Hekate Rose's Personal Name List

Dutch form and English variant of Zoe.

Russian diminutive of Yevgeniya or Yevgeniy or a Bulgarian diminutive of Evgeniya.

Hypocoristic form of Zejneb or Zenobia.

The name can also be a misspelling of Ženja without the hachek on the first letter.

French form of Zenaida.

Meaning uncertain. It is possibly related to Arabic زين (zayn) meaning "beauty"; it could be from the name of a fragrant flowering tree; or it could be an Arabic form of Zenobia, a name borne by a pre-Islamic queen of Palmyra. Zaynab was the name of a daughter, a granddaughter, and two wives of the Prophet Muhammad.

From Arabic زهراء (zahrāʾ), the feminine form of أزهر (ʾazhar) meaning "shining, brilliant, bright". This is an epithet of the Prophet Muhammad's daughter Fatima.

See also the related name Zahra 2.

Spanish form of Jessica.

Biblical Hebrew form of Isaiah.

Feminine form of Xanthippos. This was the name of the wife of Socrates. Because of her supposedly argumentative nature, the name has been adopted (in the modern era) as a word for a scolding, ill-tempered woman.

From the English word violet for the purple flower, ultimately derived from Latin viola. It was common in Scotland from the 16th century, and it came into general use as an English given name during the 19th century.

Slovene feminine form of Vid. Lepa Vida ("beautiful Vida") is a character in Slovene tradition and later romantic poetry (notably by France Prešeren).

Short form of Violet.

Means "love, sexual desire" in Latin. This was the name of the Roman goddess of love and sex. Her character was assimilated with that of the Greek goddess Aphrodite. As the mother of Aeneas she was considered an ancestor of the Roman people. The second planet from the sun is named after her.

Feminine form of Velvel.

English and German form of Valeria, as well as a Czech variant of Valérie.

Galician form of Eugenia.

Derived from Latin unda meaning "wave". The word undine was created by the 16th-century Swiss author Paracelsus, who used it for female water spirits.

From an occupational surname for a cloth fuller, derived from Old English tucian meaning "offend, torment". A fuller was a person who cleaned and thickened raw cloth by pounding it.

Short form of Beatrice, Trisana, Tristan or Tristram.

The protagonist Beatrice Prior of American author Veronica Roth's Divergent Trilogy goes by the nickname Tris for the majority of the novels. American author Tamora Pierce also uses Tris as a nickname for the character Trisana Chandler in her Circle of Magic series.

Greek form of Tobiah. This is the name of the hero of the apocryphal Book of Tobit, which appears in many English versions of the Old Testament. It relates how Tobit's son Tobias, with the help of the angel Raphael, is able to drive away a demon who has plagued Sarah, who subsequently becomes his wife. This story was popular in the Middle Ages, and the name came into occasional use in parts of Europe at that time. In England it became common after the Protestant Reformation.

From the Hebrew name תִּרְצָה (Tirtsa) meaning "favourable". Tirzah is the name of one of the daughters of Zelophehad in the Old Testament. It also occurs in the Old Testament as a place name, the early residence of the kings of the northern kingdom.

From Sino-Vietnamese 信 (tín) meaning "trust, believe".

Anglicized form of Tadhg.

Anglicized form of Tighearnach.

Variant of Taylor.

Meaning uncertain. Actors Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick used it for their daughter Sosie Bacon (1992-). It was perhaps inspired by French sosie "lookalike", derived from Latin Sosia, the name of a character in Plautus' play 'Amphitryon', itself from Greek Σωσίας (Sosias) meaning "savior" from σως (sos) "safe, whole, unwounded" (compare Sostrate, Sose). Alternatively it may be a variant of Susie.

Danish form of Severinus. Søren Kierkegaard (1813-1855) was a Danish philosopher who is regarded as a precursor of existentialism.

Means "radiant, bright" in Irish. It has been in use since late medieval times [2]. It is sometimes Anglicized as Sarah (in Ireland) and Clara (in Scotland).

From an Old Norse name, which was derived from the elements sól "sun" and veig "strength". This is the name of the heroine in Henrik Ibsen's play Peer Gynt (1876).

Form of Sophia in several languages.

Means "succour, help, relief" in Spanish. It is taken from the title of the Virgin Mary María del Socorro meaning "Mary of Perpetual Succour".

