StevieGrl's Personal Name List

From the Hebrew name הֶבֶל (Hevel) meaning "breath". In the Old Testament he is the second son of Adam and Eve, murdered out of envy by his brother Cain. In England, this name came into use during the Middle Ages, and it was common during the Puritan era.

From a place name mentioned briefly in the New Testament. It is probably from Hebrew אָבֵל (ʾavel) meaning "meadow, grassy area". It has occasionally been used as a given name in modern times.

This is the Hebrew word for "man". It could be ultimately derived from Hebrew אדם (ʾaḏam) meaning "to be red", referring to the ruddy colour of human skin, or from Akkadian adamu meaning "to make".

According to Genesis in the Old Testament Adam was created from the earth by God (there is a word play on Hebrew אֲדָמָה (ʾaḏama) meaning "earth"). He and Eve were supposedly the first humans, living happily in the Garden of Eden until they ate the forbidden fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. As a result they were expelled from Eden to the lands to the east, where they gave birth to the second generation, including Cain, Abel and Seth.

As an English Christian name, Adam has been common since the Middle Ages, and it received a boost after the Protestant Reformation. A famous bearer was Scottish economist Adam Smith (1723-1790).

Means "nobleness, nobility", from the French form of the Germanic name Adalheidis, which was composed of adal "noble" and the suffix heit "kind, sort, type". It was borne in the 10th century by Saint Adelaide, the wife of the Holy Roman emperor Otto the Great.

In Britain the parallel form Alice, derived via Old French, has historically been more common than Adelaide, though this form did gain some currency in the 19th century due to the popularity of the German-born wife of King William IV, for whom the city of Adelaide in Australia was named in 1836.

Shortened form of Adalheidis.

Feminine form of Adrastos. In Greek mythology this name was borne by a nymph who fostered the infant Zeus. This was also another name of the goddess Nemesis.

Feminine form of Aemilianus (see Emiliano).

Variant of Aino. It also means "always" in Finnish.

Scottish Gaelic form of Andrew.

From an English surname that was from a place name: either Annesley in Nottinghamshire or Ansley in Warwickshire. The place names themselves derive from Old English anne "alone, solitary" or ansetl "hermitage" and leah "woodland, clearing".

In America, this name received a boost of popularity in 2000 when a character bearing it began appearing on the television series The West Wing.

Means "dream" or "vision" in Irish. This name was created in the 20th century.

Means "joyful, happy" from Basque alai.

Feminine form of Alastar.

Latinized form of Greek Ἀληκτώ (Alekto), which was derived from ἄληκτος (alektos) meaning "unceasing". This was the name of one of the Furies or Ἐρινύες (Erinyes) in Greek mythology.

Originally a Norman French nickname, derived from aux gernons "having a moustache", which was applied to William de Percy, a companion of William the Conqueror. It was first used a given name in the 15th century (for a descendant of William de Percy). This name was borne by a character (a mouse) in the short story Flowers for Algernon (1958) and novel of the same title (1966) by the American author Daniel Keyes.

Diminutive of Adelaide.

Anglicized form of Alasdair.

German feminine form of Aloysius.

Derived from Greek ἀμαρύσσω (amarysso) meaning "to sparkle". This is the name of a character appearing in Virgil's pastoral poems Eclogues [1]. The amaryllis flower is named for her.

Feminine form of Ambrosios (see Ambrose).

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.

Form of Hannah used in the Greek and Latin Old Testament. Many later Old Testament translations, including the English, use the Hannah spelling instead of Anna. The name appears briefly in the New Testament belonging to a prophetess who recognized Jesus as the Messiah. It was a popular name in the Byzantine Empire from an early date, and in the Middle Ages it became common among Western Christians due to veneration of Saint Anna (usually known as Saint Anne in English), the name traditionally assigned to the mother of the Virgin Mary.

