lucyskydiamonds's Personal Name List
Zinnia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: ZIN-ee-ə
Rating: 54% based on 17 votes
From the name of the flower, which was itself named for the German botanist Johann Zinn.
Winter
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: WIN-tər
Rating: 63% based on 19 votes
From the English word for the season, derived from Old English winter.
Winston
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WIN-stən
Rating: 46% based on 13 votes
From an English surname that was derived from the Old English given name
Wynnstan. A famous bearer was Winston Churchill (1874-1965), the British prime minister during World War II. This name was also borne by the fictional Winston Smith, the protagonist in George Orwell's 1949 novel
1984.
Winifred
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Welsh
Pronounced: WIN-ə-frid(English)
Rating: 48% based on 15 votes
From Latin
Winifreda, possibly from a Welsh name
Gwenfrewi (maybe influenced by the Old English masculine name
Winfred).
Saint Winifred was a 7th-century Welsh martyr, probably legendary. According to the story, she was decapitated by a prince after she spurned his advances. Where her head fell there arose a healing spring, which has been a pilgrimage site since medieval times. Her story was recorded in the 12th century by Robert of Shrewsbury, and she has been historically more widely venerated in England than in Wales. The name has been used in England since at least the 16th century.
William
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WIL-yəm
Rating: 73% based on 16 votes
From the Germanic name
Willehelm meaning
"will helmet", composed of the elements
willo "will, desire" and
helm "helmet, protection". An early
saint by this name was the 8th-century William of Gellone, a cousin of
Charlemagne who became a monk. The name was common among the
Normans, and it became extremely popular in England after William the Conqueror was recognized as the first Norman king of England in the 11th century. From then until the modern era it has been among the most common of English names (with
John,
Thomas and
Robert).
This name was later borne by three other English kings, as well as rulers of Scotland, Sicily (of Norman origin), the Netherlands and Prussia. Other famous bearers include William Wallace, a 13th-century Scottish hero, and William Tell, a legendary 14th-century Swiss hero (called Wilhelm in German, Guillaume in French and Guglielmo in Italian). In the literary world it was borne by dramatist William Shakespeare (1564-1616), poet William Blake (1757-1827), poet William Wordsworth (1770-1850), dramatist William Butler Yeats (1865-1939), author William Faulkner (1897-1962), and author William S. Burroughs (1914-1997).
In the American rankings (since 1880) this name has never been out of the top 20, making it one of the most consistently popular names (although it has never reached the top rank). In modern times its short form, Liam, has periodically been more popular than William itself, in the United Kingdom in the 1990s and the United States in the 2010s.
Wilhelmina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Dutch, German (Rare), English
Pronounced: vil-hehl-MEE-na(Dutch, German) wil-ə-MEEN-ə(English) wil-hehl-MEEN-ə(English)
Rating: 64% based on 17 votes
Dutch and German feminine form of
Wilhelm. This name was borne by a queen of the Netherlands (1880-1962).
Wendy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WEHN-dee
Rating: 54% based on 17 votes
In the case of the character from J. M. Barrie's play
Peter Pan (1904), it was created from the nickname
fwendy "friend", given to the author by a young friend. However, the name was used prior to the play (rarely), in which case it could be related to the Welsh name
Gwendolen and other names beginning with the element
gwen meaning "white, blessed". The name only became common after Barrie's play ran.
Walt
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WAWLT
Rating: 43% based on 13 votes
Short form of
Walter. A famous bearer was the American animator and filmmaker Walt Disney (1901-1966).
Wade
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WAYD
Rating: 41% based on 15 votes
Visitación
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: bee-see-ta-THYON(European Spanish) bee-see-ta-SYON(Latin American Spanish)
Rating: 23% based on 12 votes
Means
"visitation" in Spanish. This name is given in reference to the visit of the Virgin
Mary to her cousin Elizabeth.
Victoria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Romanian, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, French, Late Roman, Roman Mythology
Pronounced: vik-TAWR-ee-ə(English) beek-TO-rya(Spanish) vik-TO-rya(German) VEEK-TAW-RYA(French) week-TO-ree-a(Latin)
Rating: 62% based on 18 votes
Means
"victory" in Latin, being borne by the Roman goddess of victory. It is also a feminine form of
Victorius. This name was borne by a 4th-century
saint and martyr from North Africa.
Though in use elsewhere in Europe, the name was very rare in the English-speaking world until the 19th century, when Queen Victoria began her long rule of Britain. She was named after her mother, who was of German royalty. Many geographic areas are named after the queen, including an Australian state and a Canadian city.
Uxue
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Basque
Pronounced: oo-SHOO-eh
Rating: 21% based on 14 votes
From the Basque name of the Spanish town of Ujué where there is a church dedicated to the Virgin
Mary. Its name is derived from Basque
usoa "dove".
Ursa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Late Roman
Rating: 31% based on 15 votes
Feminine form of
Ursus. This is the name of two constellations in the northern sky: Ursa Major and Ursa Minor.
Úna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Medieval Irish [1]
Pronounced: OO-nə(Irish)
Rating: 35% based on 13 votes
Probably derived from Old Irish úan meaning "lamb". This was a common name in medieval Ireland.
Ulysses
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Roman Mythology, English
Pronounced: yoo-LI-seez(Latin) yoo-LIS-eez(American English) YOOL-i-seez(British English)
Rating: 29% based on 17 votes
Latin form of
Odysseus. It was borne by Ulysses S. Grant (1822-1885), the commander of the Union forces during the American Civil War, who went on to become an American president. Irish author James Joyce used it as the title of his book
Ulysses (1922), which loosely parallels
Homer's epic the
Odyssey.
Ualan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish Gaelic (Rare)
Rating: 18% based on 12 votes
Thomasina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: tahm-ə-SEE-nə
Rating: 41% based on 13 votes
Medieval feminine form of
Thomas.
Thomas
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Greek, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Θωμάς(Greek) Θωμᾶς(Ancient Greek) തോമസ്(Malayalam)
Pronounced: TAHM-əs(American English) TAWM-əs(British English) TAW-MA(French) TO-mas(German) TO-mahs(Dutch) tho-MAS(Greek)
Rating: 67% based on 12 votes
Greek form of the Aramaic name
תְּאוֹמָא (Teʾoma) meaning
"twin". In the
New Testament this is the name of an apostle. When he heard that
Jesus had risen from the dead he initially doubted the story, until Jesus appeared before him and he examined his wounds himself. According to tradition he was martyred in India. Due to his renown, the name came into general use in the Christian world.
In England the name was used by the Normans and became very popular due to Saint Thomas Becket, a 12th-century archbishop of Canterbury and martyr. It was reliably among the top five most common English names for boys from the 13th to the 19th century, and it has remained consistently popular to this day.
Another notable saint by this name was the 13th-century Italian philosopher and theologian Thomas Aquinas, who is regarded as a Doctor of the Church. Other famous bearers include philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679), American president Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), novelist Thomas Hardy (1840-1928), and inventor Thomas Edison (1847-1931).