Feminine form of Silenus.

From Sanskrit श्रेयस् (śreyas) meaning "superior, better".

Anglicized form of Siobhán. In some cases it might be considered a combination of the phonetic element sha and Yvonne.

Alternate transcription of Yiddish שיינאַ (see Shayna).

From the name of the ninth month (though it means "seventh month" in Latin, since it was originally the seventh month of the Roman year), which is sometimes used as a given name for someone born in September.

French form of Zipporah.

Feminine form of Saturninus. This was the name of a legendary saint who was supposedly martyred in northern France.

Means "essence" in Indonesian.

Means "freedom" in Irish Gaelic. It was first used as a given name in the 20th century.

Feminine form of Sani 1.

Hausa and Kazakh form of Safiyya. It is also an alternate transcription of the Arabic name.

From the name of the bitter medicinal herb, ultimately deriving from Greek ῥυτή (rhyte). This is also sometimes used as a short form of Ruth 1.

Anglicized form of the Irish name Ruadhán. As an English name, it can also be derived from the surname Rowan, itself derived from the Irish given name. It could also be given in reference to the rowan tree, a word of Old Norse origin (coincidentally sharing the same Indo-European root meaning "red" with the Irish name).

From an Irish surname (Anglicized from Irish Gaelic Ó Ríoghbhárdáin), which was derived from the given name Rígbarddán.

Combination of Ria and Anne 1. It can also be a short form of names ending in rianne.

Probably derived from an unattested Celtic name *Rīgantonā meaning "great queen" (Celtic *rīganī "queen" and the divine or augmentative suffix -on). It is speculated that Rigantona was an old Celtic goddess, perhaps associated with fertility and horses like the Gaulish Epona. As Rhiannon, she appears in Welsh legend in the Mabinogi [1] as a beautiful magical woman who rides a white horse. She was betrothed against her will to Gwawl, but cunningly broke off that engagement and married Pwyll instead. Their son was Pryderi.

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

Feminine form of Renatus.

Variant of Rémy.

Means "the soul", derived from Greek ψύχω (psycho) meaning "to breathe". The Greeks thought that the breath was the soul. In Greek mythology Psyche was a beautiful maiden who was beloved by Eros (or Cupid in Roman mythology). She is the subject of Keats's poem Ode to Psyche (1819).

From Sanskrit प्रियंकर (priyaṃkara) meaning "agreeable, amiable".

From the English word for the flower, ultimately deriving from Latin prima rosa "first rose".

From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "priest clearing" (Old English preost and leah). This surname was borne by musician Elvis Presley (1935-1977).

Means "little playful one" in Powhatan, an Algonquian language. This was the nickname of a 17th-century Powhatan woman, a daughter of the powerful chief Wahunsenacawh. She married the white colonist John Rolfe and travelled with him to England, but died of illness before returning.

Variant of Petronella.

Latinate feminine form of Philip. As an English name, it is chiefly British.

Greek feminine form of Peter.

From a Latin name, a diminutive of Petronia, the feminine form of Petronius. This was the name of an obscure 1st-century Roman saint, later believed to be a daughter of Saint Peter.

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.

From the Late Latin name Peregrinus, which meant "traveller". This was the name of several early saints.

Latinized form of the Greek Πάτροκλος (Patroklos) meaning "glory of the father", derived from πατήρ (pater) meaning "father" (genitive πατρός) and κλέος (kleos) meaning "glory". In Greek legend he was one of the heroes who fought against the Trojans. His death at the hands of Hector drew his friend Achilles back into the war.

Means "all gifts", derived from a combination of Greek πᾶν (pan) meaning "all" and δῶρον (doron) meaning "gift". In Greek mythology Pandora was the first mortal woman. Zeus gave her a jar containing all of the troubles and ills that mankind now knows, and told her not to open it. Unfortunately her curiosity got the best of her and she opened it, unleashing the evil spirits into the world.

Derived from Greek ὠφέλεια (opheleia) meaning "help, advantage". This was a rare ancient Greek name, which was either rediscovered or recreated by the poet Jacopo Sannazaro for a character in his poem Arcadia (1480). It was borrowed by Shakespeare for his play Hamlet (1600), in which it belongs to the daughter of Polonius and the potential love interest of Hamlet. She eventually goes insane and drowns herself after Hamlet kills her father. In spite of this negative association, the name has been in use since the 19th century.