In England, this Latin form has been used alongside the vernacular forms Ann and Anne since the late Middle Ages. Anna is currently the most common of these spellings in all English-speaking countries (since the 1970s), however the biblical form Hannah is presently more popular than all three.

The name was borne by several Russian royals, including an 18th-century empress of Russia. It is also the name of the main character in Leo Tolstoy's novel Anna Karenina (1877), about a married aristocrat who begins an ultimately tragic relationship with Count Vronsky.

Combination of Anna and Beth.

Combination of Anne 1 and Grete.

Swedish diminutive of Anna.

Medieval English form of Agnes.

Medieval English variant of Honora.

Russian diminutive of Anna.

Means "most holy", composed of the Greek prefix ἀρι (ari) meaning "most" combined with Cretan Greek ἀδνός (adnos) meaning "holy". In Greek mythology, Ariadne was the daughter of King Minos. She fell in love with Theseus and helped him to escape the Labyrinth and the Minotaur, but was later abandoned by him. Eventually she married the god Dionysus.

Variant of Eric.

Means "ear of grain" in Latin. This is the name of a star, also known as Spica, in the constellation Virgo.

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.

Possibly means "healer" in Hebrew. This name was borne by the third king of Judah, as told in the Old Testament.

Means "star", ultimately from Greek ἀστήρ (aster). This name has only been (rarely) used since the 20th century.

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).

German, Polish, Scandinavian and Catalan form of Augustus. This was the name of three Polish kings.

As an English name it can also derive from the month of August, which was named for the Roman emperor Augustus.

Means "dawn" in Latin. Aurora was the Roman goddess of the morning. It has occasionally been used as a given name since the Renaissance.

Medieval Danish form of Absalom.

From an Old Testament place name meaning "house of God" in Hebrew. This was a town north of Jerusalem, where Jacob saw his vision of the stairway. It is occasionally used as a given name.

Italian cognate of Blanche. Shakespeare had characters named Bianca in The Taming of the Shrew (1593) and Othello (1603). The German singer Freddy Breck's 1973 song Bianca boosted the name's popularity elsewhere in Europe.

Most likely a Scandinavian form of Bridget via the Latinized form Brigitta. Alternatively it could be a feminine derivative of Birger. This is the name of the patron saint of Europe, Birgitta of Sweden, the 14th-century founder of the Bridgettine nuns. Her father's name was Birger.

Means "good fortune" in Italian, from Latin bonus "good" and venturas "the things that will come, the future". Saint Bonaventura was a 13th-century Franciscan monk who is considered a Doctor of the Church.

Scottish Gaelic form of Katherine.

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.

Latinized form of Greek Κασσιόπεια (Kassiopeia) or Κασσιέπεια (Kassiepeia), possibly meaning "cassia juice". In Greek myth Cassiopeia was the wife of Cepheus and the mother of Andromeda. She was changed into a constellation and placed in the northern sky after she died.

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

Italian form of Clara. Saint Chiara (commonly called Clare in English) was a follower of Saint Francis of Assisi.

Frankish name derived from the elements hlut "famous, loud" and hilt "battle". See also Clotilde.

Short form of Christina.

Diminutive of Cecilia.

Feminine form of the Late Latin name Clarus, which meant "clear, bright, famous". The name Clarus was borne by a few early saints. The feminine form was popularized by the 13th-century Saint Clare of Assisi (called Chiara in Italian), a friend and follower of Saint Francis, who left her wealthy family to found the order of nuns known as the Poor Clares.

As an English name it has been in use since the Middle Ages, originally in the form Clare, though the Latinate spelling Clara overtook it in the 19th century and became very popular. It declined through most of the 20th century (being eclipsed by the French form Claire in English-speaking countries), though it has since recovered somewhat.

Feminine form of Claudius. It is mentioned briefly in the New Testament. As a Christian name it was very rare until the 16th century.

Meaning unknown. In Irish legend this was the name of a beautiful goddess. She fell in love with a mortal named Ciabhán and left the Land of Promise with him, but when she arrived on the other shore she was swept to sea by a great wave.

