging to Mrs Pipchin's niece.
BethiafBiblical Latin, Scottish, English Form of Bithiah used in some versions of the Old Testament, including the Douay-Rheims Bible. This name was popular in Scotland from the 17th century as an Anglicised form of Gaelic Beathag... [more]
BethuliafEnglish (Rare, Archaic) From the name of a city mentioned only in the apocryphal Book of Judith, possibly derived from the Hebrew noun בתולה (betula) meaning "virgin". The city's deliverance by Judith, when besieged by the Assyrian general Holofernes, forms the subject of the Book of Judith.
BettisiafMedieval Italian Possibly a diminutive of Elisabetta, or a variant of Bettina. Bettisia Gozzadini (1209–1261) was the first woman to teach at a university; specifically the University of Bologna.
BlanduziafRomanian (Rare) Fântâna Blanduziei ('Blanduzia's Fountain' in English) was a literary and political weekly magazine which was first published in 1888 and run by Romanian poet Mihai Eminescu.
BoliviafAmerican (Hispanic, Rare) From the name of the country in South America. The country got its name from the surname Bolívar, in honour of the revolutionary Simón Bolívar.
BonariafSardinian Taken from the title of the Virgin Mary Nostra Signora di Bonaria or Madonna di Bonaria. The name literally means "gracious; kind-hearted; sweet-natured", from Italian bonaria, the feminine form of the adjective bonario or "good air; good wind" in reference to her being the patron saint of sailors and mariners.... [more]
BonifáciafHungarian, Slovak Hungarian and Slovak feminine form of Boniface. In Hungarian history, this name was borne by Erzsébet Bonifácia (born and died 1399), the short-lived daughter of Jadwiga I, Queen of Poland (sister of Mária/Marija I, Queen of Hungary and Croatia) and Vladislavas Jogaila, Grand Duke of Lithuania (later Władysław II Jagiełło, King of Poland); the princess was named for her godfather Pope Boniface IX.
BoroniafEnglish (Australian, Rare) An Australian shrub with pink or red flowers which are famed for their exquisite scent. The plant is named after Francesco Borone, a talented botanical field assistant who came to a tragic end.
BrettiafGreek Mythology In Greek mythology, Brettia was the eponymous nymph of Abrettene, Mysia.
BreysiafMedieval Swiss Derived from the place name Brixia, the Latin name of an ancient city situated in Gallia Cisalpina, now Brescia in Lombardy, Italy.
BrigantiafCeltic Mythology Derived from Celtic *brigant- "high" or *briga- "might, power". This was the name of an important Brythonic goddess. She is almost certainly the same deity as Bridget, the Irish goddess.
BriseniafSpanish (Mexican) This given name is probably a combination of Briseida or Brigida with any name ending in -enia or -senia (depends on which name is used for the first part of the name), such as Eugenia and Yesenia.
BrunoniafGerman Allegoric personification of the city (and the fromer state) of Braunschweig (Brunswick), Germany. Very rarely used as a given name.
BruriafHebrew, Early Jewish Allegedly means "pure" in Aramaic. This was the name of a 2nd-century female scholar; she was the wife of Rabbi Meir, one of Rabbi Akiva's disciples. It was also borne by Israeli theoretical physicist Bruria Kaufman (1918-2010).
BruttiafAncient Roman Bruttia Crispina was Roman empress from 178 to 191 as the consort of Roman emperor Commodus. Her marriage to Commodus did not produce an heir, and her husband was instead succeeded by Pertinax.
CabiriafItalian (Rare), Popular Culture Perhaps a Latinized form of Greek Καβειρία (Kabeiria), an epithet of the goddess Demeter, possibly derived from the name of Mount Kabeiros in Asia Minor; see also Kabeiro... [more]
CaesariafLate Roman, History (Ecclesiastical) Feminine form of Caesarius. Caesaria of Arles (also called Caesaria the Elder, died c. 530), was a saint and abbess. She was born in a Gallo-Roman family and was trained at John Cassian's foundation in Marseilles.
CaesiafAncient Roman, Greek, Italian Caesia is a Latin word that means "bluish grey" or "light blue.” Caesia also refers to a genus of herbs.