Feminine variant form of Noël.

Meaning "Night", or possibly from a Plant called Daruhldi.

Finnish form of Nicholas, as well as a Croatian, Slovene, Georgian and German short form.

Short form of Nicholas (or sometimes Nicodemus).

From Greek νέφος (nephos) meaning "cloud". In Greek legend Nephele was created from a cloud by Zeus, who shaped the cloud to look like Hera in order to trick Ixion, a mortal who desired her. Nephele was the mother of the centaurs by Ixion, and was also the mother of Phrixus and Helle by Athamus.

Means "beautiful" in Hebrew.

Form of Natalia (see Natalie) in several languages.

From the Hebrew name נָעֳמִי (Naʿomi) meaning "my pleasantness", a derivative of נָעַם (naʿam) meaning "to be pleasant". In the Old Testament this is the name of the mother-in-law of Ruth. After the death of her husband and sons, she returned to Bethlehem with Ruth. There she declared that her name should be Mara because of her misfortune (see Ruth 1:20).

Though long common as a Jewish name, Naomi was not typically used as an English Christian name until after the Protestant Reformation. A notable bearer is the British model Naomi Campbell (1970-).

Ukrainian cognate of Nadezhda, being the Ukrainian word meaning "hope".

From a French surname that was derived from either Hamon or Edmond. This was the surname of the French impressionist painter Claude Monet (1840-1926).

Means "ocean, wide expanse of water, deep sea" in Maori, Hawaiian and other Polynesian languages.

Means "remembrance" in Greek. In Greek mythology Mnemosyne was a Titan goddess of memory. She was the mother by Zeus of the nine Muses.

Means "fish catcher" in Sanskrit.

Diminutive or feminine form of Michael. This was the name that Walt Disney gave to Ub Iwerks' cartoon character Mickey Mouse (debuting 1928), who was called Mortimer Mouse while being developed. Another famous bearer was the American baseball player Mickey Mantle (1931-1995).

Variant of Marilyn.

From the English word mercy, ultimately from Latin merces "wages, reward", a derivative of merx "goods, wares". This was one of the virtue names adopted by the Puritans in the 17th century.

From the Latin Mercurius, probably derived from Latin mercari "to trade" or merces "wages". This was the name of the Roman god of trade, merchants, and travellers, later equated with the Greek god Hermes. This is also the name of the first planet in the solar system and a metallic chemical element, both named for the god.

From the English words meadow and lark ("small singing bird"). Meadowlark is the common name for several species songbirds of the genera Sturnella and Leistes, native to the Americas. This was the name of American basketball player Meadowlark Lemon (1932-2015), who changed his legal name from Meadow to Meadowlark in 1969.

From the name of the type of bird, also called the song thrush, derived from Old French mauvis, of uncertain origin. It was first used as a given name by the British author Marie Corelli, who used it for a character in her novel The Sorrows of Satan (1895).

Diminutive of Maud.

Blend of Maria and Magdalene. It refers, therefore, to Mary Magdalene, a character in the New Testament. The name was popularized by the German actress and singer Marlene Dietrich (1901-1992), whose real name was Maria Magdalene Dietrich.

Russian, Ukrainian and Bulgarian form of Maria, as well as an alternate transcription of Belarusian Марыя (see Maryia).

Medieval French diminutive of Marie.

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-).

Combination of Marie and Noëlle.

French diminutive of Marie.

Scottish diminutive of Mairead. It was long used in the United Kingdom and Australia, becoming popular at the end of the 20th century. In the United States it was brought to public attention by the British actress Maisie Williams (1997-), who played Arya Stark on the television series Game of Thrones beginning 2011. Her birth name is Margaret.

Means "spring of water" in Hebrew.

Means "rage, fury, anger" in Greek. In Greek mythology Lyssa is a goddess associated with uncontrolled rage.

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.

Means "light" in Spanish. It is taken from the title of the Virgin Mary, Nuestra Señora de la Luz, meaning "Our Lady of Light".

An elaboration of Lucia created by Cervantes for his novel Don Quixote (1605). It was subsequently used by Molière in his play The Doctor in Spite of Himself (1666).

From the name of the lotus flower (species Nelumbo nucifera) or the mythological lotus tree. They are ultimately derived from Greek λωτός (lotos). In Greek and Roman mythology the lotus tree was said to produce a fruit causing sleepiness and forgetfulness.