Thalia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology (Latinized), Greek
Other Scripts: Θάλεια(Greek)
Pronounced: THAY-lee-ə(English) thə-LIE-ə(English)
Rating: 58% based on 16 votes
From the Greek name
Θάλεια (Thaleia), derived from
θάλλω (thallo) meaning
"to blossom". In Greek
mythology she was one of the nine Muses, presiding over comedy and pastoral poetry. This was also the name of one of the three Graces or
Χάριτες (Charites).
Thais
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1], Spanish
Other Scripts: Θαΐς(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: TIES(Spanish)
Rating: 36% based on 12 votes
Alternate transcription of Ancient Greek
Θαΐς (see
Thaïs), as well as the usual Spanish form.
Tesni
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Rating: 52% based on 14 votes
Means "warmth" in Welsh.
Talia 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: טַלְיָה, טַלְיָא(Hebrew)
Rating: 68% based on 18 votes
Means
"dew from God" in Hebrew, from
טַל (ṭal) meaning "dew" and
יָהּ (yah) referring to the Hebrew God.
Susanna
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Catalan, Swedish, Finnish, Russian, Ukrainian, Dutch, English, Armenian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Old Church Slavic
Other Scripts: Сусанна(Russian, Ukrainian) Սուսաննա(Armenian) שׁוֹשַׁנָּה(Ancient Hebrew) Сꙋсанна(Church Slavic)
Pronounced: soo-ZAN-na(Italian) soo-ZAN-nə(Catalan) suy-SAN-na(Swedish) SOO-sahn-nah(Finnish) suw-SAN-nə(Russian) suw-SAN-nu(Ukrainian) suy-SAH-na(Dutch) soo-ZAN-ə(English)
Rating: 59% based on 15 votes
From
Σουσάννα (Sousanna), the Greek form of the Hebrew name
שׁוֹשַׁנָּה (Shoshanna). This was derived from the Hebrew word
שׁוֹשָׁן (shoshan) meaning
"lily" (in modern Hebrew this also means
"rose"), perhaps ultimately from Egyptian
sšn "lotus". In the
Old Testament Apocrypha this is the name of a woman falsely accused of adultery. The prophet
Daniel clears her name by tricking her accusers, who end up being condemned themselves. It also occurs in the
New Testament belonging to a woman who ministers to
Jesus.
As an English name, it was occasionally used during the Middle Ages in honour of the Old Testament heroine. It did not become common until after the Protestant Reformation, at which time it was often spelled Susan.
Sunniva
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian
Rating: 53% based on 15 votes
Scandinavian form of the Old English name
Sunngifu, which meant
"sun gift" from the Old English elements
sunne "sun" and
giefu "gift". This was the name of a legendary English
saint who was shipwrecked in Norway and killed by the inhabitants.
Sorrel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: SAWR-əl
Rating: 46% based on 13 votes
From the name of the sour tasting plant, derived from Old French sur "sour", a word of Frankish origin.
Sophia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Greek, German, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Σοφία(Greek)
Pronounced: so-FEE-ə(English) sə-FIE-ə(British English) so-FEE-a(Greek) zo-FEE-a(German)
Rating: 61% based on 15 votes
Means
"wisdom" in Greek. This was the name of an early, probably mythical,
saint who died of grief after her three daughters were martyred during the reign of the emperor Hadrian. Legends about her probably arose as a result of a medieval misunderstanding of the phrase
Hagia Sophia "Holy Wisdom", which is the name of a large basilica in Constantinople.
This name was common among continental European royalty during the Middle Ages, and it was popularized in Britain by the German House of Hanover when they inherited the British throne in the 18th century. It was the name of characters in the novels Tom Jones (1749) by Henry Fielding and The Vicar of Wakefield (1766) by Oliver Goldsmith.
In the United States this name was only moderately common until the 1990s when it began rising in popularity, eventually becoming the most popular for girls from 2011 to 2013. A famous bearer is the Italian actress Sophia Loren (1934-).
Siobhán
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: SHI-wan, SHUW-wan, SHI-van, shə-VAN
Rating: 56% based on 13 votes
Irish form of
Jehanne, a Norman French variant of
Jeanne.
Séamus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: SHEH-məs
Rating: 49% based on 13 votes
Rózsa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hungarian
Pronounced: RO-zhaw
Rating: 43% based on 14 votes
Rosario
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Spanish, Italian
Pronounced: ro-SA-ryo(Spanish) ro-ZA-ryo(Italian)
Rating: 48% based on 12 votes
Means
"rosary", and is taken from the Spanish title of the Virgin
Mary Nuestra Señora del Rosario meaning "Our Lady of the Rosary". This name is feminine in Spanish and masculine in Italian.
Rosangela
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: ro-ZAN-jeh-la
Rating: 50% based on 13 votes
Rosalyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RO-zə-lin, RAHZ-ə-lin
Rating: 64% based on 15 votes
Variant of
Rosaline. It can also be considered an elaboration of
Rose with the common name suffix
lyn.
Rosalba
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Rating: 48% based on 14 votes
Italian name meaning
"white rose", derived from Latin
rosa "rose" and
alba "white". A famous bearer was the Venetian painter Rosalba Carriera (1675-1757).
Romy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Dutch, French, English
Pronounced: RO-mee(German, Dutch, English)
Rating: 51% based on 14 votes
Robin
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Dutch, Swedish, Czech
Pronounced: RAHB-in(American English) RAWB-in(British English) RAW-BEHN(French) RAW-bin(Dutch) RO-bin(Czech)
Rating: 53% based on 13 votes
Medieval English
diminutive of
Robert, now usually regarded as an independent name. Robin Hood was a legendary hero and archer of medieval England who stole from the rich to give to the poor. In modern times it has also been used as a feminine name, and it may sometimes be given in reference to the red-breasted bird.
Rhys
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh, English
Pronounced: REES
Rating: 59% based on 14 votes
From Old Welsh
Ris, probably meaning
"ardour, enthusiasm". Several Welsh rulers have borne this name, including the 12th-century Rhys ap Gruffydd who fought against the invading
Normans.
Rhonda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAHN-də
Rating: 22% based on 13 votes
Probably a blend of the sounds of
Rhoda and
Linda, but maybe also influenced by the name of the Rhondda Valley in South Wales and/or the noted British feminist Margaret Mackworth, Viscountess Rhondda (1883-1956)
[1]. This name has only been used since the beginning of the 20th century, at first rarely. It started becoming popular in the mid-1940s at the same time as the American actress Rhonda Fleming (1923-2020), born Marilyn Louis. It peaked in the United States in 1965 and thereafter declined.
Quinn
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KWIN
Rating: 48% based on 16 votes
From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Irish Gaelic
Ó Cuinn, itself derived from the given name
Conn. In the United States it was more common as a name for boys until 2010, the year after the female character Quinn Fabray began appearing on the television series
Glee.
Piroska
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hungarian
Pronounced: PEE-rosh-kaw
Rating: 41% based on 15 votes
Hungarian form of
Prisca, influenced by the Hungarian word
piros meaning "red".