CaledoniafEnglish (Rare) From the Latin name of Scotland, itself derived from Caledones, the Latin name of a tribe that inhabited the region during the Roman era, which is of unknown origin, though it may possibly come from Proto-Celtic *kaletos meaning "hard" and *ɸēdo- meaning "foot", alluding to standfastness or endurance.
CaliforniafEnglish (American, Rare) From the name of the American state, whose name probably derives from the fictional Island of California ruled by Queen Calafia in the 16th century novel Las sergas de Esplandián by García Ordóñez de Montalvo.
CallidiafTheatre, Literature Probably derived from the Latin adjective calidus, which may be translated as "warm, hot, fiery," or "passionate". Callidia is Queen Veremonda's maid in an Italian opera called "Veremonda, l'amazzone di Aragona" (with the English translation being "Veremonda, the Amazon of Aragon" also known as "Il Delio")... [more]
CallithyiafGreek Mythology Derived from kαλλι meaning "beautiful" and likely θυία (thuia) referring to the Juniperus foetidissima plant or θύον (thuon) meaning "cypress-pine".
CalperniafEnglish Variant of Calpurnia. A well-known bearer of this name is Calpernia Addams (b. 1971), an American author, actress, and transgender rights activist. Addams named herself after Calpurnia, wife of Julius Caesar in William Shakespeare's play 'Julius Caesar'; the spelling 'Calpernia' may have been taken from a tombstone that briefly appeared in the film 'The Addams Family' (1991).
CameriafOttoman Turkish, History Variant of Qamariya. Sultana Cameria was the name Europeans used to refer to Mihrimah Sultan (1522 – 25 January 1578), an Ottoman princess, the daughter of Ottoman Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent and his wife, Hürrem Sultan... [more]
CanidiafAncient Roman From the latin adjective canus, meaning "white" or "grey", to describe an older woman with white hair. Canidia is the name of a witch in Ancient Rome, appearing several times in Horace's writing.
CanisiafObscure Feminine form of Canisius, occasionally adopted as a monastic name. In the case of Canisia Lubrin (1984-), a Saint Lucian-born Canadian poet, it is more likely a variant of Canisha (see Kanisha, Kenisha).
CarasynthiafPopular Culture Carasynthia "Cara" Dune is a Human female Alderaanian who served in the Rebel Alliance as a shock trooper, and who later became a mercenary in the Star Wars Disney+ series The Mandalorian.
CardiniafIndigenous Australian, English (Australian, Rare) A place name from the outskirts of Melbourne, Victoria. Corruption of the Bunurong or Wadawurrung word Kar-din-yarr, meaning "look to the sunrise", because it was to the east of the Wadawurrung peoples' land.
Carpathiaf & mEnglish (Rare) In reference to the mountain range of Eastern Europe, from Thracian Greek Karpates oros, probably literally literally "Rocky Mountain"; related to Albanian karpe "rock." From 1630s in reference to the island of Carpathos in the Aegean... [more]
CasiphiafBiblical, English (Rare, Archaic) From a place name mentioned only by the Old Testament prophet Ezra, said to be a corruption of Caspian. Otherwise it may mean "place of the treasury" from Hebrew keceph "silver, money".
CastaliafGreek Mythology (Latinized) Latinized form of the Greek Κασταλία (Kastalia), which is of uncertain origin, possibly related to Greek καθαρός (katharos) meaning "clean, spotless, pure" or κασσύω (kassuô) "to stitch"... [more]
CataniafPopular Culture Derived from the Italian city of Catania and the Italian word katane meaning "grater". It is used for the character of Princess Catania in the movie Barbie: Mariposa and the Fairy Princess.
Celeiam & fSouth Slavic This name could be connected to the former spelling and pronunciation of the town in Solvenia named “Celje”, that was formerly name Celeia during the Roman period. It could also mean “gift of god” and “heavenly”.
CeltiafGalician (Modern, Rare) From the Galician word celta ("Celt"), thus meaning "land of the Celts". This is the name that Galician writer Eduardo Pondal gives to Galicia, reclaiming it as the quintessential land of the Celts.
ChalkhiamGeorgian (Rare) Meaning uncertain. It is possibly derived from the archaic Georgian noun ჩალხი (chalkhi) meaning "strongbow". In modern Georgian, the same word means "lathe" and "grindstone".
ChamsiafEastern African Possibly a Comorian form of Shams. A notable bearer is Comorian singer Chamsia Sagaf (1955-).