DaphneSusan's Personal Name List
Ada 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Polish, Finnish, Germanic [1]
Pronounced: AY-də(English) A-dha(Spanish) A-da(Polish) AH-dah(Finnish)
Rating: 53% based on 22 votes
Originally a short form of Germanic names such as
Adelaide or
Adelina that begin with the element
adal meaning "noble".
Saint Ada was a 7th-century Frankish abbess at Le Mans. This name was also borne by Augusta Ada King (1815-1852), the Countess of Lovelace (known as Ada Lovelace), a daughter of Lord Byron. She was an assistant to Charles Babbage, the inventor of an early mechanical computer.
Adria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AY-dree-ə
Rating: 55% based on 22 votes
Alanis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: ə-LAN-is
Rating: 35% based on 19 votes
Feminine form of
Alan. Canadian musician Alanis Morissette (1974-) was named after her father Alan. Her parents apparently decided to use this particular spelling after seeing this word in a Greek newspaper.
Alexandria
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: al-ig-ZAN-dree-ə
Rating: 58% based on 24 votes
Feminine form of
Alexander. Alexander the Great founded several cities by this name (or renamed them) as he extended his empire eastward. The most notable of these is Alexandria in Egypt, founded by Alexander in 331 BC.
Alice
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Portuguese, Italian, German, Czech, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Dutch
Pronounced: AL-is(English) A-LEES(French) u-LEE-si(European Portuguese) a-LEE-see(Brazilian Portuguese) a-LEE-cheh(Italian) a-LEES(German) A-li-tseh(Czech)
Rating: 86% based on 27 votes
From the Old French name
Aalis, a short form of
Adelais, itself a short form of the Germanic name
Adalheidis (see
Adelaide). This name became popular in France and England in the 12th century. It was among the most common names in England until the 16th century, when it began to decline. It was revived in the 19th century.
This name was borne by the heroine of Lewis Carroll's novels Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and Through the Looking Glass (1871).
Alivia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: ə-LIV-ee-ə
Rating: 30% based on 21 votes
Amelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Medieval French
Pronounced: ə-MEE-lee-ə(English) ə-MEEL-yə(English) a-MEH-lya(Spanish, Italian, Polish)
Rating: 80% based on 25 votes
Variant of
Amalia, though it is sometimes confused with
Emilia, which has a different origin. The name became popular in England after the German House of Hanover came to the British throne in the 18th century — it was borne by daughters of both George II and George III. The author Henry Fielding used it for the title character in his novel
Amelia (1751). Another famous bearer was Amelia Earhart (1897-1937), the first woman to make a solo flight over the Atlantic Ocean.
This name experienced a rise in popularity at the end of the 20th century. It was the most popular name for girls in England and Wales from 2011 to 2015.
Ann
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Manx
Pronounced: AN(English)
Rating: 73% based on 20 votes
English and Manx form of
Anne 1. In the English-speaking world, both this spelling and
Anne have been used since the late Middle Ages. Currently
Ann is less popular than
Anne (and both are less popular than their relatives
Anna and
Hannah).
Annabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Dutch
Pronounced: AN-ə-behl(English) ah-na-BEHL(Dutch)
Rating: 72% based on 21 votes
Variant of
Amabel, with the spelling altered as if it were a combination of
Anna and French
belle "beautiful". This name appears to have arisen in Scotland in the Middle Ages.
Annmarie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AN-mə-ree
Rating: 59% based on 22 votes
Antoinette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: AHN-TWA-NEHT
Rating: 66% based on 18 votes
Feminine
diminutive of
Antoine. This name was borne by Marie Antoinette, the queen of France during the French Revolution. She was executed by guillotine.
Aria 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: AHR-ee-ə
Rating: 57% based on 20 votes
Means "song, melody" in Italian (literally means "air"). An aria is an elaborate vocal solo, the type usually performed in operas. As an English name, it has only been in use since the 20th century, its rise in popularity accelerating after the 2010 premier of the television drama Pretty Little Liars, featuring a character by this name. It is not traditionally used in Italy.
Arielle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: A-RYEHL(French)
Rating: 57% based on 16 votes
French feminine form of
Ariel, as well as an English variant.
Aubrey
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: AWB-ree
Rating: 41% based on 17 votes
From
Auberi, an Old French form of
Alberich brought to England by the
Normans. It was common in the Middle Ages, and was revived in the 19th century. Since the mid-1970s it has more frequently been given to girls, due to Bread's 1972 song
Aubrey along with its similarity to the established feminine name
Audrey.
Audrey
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: AWD-ree(English) O-DREH(French)
Rating: 82% based on 23 votes
Medieval
diminutive of
Æðelþryð. This was the name of a 7th-century
saint, a princess of East Anglia who founded a monastery at Ely. It was also used by William Shakespeare for a character in his comedy
As You Like It (1599). At the end of the Middle Ages the name became rare due to association with the word
tawdry (which was derived from
St. Audrey, the name of a fair where cheap lace was sold), but it was revived in the 19th century. A famous bearer was British actress Audrey Hepburn (1929-1993).
Aurora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, English, Romanian, Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish, Roman Mythology
Pronounced: ow-RAW-ra(Italian) ow-RO-ra(Spanish, Latin) ə-RAWR-ə(English) OW-ro-rah(Finnish)
Rating: 67% based on 23 votes
Means "dawn" in Latin. Aurora was the Roman goddess of the morning. It has occasionally been used as a given name since the Renaissance.
Avril
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French (Rare), English (Rare)
Pronounced: A-VREEL(French) AV-ril(English)
Rating: 36% based on 19 votes
French form of
April. A famous bearer is the Canadian musician Avril Lavigne (1984-).
