karenna's Personal Name List

From the Greek Ἀχιλλεύς (Achilleus), which is of unknown meaning, perhaps derived from Greek ἄχος (achos) meaning "pain" or else from the name of the Achelous River. This was the name of a warrior in Greek legend, one of the central characters in Homer's Iliad. The bravest of the Greek heroes in the war against the Trojans, he was eventually killed by an arrow to his heel, the only vulnerable part of his body.

This name was sometimes used as a personal name, and was borne by a few early saints, including a Roman soldier martyred with Nereus in the 1st century.

Scandinavian form of Andreas (see Andrew). A famous bearer was the Swedish physicist Anders Jonas Ångström (1814-1874).

Meaning unexplained, though the first element is presumably Sindarin ara "noble, kingly". This is the name of a character in The Lord of the Rings (1954) by J. R. R. Tolkien. In the book Aragorn is the heir of the Dúnedain kings of the north.

Greek form of Argus.

Finnish short form of Arthur.

From Turkic arslan meaning "lion". This was a byname or title borne by several medieval Turkic rulers, including the Seljuk sultan Alp Arslan (a byname meaning "brave lion") who drove the Byzantines from Anatolia in the 11th century. The author C. S. Lewis later used the name Aslan for the main protagonist (a lion) in his Chronicles of Narnia series of books, first appearing in 1950.

Possibly means "enduring" from Greek τλάω (tlao) meaning "to endure". In Greek mythology he was a Titan punished by Zeus by being forced to support the heavens on his shoulders.

Anglicized variant of Atréju, which was created by German author Michael Ende for the hero of his fantasy novel 'Die unendliche Geschichte' (1979; English: 'The Neverending Story'). The character is a boy warrior whose name is explained as meaning "son of all" in his fictional native language, given to him because he was raised by all of the members of his village after being orphaned as a newborn.

Current usage is influenced by the name of a Californian metal-core band named after the hero in 'The neverending story'.

Latinized form of Greek Ἀττικός (Attikos) meaning "from Attica", referring to the region surrounding Athens in Greece. This name was borne by a few notable Greeks from the Roman period (or Romans of Greek background). The author Harper Lee used the name in her novel To Kill a Mockingbird (1960) for an Alabama lawyer who defends a black man accused of raping a white woman.

Medieval Danish form of Absalom.

Croatian form of Bonus.

Variant of Boon 1 or Boon 2.

From a Scottish surname that was originally derived from a place in Moray, Scotland. It probably means "ditch, mire" in Gaelic.

Derived from the Old German element brunna meaning "armour, protection" (Proto-Germanic *brunjǭ) or brun meaning "brown" (Proto-Germanic *brūnaz). Saint Bruno of Cologne was a German monk of the 11th century who founded the Carthusian Order. The surname has belonged to Giordano Bruno, a philosopher burned at the stake by the Inquisition. A modern bearer is the American singer Bruno Mars (1985-), born Peter Gene Hernandez.

Variant of Calum.

Dutch and Scandinavian form of Jasper. This is the name of a friendly ghost in an American series of cartoons and comic books (beginning 1945).

Variant of Cosmas.

From the name of a Native American tribe of central Canada. Their name derives via French from the Cree word kiristino.

Either from a surname that was derived from the English town of Crewe (from Old Welsh criu meaning "weir"), or from the English vocabulary word for a group of people.

Italian form of Darius.

Probably inspired by the English word dash meaning "run, sprint". In some cases it can be a short form of Dashiell, as in the animated movie The Incredibles (2004) where it belongs to a speedy young superhero.

In the case of American author Dashiell Hammett (1894-1961) it was from his mother's surname, which was possibly an Anglicized form of French de Chiel, of unknown meaning.

From an English surname, which was derived either from the town of Dax in France or from the Old English given name Dæcca (of unknown meaning). The name was brought to public attention by the main character in the 1966 novel The Adventurers and its 1970 movie adaptation. It became popular in the 2010s due to its similarity to other names like Max and Jax.

Alternate transcription of Hindi देव (see Dev).