Feminine form of Cloelius. In Roman legend Cloelia was a maiden who was given to an Etruscan invader as a hostage. She managed to escape by swimming across the Tiber, at the same time helping some of the other captives to safety.

French form of Chrodechildis, the Latin form of a Frankish name composed of the elements hruod "fame, glory" and hilt "battle". Saint Clotilde (whose name was originally recorded in forms such as Chrodechildis or Chrotchildis in Latin sources [1]) was the wife of the Frankish king Clovis, whom she converted to Christianity. It was also borne by others in the Merovingian royal family. In the Middle Ages this name was confused with Chlodechilda, in which the first element is hlut "famous, loud".

Either a French form of Koralia, or a derivative of Latin corallium "coral" (see Coral).

From Cordeilla, a name appearing in the 12th-century chronicles [1] of Geoffrey of Monmouth, borne by the youngest of the three daughters of King Leir and the only one to remain loyal to her father. Geoffrey possibly based her name on that of Creiddylad, a character from Welsh legend.

The spelling was later altered to Cordelia when Geoffrey's story was adapted by others, including Edmund Spenser in his poem The Faerie Queene (1590) and Shakespeare in his tragedy King Lear (1606).

Latinized form of Greek Κυνθία (Kynthia), which means "woman from Cynthus". This was an epithet of the Greek moon goddess Artemis, given because Cynthus was the mountain on Delos on which she and her twin brother Apollo were born. It was not used as a given name until the Renaissance, and it did not become common in the English-speaking world until the 19th century. It reached a peak of popularity in the United States in 1957 and has declined steadily since then.

From the name of the flower, which was named for the Swedish botanist Anders Dahl.

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.

Variant of Darlene using the suffix la.

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).

Means "of Delos" in Greek. This was an epithet of the Greek goddess Artemis, given because she and her twin brother Apollo were born on the island of Delos. The name appeared in several poems of the 16th and 17th centuries, and it has occasionally been used as a given name since that time.

Possibly from the name of the Greek city of Delphi, the site of an oracle of Apollo, which is possibly related to Greek δελφύς (delphys) meaning "womb". It was used in the play The Prophetess (1647), in which it belongs to the title prophetess.

Derived from Greek δυσδαίμων (dysdaimon) meaning "ill-fated". This is the name of the wife of Othello in Shakespeare's play Othello (1603).

Feminine form of Desiderio. This was the Latin name of a 19th-century queen of Sweden, the wife of Karl XIV. She was born in France with the name Désirée.

From an occupational surname meaning "one who dyes" in Old English. It also coincides with the Latin word dexter meaning "right-handed, skilled".

Feminine form of Dieudonné.

Diminutive of Dmitriy.

From Greek Διός (Dios) meaning "of Zeus". By extension, it means "goddess". This was the name of a Greek goddess who, according to some legends, was the mother of Aphrodite. A moon of Saturn is named after her.

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.

From a Scottish surname that was from the name of a town in Lanarkshire, itself named after a tributary of the River Clyde called the Douglas Water. It means "dark river", derived from Gaelic dubh "dark" and glais "water, river" (an archaic word related to glas "grey, green"). This was a Scottish Lowland clan, the leaders of which were powerful earls in the medieval period. The Gaelic form is Dùghlas or Dùbhghlas. It has been used as a given name since the 16th century.

From the Old English elements ead "wealth, fortune" and ric "ruler, king". After the Norman Conquest this Old English name was not commonly used. It has occasionally been revived in modern times.

From the English word for the flower also known as sweetbrier. It is derived via Old French from Vulgar Latin *aquilentum meaning "prickly". It was early used as a given name (in the form Eglentyne) in Geoffrey Chaucer's 14th-century story The Prioress's Tale (one of The Canterbury Tales).

Scots form of Eilidh.

Means "snowdrop (flower)" in Welsh, a compound of eira "snow" and llys "plant".