Bess
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BEHS
Rating: 59% based on 19 votes
Bethany
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BETH-ə-nee
Rating: 70% based on 22 votes
From the name of a biblical town,
Βηθανία (Bethania) in Greek, which is probably of Aramaic or Hebrew origin, possibly meaning "house of affliction" or "house of figs". In the
New Testament the town of Bethany is the home of Lazarus and his sisters Mary and Martha. It has been in use as a rare given name in the English-speaking world since the 19th century, in honour of Mary of Bethany. In America it became moderately common after the 1950s.
Bettie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BEHT-ee
Rating: 41% based on 16 votes
Bev
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: BEHV
Rating: 21% based on 19 votes
Blair
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: Scottish, English
Pronounced: BLEHR(English)
Rating: 46% based on 16 votes
From a Scottish surname that was derived from Gaelic
blàr meaning
"plain, field, battlefield". In Scotland this name is typically masculine.
In the United States it became more common for girls in the early 1980s, shortly after the debut of the television sitcom The Facts of Life (1979-1988), which featured a character named Blair Warner. The name left the American top 1000 rankings two decades later, but was resurrected by another television character, this time Blair Waldorf from the series Gossip Girl (2007-2012).
Brigitte
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, German, Dutch
Pronounced: BREE-ZHEET(French) bree-GI-tə(German)
Rating: 47% based on 21 votes
French and German form of
Bridget. A famous bearer is the French model and actress Brigitte Bardot (1934-).
Calista
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Portuguese (Rare), Spanish (Rare)
Pronounced: kə-LIS-tə(English) ka-LEES-ta(Spanish)
Rating: 58% based on 19 votes
Feminine form of
Callistus. As an English name it might also be a variant of
Kallisto.
Cassandra
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Other Scripts: Κασσάνδρα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: kə-SAN-drə(English) kə-SAHN-drə(English)
Rating: 70% based on 21 votes
From the Greek name
Κασσάνδρα (Kassandra), possibly derived from
κέκασμαι (kekasmai) meaning "to excel, to shine" and
ἀνήρ (aner) meaning "man" (genitive
ἀνδρός). In Greek
myth Cassandra was a Trojan princess, the daughter of
Priam and
Hecuba. She was given the gift of prophecy by
Apollo, but when she spurned his advances he cursed her so nobody would believe her prophecies.
In the Middle Ages this name was common in England due to the popularity of medieval tales about the Trojan War. It subsequently became rare, but was revived in the 20th century.
Cassidy
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: KAS-i-dee
Rating: 53% based on 22 votes
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.
Celeste
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, English
Pronounced: cheh-LEH-steh(Italian) theh-LEHS-teh(European Spanish) seh-LEHS-teh(Latin American Spanish) sə-LEST(English)
Rating: 69% based on 16 votes
Italian feminine and masculine form of
Caelestis. It is also the Portuguese, Spanish and English feminine form.
Cher
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SHEHR
Rating: 27% based on 18 votes
Short form of
Cheryl. In the case of the American musician Cher (1946-), it is short for her real name
Cherilyn.
Cherie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SHEHR-ee, shə-REE
Rating: 29% based on 15 votes
Derived from French
chérie meaning
"darling". In America,
Cherie came into use shortly after the variant
Sherry, and has not been as common.
Cherilyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SHEHR-ə-lin
Rating: 31% based on 15 votes
Combination of
Cheryl and the popular name suffix
lyn.
Clarissa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian
Pronounced: klə-RIS-ə(English)
Rating: 57% based on 15 votes
Latinate form of
Clarice. This is the name of the title character in a 1748 novel by Samuel Richardson. In the novel Clarissa Harlowe is a virtuous woman who is tragically exploited by her family and her lover. Another literary character by this name is Clarissa Dalloway from the novel
Mrs. Dalloway (1925) by Virginia Woolf.
Claudia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Italian, Spanish, Romanian, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Ancient Roman
Pronounced: KLAW-dee-ə(English) KLOW-dya(German, Italian, Romanian) KLOW-dee-a(Dutch, Latin) KLOW-dhya(Spanish)
Rating: 76% based on 15 votes
Feminine form of
Claudius. It is mentioned briefly in the
New Testament. As a Christian name it was very rare until the 16th century.
Cleo
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KLEE-o
Rating: 43% based on 15 votes
Colette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: KAW-LEHT
Rating: 74% based on 17 votes
Short form of
Nicolette.
Saint Colette was a 15th-century French nun who gave her money to the poor. This was also the
pen name of the French author Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette (1873-1954).
Dahlia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: DAL-yə, DAHL-yə, DAYL-yə
Rating: 71% based on 20 votes
From the name of the flower, which was named for the Swedish botanist Anders Dahl.
Daphne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, English, Dutch
Other Scripts: Δάφνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: DA-PNEH(Classical Greek) DAF-nee(English) DAHF-nə(Dutch)
Rating: 57% based on 17 votes
Means
"laurel" in Greek. In Greek
mythology she was a nymph turned into a laurel tree by her father in order that she might escape the pursuit of
Apollo. It has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since the end of the 19th century.
Darcy
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAHR-see
Rating: 49% based on 16 votes
From an English surname that was derived from Norman French d'Arcy, originally denoting one who came from the town of Arcy in La Manche, France. This is the surname of a character, Fitzwilliam Darcy, in Jane Austen's novel Pride and Prejudice (1813).
Darla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: DAHR-lə
Rating: 51% based on 15 votes
Darlene
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: dahr-LEEN
Rating: 31% based on 15 votes
From the English word
darling combined with the common name suffix
lene. This name has been in use since the beginning of the 20th century.
Deirdre
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: DIR-drə(English) DIR-dree(English) DYEHR-dryə(Irish)
Rating: 48% based on 16 votes
From the Old Irish name
Derdriu, meaning unknown, possibly derived from
der meaning
"daughter". This was the name of a tragic character in Irish legend who died of a broken heart after
Conchobar, the king of Ulster, forced her to be his bride and killed her lover
Naoise.
It has only been commonly used as a given name since the 20th century, influenced by two plays featuring the character: William Butler Yeats' Deirdre (1907) and J. M. Synge's Deirdre of the Sorrows (1910).
