HallowsofWoe'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.

French form of Adela.

French form of Adrian.

Form of Alexander in several languages. This name was borne by the French author Alexandre Dumas (1802-1870), who wrote The Three Musketeers.

French diminutive of Alexandra. This was the name of a Danish queen, the wife of King Christian X.

French diminutive of Amanda.

French form of Ambrosius (see Ambrose).

Feminine form of Ambroise.

French form of Amelia.

Feminine variant of Amynthe.

French feminine and masculine form of Amyntas.

Meaning uncertain, possibly a derivative of Anne 1 or Agnès. It was used in Jean-Henri Guy's opera Anacréon chez Polycrate (1798), where it is borne by the daughter (otherwise unnamed in history) of the 6th-century BC tyrant Polycrates of Samos. Guy could have adapted it from a classical name such as Anaitis or Athénaïs.

A famous bearer was the Cuban-French writer Anaïs Nin (1903-1977), known for her diaries.

Variant of Nathalie.

French form of Apollinaris. It was adopted as a surname by the Polish-French poet Guillaume Apollinaire (1880-1918), who based it on his Polish middle name Apolinary.

Variant of Apollinaire.

Variant of Apollonia and Apolline.

Feminine form of Arcángel.

Cognate of Armantine.

Rare variant of French Armandine historically found in the Poitou-Charentes region.

French form of Artemisia.

Variant of Azélie.

French form of Athaliah.

French form of Augustus. A notable bearer was the philosopher Auguste Comte (1798-1857).

French feminine form of Aurelius.

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

French form of Basilianus.

Probably from Viatrix, a feminine form of the Late Latin name Viator meaning "voyager, traveller". It was a common name amongst early Christians, and the spelling was altered by association with Latin beatus "blessed, happy". Viatrix or Beatrix was a 4th-century saint who was strangled to death during the persecutions of Diocletian.

In England the name became rare after the Middle Ages, but it was revived in the 19th century, more commonly in the spelling Beatrice. Famous bearers include the British author and illustrator Beatrix Potter (1866-1943), the creator of Peter Rabbit, and Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands (1938-).

Variant of Baudoin.

French form of Belisarius.

From the Roman name Blasius, which was derived from Latin blaesus meaning "lisping". Saint Blaise was a 4th-century Armenian martyr. A famous bearer was the French mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal (1623-1662).

Feminine form of Callistus. As an English name it might also be a variant of Kallisto.

Portuguese and Spanish form of Callistus.

Spanish and Portuguese form of Calixtus.

French feminine and masculine form of Caelestis.

French form of Caelestinus.

Latinate feminine form of Caelestinus.

French feminine form of Caelinus. This name can also function as a short form of Marceline.

French form of Cloelia.

Acadian variant of Cléonice.

Romanian, Spanish and Portuguese form of Corinna, as well as a German variant.

French form of Corinna. The French-Swiss author Madame de Staël used it for her novel Corinne (1807).

Variant of Cosmas.

French form of Cyprianus (see Cyprian).

Italian, Spanish and Portuguese form of Delphina.

French form of Delphinus.

French form of Delphina.

French form of Desiderata. In part it is directly from the French word meaning "desired, wished".

French form of Donatianus.

Variant of Éleutère.

Louisiana French form of Eli 1.

French form of Aemilianus (see Emiliano).

French feminine form of Aemilianus (see Emiliano).

French form of Stephen.

French form of Eulalia.

French form of Evaristus.

Variant of Félicienne.

French form of Felicianus (see Feliciano).

French, Spanish, Portuguese and Hungarian form of Felix.

French form of Flavian.

French masculine form of Florentius (see Florence).

Romanian, French and German form of Florentinus.

From the Hebrew name גַבְרִיאֵל (Ḡavriʾel) meaning "God is my strong man", derived from גֶּבֶר (gever) meaning "strong man, hero" and אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God". Gabriel is an archangel in Hebrew tradition, often appearing as a messenger of God. In the Old Testament he is sent to interpret the visions of the prophet Daniel, while in the New Testament he serves as the announcer of the births of John to Zechariah and Jesus to Mary. According to Islamic tradition he was the angel who dictated the Quran to Muhammad.