Possibly from Old Irish etne meaning "kernel, grain". In Irish mythology Eithne or Ethniu was a Fomorian and the mother of Lugh Lámfada. It was borne by several other legendary and historical figures, including a few early saints.

Latinized form of Greek Ἠλέκτρα (Elektra), derived from ἤλεκτρον (elektron) meaning "amber". In Greek myth she was the daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra and the sister of Orestes. She helped her brother kill their mother and her lover Aegisthus in vengeance for Agamemnon's murder. Also in Greek mythology, this name was borne by one of the Pleiades, who were the daughters of Atlas and Pleione.

Italian form of Aelius or Helios.

Feminine form of Elior.

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.

Modern Greek form of Elpis.

Scottish form of Elizabeth.

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).

French form of Emmerich.

Derived from Greek ἐνδύω (endyo) meaning "to dive into, to enter". In Greek mythology he was an Aeolian mortal loved by the moon goddess Selene, who asked Zeus to grant him eternal life. Zeus complied by putting him into an eternal sleep in a cave on Mount Latmos.

Feminine form of Ernest.

Variant of Esmé.

Greek form of Evadne.

From Greek εὐδοξία (eudoxia) meaning "good repute, good judgement", itself from εὖ (eu) meaning "good" and δόξα (doxa) meaning "notion, reputation, honour".

French form of Eulalia.

Latinized form of Eusebios. This was the name of a 4th-century historian of the Christian church.

From Greek Εὐάδνη (Euadne), from εὖ (eu) meaning "good" possibly combined with Cretan Greek ἀδνός (adnos) meaning "holy". This name was borne by several characters in Greek legend, including the wife of Capaneus. After Capaneus was killed by a lightning bolt sent from Zeus she committed suicide by throwing herself onto his burning body.

Modern Greek feminine form of Εὐανθία (Euanthia), a variant of Euanthe. This was the name of a 1st-century martyr from Skepsis who is considered a saint in the Orthodox Church.

Derived from the Old Norse elements ey "good fortune" or "island" and dís "goddess".

From the Roman cognomen Fabianus, which was derived from Fabius. Saint Fabian was a 3rd-century pope.

French feminine form of Fabianus (see Fabian).

From a Roman cognomen meaning "lucky, successful" in Latin. It was acquired as an agnomen, or nickname, by the 1st-century BC Roman general Sulla. It also appears in the New Testament belonging to the governor of Judea who imprisoned Saint Paul.

Due to its favourable meaning, this name was popular among early Christians, being borne by many early saints and four popes. It has been used in England since the Middle Ages, though it has been more popular in continental Europe. A notable bearer was the German composer Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847).

From Fredenandus, the Latinized form of a Gothic name composed of the elements friþus "peace" (or perhaps farþa "journey" [1]) and nanþa "boldness, daring". The Visigoths brought the name to the Iberian Peninsula, where it entered into the royal families of Spain and Portugal. From there it became common among the Habsburg royal family of the Holy Roman Empire and Austria, starting with the Spanish-born Ferdinand I in the 16th century. A notable bearer was Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan (1480-1521), called Fernão de Magalhães in Portuguese, who was the leader of the first expedition to sail around the earth.

Feminine form of Fionn. This name was (first?) used by the Scottish poet James Macpherson in his poem Fingal (1761), in which it is spelled as Fióna.

Feminine form of Flavius.

German form of Franciscus (see Francis). This name was borne by the Austrian composer Franz Schubert (1797-1828), the Hungarian composer Franz Liszt (1811-1886) and the Austrian-Czech author Franz Kafka (1883-1924), whose works include The Trial and The Castle. It was also the name of rulers of Austria and the Holy Roman Empire.

German feminine form of Franciscus (see Francis).

Feminine form of George. This form of the name has been in use in the English-speaking world since the 18th century.