Denise
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English, Dutch
Pronounced: DU-NEEZ(French) də-NEES(English) deh-NEE-zə(Dutch)
Rating: 44% based on 14 votes
French feminine form of
Denis.
Desdemona
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature
Pronounced: dehz-də-MO-nə(English)
Rating: 67% based on 14 votes
Derived from Greek
δυσδαίμων (dysdaimon) meaning
"ill-fated". This is the name of the wife of
Othello in Shakespeare's play
Othello (1603).
Diane
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: DYAN(French) die-AN(English)
Rating: 70% based on 14 votes
French form of
Diana, also regularly used in the English-speaking world.
Dinah
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, English
Other Scripts: דִּינָה(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced: DIE-nə(English) DEE-nə(English)
Rating: 54% based on 14 votes
Drusilla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, Ancient Roman, Biblical Latin
Pronounced: droo-SIL-ə(English)
Rating: 72% based on 15 votes
Edda 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: EHD-da
Rating: 51% based on 13 votes
Edwina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ehd-WEEN-ə, ehd-WIN-ə
Rating: 40% based on 11 votes
Elise
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Finnish, Dutch, English
Pronounced: eh-LEE-zə(German) eh-LEE-seh(Norwegian, Danish, Swedish) i-LEES(English) EE-lees(English)
Rating: 68% based on 19 votes
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: 69% based on 18 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.
Elsie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish
Pronounced: EHL-see(English)
Rating: 57% based on 15 votes
Elvira
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, German, Dutch, Swedish, Hungarian, Russian
Other Scripts: Эльвира(Russian)
Pronounced: ehl-BEE-ra(Spanish) ehl-VEE-ra(Italian, Dutch)
Rating: 61% based on 14 votes
Spanish form of a Visigothic name, recorded from the 10th century in forms such as
Geloyra or
Giluira. It is of uncertain meaning, possibly composed of the Gothic element
gails "happy" or
gails "spear" combined with
wers "friendly, agreeable, true". The name was borne by members of the royal families of León and Castille. This is also the name of a character in Mozart's opera
Don Giovanni (1787).
Esmeralda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Portuguese, English, Albanian, Literature
Pronounced: ehz-meh-RAL-da(Spanish) izh-mi-RAL-du(European Portuguese) ehz-meh-ROW-du(Brazilian Portuguese) ehz-mə-RAHL-də(English)
Rating: 71% based on 15 votes
Means "emerald" in Spanish and Portuguese. Victor Hugo used this name in his novel The Hunchback of Notre-Dame (1831), in which Esmeralda is the Romani girl who is loved by Quasimodo. It has occasionally been used in the English-speaking world since that time.
Estelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: ehs-TEHL(English) EHS-TEHL(French)
Rating: 72% based on 17 votes
From an Old French name meaning
"star", ultimately derived from Latin
stella. It was rare in the English-speaking world in the Middle Ages, but it was revived in the 19th century, perhaps due to the character Estella Havisham in Charles Dickens' novel
Great Expectations (1860).
Esther
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Spanish, Dutch, German, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Jewish, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek
Other Scripts: אֶסְתֵר(Hebrew) Ἐσθήρ(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: EHS-tər(English, Dutch) EHS-TEHR(French) ehs-TEHR(Spanish) EHS-tu(German)
Rating: 71% based on 15 votes
From the Hebrew name
אֶסְתֵר (ʾEsṯer), which possibly means
"star" in Persian. Alternatively it could be a derivative of the name of the Near Eastern goddess
Ishtar. The Book of Esther in the
Old Testament tells the story of Queen Esther, the Jewish wife of the king of Persia. The king's advisor
Haman persuaded the king to exterminate all the Jews in the realm. Warned of this plot by her cousin
Mordecai, Esther revealed her Jewish ancestry and convinced the king to execute Haman instead. Her original Hebrew name was
Hadassah.
This name has been used in the English-speaking world since the Protestant Reformation. In America it received a boost in popularity after the birth of Esther Cleveland (1893-1980), the daughter of President Grover Cleveland [1].
Ethel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ETH-əl
Rating: 51% based on 15 votes
Short form of names beginning with the Old English element
æðele meaning
"noble". It was coined in the 19th century, when many Old English names were revived. It was popularized by the novels
The Newcomes (1855) by William Makepeace Thackeray and
The Daisy Chain (1856) by C. M. Yonge. A famous bearer was American actress and singer Ethel Merman (1908-1984).
Eva
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, English, Czech, Slovak, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Estonian, Danish, Icelandic, Faroese, Romanian, Greek, Slovene, Bulgarian, Croatian, Russian, Georgian, Armenian, Biblical Latin, Old Church Slavic
Other Scripts: Εύα(Greek) Ева(Bulgarian, Russian, Church Slavic) ევა(Georgian) Էվա(Armenian)
Pronounced: EH-ba(Spanish) EH-va(Italian, Czech, Slovak, Dutch, Swedish, Icelandic, Greek) EE-və(English) EH-fa(German) EH-vah(Danish) YEH-və(Russian) EH-VAH(Georgian) EH-wa(Latin)
Rating: 62% based on 17 votes
Form of
Eve used in various languages. This form is used in the Latin translation of the
New Testament, while
Hava is used in the Latin
Old Testament. A notable bearer was the Argentine first lady Eva Perón (1919-1952), the subject of the musical
Evita. The name also appears in Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel
Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852) belonging to the character Little Eva, whose real name is in fact Evangeline.
This is also an alternate transcription of Russian Ева (see Yeva).
Flora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Dutch, French, Greek, Albanian, Roman Mythology
Other Scripts: Φλώρα(Greek)
Pronounced: FLAWR-ə(English) FLAW-ra(Italian) FLO-ra(Spanish, German, Dutch, Latin) FLAW-ru(Portuguese) FLAW-RA(French)
Rating: 72% based on 15 votes
Derived from Latin
flos meaning
"flower" (genitive case
floris). Flora was the Roman goddess of flowers and spring, the wife of Zephyr the west wind. It has been used as a given name since the Renaissance, starting in France. In Scotland it was sometimes used as an Anglicized form of
Fionnghuala.
