FlyinLion's Personal Name List

Waverley
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WAY-vər-lee
Rating: 31% based on 9 votes
Variant of Waverly.
Von
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Icelandic (Modern)
Rating: 17% based on 9 votes
Derived from Old Norse vón "hope; expectation".
Tyger
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Literature, English
Pronounced: TIE-gər
Rating: 17% based on 9 votes
Older form of Tiger, used by William Blake in his poem 'The Tyger' (1794).
Theodore
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: THEE-ə-dawr
Rating: 73% based on 10 votes
From the Greek name Θεόδωρος (Theodoros), which meant "gift of god" from Greek θεός (theos) meaning "god" and δῶρον (doron) meaning "gift". The name Dorothea is derived from the same roots in reverse order. This was the name of several saints, including Theodore of Amasea, a 4th-century Greek soldier; Theodore of Tarsus, a 7th-century archbishop of Canterbury; and Theodore the Studite, a 9th-century Byzantine monk. It was also borne by two popes.

This was a common name in classical Greece, and, due to both the saints who carried it and the favourable meaning, it came into general use in the Christian world, being especially popular among Eastern Christians. It was however rare in Britain before the 19th century. Famous bearers include three tsars of Russia (in the Russian form Fyodor) and American president Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919).

Tadhg
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: TIEG(Irish)
Rating: 24% based on 9 votes
From Old Irish Tadg meaning "poet" [1]. This was the name of an 11th-century king of Connacht, as well as several other kings and chieftains of medieval Ireland. According to Irish mythology it was the name of the grandfather of Fionn mac Cumhaill.
Sunniva
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian
Rating: 45% based on 11 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.
Sonnet
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern, Rare)
Pronounced: SAHN-it
Rating: 34% based on 9 votes
Diminutive of Italian sonetto - song, sound; little song. Also the term for a short lyric poem, usually with eight line stanzas, followed by six line
stanzas.

The sonnets of William Shakespeare, on the other hand, are typically three Sicilian quatrains, followed by an heroic couplet.

Solomon
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, English, Jewish, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: שְׁלֹמֹה(Hebrew) Σολομών(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: SAHL-ə-mən(American English) SAWL-ə-mən(British English)
Rating: 42% based on 10 votes
From the Hebrew name שְׁלֹמֹה (Shelomo), which was derived from שָׁלוֹם (shalom) meaning "peace". As told in the Old Testament, Solomon was a king of Israel, the son of David and Bathsheba. He was renowned for his wisdom and wealth. Towards the end of his reign he angered God by turning to idolatry. Supposedly, he was the author of the Book of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and the Song of Solomon.

This name has never been overly common in the Christian world, and it is considered typically Jewish. It was however borne by an 11th-century Hungarian king.

Shai
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Hebrew
Other Scripts: שַׁי(Hebrew)
Rating: 22% based on 9 votes
Either from Hebrew שַׁי (shai) meaning "gift" or else a Hebrew diminutive of Isaiah.
Serendipity
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern, Rare)
Pronounced: sɛ.rɛn.ˈdɪp.ə.ti
Rating: 30% based on 11 votes
From the English word serendipity.
Schuyler
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SKIE-lər
Rating: 45% based on 10 votes
From a Dutch surname meaning "scholar". Dutch settlers brought the surname to America, where it was subsequently adopted as a given name in honour of the American general and senator Philip Schuyler (1733-1804) [1].
Saul
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, Jewish, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: שָׁאוּל(Hebrew)
Pronounced: SAWL(English)
Rating: 45% based on 11 votes
From the Hebrew name שָׁאוּל (Shaʾul) meaning "asked for, prayed for". This was the name of the first king of Israel, as told in the Old Testament. Before the end of his reign he lost favour with God, and after a defeat by the Philistines he was succeeded by David as king. In the New Testament, Saul was the original Hebrew name of the apostle Paul.
Rufus
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Ancient Roman, English, Biblical
Pronounced: ROO-foos(Latin) ROO-fəs(English)
Rating: 38% based on 10 votes
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.
Roland
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, German, Swedish, Dutch, Hungarian, Polish, Slovak, Albanian, Georgian, Carolingian Cycle
Other Scripts: როლანდ(Georgian)
Pronounced: RO-lənd(English) RAW-LAHN(French) RO-lant(German) RO-lahnt(Dutch) RO-lawnd(Hungarian) RAW-lant(Polish)
Rating: 42% based on 10 votes
From the Old German elements hruod meaning "fame" and lant meaning "land", though some theories hold that the second element was originally nand meaning "brave" [1].