Diminutive of Lola. This is the name of a 1955 novel by Vladimir Nabokov.

Originally a medieval diminutive of Ibb, itself a diminutive of Isabel. It is also used as a diminutive of Elizabeth.

Hebrew form of Lebanah. In modern Hebrew it is typically a feminine name.

Variant or feminine form of Laurence 1. Originally a masculine name, it was first popularized as a feminine name by actress Betty Jean Perske (1924-2014), who used Lauren Bacall as her stage name.

Derived from the Irish place name Laois. County Laois (formerly spelt as Laoighis or Leix) lies in the province of Leinster, east-central Ireland. It could be a masculine form of Laoise.

Possibly a newer form of Luigsech, or from the name of the county of Laois in central Ireland. It is also used as an Irish form of Lucy or Louise.

Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian form of Xenia.

From Japanese 小 (ko) meaning "small" or 心 (ko) meaning "heart" combined with 春 (haru) meaning "spring". The compound word 小春 means "late summer". Other combinations of kanji characters can form this name as well.

Derived from Greek κλυτός (klytos) meaning "famous, noble". In Greek myth Klytië was an ocean nymph who loved the sun god Helios. Her love was not returned, and she pined away staring at him until she was transformed into a heliotrope flower, whose head moves to follow the sun.

From Japanese 菊 (kiku) meaning "chrysanthemum", as well as other kanji characters that are pronounced the same way.

Hawaiian form of Diana. It was brought to wider attention in the late 1980s, likely by the Hawaiian fitness instructor Kiana Tom (1965-), who had a television show on ESPN beginning in 1988 [1].

Diminutive of Yekaterina. This is the name of a 1938 Soviet song, which became popular during World War II.

Italian form of Katyusha.

Feminine form of Carolus.

This name was given to 41 girl born in the USA in 2010.

Means "the heavens" from Hawaiian ka "the" and lani "heaven, sky, royal, majesty".

Scandinavian diminutive of Katarina.

Means "the sacred sky," "the sacred heaven," "the sacred, heavenly one" or "the royal, sacred one," from definite article ka, ʻiu meaning "lofty, sacred, revered, consecrated" and lani meaning "sky, heaven, heavenly, spiritual, royal, exalted, noble, aristocratic."

One bearer of this name was Victoria Kaʻiulani (1875-1899), Crown Princess of the Hawaiian Islands.

From Ἰούδας (Ioudas), the Greek form of Judah. This is the name of several characters in the New Testament including the infamous Judas Iscariot, the apostle who betrayed Jesus to the Jewish authorities in exchange for money. This spelling also appears in most English translations of the Books of Maccabees.

From Latin Gaspar, perhaps from the Biblical Hebrew word גִּזְבָּר (gizbar) meaning "treasurer" [1], derived from Old Persian ganzabarah. This name was traditionally assigned to one of the wise men (also known as the Magi, or three kings) who were said to have visited the newborn Jesus. It has occasionally been used in the English-speaking world since the Middle Ages. The name can also be given in reference to the English word for the gemstone.

Variant of Jaden.

Most often a variant form of Isla and Ila, but sometimes also of Ayla 3 and Elah.

In at least one case - namely, the youngest daughter of British pop singer Steve Hart (b. 1972) and his wife Ashley Scott (b. 1977) - the name is a corruption of the phrase "I love you". In these cases, the name is essentially a name invented by the parents.

Transferred use of Ixeya (also known as Ixeia), the name of a Pyrenean mountain located in the province of Huesca, Spain.

Short form of Ivana.

From the Hebrew name יִצְחָק (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).

From Ancient Greek ἴον (ion) meaning "violet flower". This was the name of a sea nymph in Greek mythology. It has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since the 19th century, though perhaps based on the Greek place name Ionia, a region on the west coast of Asia Minor.

Means "to soar" in Hawaiian.

Variant of Inés.

From the name of the country, which is itself derived from the name of the Indus River. The river's name is ultimately from Sanskrit सिन्धु (Sindhu) meaning "body of trembling water, river". India Wilkes is a character in the novel Gone with the Wind (1936) by Margaret Mitchell.

Variant of Imogen.

Italian and Spanish form of Irmhild. The Blessed Imelda Lambertini was a young 14th-century nun from Bologna.