Francine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: FRAHN-SEEN(French) fran-SEEN(English)
Rating: 63% based on 15 votes
Geena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: JEE-nə
Rating: 26% based on 14 votes
Gemma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Catalan, English (British), Dutch
Pronounced: JEHM-ma(Italian) ZHEHM-mə(Catalan) JEHM-ə(British English) GHEH-ma(Dutch)
Rating: 71% based on 17 votes
Medieval Italian nickname meaning "gem, precious stone". It was borne by the wife of the 13th-century Italian poet Dante Alighieri.
Genevieve
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JEHN-ə-veev
Rating: 79% based on 17 votes
Gia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian (Rare)
Pronounced: JEE-a
Rating: 68% based on 14 votes
Gina
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
Pronounced: JEE-na(Italian) JEE-nə(English)
Rating: 45% based on 11 votes
Short form of
Georgina,
Regina,
Luigina and other names ending in
gina. It can also be used as a
diminutive of
Virginia or
Eugenia. It was popularized in the 1950s by Italian actress Gina Lollobrigida (1927-2023), whose birth name was Luigina.
Ginger
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JIN-jər
Rating: 41% based on 15 votes
From the English word
ginger for the spice or the reddish-brown colour. It can also be a
diminutive of
Virginia, as in the case of actress and dancer Ginger Rogers (1911-1995), by whom the name was popularized.
Glynis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Rating: 54% based on 13 votes
Guadalupe
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: ghwa-dha-LOO-peh
Rating: 33% based on 9 votes
From a Spanish title of the Virgin
Mary,
Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, meaning "Our Lady of Guadalupe". Guadalupe is a Spanish place name, the site of a famous convent, derived from Arabic
وادي (wādī) meaning "valley, river" possibly combined with Latin
lupus meaning "wolf". In the 16th century Our Lady of Guadalupe supposedly appeared in a vision to a native Mexican man, and she is now regarded as a patron
saint of the Americas.
Gwen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh, English
Pronounced: GWEHN
Rating: 70% based on 15 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.
Gwendolen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Welsh
Pronounced: GWEHN-də-lin(English)
Rating: 69% based on 15 votes
Possibly means
"white ring", derived from Welsh
gwen meaning "white, blessed" and
dolen meaning "ring, loop". This name appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's 12th-century chronicles, written in the Latin form
Guendoloena, where it belongs to an ancient queen of the Britons who defeats her ex-husband in battle
[1]. Geoffrey later used it in
Vita Merlini for the wife of the prophet
Merlin [2]. An alternate theory claims that the name arose from a misreading of the masculine name
Guendoleu by Geoffrey
[3].
This name was not regularly given to people until the 19th century [4][3]. It was used by George Eliot for a character in her novel Daniel Deronda (1876).
Hazel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: HAY-zəl
Rating: 60% based on 16 votes
From the English word hazel for the tree or the light brown colour, derived ultimately from Old English hæsel. It was coined as a given name in the 19th century and quickly became popular, reaching the 18th place for girls in the United States by 1897. It fell out of fashion in the second half of the 20th century, but has since recovered.
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)
Rating: 82% based on 19 votes
Latinate form of
Helen. This is the name of the heroine of William Shakespeare's play
All's Well That Ends Well (1603).
Ima
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Germanic [1]
Rating: 41% based on 10 votes
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: 85% based on 17 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.
Isis
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Egyptian Mythology (Hellenized)
Other Scripts: Ἶσις(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: IE-sis(English)
Rating: 56% based on 20 votes
Greek form of Egyptian
ꜣst (reconstructed as
Iset,
Aset or
Ueset), possibly from
st meaning
"throne". In Egyptian
mythology Isis was the goddess of the sky and nature, the wife of
Osiris and the mother of
Horus. She was originally depicted wearing a throne-shaped headdress, but in later times she was conflated with the goddess
Hathor and depicted having the horns of a cow on her head. She was also worshipped by people outside of Egypt, such as the Greeks and Romans.
Ivy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: IE-vee
Rating: 61% based on 19 votes
From the English word for the climbing plant that has small yellow flowers. It is ultimately derived from Old English ifig.
Jade
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: JAYD(English) ZHAD(French)
Rating: 62% based on 20 votes
From the name of the precious stone that is often used in carvings. It is derived from Spanish (piedra de la) ijada meaning "(stone of the) flank", relating to the belief that jade could cure renal colic. As a given name, it came into general use during the 1970s. It was initially unisex, though it is now mostly feminine.
Jen
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JEHN
Rating: 41% based on 13 votes
Jennifer
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Spanish
Pronounced: JEHN-i-fər(English) JEH-ni-fu(German) GYEH-nee-fehr(Spanish)
Rating: 58% based on 16 votes
From a Cornish form of the Welsh name
Gwenhwyfar (see
Guinevere). This name has only been common outside of Cornwall since the beginning of the 20th century, after it was featured in George Bernard Shaw's play
The Doctor's Dilemma (1906). It barely ranked in the United until the late 1930s, when it began steadily growing in popularity, accelerating into the early 1970s. It was the most popular name for girls in America between 1970 and 1984, though it was not as common in the United Kingdom.
Famous bearers include the American actresses Jennifer Aniston (1969-), Jennifer Garner (1972-) and Jennifer Lawrence (1990-), as well as the singer/actress Jennifer Lopez (1969-).
Jenny
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, German, Dutch, French, Spanish
Pronounced: JEHN-ee(English) YEH-nuy(Swedish) YEH-nee(German, Dutch) JEH-nee(German, Dutch) GYEH-nee(Spanish)
Rating: 47% based on 13 votes
Originally a medieval English
diminutive of
Jane. Since the middle of the 20th century it has been primarily considered a diminutive of
Jennifer.