From Sino-Vietnamese 艷 (diễm) meaning "beautiful, gorgeous" or 琰 (diễm) meaning "jewel, gem".

Early 17th century from Dutch duin, from Middle Dutch dūne, probably ultimately from the same Celtic base as down3.

From the English word eclipse (derived from Latin eclipsis, ultimately from the Greek verb ἐκλείπω (ekleipô) meaning "to fail", i.e. fail to appear); a solar eclipse is when the sun and moon are aligned exactly so that the moon casts a great shadow over the Earth; a lunar eclipse is when the moon is right in front of the sun, showing only a bright slither of light. It is rarely used as a given name, but is indeed used, as familysearch.org can verify. Kit Berry used it for a (male) character in her Stonewylde series of fantasy novels.

From an English surname that meant either "son of Eda 2" or "son of Adam". A famous bearer of the surname was the American inventor Thomas Edison (1847-1931).

From the English name for the world's highest mountain, itself named after the British surveyor George Everest (1790-1866).

Anglicized form of Eòghann.

Derived from the word for a succinct story, in prose or verse, that features animals, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature which are given human qualities, and that illustrates a moral lesson.
The word "fable" comes from the Latin fabula (a "story"), itself derived from fari ("to speak") with the -ula suffix that signifies "little".

First seen in the Dutch naming statistics in 1993 (when 16 baby boys were given this name), the name Fender has since enjoyed a stable presence in the naming statistics (with 16 births each year) until a sudden increase in popularity in 2008 (20 births), which it has maintained so far. The meaning of the name is unknown; one Dutch celebrity (the musician and television host Eddy Zoëy) who gave his son (born in 2006) this name, once said in an interview with a Dutch magazine that he had named him after the Fender brand of guitars. However, in a different interview years later, he suddenly claimed to have named his son after the character of Fender from the 2005 American computer-animated film "Robots", which he had voiced in the Dutch dubbed version of the film.

The etymology of the name of the robot is uncertain, but it might possibly be related to the English word fender or even the slang term fender-bender. But in the case of the guitar brand, there is more certainty. The brand derives its name from the surname of its founder, Leo Fender (1909-1991), which is said to be an occupational surname that refers to a town guard (from Anglo-French defendre meaning "to defend").

From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Ó Fionnagáin, itself derived from the given name Fionnagán, a diminutive of Fionn. This is the surname of a relatively minor character in James Joyce's novel Finnegans Wake (1939), the title of which was based on a 19th-century Irish ballad called Finnegan's Wake.

From an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Ó Floinn, which was derived from the given name or byname Flann. A famous bearer of the surname was American actor Errol Flynn (1909-1959). As a given name, it grew in popularity after it was featured as a character in the Disney movie Tangled in 2010.

Derived from Old English froda meaning "wise". This is the name of the hobbit hero in The Lord of the Rings (1954) by J. R. R. Tolkien, who used Old English to translate some hobbit names (Frodo's true hobbit-language name is Maura). In the novel Frodo Baggins is the bearer of the One Ring on the quest to destroy it in Mount Doom.

Medieval Italian name derived from Latin galilaeus meaning "Galilean, from Galilee". Galilee is a region in northern Israel, mentioned in the New Testament as the site of several of Jesus's miracles. It is derived from the Hebrew root גָּלִיל (galil) meaning "district, roll".

Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) was an important Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer. Both his name and surname were from an earlier 15th-century ancestor (a doctor).

Transferred use of the surname Gatsby.

From an Irish surname, itself derived from the byname Gráda meaning "noble, illustrious".

Latin form of Herakles.

Derived from Greek ἥρως (heros) meaning "hero". In Greek legend she was the lover of Leander, who would swim across the Hellespont each night to meet her. He was killed on one such occasion when he got caught in a storm while in the water, and when Hero saw his dead body she drowned herself. This is also the name of a character in Shakespeare's play Much Ado About Nothing (1599).

From the name of the island Jersey (located in the English Channel between the UK and France) whose name was derived from the Old Norse name element -ey "island" combined with either Old Norse Geirr ("Geirr's island"), jarl ("the earl's island") or hjǫrr ("sword island").

