apricota's Personal Name List

Zinnia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: ZIN-ee-ə
From the name of the flower, which was itself named for the German botanist Johann Zinn.
Virginia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Greek, Ancient Roman
Other Scripts: Βιργινία(Greek)
Pronounced: vər-JIN-yə(American English) və-JIN-yə(British English) veer-JEE-nya(Italian) beer-KHEE-nya(Spanish)
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).

Theresa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German
Pronounced: tə-REE-sə(English) tə-REE-zə(English) teh-REH-za(German)
From the Spanish and Portuguese name Teresa. It was first recorded as Therasia, being borne by the Spanish wife of Saint Paulinus of Nola in the 4th century. The meaning is uncertain, but it could be derived from Greek θέρος (theros) meaning "summer", from Greek θερίζω (therizo) meaning "to harvest", or from the name of the Greek island of Therasia (the western island of Santorini).

The name was mainly confined to Spain and Portugal during the Middle Ages. After the 16th century it was spread to other parts of the Christian world, due to the fame of the Spanish nun and reformer Saint Teresa of Ávila. Another famous bearer was the Austrian Habsburg queen Maria Theresa (1717-1780), who inherited the domains of her father, the Holy Roman emperor Charles VI, beginning the War of the Austrian Succession.

Tatiana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, French, Slovak, Polish, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, Greek, Georgian, English, Russian, Bulgarian, Ancient Roman
Other Scripts: Τατιάνα(Greek) ტატიანა(Georgian) Татьяна(Russian) Татяна(Bulgarian)
Pronounced: ta-TYA-na(Italian, Spanish, Polish, German) TAH-tee-ah-nah(Finnish) ta-TYAHN-ə(English) tu-TYA-nə(Russian)
Feminine form of the Roman name Tatianus, a derivative of the Roman name Tatius. This was the name of a 3rd-century saint who was martyred in Rome under the emperor Alexander Severus. She was especially venerated in Orthodox Christianity, and the name has been common in Russia (as Татьяна) and Eastern Europe. It was not regularly used in the English-speaking world until the 1980s.
Soleil
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various
Pronounced: SAW-LAY(French)
Means "sun" in French. It is not commonly used as a name in France itself.
Sloane
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: SLON
From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Ó Sluaghadháin, itself derived from the given name Sluaghadhán.
Savannah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: sə-VAN-ə
From the English word for the large grassy plain, ultimately deriving from the Taino (Native American) word zabana. It came into use as a given name in America in the 19th century. It was revived in the 1980s by the movie Savannah Smiles (1982).
Salome
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare), German (Rare), Georgian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [1]
Other Scripts: სალომე(Georgian) Σαλώμη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: sə-LO-mee(English)
From an Aramaic name that was related to the Hebrew word שָׁלוֹם (shalom) meaning "peace". According to the historian Josephus this was the name of the daughter of Herodias (the consort of Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee). In the New Testament, though a specific name is not given, it was a daughter of Herodias who danced for Herod and was rewarded with the head of John the Baptist, and thus Salome and the dancer have traditionally been equated.

As a Christian given name, Salome has been in occasional use since the Protestant Reformation. This was due to a second person of this name in the New Testament: one of the women who witnessed the crucifixion and later discovered that Jesus' tomb was empty. It is used in Georgia due to the 4th-century Salome of Ujarma, who is considered a saint in the Georgian Church.

Rosamund
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: RO-zə-mənd(English) RAHZ-ə-mənd(American English) RAWZ-ə-mənd(British English)
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.
Rita
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, English, German, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Hungarian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Estonian
Pronounced: REE-ta(Italian, Spanish, German) REET-ə(English) REE-taw(Hungarian) ryi-TU(Lithuanian)
Short form of Margherita and other names ending in rita. Saint Rita (born Margherita Lotti) was a 15th-century nun from Cascia, Italy. Another famous bearer was the American actress Rita Hayworth (1918-1987).
Reese
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, English
Anglicized form of Rhys. It is also used as a feminine name, popularized by the American actress Reese Witherspoon (1976-).
Poppy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PAHP-ee(American English) PAWP-ee(British English)
From the word for the red flower, derived from Old English popæg.
Phoebe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Greek Mythology (Latinized), Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: Φοίβη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: FEE-bee(English)
Latinized form of the Greek name Φοίβη (Phoibe), which meant "bright, pure" from Greek φοῖβος (phoibos). In Greek mythology Phoibe was a Titan associated with the moon. This was also an epithet of her granddaughter, the moon goddess Artemis. The name appears in Paul's epistle to the Romans in the New Testament, where it belongs to a female minister in the church at Cenchreae.

In England, it began to be used as a given name after the Protestant Reformation. It was moderately common in the 19th century. It began to rise in popularity again in the late 1980s, probably helped along by characters on the American television shows Friends (1994-2004) and Charmed (1998-2006). It is currently much more common in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand than the United States.

A moon of Saturn bears this name, in honour of the Titan.