Jolene
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: jo-LEEN
Rating: 30% based on 13 votes
Formed from
Jo and the common name suffix
lene. This name was created in the early 20th century. It received a boost in popularity after the release of Dolly Parton's 1973 song
Jolene.
Jolie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JO-lee(English) ZHAW-LEE(French)
Rating: 33% based on 13 votes
Means "pretty" in French. This name was popularized by American actress Angelina Jolie (1975-), whose surname was originally her middle name. It is not used as a given name in France.
Josie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: JO-zee
Rating: 51% based on 13 votes
Juli
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hungarian
Pronounced: YOO-lee
Rating: 22% based on 11 votes
Hungarian short form of
Julia.
Julia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Spanish, Polish, Finnish, Estonian, Russian, Ukrainian, Ancient Roman, Biblical
Other Scripts: Юлия(Russian) Юлія(Ukrainian)
Pronounced: JOO-lee-ə(English) YOO-lya(German, Danish, Polish) YOO-lee-ah(Swedish, Finnish) YUY-lee-a(Dutch) KHOO-lya(Spanish) YOO-lyi-yə(Russian) YOO-lee-a(Latin)
Rating: 76% based on 15 votes
Feminine form of the Roman family name
Julius. Among the notable women from this family were Julia Augusta (also known as Livia Drusilla), the wife of Emperor
Augustus, and Julia the Elder, the daughter of Augustus and the wife of
Tiberius. A person by this name has a brief mention in the
New Testament. It was also borne by a few early
saints and martyrs, including the patron saint of Corsica. Additionally, Shakespeare used it in his comedy
The Two Gentlemen of Verona (1594).
It has been common as a given name in the English-speaking world only since the 18th century. A famous modern bearer is American actress Julia Roberts (1967-).
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)
Rating: 52% based on 12 votes
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.
Juliette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: ZHUY-LYEHT
Rating: 79% based on 19 votes
Kaia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Norwegian, Estonian
Rating: 60% based on 14 votes
Karena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Rating: 63% based on 14 votes
Kat
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KAT
Rating: 54% based on 13 votes
Kate
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Croatian
Pronounced: KAYT(English)
Rating: 61% based on 12 votes
Short form of
Katherine, often used independently. It is short for
Katherina in Shakespeare's play
The Taming of the Shrew (1593). It has been used in England since the Middle Ages. A famous bearer is the British actress Kate Winslet (1975-).
Katharine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German
Pronounced: KATH-ə-rin(English) KATH-rin(English) ka-ta-REE-nə(German)
Rating: 73% based on 16 votes
English variant of
Katherine and German variant of
Katharina. A famous bearer was American actress Katharine Hepburn (1907-2003).
Katia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, French, Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian
Other Scripts: Катя(Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian)
Pronounced: KA-tya(Italian) KA-TYA(French) KA-tyə(Russian)
Rating: 71% based on 14 votes
Italian and French form of
Katya, as well as an alternate transcription of the Slavic name.
Kelley
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: KEHL-ee
Rating: 38% based on 12 votes
Kiri
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Maori
Rating: 39% based on 13 votes
Means "skin of a tree or fruit" in Maori. This name has been brought to public attention by New Zealand opera singer Kiri Te Kanawa (1944-).
Laurel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LAWR-əl
Rating: 45% based on 12 votes
From the name of the laurel tree, ultimately from Latin laurus.
Leela
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam
Other Scripts: लीला(Hindi) లీలా(Telugu) ಲೀಲಾ(Kannada) லீலா(Tamil) ലീലാ(Malayalam)
Rating: 50% based on 10 votes
Alternate transcription of
Lila 1.
Leila
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Persian, Arabic, Kurdish, English, French, Georgian
Other Scripts: لیلا(Persian) ليلى(Arabic) لەیلا(Kurdish Sorani) ლეილა(Georgian)
Pronounced: lay-LAW(Persian) LIE-la(Arabic) LAY-lə(English) LEE-lə(English) LIE-lə(English) LAY-LA(French)
Rating: 60% based on 12 votes
Variant of
Layla, and the usual Persian transcription.
This spelling was used by Lord Byron for characters in The Giaour (1813) and Don Juan (1819), and it is through him that the name was introduced to the English-speaking world.
Leilani
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: Hawaiian
Pronounced: lay-LA-nee
Rating: 70% based on 13 votes
Means "heavenly flowers" or "royal child" from Hawaiian lei "flowers, lei, child" and lani "heaven, sky, royal, majesty".
Lila 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Hindi
Other Scripts: लीला(Hindi) లీలా(Telugu) ಲೀಲಾ(Kannada) லீலா(Tamil) ലീലാ(Malayalam)
Rating: 83% based on 16 votes
Means "play, amusement" in Sanskrit.
Lizette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Rating: 58% based on 13 votes
Lola
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, English, French
Pronounced: LO-la(Spanish) LO-lə(English) LAW-LA(French)
Rating: 55% based on 13 votes
Spanish
diminutive of
Dolores. A famous bearer was Lola Montez (1821-1861; birth name Eliza Gilbert), an Irish-born dancer, actress and courtesan.
Lolita
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: lo-LEE-ta
Rating: 47% based on 13 votes
Diminutive of
Lola. This is the name of a 1955 novel by Vladimir Nabokov.
Lucy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: LOO-see
Rating: 81% based on 19 votes
English form of
Lucia, in use since the Middle Ages.
Mabel
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAY-bəl
Rating: 47% based on 12 votes
Medieval feminine form of
Amabilis. This spelling and
Amabel were common during the Middle Ages, though they became rare after the 15th century. It was revived in the 19th century after the publication of C. M. Yonge's 1854 novel
The Heir of Redclyffe [1], which featured a character named Mabel (as well as one named Amabel).
Mae
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAY
Rating: 77% based on 15 votes
Variant of
May. A famous bearer was the American actress Mae West (1893-1980), whose birth name was Mary.