Phineas
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical
Other Scripts: פִּיןְחָס(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: FIN-ee-əs(English)
Rating: 46% based on 14 votes
Philippa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (British), German
Pronounced: FI-li-pə(British English)
Rating: 47% based on 15 votes
Latinate feminine form of
Philip. As an English name, it is chiefly British.
Petunia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: pə-TOON-yə
Rating: 37% based on 15 votes
From the name of the flower, derived ultimately from a Tupi (South American) word.
Penny
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PEHN-ee
Rating: 48% based on 13 votes
Diminutive of
Penelope. It can also be given in reference to the copper coin (a British pound or an American dollar are worth 100 of them), derived from Old English
penning.
Patrick
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, English, French, German, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish
Pronounced: PAT-rik(English) PA-TREEK(French) PA-trik(German)
Rating: 59% based on 14 votes
From the Latin name
Patricius, which meant
"nobleman". This name was adopted in the 5th-century by
Saint Patrick, whose birth name was Sucat. He was a Romanized Briton who was captured and enslaved in his youth by Irish raiders. After six years of servitude he escaped home, but he eventually became a bishop and went back to Ireland as a missionary. He is traditionally credited with Christianizing the island, and is regarded as Ireland's patron saint. He is called
Pádraig in Irish.
In England and elsewhere in Europe during the Middle Ages this name was used in honour of the saint. However, it was not generally given in Ireland before the 17th century because it was considered too sacred for everyday use. It has since become very common there.
Pasqualina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Rating: 44% based on 14 votes
Italian feminine form of
Pascal.
Pascal
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French, German, Dutch
Pronounced: PAS-KAL(French) pas-KAL(German) pahs-KAHL(Dutch)
Rating: 22% based on 13 votes
From the Late Latin name
Paschalis, which meant
"relating to Easter" from Latin
Pascha "Easter", which was in turn from Hebrew
פֶּסַח (pesaḥ) meaning "Passover"
[1]. Passover is the ancient Hebrew holiday celebrating the liberation from Egypt. Because it coincided closely with the later Christian holiday of Easter, the same Latin word was used for both. The name Pascal can also function as a surname, as in the case of Blaise Pascal (1623-1662), the French philosopher, mathematician and inventor.
Pallas 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Παλλάς(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: PAL-LAS(Classical Greek) PAL-əs(English)
Rating: 28% based on 13 votes
Probably derived from a Greek word meaning
"maiden, young woman". This was an epithet of the Greek goddess
Athena. According to some legends it was originally the name of a friend of the goddess. Athena accidentally killed her while sparring, so she took the name in honour of her friend.
Ottilie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German
Pronounced: aw-TEE-lyə
Rating: 30% based on 12 votes
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-kahr(Dutch) AWS-KAR(French)
Rating: 54% based on 13 votes
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 humorist Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) and the Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer (1907-2012).
Omega
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Various
Pronounced: o-MAY-gə(English)
Rating: 27% based on 15 votes
From the name of the last letter in the Greek alphabet,
Ω. It is often seen as a symbol of completion.
Olympia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek, Slovak
Other Scripts: Ολυμπία(Greek)
Rating: 38% based on 15 votes
Olivia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, French, German, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch
Pronounced: o-LIV-ee-ə(English) ə-LIV-ee-ə(English) o-LEE-vya(Italian, German) o-LEE-bya(Spanish) AW-LEE-VYA(French) O-lee-vee-ah(Finnish) o-LEE-vee-ya(Dutch)
Rating: 52% based on 16 votes
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 on the Latin word
oliva meaning
"olive". In the play Olivia is a noblewoman wooed by Duke
Orsino. Instead she 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).
Núria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Catalan, Portuguese
Pronounced: NOO-ree-ə(Catalan)
Rating: 43% based on 13 votes
From a Catalan title of the Virgin
Mary,
Nostra Senyora de Núria, meaning "Our Lady of Nuria". Nuria is a sanctuary in Spain in which there is a shrine containing a famous statue of Mary.
Nova
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish (Modern), Dutch (Modern)
Pronounced: NO-və(English) NO-va(Swedish, Dutch)
Rating: 68% based on 19 votes
Derived from Latin novus meaning "new". It was first used as a name in the 19th century.
Norma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Literature
Pronounced: NAWR-mə(English)
Rating: 34% based on 15 votes
Created by Felice Romani for the main character in the opera
Norma (1831). He may have based it on Latin
norma "rule". This name is also frequently used as a feminine form of
Norman.
Nora 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Irish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Latvian, German, Dutch, Italian, Spanish
Pronounced: NAWR-ə(English) NO-ra(German, Dutch, Spanish)
Rating: 62% based on 19 votes
Short form of
Honora or
Eleanor. Henrik Ibsen used it for a character in his play
A Doll's House (1879).
Nilam
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hindi, Marathi
Other Scripts: नीलम(Hindi, Marathi)
Rating: 34% based on 12 votes
From Sanskrit
नील (nīla) meaning
"dark blue".
Nieves
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: NYEH-behs
Rating: 46% based on 12 votes
Means
"snows" in Spanish, derived from the title of the Virgin
Mary Nuestra Señora de las Nieves meaning "Our Lady of the Snows".
Niamh
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: NYEEW(Irish) NYEEV(Irish)
Rating: 66% based on 17 votes
Means
"bright" in Irish. She was the daughter of the sea god
Manannán mac Lir in Irish legends. She fell in love with the poet
Oisín, the son of
Fionn mac Cumhaill. It has been used as a given name for people only since the early 20th century.
Nell
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NEHL
Rating: 43% based on 14 votes
Medieval
diminutive of names beginning with
El, such as
Eleanor,
Ellen 1 or
Helen. It may have arisen from the medieval affectionate phrase
mine El, which was later reinterpreted as
my Nel.
Neil
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Scottish, English
Pronounced: NEEL(English)
Rating: 51% based on 13 votes
From the Irish name
Niall, which is of disputed origin, possibly connected to the old Celtic root *
nītu- "fury, passion" or the (possibly related) Old Irish word
nia "hero" [1][2]. A derivation from Old Irish
nél "cloud" has also been suggested. This was the name of a few early Irish kings, notably Niall of the Nine Hostages, a semi-legendary high king of the 4th or 5th century.
In the early Middle Ages the name was adopted by Norse raiders and settlers in Ireland in the form Njáll. The Norse transmitted it to England and Scotland, as well as bringing it back to Scandinavia. It was also in use among the Normans, who were of Scandinavian origin. A famous bearer of this name was American astronaut Neil Armstrong (1930-2012), the first person to walk on the moon.
Naoise
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: NEE-shə(Irish)
Rating: 41% based on 13 votes
Meaning unknown, presumably of Irish origin. In Irish legend he was the young man who fled to Scotland with
Deirdre, who was due to marry
Conchobar the king of Ulster. Conchobar eventually succeeded in capturing Deirdre and killing Naoise, which caused Deirdre to die of grief.