From a Germanic name meaning "power of the spear", from the elements ger meaning "spear" and walt meaning "power, authority". The Normans brought it to Britain. Though it died out in England during the Middle Ages, it remained common in Ireland. It was revived in the English-speaking world in 19th century.

There were a few medieval French and German saints bearing this name. It was also borne by an 8th-century Anglo-Saxon saint. In this case his name may represent an Old English cognate of the continental Germanic name.

From the Late Latin name Aegidius, which is derived from Greek αἰγίδιον (aigidion) meaning "young goat". Saint Giles was an 8th-century miracle worker who came to southern France from Greece. He is regarded as the patron saint of the crippled. In Old French the name Aegidius became Gidie and then Gilles, at which point it was imported to England. Another famous bearer was the 13th-century philosopher and theologian Giles of Rome (Egidio in Italian).

Anglicized form of Gilleasbuig.

Medieval English feminine form of Julian. This spelling has been in use since the 13th century, though it was not declared a distinct name from Julian until the 17th century [1].

Diminutive of Giulia.

Variant of Glenys.

From a Scottish surname, originally derived from the English place name Grantham, which probably meant "gravelly homestead" in Old English. The surname was first taken to Scotland in the 12th century by the Norman baron William de Graham [1]. A famous bearer of the surname was Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922), the Scottish-Canadian-American inventor who devised the telephone. A famous bearer of the given name was the British author Graham Greene (1904-1991).

During the 20th century, Graham was more common in the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada than it was in the United States. However, it has been rising on the American charts since around 2006.

From a Scottish surname that was derived from the given name Gregor.

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 "white snow" from the Welsh element gwyn meaning "white, blessed" combined with eira meaning "snow". This is a recently created Welsh name.

Anglicized form of a Sheumais, the vocative case of Seumas.

From an English surname that originally belonged to a person who played or made harps (Old English hearpe). A notable bearer was the American author Harper Lee (1926-2016), who wrote To Kill a Mockingbird. It rapidly gained popularity in the 2000s and 2010s, entering the American top ten for girls in 2015.

French form of Eloise.

From the Germanic name Heimirich meaning "home ruler", composed of the elements heim "home" and rih "ruler". It was later commonly spelled Heinrich, with the spelling altered due to the influence of other Germanic names like Haganrich, in which the first element is hag "enclosure".

Heinrich was popular among continental royalty, being the name of seven German kings, starting with the 10th-century Henry I the Fowler (the first of the Saxon kings), and four French kings. In France it was usually rendered Henri from the Latin form Henricus.

The Normans introduced the French form to England, and it was subsequently used by eight kings, ending with the infamous Henry VIII in the 16th century. During the later Middle Ages it was fairly popular, and was generally rendered as Harry or Herry in English pronunciation. Notable bearers include arctic naval explorer Henry Hudson (1570-1611), American-British novelist Henry James (1843-1916), American automobile manufacturer Henry Ford (1863-1947), and American actor Henry Fonda (1905-1982).

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 an English surname that was derived from Middle English holis "holly trees". It was originally given to a person who lived near a group of those trees.

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.

From the English word indigo for the purplish-blue dye or the colour. It is ultimately derived from Greek Ἰνδικόν (Indikon) meaning "Indic, from India".

Short form of Scandinavian and German names beginning with the element ing, which refers to the Germanic god Ing. In Sweden and Norway this is primarily a masculine name, elsewhere it is usually feminine.

From the Old Norse name Ingibjǫrg, which was derived from the name of the Germanic god Ing combined with bjǫrg meaning "help, save, rescue". This name was borne by a Danish princess who married Philip II of France in the 12th century.

Variant of Islay, typically used as a feminine name. It also coincides with the Spanish word isla meaning "island".

Means "nocturnal journey" in Arabic, derived from سرى (sarā) meaning "to travel by night". According to Islamic tradition, the Isra was a miraculous journey undertaken by the Prophet Muhammad.

Slovene form of Isidore.