Roland was an 8th-century military commander, serving under Charlemagne, who was killed by the Basques at the Battle of Roncevaux. His name was recorded in Latin as Hruodlandus. His tale was greatly embellished in the 11th-century French epic La Chanson de Roland, in which he is a nephew of Charlemagne killed after being ambushed by the Saracens. The Normans introduced the name to England.

River
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: RIV-ər
Rating: 61% based on 11 votes
From the English word that denotes a flowing body of water. The word is ultimately derived (via Old French) from Latin ripa "riverbank".
Rhys
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Welsh, English
Pronounced: REES
Rating: 59% based on 10 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.
Prosper
Gender: Masculine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: PRAWS-PEHR(French) PRAHS-pər(English)
Rating: 35% based on 11 votes
From the Latin name Prosperus, which meant "fortunate, successful". This was the name of a 5th-century saint, a supporter of Saint Augustine. It has never been common as an English name, though the Puritans used it, partly because it is identical to the English word prosper.
Phoenix
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: FEE-niks
Rating: 43% based on 11 votes
From the name of a beautiful immortal bird that appears in Egyptian and Greek mythology. After living for several centuries in the Arabian Desert, it would be consumed by fire and rise from its own ashes, with this cycle repeating every 500 years. The name of the bird was derived from Greek φοῖνιξ (phoinix) meaning "dark red".
Persephone
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Περσεφόνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: PEHR-SEH-PO-NEH(Classical Greek) pər-SEHF-ə-nee(English)
Rating: 60% based on 11 votes
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.
Montgomery
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: mənt-GUM-ə-ree, mənt-GUM-ree
Rating: 41% based on 10 votes
From an English surname meaning "Gumarich's mountain" in Norman French. A notable bearer of this surname was Bernard Montgomery (1887-1976), a British army commander during World War II.
Magnolia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: mag-NO-lee-ə
Rating: 41% based on 13 votes
From the English word magnolia for the flower, which was named for the French botanist Pierre Magnol.
Madilyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: MAD-ə-lin, MAD-lin, MAD-ə-lien
Rating: 31% based on 9 votes
Variant of Madeline.
Macie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAY-see
Rating: 21% based on 9 votes
Variant of Macy.
Lyric
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: LIR-ik
Rating: 52% based on 12 votes
Means simply "lyric, songlike" from the English word, ultimately derived from Greek λυρικός (lyrikos).
Ian
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: EE-ən(English)
Rating: 50% based on 11 votes
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.
Iain
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Scottish Gaelic [1]
Pronounced: EE-an
Rating: 34% based on 10 votes
Scottish Gaelic form of Iohannes (see John).
Hope
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HOP
Rating: 46% based on 13 votes
From the English word hope, ultimately from Old English hopian. This name was first used by the Puritans in the 17th century.
Ezekiel
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Biblical, English
Other Scripts: יְחֶזְקֵאל(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: i-ZEE-kee-əl(English)
Rating: 37% based on 10 votes
From the Hebrew name יְחֶזְקֵאל (Yeḥezqel) meaning "God will strengthen", from the roots חָזַק (ḥazaq) meaning "to strengthen" and אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God". Ezekiel is a major prophet of the Old Testament, the author of the Book of Ezekiel. He lived in Jerusalem until the Babylonian conquest and captivity of Israel, at which time he was taken to Babylon. The Book of Ezekiel describes his vivid symbolic visions that predict the restoration of the kingdom of Israel. As an English given name, Ezekiel has been used since the Protestant Reformation.
Eoin
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Irish
Pronounced: ON
Rating: 30% based on 10 votes
Irish form of Iohannes (see John) used in the Bible.
Bennett
Gender: Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BEHN-it
Rating: 53% based on 12 votes
Medieval form of Benedict. This was the more common spelling in England until the 18th century. Modern use of the name is probably also influenced by the common surname Bennett, itself a derivative of the medieval name.
Asher
Gender: Masculine
Usage: Hebrew, English, Biblical, Biblical Hebrew [1]
Other Scripts: אָשֵׁר(Hebrew)
Pronounced: ASH-ər(English)
Rating: 35% based on 12 votes
Means "happy, blessed" in Hebrew, derived from אָשַׁר (ʾashar) meaning "to be happy, to be blessed". Asher in the Old Testament is a son of Jacob by Leah's handmaid Zilpah, and the ancestor of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. The meaning of his name is explained in Genesis 30:13.
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