Means "earth" or "speech" in Sanskrit.

Means "if Jesus Christ had not died for your sins, you shall be confined to damnation". This was the baptismal name of the English economist, physician and financial speculator Nicholas Barebone (or Barbon; ca. 1640-1698), who helped reconstruct buildings following the Great Fire of London. His father's name was Praise-God.

Latinized form of the Greek name Ὑάκινθος (Hyakinthos), which was derived from the name of the hyacinth flower. In Greek legend Hyakinthos was accidentally killed by the god Apollo, who mournfully caused this flower to arise from his blood. The name was also borne by several early saints, notably a 3rd-century martyr who was killed with his brother Protus.

Latinized form of Hippolyte 1. In Shakespeare's comedy A Midsummer Night's Dream (1595) she is the queen of the Amazons, due to marry Theseus the Duke of Athens.

Derived from the name of the Greek messenger god Hermes. In Greek myth Hermione was the daughter of Menelaus and Helen. This is also the name of the wife of Leontes in Shakespeare's play The Winter's Tale (1610). It is now closely associated with the character Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter series of books, first released in 1997.

From a Dutch surname that was derived from the given name Hendrik. A famous bearer of the surname was the American rock musician Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970).

Yiddish variant of Hannah.

English form of the Greek Ἑλένη (Helene), probably from Greek ἑλένη (helene) meaning "torch" or "corposant", or possibly related to σελήνη (selene) meaning "moon". In Greek mythology Helen was the daughter of Zeus and Leda, whose kidnapping by Paris was the cause of the Trojan War. The name was also borne by the 4th-century Saint Helena, mother of the Roman emperor Constantine, who supposedly found the True Cross during a trip to Jerusalem.

The name was originally used among early Christians in honour of the saint, as opposed to the classical character. In England it was commonly spelled Ellen during the Middle Ages, and the spelling Helen was not regularly used until after the Renaissance. A famous bearer was Helen Keller (1880-1968), an American author and lecturer who was both blind and deaf.

From the Greek Ἑκάτη (Hekate), possibly derived from ἑκάς (hekas) meaning "far off". In Greek mythology Hecate was a goddess associated with witchcraft, crossroads, tombs, demons and the underworld.

Derived from Greek ἥβη (hebe) meaning "youth". In Greek mythology Hebe was the daughter of Zeus and Hera. She was a goddess of youth who acted as the cupbearer to the gods.

Alternate transcription of Arabic هنيّة (see Haniyya).

From an English surname that was derived from either the Norman given name Hamo or the Old Norse given name Hámundr.

From a Scottish and English surname that was derived from Old English hamel "crooked, mutilated" and dun "hill". The surname was originally taken from the name of a town in Leicestershire, England (which no longer exists). A famous bearer of the surname was Alexander Hamilton (1755-1804), a founding father of the United States who was killed in a duel with Aaron Burr.

From Greek Ἅιδης (Haides), derived from ἀϊδής (aides) meaning "unseen". In Greek mythology Hades was the dark god of the underworld, a place that also came to be called Hades. His brothers were Zeus and Poseidon and his wife was Persephone, whom he had abducted.

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.

Means "maiden crowned with a radiant garland" in the fictional language Sindarin. Galadriel was a Noldorin elf princess renowned for her beauty and wisdom in J. R. R. Tolkien's novels. The elements are galad "radiant" and riel "garlanded maiden". Alatáriel is the Quenya form of her name.

Means "proud" in Esperanto.

Diminutive of Fiamma. This is the name of a character appearing in several works by the 14th-century Italian author Boccaccio. She was probably based on the Neapolitan noblewoman Maria d'Aquino.

Anglicized form of Iomhar.

Derived from Greek εὔλαλος (eulalos) meaning "sweetly-speaking", itself from εὖ (eu) meaning "good" and λαλέω (laleo) meaning "to talk". This was the name of an early 4th-century saint and martyr from Mérida in Spain. Another martyr by this name, living at the same time, is a patron saint of Barcelona. These two saints might be the same person.

Hungarian form of Elizabeth. This is the native name of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary. It was also borne by the infamous Erzsébet Báthory (1560-1614), a countess and alleged murderer.

Anglicized form of Éireann. It was initially used by people of Irish heritage in America, Canada and Australia. It was rare until the mid-1950s.