Marceline
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: MAR-SU-LEEN
Rating: 63% based on 12 votes
Marilyn
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAR-ə-lin, MAR-lin
Rating: 70% based on 15 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-).
Maxine
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: mak-SEEN
Rating: 63% based on 13 votes
Feminine form of
Max. It has been commonly used only since the beginning of the 20th century.
Melanie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch
Pronounced: MEHL-ə-nee(English) MEH-la-nee(German) meh-la-NEE(German)
Rating: 69% based on 17 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).
Melinda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Hungarian
Pronounced: mə-LIN-də(English) MEH-leen-daw(Hungarian)
Rating: 67% based on 15 votes
Combination of
Mel (from names such as
Melanie or
Melissa) with the popular name suffix
inda [1]. It was created in the 18th century, and may have been inspired by the similar name
Belinda. In Hungary, the name was popularized by the 1819 play
Bánk Bán by József Katona.
Molly
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: MAHL-ee
Rating: 56% based on 13 votes
Medieval
diminutive of
Mary, now often used independently. It developed from
Malle and
Molle, other medieval diminutives. James Joyce used this name in his novel
Ulysses (1922), where it belongs to Molly Bloom, the wife of the main character.
Nela
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Croatian, Slovak, Portuguese, Czech, Polish
Pronounced: NEH-la(Czech)
Rating: 50% based on 11 votes
Short form of names ending in
nela, such as
Antonela.
Nell
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NEHL
Rating: 46% based on 11 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.
Nella
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian
Pronounced: NEHL-la
Rating: 56% based on 13 votes
Nelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NEHL
Rating: 44% based on 11 votes
Nellie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish
Pronounced: NEHL-ee(English) NEH-li(Swedish)
Rating: 49% based on 12 votes
Nelly
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish, French, German
Pronounced: NEHL-ee(English) NEH-luy(Swedish) NEH-LEE(French)
Rating: 42% based on 11 votes
Nena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Rating: 41% based on 11 votes
Variant of
Nina 1, also coinciding with the Spanish word
nena meaning
"baby girl".
Neva
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Rating: 60% based on 12 votes
Neve
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Rating: 62% based on 12 votes
Anglicized form of
Niamh.
Nicolette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: NEE-KAW-LEHT
Rating: 73% based on 14 votes
Noel
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NOL, NO-əl
Rating: 65% based on 10 votes
English form of
Noël or
Noëlle (rarely). It was fairly popular in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand in the middle of the 20th century. It is occasionally written with a diaeresis, like in French. A famous bearer is British musician Noel Gallagher (1967-).
Noelle
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: no-EHL
Rating: 62% based on 11 votes
Nola
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: NO-lə
Rating: 77% based on 12 votes
Meaning uncertain, possibly a feminine form of
Noll inspired by
Lola. It has been most common in Australia and New Zealand, especially in the first half of the 20th century.
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: 63% based on 13 votes
Short form of
Honora or
Eleanor. Henrik Ibsen used it for a character in his play
A Doll's House (1879).
Norah 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Irish
Pronounced: NAWR-ə(English)
Rating: 61% based on 15 votes
Norma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Literature
Pronounced: NAWR-mə(English)
Rating: 42% based on 11 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.
Nova
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish (Modern), Dutch (Modern)
Pronounced: NO-və(English) NO-va(Swedish, Dutch)
Rating: 71% based on 16 votes
Derived from Latin novus meaning "new". It was first used as a name in the 19th century.
Odessa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Various
Rating: 70% based on 12 votes
From the name of a Ukrainian city that sits on the north coast of the Black Sea, which was named after the ancient Greek city of
Ὀδησσός (Odessos), of uncertain meaning. This name can also be used as a feminine form of
Odysseus.
Odette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: AW-DEHT
Rating: 73% based on 13 votes
French
diminutive of
Oda or
Odilia. This is the name of a princess who has been transformed into a swan in the ballet
Swan Lake (1877) by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.
Olive
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: AHL-iv(English) AW-LEEV(French)
Rating: 48% based on 12 votes
From the English and French word for the type of tree, ultimately derived from Latin oliva.
Ophelia
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Literature, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ὠφελία(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: o-FEEL-ee-ə(English) o-FEEL-yə(English)
Rating: 71% based on 14 votes
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.
Paige
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PAYJ
Rating: 57% based on 15 votes
From an English surname meaning
"servant, page" in Middle English. It is ultimately derived (via Old French and Italian) from Greek
παιδίον (paidion) meaning "little boy".
As a given name for girls, it received some public attention from a character in the 1958 novel Parrish and the 1961 movie adaptation [1]. It experienced a larger surge in popularity in the 1980s, probably due to the character Paige Matheson from the American soap opera Knots Landing.
Paloma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: pa-LO-ma
Rating: 71% based on 12 votes
Means "dove, pigeon" in Spanish.
Pandora
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology
Other Scripts: Πανδώρα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: PAN-DAW-RA(Classical Greek) pan-DAWR-ə(English)
Rating: 62% based on 12 votes
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.
Paulette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: PAW-LEHT(French) paw-LEHT(English)
Rating: 40% based on 11 votes
Pearl
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PURL
Rating: 60% based on 13 votes
From the English word pearl for the concretions formed in the shells of some mollusks, ultimately from Late Latin perla. Like other gemstone names, it has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since the 19th century. The pearl is the traditional birthstone for June, and it supposedly imparts health and wealth.
Peggy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PEHG-ee
Rating: 40% based on 12 votes
Medieval variant of
Meggy, a
diminutive of
Margaret. The reason for the change in the initial consonant is unknown.