English form of the Late Latin name Iacomus, a variant of the Biblical Latin form Iacobus, from the Hebrew name Yaʿaqov (see Jacob). This was the name of two apostles in the New Testament. The first was Saint James the Greater, the apostle John's brother, who was beheaded under Herod Agrippa in the Book of Acts. The second was James the Lesser, son of Alphaeus. Another James (known as James the Just) is also mentioned in the Bible as being the brother of Jesus.

This name has been used in England since the 13th century, though it became more common in Scotland where it was borne by several kings. In the 17th century the Scottish king James VI inherited the English throne, becoming the first ruler of all Britain, and the name grew much more popular. In American name statistics (recorded since 1880) this name has never been out of the top 20, making it arguably the era's most consistently popular name. It was the top ranked name for boys in the United States from 1940 to 1952.

Famous bearers include the English explorer James Cook (1728-1779), the Scottish inventor James Watt (1736-1819), and the Irish novelist and poet James Joyce (1882-1941). This name has also been borne by six American presidents. A notable fictional bearer is the British spy James Bond, created by author Ian Fleming in 1953.

Variant of Jeannine. It has only been in use since the 20th century.

Traditionally said to mean "dove", it may actually be related to Hebrew יוֹמָם (yomam) meaning "daytime" [1]. This was the oldest of the three daughters of Job in the Old Testament. As an English name, Jemima first became common during the Puritan era.

Variant of Gillian.

Variant of Judas. It is used in many English versions of the New Testament to denote the second apostle named Judas, in order to distinguish him from Judas Iscariot. He was supposedly the author of the Epistle of Jude. In the English-speaking world, Jude has occasionally been used as a given name since the time of the Protestant Reformation.

From the English word for the type of tree, derived ultimately from Latin iuniperus.

From Japanese 貴 (ki) meaning "valuable" with 美 (mi) meaning "beautiful" or 君 (kimi) meaning "lord, noble" combined with 子 (ko) meaning "child". Other kanji combinations are possible.

Derived from Greek κλέος (kleos) meaning "glory". In Greek mythology she was the goddess of history and heroic poetry, one of the nine Muses. She was said to have introduced the alphabet to Greece.

Hungarian form of Vladislav. Saint László was an 11th-century king of Hungary, looked upon as the embodiment of Christian virtue and bravery.

Meaning unknown, probably of Etruscan origin. In Roman legend Lavinia was the daughter of King Latinus, the wife of Aeneas, and the ancestor of the Roman people. According to the legend Aeneas named the town of Lavinium in honour of his wife.

Means "heavenly flowers" or "royal child" from Hawaiian lei "flowers, lei, child" and lani "heaven, sky, royal, majesty".

Short form of Eleanor. This is the name of the departed love of the narrator in Edgar Allan Poe's poem The Raven (1845).

Derived from Greek λέων (leon) meaning "lion" combined with the patronymic suffix ἴδης (ides). Leonidas was a Spartan king of the 5th century BC who sacrificed his life and his army defending the pass of Thermopylae from the Persians. This was also the name of a 3rd-century saint and martyr, the father of Origen, from Alexandria.

Possibly means "joined, attached" in Hebrew. As told in the Old Testament, Levi was the third son of Jacob and Leah, and the ancestor of one of the twelve tribes of the Israelites, known as the Levites. This was the tribe that formed the priestly class of the Israelites. The brothers Moses and Aaron were members. This name also occurs in the New Testament, where it is borne by a son of Alphaeus. He might be the same person as the apostle Matthew.

As an English Christian name, Levi came into use after the Protestant Reformation.

Combination of Lise and Charlotte.

Unaccented variant of Llŷr.

From German Loreley, the name of a rock headland on the Rhine River. It is of uncertain meaning, though the second element is probably old German ley meaning "rock" (of Celtic origin). German romantic poets and songwriters, beginning with Clemens Brentano in 1801, tell that a maiden named the Lorelei lives on the rock and lures boaters to their death with her song.