Morgan 1
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Welsh, English, French
Pronounced: MAWR-gən(English) MAWR-GAN(French)
Rating: 55% based on 17 votes
From the Old Welsh masculine name
Morcant, which was possibly derived from Welsh
mor "sea" and
cant "circle". Since the 1980s in America
Morgan has been more common for girls than boys, perhaps due to stories of
Morgan le Fay or the fame of actress Morgan Fairchild (1950-).
Morgan 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Pronounced: MAWR-gən(English)
Rating: 52% based on 16 votes
Modern form of
Morgen, which was used by Geoffrey of Monmouth
[1] in the 12th century for the Arthurian sorceress Morgan le Fay, who was unnamed in earlier stories. Geoffrey probably did not derive it from the Welsh masculine name
Morgan, which would have been spelled
Morcant in his time. It is likely from Old Welsh
mor "sea" and the suffix
gen "born of"
[2].
Monica
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Romanian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Late Roman
Pronounced: MAHN-i-kə(English) MAW-nee-ka(Italian) mo-NEE-ka(Romanian) MO-nee-ka(Dutch)
Rating: 47% based on 18 votes
Meaning unknown, most likely of Berber or Phoenician origin. In the 4th century this name was borne by a North African
saint, the mother of Saint
Augustine of Hippo, whom she converted to Christianity. Since the Middle Ages it has been associated with Latin
moneo "advisor" and Greek
μονός (monos) "one, single".
As an English name, Monica has been in general use since the 18th century. In America it reached the height of its popularity in the 1970s, declining since then. A famous bearer was the Yugoslavian tennis player Monica Seles (1973-).
Mirabelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Rare), English (Rare)
Rating: 60% based on 19 votes
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.
Milo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: MIE-lo(English)
Rating: 54% based on 17 votes
Old German form of
Miles, as well as the Latinized form. This form was revived as an English name in the 19th century
[2].
Milagros
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: mee-LA-ghros
Rating: 30% based on 14 votes
Means
"miracles" in Spanish. It is taken from the title of the Virgin
Mary,
Nuestra Señora de los Milagros, which means "Our Lady of Miracles".
Melanie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch
Pronounced: MEHL-ə-nee(English) MEH-la-nee(German) meh-la-NEE(German)
Rating: 49% based on 20 votes
From
Mélanie, the French form of the Latin name
Melania, derived from Greek
μέλαινα (melaina) meaning
"black, dark". This was the name of a Roman
saint who gave all her wealth to charity in the 5th century. Her grandmother was also a saint with the same name.
The name was common in France during the Middle Ages, and was introduced from there to England, though it eventually became rare. Interest in it was revived by the character Melanie Wilkes from the novel Gone with the Wind (1936) and the subsequent movie adaptation (1939).
Maris 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: MEHR-is, MAR-is
Rating: 45% based on 17 votes
Means
"of the sea", taken from the Latin title of the Virgin
Mary,
Stella Maris, meaning "star of the sea".
Marina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, English, Greek, Finnish, Estonian, Russian, Romanian, Czech, Bulgarian, Croatian, Serbian, Slovene, Macedonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Georgian, Ancient Roman
Other Scripts: Μαρίνα(Greek) Марина(Russian, Bulgarian, Serbian, Macedonian) მარინა(Georgian)
Pronounced: ma-REE-na(Italian, Spanish, German, Dutch, Macedonian) mə-REE-nə(Catalan) mə-REEN-ə(English) mu-RYEE-nə(Russian) MA-ri-na(Czech)
Rating: 49% based on 18 votes
Feminine form of
Marinus. This name was borne by a few early
saints. This is also the name by which Saint
Margaret of Antioch is known in the Eastern Orthodox Church.
Marilyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAR-ə-lin, MAR-lin
Rating: 53% based on 16 votes
Combination of
Mary and the common name suffix
lyn. It was very rare before the start of the 20th century. It was popularized in part by the American stage star Marilyn Miller (1898-1936), who was born Mary Ellen Reynolds and took her
stage name from a combination of her birth name and her mother's middle name
Lynn. It became popular in the United States during the 1920s, reaching a high point ranked 13th in 1936. Famous bearers include American actress Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962; real name Norma Jeane Mortenson) and American opera singer Marilyn Horne (1934-).
Margery
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAHR-jə-ree
Rating: 49% based on 17 votes
Magnolia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: mag-NO-lee-ə
Rating: 45% based on 17 votes
From the English word magnolia for the flower, which was named for the French botanist Pierre Magnol.
Maeve
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, English, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: MAYV(English)
Rating: 54% based on 16 votes
Anglicized form of the Irish name
Medb meaning
"intoxicating". In Irish legend this was the name of a warrior queen of Connacht. She and her husband
Ailill fought against the Ulster king
Conchobar and the hero
Cúchulainn, as told in the Irish epic
The Cattle Raid of Cooley.
Lysandra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Λυσάνδρα(Ancient Greek)
Rating: 50% based on 18 votes
Feminine form of
Lysandros (see
Lysander).
Lydia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Λυδία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: LID-ee-ə(English) LUY-dya(German) LEE-dee-ya(Dutch)
Rating: 66% based on 20 votes
Means
"from Lydia" in Greek. Lydia was a region on the west coast of Asia Minor, said to be named for the legendary king
Lydos. In the
New Testament this is the name of a woman converted to Christianity by
Saint Paul. In the modern era the name has been in use since the
Protestant Reformation.
Luminița
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Romanian
Pronounced: loo-mee-NEE-tsa
Rating: 49% based on 15 votes
Means
"little light", derived from Romanian
lumina "light" combined with a
diminutive suffix.
Luka
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Croatian, Serbian, Slovene, Macedonian, Russian, Georgian, Old Church Slavic
Other Scripts: Лука(Serbian, Macedonian, Russian) ლუკა(Georgian) Лꙋка(Church Slavic)
Pronounced: LOO-ka(Croatian) LOO-KAH(Georgian)
Rating: 49% based on 15 votes
Form of
Lucas (see
Luke) in several languages.
Lucian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Romanian, English
Pronounced: LOO-chyan(Romanian) LOO-shən(English)
Rating: 48% based on 15 votes
Romanian and English form of
Lucianus. Lucian is the usual name of Lucianus of Samosata in English.
Louis
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French, English, Dutch
Pronounced: LWEE(French) LOO-is(English) LOO-ee(English) loo-EE(Dutch)
Rating: 61% based on 15 votes
French form of
Ludovicus, the Latinized form of
Ludwig. This was the name of 18 kings of France, starting with Louis I the son of
Charlemagne. Others include Louis IX (
Saint Louis) who led two crusades and Louis XIV (called the Sun King) who was the ruler of France during the height of its power, the builder of the Palace of Versailles, and the longest reigning monarch in the history of Europe. It was also borne by kings of Germany (as
Ludwig), Hungary (as
Lajos), and other places.
Apart from royalty, this name was only moderately popular in France during the Middle Ages. After the French Revolution, when Louis XVI was guillotined, it became less common.
The Normans brought the name to England, where it was usually spelled Lewis, though the spelling Louis has been more common in America. Famous bearers include French scientist Louis Pasteur (1822-1895), French actor Louis de Funès (1914-1983), Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894), who wrote Treasure Island and Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and American jazz musician Louis Armstrong (1901-1971).