This name has been used occasionally in England since the 12th century. It was not common in the English-speaking world until the end of the 20th century.

French form of Gratianus (see Gratian).

French form of Heinrich (see Henry). A notable bearer was the French artist Henri Matisse (1869-1954).

Feminine form of Honorinus.

French form of Honorina, a feminine form of the Roman name Honorinus, a derivative of Honorius. Saint Honorina was a 4th-century martyr from the Normandy region in France.

French masculine and feminine form of Hyacinthus.

From the Greek name Ἰσίδωρος (Isidoros) meaning "gift of Isis", derived from the name of the Egyptian goddess Isis combined with Greek δῶρον (doron) meaning "gift". Saint Isidore of Seville was a 6th-century archbishop, historian and theologian.

Though it has never been popular in the English-speaking world among Christians, it has historically been a common name for Jews, who have used it as an Americanized form of names such as Isaac, Israel and Isaiah.

French and Dutch feminine form of Joel.

Variant of Josanna, used as a Louisiana Spanish form of Josette.

French form of Julius. A notable bearer of this name was the French novelist Jules Verne (1828-1905), author of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and other works of science fiction.

French form of Iulianus (see Julian).

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.

French form of Justus.

French form of Laurentius (see Laurence 1).

French form of Laurentinus.

French form of Leander.

French form of Leon (used to refer to the popes named Leo).

French form of Leontios, also used as a feminine name.

French feminine form of Leonius.

French form of Leopold.

French form of Ludovicus, the Latinized form of Ludwig. This was the name of 18 kings of France, starting with Louis I the son of Charlemagne. Others include Louis IX (Saint Louis) who led two crusades and Louis XIV (called the Sun King) who was the ruler of France during the height of its power, the builder of the Palace of Versailles, and the longest reigning monarch in the history of Europe. It was also borne by kings of Germany (as Ludwig), Hungary (as Lajos), and other places.

Apart from royalty, this name was only moderately popular in France during the Middle Ages. After the French Revolution, when Louis XVI was guillotined, it became less common.

The Normans brought the name to England, where it was usually spelled Lewis, though the spelling Louis has been more common in America. Famous bearers include French scientist Louis Pasteur (1822-1895), French actor Louis de Funès (1914-1983), Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894), who wrote Treasure Island and Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and American jazz musician Louis Armstrong (1901-1971).

French form of Lucianus.

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.

Alternate transcription of Russian Максим or Belarusian Максім (see Maksim) or Ukrainian Максим (see Maksym). This is also the Czech form.

French form of Nicholas.

French form of Octavius.

French form of Odilo.

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.

French form of Ophelia.

From the Latin name Prosperus, which meant "fortunate, successful". This was the name of a 5th-century saint, a supporter of Saint Augustine. It has never been common as an English name, though the Puritans used it, partly because it is identical to the English word prosper.

French form of Raphael.

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.

Italian, Spanish and Portuguese form of Seraphina.

French form of Seraphina.

The name of a bright star in the constellation Canis Major, derived via Latin from Greek σείριος (seirios) meaning "burning".

Early form of Sinclair.

French form of Symphorianus. Known bearers of this name include the French physician and humanist Symphorien Champier (1471-1539) and the French police chief and senator Symphorien Boittelle (1813-1897).

French form of Ulysses.

Feminine form of Ulysse.

Form of Valentinus (see Valentine 1) in several languages.

French form of Valerian.

French form of Victorinus.

Derived from the Basque place name Etxeberria meaning "the new house". This was the surname of the Jesuit priest Saint Francis Xavier (1506-1552) who was born in a village by this name. He was a missionary to India, Japan, China, and other areas in East Asia, and he is the patron saint of the Orient and missionaries. His surname has since been adopted as a given name in his honour, chiefly among Catholics.

Medieval French form of Ivo 1. This was the name of two French saints: an 11th-century bishop of Chartres and a 13th-century parish priest and lawyer, also known as Ivo of Kermartin, the patron saint of Brittany.

French form of Zenon.

French form of Zephyr.

French form of Zephyrinus.

French and Hungarian form of Zoe.