Olive
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: AHL-iv(American English) AWL-iv(British English) AW-LEEV(French)
From the English and French word for the type of tree, ultimately derived from Latin oliva.
Nadine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, German, English, Dutch
Pronounced: NA-DEEN(French) na-DEE-nə(German, Dutch) na-DEEN(German, Dutch) nay-DEEN(English)
French diminutive of Nadia 1.
Marley
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: MAHR-lee(American English) MAH-lee(British English)
From an English surname that was taken from a place name meaning either "pleasant wood", "boundary wood" or "marten wood" in Old English. A famous bearer of the surname was the Jamaican musician Bob Marley (1945-1981).
Lenora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Short form of Elenora.
Laurel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LAWR-əl
From the name of the laurel tree, ultimately from Latin laurus.
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.
Julie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, Danish, Norwegian, Czech, English, German, Dutch
Pronounced: ZHUY-LEE(French) YOO-lyə(Danish, German) YOO-li-yeh(Czech) JOO-lee(English)
French, Danish, Norwegian and Czech form of Julia. It has spread to many other regions as well. It has been common in the English-speaking world since the early 20th century.
Josephine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch
Pronounced: JO-sə-feen(English) yo-zeh-FEE-nə(German)
English, German and Dutch form of Joséphine.
Henrietta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Hungarian, Finnish, Swedish
Pronounced: hehn-ree-EHT-ə(English) HEHN-ree-eht-taw(Hungarian) HEHN-ree-eht-tah(Finnish)
Latinate form of Henriette. It was introduced to England by Henriette Marie, the wife of the 17th-century English king Charles I. The name Henriette was also Anglicized as Harriet, a form that was initially more popular.
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, Dutch) heh-LEH-nah(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).
Hannah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Hebrew, German, Dutch, Arabic, Biblical
Other Scripts: חַנָּה(Hebrew) حنّة(Arabic)
Pronounced: HAN-ə(English) HA-na(German) HAH-na(Dutch) HAN-na(Arabic)
From the Hebrew name חַנָּה (Ḥanna) meaning "favour, grace", derived from the root חָנַן (ḥanan) meaning "to be gracious". In the Old Testament this is the name of the wife of Elkanah. Her rival was Elkanah's other wife Peninnah, who had children while Hannah remained barren. After a blessing from Eli she finally became pregnant with Samuel.

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

Francesca
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Catalan
Pronounced: fran-CHEHS-ka(Italian) frən-SEHS-kə(Catalan)
Italian and Catalan feminine form of Franciscus (see Francis).
Frances
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: FRAN-sis
Feminine form of Francis. The distinction between Francis as a masculine name and Frances as a feminine name did not arise until the 17th century [1]. A notable bearer was Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini (1850-1917), a social worker and the first American to be canonized.
Florence
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: FLAWR-əns(English) FLAW-RAHNS(French)
From the Latin name Florentius or the feminine form Florentia, which were derived from florens "prosperous, flourishing". Florentius was borne by many early Christian saints, and it was occasionally used in their honour through the Middle Ages. In modern times it is mostly feminine.

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

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-NEEL-ee-ə(American English) kaw-NEE-lee-ə(British English) kor-NEH-lee-a(Latin)
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.
Clémentine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: KLEH-MAHN-TEEN
French feminine form of Clement. This is also the name of a variety of orange (fruit).
Charlotte
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch
Pronounced: SHAR-LAWT(French) SHAHR-lət(American English) SHAH-lət(British English) shar-LAW-tə(German) sha-LOT(Swedish) shahr-LAW-tə(Dutch)
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.

Catherine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: KA-TU-REEN(French) KA-TREEN(French) KATH-ə-rin(English) KATH-rin(English)
French form of Katherine, and also a common English variant.
Candace
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: Κανδάκη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: KAN-dis(English) KAN-də-see(English)
From the hereditary title of the queens of Ethiopia, as mentioned in Acts in the New Testament. It is apparently derived from Cushitic kdke meaning "queen mother". In some versions of the Bible it is spelled Kandake, reflecting the Greek spelling Κανδάκη. It was used as a given name by the Puritans after the Protestant Reformation. It was popularized in the 20th century by a character in the 1942 movie Meet the Stewarts [1].
Bethan
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: BETH-an
Welsh diminutive of Elizabeth.
Bernadette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English, German, Dutch
Pronounced: BEHR-NA-DEHT(French) bər-nə-DEHT(American English) bə-nə-DEHT(British English)
French feminine form of Bernard. Bernadette Soubirous (1844-1879) was a young woman from Lourdes in France who claimed to have seen visions of the Virgin Mary. She was declared a saint in 1933.
Belén
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: beh-LEHN
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".
Antonia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Romanian, Greek, Croatian, Bulgarian, Ancient Roman
Other Scripts: Αντωνία(Greek) Антония(Bulgarian)
Pronounced: an-TO-nya(Italian, Spanish, German) an-TO-nee-ə(English) ahn-TO-nee-a(Dutch) an-TO-nee-a(Latin)
Feminine form of Antonius (see Anthony).
Amaryllis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: am-ə-RIL-is(English)
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.
Alberta
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish
Pronounced: al-BUR-tə(American English) al-BU-tə(British English) al-BEHR-ta(Italian, Spanish) al-BEHR-tu(European Portuguese) ow-BEKH-tu(Brazilian Portuguese)
Feminine form of Albert. This is the name of a Canadian province, which was named in honour of a daughter of Queen Victoria.
Adriana
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Polish, Slovak, Czech, Bulgarian, English, Dutch
Other Scripts: Адриана(Bulgarian)
Pronounced: a-dree-A-na(Italian, Dutch) a-DHRYA-na(Spanish) a-DRYA-na(Polish) ay-dree-AN-ə(English) ay-dree-AHN-ə(English)
Feminine form of Adrian. A famous bearer is the Brazilian model Adriana Lima (1981-).
behindthename.com   ·   Copyright © 1996-2024