Lorraine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: lə-RAYN
Rating: 53% based on 16 votes
From the name of a region in eastern France, originally meaning "kingdom of
Lothar". Lothar was a Frankish king, the great-grandson of
Charlemagne, whose realm was in the part of France that is now called
Lorraine, or in German
Lothringen (from Latin
Lothari regnum). As a given name, it has been used in the English-speaking world since the late 19th century, perhaps due to its similar sound with
Laura. It became popular after World War I when the region was in the news, as it was contested between Germany and France.
Lorelei
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, English
Pronounced: LAWR-ə-lie(English)
Rating: 62% based on 18 votes
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).
Lommán
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Old Irish
Rating: 36% based on 16 votes
Means
"little bare one", derived from Old Irish
lomm "bare" combined with a
diminutive suffix. This was the name of a 5th-century
saint, a nephew of Saint
Patrick.
Lindita
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Albanian
Rating: 42% based on 16 votes
Means "the day is born" in Albanian, from lind "to give birth" and ditë "day".
Lilias
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish
Rating: 49% based on 15 votes
Form of
Lillian found in Scotland from about the 16th century
[1].
Ligeia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Λιγεία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: lie-JEE-ə(English)
Rating: 44% based on 18 votes
Derived from Greek
λιγύς (ligys) meaning
"clear-voiced, shrill, whistling". This was the name of one of the Sirens in Greek legend. It was also used by Edgar Allan Poe in his story
Ligeia (1838).
Liesel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German
Pronounced: LEE-zəl
Rating: 45% based on 15 votes
Líadan
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish (Rare)
Pronounced: LYEE-dən
Rating: 42% based on 15 votes
Possibly from Old Irish
líath meaning
"grey". According to an Irish tale this was the name of a poet who became a nun, but then missed her lover Cuirithir so much that she died of grief. The name was also borne by a 5th-century
saint, the mother of Saint Ciarán the Elder.
Leocadia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Late Roman
Pronounced: leh-o-KA-dhya(Spanish)
Rating: 51% based on 16 votes
Late Latin name that might be derived from the name of the Greek island of
Leucadia or from Greek
λευκός (leukos) meaning
"bright, clear, white" (which is also the root of the island's name).
Saint Leocadia was a 3rd-century martyr from Spain.
Leo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, English, Croatian, Armenian, Late Roman
Other Scripts: Լեո(Armenian)
Pronounced: LEH-o(German, Danish, Finnish) LEH-yo(Dutch) LEE-o(English)
Rating: 61% based on 16 votes
Derived from Latin
leo meaning
"lion", a
cognate of
Leon. It was popular among early Christians and was the name of 13 popes, including
Saint Leo the Great who asserted the dominance of the Roman bishops (the popes) over all others in the 5th century. It was also borne by six Byzantine emperors and five Armenian kings. Another famous bearer was the Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910), name spelled
Лев in Russian, whose works include
War and Peace and
Anna Karenina. Leo is also a constellation and the fifth sign of the zodiac.
Lena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, Polish, Finnish, Russian, Ukrainian, English, Italian, Portuguese, Greek, Georgian, Armenian
Other Scripts: Лена(Russian, Ukrainian) Λένα(Greek) ლენა(Georgian) Լենա(Armenian)
Pronounced: LEH-na(Swedish, German, Dutch, Polish, Italian) LYEH-nə(Russian) LEE-nə(English) LEH-NA(Georgian) leh-NAH(Armenian)
Rating: 64% based on 18 votes
Leif
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
Pronounced: LAYF
Rating: 46% based on 18 votes
From the Old Norse name Leifr meaning "descendant, heir". Leif Eriksson was a Norse explorer who reached North America in the early 11th century. He was the son of Erik the Red.
Laurentine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Rare)
Rating: 35% based on 15 votes
Larisa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Russian, Ukrainian, Romanian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Slovene, Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Лариса(Russian, Ukrainian) Λάρισα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: lu-RYEE-sə(Russian) lu-ryi-SU(Lithuanian)
Rating: 42% based on 17 votes
Possibly derived from the name of the ancient city of Larisa in Thessaly, which meant
"citadel". In Greek legends, the nymph Larisa was either a daughter or mother of Pelasgus, the ancestor of the mythical Pelasgians. This name was later borne by a 4th-century Greek martyr who is venerated as a
saint in the Eastern Church. The name (of the city, nymph and saint) is commonly Latinized as
Larissa, with a double
s. As a Ukrainian name, it is more commonly transcribed
Larysa.
Lane
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LAYN
Rating: 42% based on 15 votes
From an English surname, meaning "lane, path", which originally belonged to a person who lived near a lane.
Kenelm
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: KEHN-əlm
Rating: 28% based on 13 votes
From the Old English name
Cenhelm, which was composed of the elements
cene "bold, keen" and
helm "helmet".
Saint Kenelm was a 9th-century martyr from Mercia, where he was a member of the royal family. The name was occasionally used during the Middle Ages, but has since become rare.
Juniper
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: JOON-i-pər
Rating: 44% based on 18 votes
From the English word for the type of tree, derived ultimately from Latin iuniperus.
Julius
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman, English, German, Finnish, Lithuanian, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Dutch, Czech
Pronounced: YOO-lee-oos(Latin, Swedish) JOO-lee-əs(English) YOO-lee-uws(German) YOO-leews(Finnish) YUW-lyuws(Lithuanian) YOO-lyoos(Danish) YUY-lee-uys(Dutch) YOO-li-yuws(Czech)
Rating: 44% based on 15 votes
From a Roman family name that was possibly derived from Greek
ἴουλος (ioulos) meaning
"downy-bearded". Alternatively, it could be related to the name of the Roman god
Jupiter. This was a prominent patrician family of Rome, who claimed descent from the mythological Julus, son of
Aeneas. Its most notable member was Gaius Julius Caesar, who gained renown as a military leader for his clever conquest of Gaul. After a civil war he became the dictator of the Roman Republic, but was eventually stabbed to death in the senate.
Although this name was borne by several early saints, including a pope, it was rare during the Middle Ages. It was revived in Italy and France during the Renaissance, and was subsequently imported to England.
Judith
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Jewish, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Spanish, French, Biblical
Other Scripts: יְהוּדִית(Hebrew)
Pronounced: JOO-dith(English) YOO-dit(German) YUY-dit(Dutch) khoo-DHEET(Spanish) ZHUY-DEET(French)
Rating: 44% based on 16 votes
From the Hebrew name
יְהוּדִית (Yehuḏiṯ) meaning
"Jewish woman", feminine of
יְהוּדִי (yehuḏi), ultimately referring to a person from the tribe of
Judah. In the
Old Testament Judith is one of the Hittite wives of
Esau. This is also the name of the main character of the apocryphal Book of Judith. She killed Holofernes, an invading Assyrian commander, by beheading him in his sleep.