In the English-speaking world this name has been occasionally given since the early 20th century. It started rising in America after the variant Lorelai was used for the main character (and her daughter, nicknamed Rory) on the television series Gilmore Girls (2000-2007).

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).

Derived from Latin lux meaning "light".

From the English word magnolia for the flower, which was named for the French botanist Pierre Magnol.

Frisian and German diminutive of Maria.

Italian, Spanish, Polish and Romanian form of Melanie.

Possibly from the Hebrew roots מֶלֶךְ (meleḵ) meaning "king" and אוֹר (ʾor) meaning "light". This was a name 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. According to medieval tradition he was a king of Persia.

French form of Millicent used by Maurice Maeterlinck in his play Pelléas et Mélisande (1893). The play was later adapted by Claude Debussy into an opera (1902).

Meaning unknown. In European folklore Melusine was a water fairy who turned into a serpent from the waist down every Saturday. She made her husband, Raymond of Poitou, promise that he would never see her on that day, and when he broke his word she left him forever.

From the Welsh name Maredudd or Meredydd, from Old Welsh forms such as Margetud, possibly from mawredd "greatness, magnificence" combined with iudd "lord". The Welsh forms of this name were well used through the Middle Ages. Since the mid-1920s it has been used more often for girls than for boys in English-speaking countries, though it is still a masculine name in Wales. A famous bearer of this name as surname was the English novelist and poet George Meredith (1828-1909).

From the Gothic name *Amalaswinþa, composed of the elements amals "unceasing, vigorous, brave" and swinþs "strong". Amalaswintha was a 6th-century queen of the Ostrogoths. The Normans introduced this name to England in the form Melisent or Melisende. Melisende was a 12th-century queen of Jerusalem, the daughter of Baldwin II.

From the Occitan name Mirèio, which was first used by the poet Frédéric Mistral for the main character in his poem Mirèio (1859). He probably derived it from the Occitan word mirar meaning "to admire". It is spelled Mirèlha in classical Occitan orthography. A notable bearer is the French singer Mireille Mathieu (1946-).

Diminutive of Miroslav and other names beginning with the Slavic element mirŭ meaning "peace, world". It is sometimes used independently.

Form of Mary used in the Old Testament, where it belongs to the elder sister of Moses and Aaron. She watched over the infant Moses as the pharaoh's daughter drew him from the Nile. The name has long been popular among Jews, and it has been used as an English Christian name (alongside Mary) since the Protestant Reformation.

Diminutive of Mòr.

Feminine form of Morgan 1.

From the name of a region in western Scotland, also called Morvern or in Gaelic A' Mhorbhairne, meaning "the big gap". This is the location of Fingal's kingdom in James Macpherson's 18th-century poems.

Means "incantation, dirge" in Latin. This was the name of the Roman goddess of funerals.

From the Basque name of the Spanish city of Nájera, which is Arabic in origin. In the 12th century there was a reported apparition of the Virgin Mary in a nearby cave.

From the Hebrew name נְתַנְאֵל (Neṯanʾel) meaning "God has given", from the roots נָתַן (naṯan) meaning "to give" and אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God". It is borne by several minor characters in the Old Testament, typically spelled Nethanel or Nethaneel. In the New Testament this is the name of an apostle, probably another name of the apostle called Bartholomew.

From Egyptian nfrt-jrj meaning "the most beautiful" [1]. This was the name of an Egyptian queen of the New Kingdom (13th century BC), the favourite wife of Ramesses II.

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.

Derived from Greek Νηρηΐδες (Nereides) meaning "nymphs, sea sprites", ultimately derived from the name of the Greek sea god Nereus, who supposedly fathered them.

Meaning unknown. In Arthurian legends this is the name of a sorceress, also known as the Lady of the Lake, Vivien, or Niniane. Various versions of the tales have Merlin falling in love with her and becoming imprisoned by her magic. She first appears in the medieval French Lancelot-Grail Cycle.