Meaning unknown. This name first appeared in the late 19th century. It is the name of the main character in the novel Enola; or, her Fatal Mistake (1886) by Mary Young Ridenbaugh. The aircraft that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima was named Enola Gay after the mother of the pilot, who was herself named for the book character.

One of the tributes in the book "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins. This names origin is the feminine form of Enobarbus, a contracted form of Ahenobarbus meaning "Bronze Beard" in Latin.

German, Scandinavian and Czech feminine form of Aemilius (see Emily).

From Japanese 恵 (e) meaning "favour, benefit" or 絵 (e) meaning "picture, painting" combined with 美 (mi) meaning "beautiful". Other kanji combinations are possible.

Means "elm tree" in Cornish. This is a recently coined Cornish name.

From the Old French name Héloïse, which was probably from the Germanic name Helewidis, composed of the elements heil meaning "healthy, whole" and wit meaning "wide". It is sometimes associated with the Greek word ἥλιος (helios) meaning "sun" or the name Louise, though there is no etymological connection. This name was borne by the 12th-century French scholar and philosopher Héloïse. Secretly marrying the theologian Peter Abelard at a young age, she became a nun (and eventually an abbess) after Abelard was violently castrated by order of her uncle Fulbert.

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

From an English surname that was derived from the given name Elis, a medieval vernacular form of Elias. This name has also functioned as an Anglicized form of Welsh Elisedd.

From a surname that was a variant of Elliott.

Basque form of Elizabeth.

Feminine form of Elio.

Means "star sun" in the fictional language Sindarin. In The Lord of the Rings (1954) by J. R. R. Tolkien this is Sam's eldest daughter, named after a type of flower.

Modern form of Eir.

Diminutive of Eef.

Usual English form of Dorothea. It has been in use since the 16th century. The author L. Frank Baum used it for the central character, Dorothy Gale, in his fantasy novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) and several of its sequels.

Diminutive of Dorothy.

English form of Désirée. It was popularized in the English-speaking world by the movie Désirée (1954).

Probably means "calf, heifer, girl" from Greek δάμαλις (damalis). In the New Testament this is the name of a woman converted to Christianity by Saint Paul.

Serbian, Croatian and Albanian variant of Diana, reflecting the English pronunciation.

Latinized form of the Greek Δαίδαλος (Daidalos), which was derived from δαιδάλλω (daidallo) meaning "to work cunningly". In Greek myth Daedalus was an Athenian inventor who was banished to Crete. There he designed the Labyrinth for King Minos, but he and his son Icarus were eventually imprisoned inside it because he had aided Theseus in his quest against the Minotaur. Daedalus and Icarus escaped using wings fashioned from wax, but Icarus fell from the sky to his death.

Form of Criseida used by Shakespeare in his play Troilus and Cressida (1602).

From an aristocratic English surname that was derived either from the French place name Courtenay (originally a derivative of the personal name Curtenus, itself derived from Latin curtus "short") or else from a Norman nickname meaning "short nose".

Originally more common as a name for boys in America, it became more popular for girls in the 1960s. It began rapidly increasing after 1973, possibly due to a character (played by Natalie Wood) in the television movie The Affair. It reached an apex in the United States ranked 17th in 1990, though it has quickly fallen away since then.

Created by the French composer Adolphe Adam for one of the main characters in his opera Le Toréador (1849). He probably based it on the name Coralie. It was also used by the author Neil Gaiman for the young heroine in his novel Coraline (2002). Gaiman has stated that in this case the name began as a typo of Caroline.

Means "harmony" in Latin. This was the name of the Roman goddess of harmony and peace.

Quasi-Latinization of Claire.

Roman cognomen derived from Latin cicer meaning "chickpea". Marcus Tullius Cicero (now known simply as Cicero) was a statesman, orator and author of the 1st century BC. He was a political enemy of Mark Antony, who eventually had him executed.

Variant of Chantal.

English short form of Michaela, or a variant of Kayla.

Anglicized form of Caitríona (Irish) or Caitrìona (Scottish Gaelic).

From an Irish surname (Anglicized from Irish Gaelic Ó Caiside), which is derived from the byname Caiside. Very rare as a given name before the 1970s, it established itself in the 80s and then surged in popularity during the 90s.