As an English name it did not become common until after the Protestant Reformation, despite a handful of early examples during the Middle Ages. It was however used earlier on the European continent, being borne by several European royals, such as the 9th-century Judith of Bavaria.
Jocelyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: JAHS-lin(English) JAHS-ə-lin(English) ZHO-SEH-LEHN(French)
Rating: 53% based on 18 votes
From a Frankish masculine name, variously written as
Gaudelenus,
Gautselin,
Gauzlin, along with many other spellings. It was derived from the Germanic element *
gautaz, which was from the name of the Germanic tribe the Geats, combined with a Latin
diminutive suffix. The
Normans brought this name to England in the form
Goscelin or
Joscelin, and it was common until the 14th century. It was revived in the 20th century primarily as a feminine name, perhaps an adaptation of the surname
Jocelyn (a medieval derivative of the given name). In France this is a masculine name only.
Jemima
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, English
Other Scripts: יְמִימָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: jə-MIE-mə(English)
Rating: 36% based on 18 votes
Traditionally said to mean
"dove", it may actually be related to Hebrew
יוֹמָם (yomam) meaning
"daytime" [1]. 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.
Jane
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JAYN
Rating: 77% based on 19 votes
Medieval English form of
Jehanne, an Old French feminine form of
Iohannes (see
John). This became the most common feminine form of
John in the 17th century, surpassing
Joan. In the first half of the 20th century
Joan once again overtook
Jane for a few decades in both the United States and the United Kingdom.
Famous bearers include the uncrowned English queen Lady Jane Grey (1536-1554), who ruled for only nine days, British novelist Jane Austen (1775-1817), who wrote Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice, British primatologist Jane Goodall (1934-), and American actress Jane Fonda (1937-). This is also the name of the central character in Charlotte Brontë's novel Jane Eyre (1847), which tells of Jane's sad childhood and her relationship with Edward Rochester.
Jamesina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish
Rating: 31% based on 17 votes
James
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Biblical
Pronounced: JAYMZ(English)
Rating: 80% based on 19 votes
English form of the Late Latin name
Iacomus, a variant of the Biblical Latin form
Iacobus, from the Hebrew name
Yaʿaqov (see
Jacob). This was the name of two apostles in the
New Testament. The first was
Saint James the Greater, the apostle
John's brother, who was beheaded under Herod Agrippa in the Book of Acts. The second was James the Lesser, son of
Alphaeus. Another James (known as James the Just) is also mentioned in the Bible as being the brother of
Jesus.
This name has been used in England since the 13th century, though it became more common in Scotland where it was borne by several kings. In the 17th century the Scottish king James VI inherited the English throne, becoming the first ruler of all Britain, and the name grew much more popular. In American name statistics (recorded since 1880) this name has never been out of the top 20, making it arguably the era's most consistently popular name. It was the top ranked name for boys in the United States from 1940 to 1952.
Famous bearers include the English explorer James Cook (1728-1779), the Scottish inventor James Watt (1736-1819), and the Irish novelist and poet James Joyce (1882-1941). This name has also been borne by six American presidents. A notable fictional bearer is the British spy James Bond, created by author Ian Fleming in 1953.
Isobel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish
Rating: 65% based on 17 votes
Islay
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Scottish
Pronounced: IE-lə
Rating: 35% based on 14 votes
From the name of the island of Islay, which lies off of the west coast of Scotland.
Isla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: IE-lə
Rating: 65% based on 21 votes
Variant of
Islay, typically used as a feminine name. It also coincides with the Spanish word
isla meaning "island".
Isaac
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, French, Jewish, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: יִץְחָק(Hebrew)
Pronounced: IE-zək(English) ee-sa-AK(Spanish) EE-ZAK(French) EE-ZA-AK(French)
Rating: 61% based on 17 votes
From the Hebrew name
יִץְחָק (Yitsḥaq) meaning
"he will laugh, he will rejoice", derived from
צָחַק (tsaḥaq) meaning "to laugh". The
Old Testament explains this meaning, by recounting that
Abraham laughed when God told him that his aged wife
Sarah would become pregnant with Isaac (see
Genesis 17:17), and later Sarah laughed when overhearing the same prophecy (see
Genesis 18:12). When Isaac was a boy, God tested Abraham's faith by ordering him to sacrifice his son, though an angel prevented the act at the last moment. Isaac went on to become the father of
Esau and
Jacob with his wife
Rebecca.
As an English Christian name, Isaac was occasionally used during the Middle Ages, though it was more common among Jews. It became more widespread after the Protestant Reformation. Famous bearers include the physicist and mathematician Isaac Newton (1643-1727) and the science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov (1920-1992).
Iris
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, French, Spanish, Catalan, Italian, Slovene, Croatian, Greek
Other Scripts: Ἶρις(Ancient Greek) Ίρις(Greek)
Pronounced: IE-ris(English) EE-ris(German, Dutch) EE-rees(Finnish, Spanish, Catalan, Italian) EE-REES(French)
Rating: 67% based on 18 votes
Means "rainbow" in Greek. Iris was the name of the Greek goddess of the rainbow, also serving as a messenger to the gods. This name can also be given in reference to the word (which derives from the same Greek source) for the iris flower or the coloured part of the eye.
Imogen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (British)
Pronounced: IM-ə-jehn
Rating: 46% based on 18 votes
The name of the daughter of King
Cymbeline in the play
Cymbeline (1609) by William Shakespeare. He based her on a legendary character named
Innogen, but it was printed incorrectly and never emended.
Innogen is probably derived from Gaelic
inghean meaning
"maiden". As a given name it is chiefly British and Australian.
Immaculata
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish (Rare)
Rating: 42% based on 15 votes
Ilona
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hungarian, German, Finnish, Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Czech
Pronounced: EE-lo-naw(Hungarian) ee-LO-na(German) EE-lo-na(German) EE-lo-nah(Finnish) ee-LAW-na(Polish) I-lo-na(Czech)
Rating: 42% based on 17 votes
Old Hungarian form of
Helen, possibly via a Slavic form. In Finland it is associated with the word
ilona, a derivative of
ilo "joy".
Hyacinth 2
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: HIE-ə-sinth
Rating: 49% based on 17 votes
From the name of the flower (or the precious stone that also bears this name), ultimately from Greek
hyakinthos (see
Hyacinthus).
Hugo
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Spanish, Portuguese, English, Dutch, German, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: OO-gho(Spanish) OO-goo(Portuguese) HYOO-go(English) HUY-gho(Dutch) HOO-go(German) UY-GO(French)
Rating: 46% based on 16 votes
Old German form of
Hugh. As a surname it has belonged to the French author Victor Hugo (1802-1885), the writer of
The Hunchback of Notre-Dame and
Les Misérables.
Hollis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAHL-is
Rating: 37% based on 19 votes
From an English surname that was derived from Middle English holis "holly trees". It was originally given to a person who lived near a group of those trees.
Holden
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: HOL-dən
Rating: 60% based on 17 votes
From a surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "deep valley" in Old English. This is the name of the main character in J. D. Salinger's novel The Catcher in the Rye (1951), Holden Caulfield.