From Latin Iuppiter, which was ultimately derived from the vocative form of Indo-European *Dyēws-pətēr, composed of the elements Dyēws (see Zeus) and pətēr "father". Jupiter was the supreme god in Roman mythology. He presided over the heavens and light, and was responsible for the protection and laws of the Roman state. This is also the name of the fifth and largest planet in the solar system.

Means "sound, voice" from Hawaiian ka "the" and leo "sound, voice".

From an English surname that was derived from a few different place names (see the surname Keaton).

Hawaiian form of Joe.

Means "warrior, koa tree" in Hawaiian.

Short form of names beginning with the Old German element kunni meaning "clan, family". It can also be a short form of Konrad.

From an English surname meaning "son of Laurence 1".

Means "green leaves" in the fictional language Sindarin, from laeg "green" combined with go-lass "collection of leaves". In The Lord of the Rings (1954) by J. R. R. Tolkien, Legolas is the son of the elf lord Thranduil and a member of the Fellowship of the Ring.

Short form of Lincoln.

Possibly related to Latin mas meaning "male" (genitive maris). In Roman mythology Mars was the god of war, often equated with the Greek god Ares. This is also the name of the fourth planet in the solar system.

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 a Scottish surname meaning "from the mouth of the Roe". The Roe is a river in Northern Ireland. Two famous bearers of the surname were American president James Monroe (1758-1831) and American actress Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962).

As a given name it was mostly masculine in America until around 2009. It was already rising in popularity for girls when singer Mariah Carey gave it to her daughter born 2011 (though this probably helped accelerate it).

Derived from Greek μορφή (morphe) meaning "shape", referring to the shapes seen in dreams. In Greek mythology Morpheus was the god of dreams.

From the Latin Neptunus, which is of unknown meaning, possibly related to the Indo-European root *nebh- "wet, damp, clouds". Neptune was the god of the sea in Roman mythology, approximately equivalent to the Greek god Poseidon. This is also the name of the eighth planet in the solar system.

Roman cognomen, which was probably of Sabine origin meaning "strong, vigorous". It was used by a prominent branch of the gens Claudia starting from the 3rd century BC. It was borne most famously by a Roman emperor of the 1st century, remembered as a tyrant. His birth name was Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus, but after he was adopted as the heir of Claudius his name became Nero Claudius Caesar Drusus Germanicus.

Short form of Nicholas (or sometimes Nicodemus).

Ancient Greek form of Nicodemus.

French, Spanish, Portuguese and Hungarian form of Noah 1.

Variant of Auberon. Oberon and Titania are the king and queen of the fairies in Shakespeare's comedy A Midsummer Night's Dream (1595). A moon of Uranus bears this name in his honour.

Anglicized form of Old Norse Óðinn, which was derived from óðr meaning "inspiration, rage, frenzy". It ultimately developed from Proto-Germanic *Wōdanaz. The name appears as Woden in Anglo-Saxon sources (for example, as the founder of several royal lineages in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle) and in forms such as Wuotan, Wotan or Wodan in continental Europe, though he is best known from Norse sources.

In Norse mythology Odin is the highest of the gods, presiding over war, wisdom and death. He is the husband of Frigg and resides in Valhalla, where warriors go after they are slain. He is usually depicted as a one-eyed older man, carrying two ravens on his shoulders who inform him of all the events of the world. At the time of Ragnarök, the final battle, it is told that he will be killed fighting the great wolf Fenrir.

From a Norman nickname derived from a diminutive of Norman French ors "bear", ultimately from Latin ursus. American actor and director Orson Welles (1915-1985) was a famous bearer of this name.

Means "head, top" in Welsh. This was the name of two characters in Welsh legend. It can also come from the English surname which was from a place name meaning "hill" in Old English.