Penelope
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Greek Mythology, English
Other Scripts: Πηνελόπη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: PEH-NEH-LO-PEH(Classical Greek) pə-NEHL-ə-pee(English)
Rating: 69% based on 14 votes
Probably derived from Greek
πηνέλοψ (penelops), a type of duck. Alternatively it could be from
πήνη (pene) meaning "threads, weft" and
ὄψ (ops) meaning "face, eye". In
Homer's epic the
Odyssey this is the name of the wife of
Odysseus, forced to fend off suitors while her husband is away fighting at Troy.
It has occasionally been used as an English given name since the 16th century. It was moderately popular in the 1940s, but had a more notable upswing in the early 2000s. This may have been inspired by the Spanish actress Penélope Cruz (1974-), who gained prominence in English-language movies at that time. It was already rapidly rising when celebrities Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick gave it to their baby daughter in 2012.
Penny
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PEHN-ee
Rating: 50% based on 12 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.
Phoebe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Greek Mythology (Latinized), Biblical, Biblical Latin
Other Scripts: Φοίβη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: FEE-bee(English)
Rating: 64% based on 20 votes
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.
Priscilla
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, French, Ancient Roman, Biblical Latin, Biblical
Pronounced: pri-SIL-ə(English) preesh-SHEEL-la(Italian)
Rating: 66% based on 16 votes
Prudence
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: PROO-dəns(English) PRUY-DAHNS(French)
Rating: 57% based on 12 votes
Medieval English form of
Prudentia, the feminine form of
Prudentius. In France it is both the feminine form and a rare masculine form. In England it was used during the Middle Ages and was revived in the 17th century by the
Puritans, in part from the English word
prudence, ultimately of the same source.
Prue
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: PROO
Rating: 20% based on 10 votes
Ramona
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish, Romanian, English
Pronounced: ra-MO-na(Spanish) rə-MON-ə(English)
Rating: 76% based on 16 votes
Feminine form of
Ramón. It was popularized in the English-speaking world by Helen Hunt Jackson's novel
Ramona (1884), as well as several subsequent movies based on the book.
Raven
Gender: Feminine & Masculine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAY-vən
Rating: 35% based on 11 votes
From the name of the bird, ultimately from Old English
hræfn. The raven is revered by several Native American groups of the west coast. It is also associated with the Norse god
Odin.
Rhoda
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Biblical, English
Other Scripts: Ῥόδη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: RO-də(English)
Rating: 27% based on 13 votes
Derived from Greek
ῥόδον (rhodon) meaning
"rose". In the
New Testament this name was borne by a maid in the house of Mary the mother of John Mark. As an English given name,
Rhoda came into use in the 17th century.
Rita
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Estonian, Hungarian, Spanish, Portuguese, Latvian, Lithuanian
Pronounced: REE-ta(Italian, German, Spanish) REET-ə(English) REE-taw(Hungarian) ryi-TU(Lithuanian)
Rating: 44% based on 10 votes
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).
Romy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: German, Dutch, French, English
Pronounced: RO-mee(German, Dutch, English)
Rating: 38% based on 11 votes
Rosemary
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ROZ-mə-ree, ROZ-mehr-ee
Rating: 76% based on 17 votes
Combination of
Rose and
Mary. This name can also be given in reference to the herb, which gets its name from Latin
ros marinus meaning "dew of the sea". It came into use as a given name in the 19th century.
Rowena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: ro-EEN-ə
Rating: 69% based on 15 votes
Meaning uncertain. According to the 12th-century chronicler Geoffrey of Monmouth, this was the name of a daughter of the Saxon chief Hengist. It is possible (but unsupported) that Geoffrey based it on the Old English elements
hroð "fame" and
wynn "joy", or alternatively on the Old Welsh elements
ron "spear" and
gwen "white". It was popularized by Walter Scott, who used it for a character in his novel
Ivanhoe (1819).
Roxanne
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French
Pronounced: rahk-SAN(English) RAWK-SAN(French)
Rating: 65% based on 16 votes
Roxy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: RAHK-see
Rating: 35% based on 13 votes
Sadie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SAY-dee
Rating: 64% based on 18 votes
Scarlett
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: SKAHR-lit
Rating: 58% based on 17 votes
From an English surname that denoted a person who sold or made clothes made of scarlet (a kind of cloth, possibly derived from Persian
سقرلاط (saqrelāṭ)). Margaret Mitchell used it for the main character, Scarlett O'Hara, in her novel
Gone with the Wind (1936). Her name is explained as having come from her grandmother. Despite the fact that the book was adapted into a popular movie in 1939, the name was not common until the 21st century. It started rising around 2003, about the time that the career of American actress Scarlett Johansson (1984-) started taking off.
Selma 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic
Pronounced: SEHL-mə(English) ZEHL-ma(German) SEHL-ma(Dutch)
Rating: 35% based on 13 votes
Meaning unknown, possibly a short form of
Anselma. It could also have been inspired by James Macpherson's 18th-century poems, in which it is the name of Ossian's castle.
Serena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Late Roman
Pronounced: sə-REEN-ə(English) seh-REH-na(Italian)
Rating: 62% based on 14 votes
From a Late Latin name that was derived from Latin
serenus meaning
"clear, tranquil, serene". This name was borne by an obscure early
saint. Edmund Spenser also used it in his poem
The Faerie Queene (1590). A famous bearer from the modern era is tennis player Serena Williams (1981-).
Simona
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Italian, Czech, Slovak, Romanian, Lithuanian, Slovene, Bulgarian, Macedonian
Other Scripts: Симона(Bulgarian, Macedonian)
Pronounced: see-MO-na(Italian) SI-mo-na(Czech) SEE-maw-na(Slovak)
Rating: 55% based on 12 votes
Stella 1
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Dutch, German
Pronounced: STEHL-ə(English) STEHL-la(Italian) STEH-la(Dutch)
Rating: 75% based on 17 votes
Means "star" in Latin. This name was created by the 16th-century poet Philip Sidney for the subject of his collection of sonnets Astrophel and Stella. It was a nickname of a lover of Jonathan Swift, real name Esther Johnson (1681-1728), though it was not commonly used as a given name until the 19th century. It appears in Tennessee Williams' play A Streetcar Named Desire (1947), belonging to the sister of Blanche DuBois and the wife of Stanley Kowalski.