Harriet
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAR-ee-it, HEHR-ee-it
Rating: 58% based on 18 votes
English form of
Henriette, and thus a feminine form of
Harry. It was first used in the 17th century, becoming very common in the English-speaking world by the 18th century. Famous bearers include the Americans Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896), the author of
Uncle Tom's Cabin, and the abolitionist Harriet Tubman (1820-1913).
Hadley
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAD-lee
Rating: 45% based on 18 votes
From an English surname that was derived from a place name meaning "heather field" in Old English.
Gwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, English
Pronounced: GWEHN
Rating: 65% based on 17 votes
From Welsh
gwen, the feminine form of
gwyn meaning "white, blessed". It can also be a short form of
Gwendolen,
Gwenllian and other names beginning with
Gwen.
Guinevere
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Arthurian Cycle
Pronounced: GWIN-ə-vir(English)
Rating: 57% based on 18 votes
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.
Govannon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh Mythology
Rating: 27% based on 14 votes
Gloria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Italian, German
Pronounced: GLAWR-ee-ə(English) GLO-rya(Spanish) GLAW-rya(Italian)
Rating: 58% based on 18 votes
Means
"glory", from the Portuguese and Spanish titles of the Virgin
Mary Maria da Glória and
María de Gloria. Maria da Glória (1819-1853) was the daughter of the Brazilian emperor Pedro I, eventually becoming queen of Portugal as Maria II.
The name was introduced to the English-speaking world by E. D. E. N. Southworth's novel Gloria (1891) and George Bernard Shaw's play You Never Can Tell (1898), which both feature characters with a Portuguese background [1]. It was popularized in the early 20th century by American actress Gloria Swanson (1899-1983). Another famous bearer is feminist Gloria Steinem (1934-).
Gillian
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JIL-ee-ən, GIL-ee-ən
Rating: 36% based on 15 votes
Medieval English feminine form of
Julian. This spelling has been in use since the 13th century, though it was not declared a distinct name from
Julian until the 17th century
[1].
Frida 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Germanic [1]
Rating: 43% based on 15 votes
Originally a short form of names containing the Old German element
fridu meaning
"peace" (Proto-Germanic *
friþuz). A famous bearer was the Mexican painter Frida Kahlo (1907-1954).
Florian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, French, Romanian, Polish, History
Pronounced: FLO-ree-an(German) FLAW-RYAHN(French) FLAW-ryan(Polish)
Rating: 45% based on 15 votes
From the Roman
cognomen Florianus, a derivative of
Florus. This was the name of a short-lived Roman emperor of the 3rd century, Marcus Annius Florianus. It was also borne by
Saint Florian, a martyr of the 3rd century, the patron saint of Poland and Upper Austria.
Fiona
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: fee-O-nə(English)
Rating: 64% based on 20 votes
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.
Finn 1
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish Mythology, Old Irish [1], Irish, English, Dutch, German
Pronounced: FIN(English, Dutch, German)
Rating: 69% based on 16 votes
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.
Fiachra
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: FYEEKH-rə(Irish)
Rating: 37% based on 15 votes
From Old Irish
Fiachrae, possibly from
fiach "raven" or
fích "battle" combined with
rí "king". This was the name of several legendary figures, including one of the four children of
Lir transformed into swans for a period of 900 years. This is also the name of the patron
saint of gardeners: a 7th-century Irish abbot who settled in France, usually called Saint Fiacre.
Fern
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FURN
Rating: 42% based on 15 votes
From the English word for the plant, ultimately from Old English fearn. It has been used as a given name since the late 19th century.
Felicitas
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Late Roman, Roman Mythology, German, Spanish
Pronounced: feh-LEE-kee-tas(Latin) feh-LEE-tsee-tas(German) feh-lee-THEE-tas(European Spanish) feh-lee-SEE-tas(Latin American Spanish)
Rating: 45% based on 15 votes
Latin name meaning
"good luck, fortune". In Roman
mythology the goddess Felicitas was the personification of good luck. It was borne by a 3rd-century
saint, a slave martyred with her master Perpetua in Carthage.
Ewan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish
Pronounced: YOO-ən(English)
Rating: 42% based on 15 votes
Eugenia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, Romanian, Polish, English, Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Εὐγένεια(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ew-JEH-nya(Italian) ew-KHEH-nya(Spanish) eh-oo-JEH-nee-a(Romanian) ew-GEH-nya(Polish) yoo-JEE-nee-ə(English) yoo-JEEN-yə(English)
Rating: 42% based on 15 votes
Feminine form of
Eugenius (see
Eugene). It was borne by a semi-legendary 3rd-century
saint who escaped persecution by disguising herself as a man. The name was occasionally found in England during the Middle Ages, but it was not regularly used until the 19th century.
Elsa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Swedish, Norwegian, Icelandic, Finnish, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, English
Pronounced: EHL-za(German) EHL-sah(Finnish) EHL-sa(Italian, Spanish) EHL-sə(English)
Rating: 62% based on 21 votes
Short form of
Elisabeth, typically used independently. In medieval German tales Elsa von Brabant was the lover of the hero
Lohengrin. Her story was expanded by Richard Wagner for his opera
Lohengrin (1850). The name had a little spike in popularity after the 2013 release of the animated Disney movie
Frozen, which featured a magical princess by this name.
Eliza
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Polish, Portuguese (Brazilian), Romanian, Hungarian, Georgian
Other Scripts: ელიზა(Georgian)
Pronounced: i-LIE-zə(English) eh-LEE-za(Polish) EH-lee-zaw(Hungarian)
Rating: 64% based on 18 votes
Short form of
Elizabeth. It was borne by the character Eliza Doolittle in George Bernard Shaw's play
Pygmalion (1913) and the subsequent musical adaptation
My Fair Lady (1956).
Eira 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: AY-ra
Rating: 56% based on 20 votes
Means "snow" in Welsh. This is a recently created name.
Dulcinea
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: dool-thee-NEH-a(European Spanish) dool-see-NEH-a(Latin American Spanish) dul-si-NEE-ə(English)
Rating: 43% based on 16 votes
Derived from Spanish dulce meaning "sweet". This name was (first?) used by Miguel de Cervantes in his novel Don Quixote (1605), where it belongs to the love interest of the main character, though she never actually appears in the story.
Driscoll
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: DRIS-kəl
Rating: 34% based on 16 votes
From an Irish surname that was an Anglicized form of Ó hEidirsceóil meaning "descendant of the messenger".
Doris
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Swedish, Danish, Croatian, Ancient Greek [1], Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Δωρίς(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: DAWR-is(English) DO-ris(German)
Rating: 34% based on 18 votes
From the Greek name
Δωρίς (Doris), which meant
"Dorian woman". The Dorians were a Greek tribe who occupied the Peloponnese starting in the 12th century BC. In Greek
mythology Doris was a sea nymph, one of the many children of Oceanus and Tethys. It began to be used as an English name in the 19th century. A famous bearer is the American actress Doris Day (1924-2019).
Dominique
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: French
Pronounced: DAW-MEE-NEEK
Rating: 51% based on 19 votes
French feminine and masculine form of
Dominicus (see
Dominic).