Derived from Welsh caru meaning "love". This is a relatively modern Welsh name, in common use only since the middle of the 20th century.

Latinate feminine form of Carolus. This is the name of two American states: North and South Carolina. They were named for Charles I, king of England.

A famous bearer is pop artist Cardi B (born in 1992 as Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar) who got her stage name from Bacardi, a white rum. The nickname was given to her because her sister's name is Hennessy which is a brand of cognac.

Variant of Katie.

Diminutive of Elizabeth, from a child's pronunciation of the final syllable. It is now associated with the main character from the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003).

German, Dutch and Hungarian form of Bridget.

Means "jewel" in French. It is mostly used in French-speaking Africa.

Diminutive of Elizabeth.

Means "white woman", from Old Irish bé "woman" and finn "white, blessed". This name was borne by several characters in Irish mythology, including the mother of the hero Fráech.

English form of Βαρθολομαῖος (Bartholomaios), which was the Greek form of an Aramaic name meaning "son of Talmai". In the New Testament Bartholomew is the byname of an apostle, possibly the same person as the apostle Nathanael. According to tradition he was a missionary to India before returning westward to Armenia, where he was martyred by flaying. Due to the popularity of this saint the name became common in England during the Middle Ages.

Perhaps a form of Azalaïs. It was borne by Saint Marie-Azélie Guérin (1831-1877), also called Zélie, the mother of Thérèse of Lisieux.

Variant of Ayelen.

From Mapuche ayelen "laughing", ayliñ "clear" or aylen "ember".

Biblical Hebrew form of Abijah.

Derived from the Old German element awi, of unknown meaning. Rarely, this name may be given in honour of the 16th-century mystic Saint Teresa of Ávila, Ávila being the name of the town in Spain where she was born.

Variant of Aviana.

Modern Hebrew form of Abijah.

From Sanskrit अरुष (aruṣa) meaning "reddish, dawn", a word used in the Rigveda to describe the red horses of Agni. According to some traditions this was the name of the wife of the legendary sage Chyavana.

Feminine form of Artemisios. This was the name of the 4th-century BC builder of the Mausoleum, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. She built it in memory of her husband, the Carian prince Mausolus.

Short form of Ariadne, Ariadna and Arianna.

Meaning unknown, possibly of Phoenician origin. Aphrodite was the Greek goddess of love and beauty, identified with the Roman goddess Venus. She was the wife of Hephaestus and the mother of Eros, and she was often associated with the myrtle tree and doves. The Greeks connected her name with ἀφρός (aphros) meaning "foam", resulting in the story that she was born from the foam of the sea. Many of her characteristics are based on the goddess known as Ashtoreth to the Phoenicians and Ishtar to the Mesopotamian Semitic peoples, and on the Sumerian goddess Inanna.

Means "song" in Greek. In Greek mythology she was one of the original three muses, the muse of song.

Variant of Alicia. The spelling has probably been influenced by that of the alyssum flower, the name of which is derived from Greek ἀ (a), a negative prefix, combined with λύσσα (lyssa) meaning "madness, rabies", since it was believed to cure madness.

Derived from Spanish alondra meaning "lark".

Possibly from a Visigothic name, maybe from Gothic elements such as alls "all" or aljis "other" combined with auds "riches, wealth". Saint Alodia was a 9th-century Spanish martyr with her sister Nunilo.

Means "clear quartz crystal" from the word allirea in Wurundjeri, spoken near Melbourne, Australia.

Means "niece" in Arrernte, spoken in Alice Springs, central Australia. It can also mean "daughter" in other Aboriginal languages.

Form of Isaac.

From Sanskrit ऐश्वर्य (aiśvarya) meaning "prosperity, wealth". A famous bearer is the Indian actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan (1973-).

Means "radiance, brilliance" in Irish. This was the name of a goddess of love and fertility in Irish legend, thought to dwell at the hill of Cnoc Áine in Limerick. It has sometimes been Anglicized as Anne.

From Old Irish Ailbe, possibly derived from the Celtic root *albiyo- "world, light, white" or Old Irish ail "rock". In Irish legend this was the name of a female warrior of the Fianna. It was also the name of a 6th-century male saint, the founder of a monastery at Emly.

From Japanese 愛 (ai) meaning "love, affection" and 子 (ko) meaning "child", as well as other character combinations.

Polish form of Agnes.