Suzette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: SUY-ZEHT
Rating: 56% based on 13 votes
Tempest
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Rare)
Pronounced: TEHM-pist
Rating: 55% based on 15 votes
From the English word meaning "storm". It appears in the title of William Shakespeare's play The Tempest (1611).
Valerie
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, German, Czech
Pronounced: VAL-ə-ree(English) VA-lə-ree(German)
Rating: 55% based on 12 votes
English and German form of
Valeria, as well as a Czech variant of
Valérie.
Vanessa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, French, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, German, Dutch
Pronounced: və-NEHS-ə(English) VA-NEH-SA(French) va-NEHS-sa(Italian) vu-NEH-su(European Portuguese) va-NEH-su(Brazilian Portuguese) ba-NEH-sa(Spanish) va-NEH-sa(German) vah-NEH-sa(Dutch)
Rating: 65% based on 17 votes
Invented by author Jonathan Swift for his 1726 poem
Cadenus and Vanessa [1]. He arrived at it by rearranging the initial syllables of the first name and surname of
Esther Vanhomrigh, his close friend. Vanessa was later used as the name of a genus of butterfly. It was a rare given name until the mid-20th century, at which point it became fairly popular.
Velma
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: VEHL-mə
Rating: 39% based on 13 votes
Probably a variant of
Wilma, the spelling with an
e perhaps due to the influence of
Selma 1. This name has been in use since the 19th century.
Venus
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Roman Mythology
Pronounced: WEH-noos(Latin) VEE-nəs(English)
Rating: 25% based on 11 votes
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.
Veronica
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Romanian, Late Roman
Pronounced: və-RAHN-i-kə(American English) və-RAWN-i-kə(British English) veh-RAW-nee-ka(Italian)
Rating: 69% based on 16 votes
Latin alteration of
Berenice, the spelling influenced by the ecclesiastical Latin phrase
vera icon meaning
"true image". This was the name of a legendary
saint who wiped
Jesus' face with a towel and then found his image imprinted upon it. Due to popular stories about her, the name was occasionally used in the Christian world in the Middle Ages. It was borne by the Italian saint and mystic Veronica Giuliani (1660-1727). As an English name, it was not common until the 19th century, when it was imported from France and Scotland.
Viola
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Swedish, Danish, Finnish, German, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak
Pronounced: vie-O-lə(English) vi-O-lə(English) VIE-ə-lə(English) VYAW-la(Italian) vi-OO-la(Swedish) VEE-o-la(German) vee-O-la(German) VEE-o-law(Hungarian) VI-o-la(Czech) VEE-aw-la(Slovak)
Rating: 58% based on 12 votes
Means
"violet" in Latin. This is the name of the heroine of William Shakespeare's comedy
Twelfth Night (1602). In the play she is the survivor of a shipwreck who disguises herself as a man named Cesario. Working as a messenger for Duke
Orsino, she attempts to convince
Olivia to marry him. Instead Viola falls in love with the duke.
Violette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French
Pronounced: VYAW-LEHT
Rating: 65% based on 15 votes
Vivian
Gender: Masculine & Feminine
Usage: English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
Pronounced: VIV-ee-ən(English)
Rating: 62% based on 17 votes
From the Latin name
Vivianus, which was derived from Latin
vivus "alive".
Saint Vivian was a French bishop who provided protection during the Visigoth invasion of the 5th century. It has been occasionally used as an English (masculine) name since the Middle Ages. In modern times it is also used as a feminine name, in which case it is either an Anglicized form of
Bébinn or a variant of
Vivien 2.
Wendy
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WEHN-dee
Rating: 49% based on 15 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.
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: 66% based on 19 votes
Dutch and German feminine form of
Wilhelm. This name was borne by a queen of the Netherlands (1880-1962).
Willa
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Pronounced: WIL-ə
Rating: 68% based on 16 votes
Willow
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English (Modern)
Pronounced: WIL-o
Rating: 65% based on 20 votes
From the name of the tree, which is ultimately derived from Old English welig.
Winona
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Sioux
Pronounced: wi-NO-nə(English)
Rating: 56% based on 17 votes
Means
"firstborn daughter" in Dakota or Lakota. According to folklore, this was the name of a daughter of a Dakota chief (possibly
Wapasha III) who leapt from a cliff to her death rather than marry a man she hated. Numerous places in the United States have been named after her. The actress Winona Ryder (1971-) was named after the city in Minnesota where she was born.
Ximena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: Spanish
Pronounced: khee-MEH-na
Rating: 56% based on 17 votes
Feminine form of
Ximeno. This was the name of the wife of El Cid.
Yvette
Gender: Feminine
Usage: French, English
Pronounced: EE-VEHT(French) ee-VEHT(English) i-VEHT(English)
Rating: 49% based on 15 votes
French feminine form of
Yves.
Zena
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English
Rating: 53% based on 19 votes
Meaning unknown. It could be a variant of
Xenia or a
diminutive of names featuring this sound, such as
Alexina,
Rosina or
Zenobia. This name has occasionally been used since the 19th century.
Zoe
Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Italian, Spanish, German, Czech, Ancient Greek [1]
Other Scripts: Ζώη, Ζωή(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced: ZO-ee(English) DZAW-eh(Italian) THO-eh(European Spanish) SO-eh(Latin American Spanish)
Rating: 64% based on 22 votes
Means
"life" in Greek. From early times it was adopted by Hellenized Jews as a translation of
Eve. It was borne by two early Christian
saints, one martyred under Emperor Hadrian, the other martyred under Diocletian. The name was common in the Byzantine Empire, being borne by a ruling empress of the 11th century.
As an English name, Zoe (sometimes with a diaeresis as Zoë) has only been in use since the 19th century. It has generally been more common among Eastern Christians (in various spellings).
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