Dominic
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAHM-i-nik
Rating: 58% based on 16 votes
From the Late Latin name
Dominicus meaning
"of the Lord". This name was traditionally given to a child born on Sunday. Several
saints have borne this name, including the 13th-century founder of the Dominican order of friars. It was in this saint's honour that the name was first used in England, starting around the 13th century. It has historically seen more use among Catholics.
Cora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Κόρη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: KAWR-ə(English) KO-ra(German)
Rating: 67% based on 20 votes
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.
Connor
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, English (Modern)
Pronounced: KAHN-ər(English)
Rating: 66% based on 18 votes
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.
Chrysanta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: kri-SAN-tə
Rating: 44% based on 17 votes
Shortened form of the word chrysanthemum, the name of a flowering plant, which means "golden flower" in Greek.
Cecilia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Dutch, Romanian, Finnish
Pronounced: seh-SEE-lee-ə(English) seh-SEEL-yə(English) cheh-CHEE-lya(Italian) theh-THEE-lya(European Spanish) seh-SEE-lya(Latin American Spanish) seh-SEEL-yah(Danish, Norwegian)
Rating: 65% based on 23 votes
Latinate feminine form of the Roman family name
Caecilius, which was derived from Latin
caecus meaning
"blind".
Saint Cecilia was a semi-legendary 2nd or 3rd-century martyr who was sentenced to die because she refused to worship the Roman gods. After attempts to suffocate her failed, she was beheaded. She was later regarded as the patron saint of music and musicians.
Due to the popularity of the saint, the name became common in the Christian world during the Middle Ages. The Normans brought it to England, where it was commonly spelled Cecily — the Latinate form Cecilia came into use in the 18th century.
Bridget
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish, English
Pronounced: BRIJ-it(English)
Rating: 46% based on 18 votes
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.
Brian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Irish, Old Irish [1]
Pronounced: BRIE-ən(English) BRYEEN(Irish)
Rating: 36% based on 18 votes
Meaning uncertain, possibly related to the old Celtic root *
brixs "hill, high" (Old Irish
brií) or the related *
brigā "might, power" (Old Irish
briíg). It was borne by the Irish king Brian Boru, who thwarted Viking attempts to conquer Ireland in the 11th century. He was slain in the Battle of Clontarf, though his forces were decisively victorious. This name was common in Ireland after his time, and it was introduced to northern England by Norse-Gael settlers. It was also used in Brittany, and was brought to England by Bretons in the wake of the
Norman Conquest. Though it eventually became rare in the English-speaking world, it was strongly revived in the 20th century, becoming a top-ten name for boys in most regions.
Braith
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English (Australian, Rare)
Pronounced: BRAYTH
Rating: 36% based on 18 votes
Meaning uncertain, perhaps from Welsh brith, braith meaning "speckled".
Bonnie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BAHN-ee
Rating: 47% based on 20 votes
Means "pretty" from the Scottish word bonnie, which was itself derived from Middle French bon "good". It has been in use as an American given name since the 19th century, and it became especially popular after the movie Gone with the Wind (1939), in which it was the nickname of Scarlett's daughter.
Benjamin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Slovene, Croatian, Biblical
Other Scripts: בִּןְיָמִין(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: BEHN-jə-min(English) BEHN-ZHA-MEHN(French) BEHN-ya-meen(German) BEHN-ya-min(Dutch)
Rating: 68% based on 21 votes
From the Hebrew name
בִּןְיָמִין (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-ʾoni) 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.
Belén
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: beh-LEHN
Rating: 46% based on 18 votes
Spanish form of
Bethlehem, the name of the town in Judah where King
David and
Jesus were born. The town's name is from Hebrew
בֵּית־לֶחֶם (Beṯ-leḥem) meaning "house of bread".
Avril
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Rare), English (Rare)
Pronounced: A-VREEL(French) AV-ril(English)
Rating: 43% based on 17 votes
French form of
April. A famous bearer is the Canadian musician Avril Lavigne (1984-).
August
Gender: Masculine
Usage: German, Polish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Catalan, English
Pronounced: OW-guwst(German) OW-goost(Polish, Norwegian) OW-guyst(Swedish) AW-gəst(English)
Rating: 67% based on 22 votes
German, Polish, Scandinavian and Catalan form of
Augustus. This was the name of three Polish kings.
As an English name it can also derive from the month of August, which was named for the Roman emperor Augustus.
Asunción
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: a-soon-THYON(European Spanish) a-soon-SYON(Latin American Spanish)
Rating: 28% based on 16 votes
Means
"assumption" in Spanish. This name is given in reference to the assumption of the Virgin
Mary into heaven.
Apolline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: A-PAW-LEEN
Rating: 44% based on 22 votes
Anthony
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AN-thə-nee(American English) AN-tə-nee(British English)
Rating: 57% based on 22 votes
English form of the Roman family name
Antonius, which is of unknown Etruscan origin. The most notable member of the Roman family was the general Marcus Antonius (called Mark Antony in English), who for a period in the 1st century BC ruled the Roman Empire jointly with Augustus. When their relationship turned sour, he and his mistress Cleopatra were attacked and forced to commit suicide, as related in Shakespeare's tragedy
Antony and Cleopatra (1606).
The name became regularly used in the Christian world due to the fame of Saint Anthony the Great, a 4th-century Egyptian hermit who founded Christian monasticism. Its popularity was reinforced in the Middle Ages by the 13th-century Saint Anthony of Padua, the patron saint of Portugal. It has been commonly (but incorrectly) associated with Greek ἄνθος (anthos) meaning "flower", which resulted in the addition of the h to this spelling in the 17th century.
Angus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, Irish, English
Pronounced: ANG-gəs(English)
Rating: 42% based on 21 votes
Anastasia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek, Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, English, Spanish, Italian, Georgian, Ancient Greek [1]
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)
Rating: 58% based on 24 votes
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.
Amaryllis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: am-ə-RIL-is(English)
Rating: 45% based on 24 votes
Derived from Greek
ἀμαρύσσω (amarysso) meaning
"to sparkle". This is the name of a character appearing in
Virgil's pastoral poems
Eclogues [1]. The amaryllis flower is named for her.
Aloisia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German (Rare)
Pronounced: a-LOI-zya
Rating: 47% based on 22 votes
Alan
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, Scottish, Breton, French, Polish
Pronounced: AL-ən(English) A-lahn(Breton) A-LAHN(French)
Rating: 45% based on 19 votes
The meaning of this name is not known for certain. It was used in Brittany at least as early as the 6th century, and it possibly means either
"little rock" or
"handsome" in Breton. Alternatively, it may derive from the tribal name of the Alans, an Iranian people who migrated into Europe in the 4th and 5th centuries.
This was the name of several dukes of Brittany, and Breton settlers introduced it to England after the Norman Conquest. Famous modern bearers include Alan Shepard (1923-1998), the first American in space and the fifth man to walk on the moon, and Alan Turing (1912-1954), a British mathematician and computer scientist.
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