Possibly derived from Greek πέρθω (pertho) meaning "to destroy". In Greek mythology Perseus was a hero who was said to have founded the ancient city of Mycenae. He was the son of Zeus and Danaë. Mother and child were exiled by Danaë's father Acrisius, and Perseus was raised on the island of Seriphos. The king of the island compelled Perseus to kill the Gorgon Medusa, who was so ugly that anyone who gazed upon her was turned to stone. After obtaining winged sandals and other tools from the gods, he succeeded in his task by looking at Medusa in the reflection of his shield and slaying her in her sleep. On his return he defeated a sea monster in order to save Andromeda, who became his wife.

From the Greek name Πλάτων (Platon), which was derived from Greek πλατύς (platys) meaning "broad-shouldered". Plato was one of the most important of the Greek philosophers. He was a pupil of Socrates and a teacher of Aristotle. He constructed the theory of Forms and wrote several works, including the Republic.

From an Irish surname, itself derived from the given name Rabhartach meaning "flood tide".

Variant of Ramesses.

Puritanical name.

From a Germanic name that was composed of the elements regin "advice, counsel, decision" and brant "fire, torch, sword". This name belonged to the Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669).

French form of the Latin name Remigius, which was derived from Latin remigis "oarsman, rower". Saint Rémy was a 5th-century bishop who converted and baptized Clovis, king of the Franks.

Borrowed from Leo, as seen in the occasional usage of 獅 (or 獅子), on its own or as a first element kanji.
More often though, a re(i/n) kanji, like 怜/伶 meaning "clever, smart," 玲 meaning "tinkling," 蓮 meaning "lotus," 礼 meaning "thanks, gratitude; gift," 麗 meaning "lovely, beautiful," 零 meaning "zero" or 嶺 meaning "peak, summit," combines with a kanji can be (partially) read as o, such as 央 meaning "middle, centre," 生 meaning "grow," 旺 meaning "vigorous, prosperous," 桜 meaning "cherry (tree, blossom)," 大 meaning "large, big," 王 meaning "king, ruler," or 臣 meaning "retainer, attendant."

Male bearers of this name include professional shōgi player Reo Kurosawa (黒沢 怜生) (1992-) and footballer Reo Mochizuki (望月 嶺臣) (1995-).

From Old Welsh Ris, probably meaning "ardour, enthusiasm". Several Welsh rulers have borne this name, including the 12th-century Rhys ap Gruffydd who fought against the invading Normans.

Means "river" in Spanish or Portuguese. A city in Brazil bears this name. Its full name is Rio de Janeiro, which means "river of January", so named because the first explorers came to the harbour in January and mistakenly thought it was a river mouth.

From the English word that denotes a flowing body of water. The word is ultimately derived (via Old French) from Latin ripa "riverbank".

From an English occupational surname derived from Old English ridere meaning "mounted warrior" or "messenger". It has grown in popularity in the 2000s because it starts with the same sound found in other popular names like Ryan and Riley.

From the English word sage, which denotes either a type of spice or else a wise person.

Variant of Sealy.

Derived from Finnish seppä meaning "smith". Seppo Ilmarinen ("the smith Ilmarinen") is the name of a master craftsman in the Finnish epic the Kalevala.

From Egyptian stẖj meaning "of Seth 2" [1]. This was the name of two pharaohs of the 19th dynasty (13th century BC).

Used by Scottish author Arthur Conan Doyle for his character Sherlock Holmes, who was a detective in Doyle's mystery stories beginning in 1887. The character's name was from an English surname meaning "shear lock", originally referring to a person with closely cut hair.

From the Greek name Σωκράτης (Sokrates), which was derived from σῶς (sos) meaning "whole, unwounded, safe" and κράτος (kratos) meaning "power". This was the name of an important Greek philosopher. He left no writings of his own; virtually everything that we know of his beliefs comes from his pupil Plato. He was sentenced to death for impiety.

Anglicized form of Tighearnán.

Anglicized form of Tighearnach.

From the English word true, itself from Old English trīewe meaning "trusty, faithful".

From the Old Norse name Víkingr meaning "viking, raider", ultimately from vík "cove, inlet".

From an English surname meaning "son of William". The surname was borne by Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924), the American president during World War I.