Meaning unknown. In Greek mythology Niobe was the daughter of Tantalos, a king of Asia Minor. Because she boasted that she was superior to Leto, Leto's children Apollo and Artemis killed her 14 children with poison arrows. In grief, Niobe was turned to stone by Zeus.

From the Hebrew name נֹחַ (Noaḥ) meaning "rest, repose", derived from the root נוּחַ (nuaḥ). According to the Old Testament, Noah was the builder of the Ark that allowed him, his family, and animals of each species to survive the Great Flood. After the flood he received the sign of the rainbow as a covenant from God. He was the father of Shem, Ham and Japheth.

As an English Christian name, Noah has been used since the Protestant Reformation, being common among the Puritans. In the United States it was not overly popular in the 19th and 20th centuries, but it began slowly growing in the 1970s. Starting 1994 it increased rapidly — this was when actor Noah Wyle (1971-) began starring on the television series ER. A further boost in 2004 from the main character in the movie The Notebook helped it eventually become the most popular name for boys in America between 2013 and 2016. At the same time it has also been heavily used in other English-speaking countries, as well as Germany, the Netherlands, Scandinavia and France.

A famous bearer was the American lexicographer Noah Webster (1758-1843).

Derived from the Old German elements nord meaning "north" and beraht meaning "bright". This was the name of an 11th-century German saint who made many reforms within the Church.

Means "night" in Greek. This was the name of the Greek goddess of the night, the daughter of Khaos and the wife of Erebos.

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.

Means "star flower" in Mongolian, from од (od) meaning "star" and цэцэг (tsetseg) meaning "flower".

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.

Anglicized form of Órlaith.

Created by the Italian author Gabriele d'Annunzio for his novel La Figlia di Jorio (1904). It is derived from Tuscan Italian ornello meaning "flowering ash tree".

Used by the English author Ouida (1839-1908), born Marie Louise Ramé to a French father. Ouida was a pseudonym that arose from her own childhood pronunciation of her middle name Louise.

Form of Uzziah used in the Greek, Latin and French Bibles. This spelling is also found in some English translations of the New Testament, in the genealogy of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew.

Diminutive of Pádraig, also used as a feminine form.

From the Roman family name Paulus, which meant "small" or "humble" in Latin. Paul was an important leader of the early Christian church. According to Acts in the New Testament, he was a Jewish Roman citizen who converted to Christianity after the resurrected Jesus appeared to him. After this he travelled the eastern Mediterranean as a missionary. His original Hebrew name was Saul. Many of the epistles in the New Testament were authored by him.

Due to the renown of Saint Paul the name became common among early Christians. It was borne by a number of other early saints and six popes. In England it was relatively rare during the Middle Ages, but became more frequent beginning in the 17th century. In the United States it was in the top 20 names for boys from 1900 to 1968, while in the United Kingdom it was very popular from the 1950s to the 80s. It has also been heavily used in Germany and France and continues to be popular there, though it is currently on the decline in the English-speaking world.

A notable bearer was the American Revolutionary War figure Paul Revere (1735-1818), who warned of the advance of the British army. Famous bearers in the art world include the French impressionists Paul Cézanne (1839-1906) and Paul Gauguin (1848-1903), and the Swiss expressionist Paul Klee (1879-1940). It is borne by actor Paul Newman (1925-2008) and the musicians Paul Simon (1941-) and Paul McCartney (1942-). This is also the name of the legendary American lumberjack Paul Bunyan and the fictional Paul Atreides from Frank Herbert's novel Dune (1965).

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

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.

Derived from Greek Πέτρος (Petros) meaning "stone". This is a translation used in most versions of the New Testament of the name Cephas, meaning "stone" in Aramaic, which was given to the apostle Simon by Jesus (compare Matthew 16:18 and John 1:42). Simon Peter was the most prominent of the apostles during Jesus' ministry and is often considered the first pope.

Due to the renown of the apostle, this name became common throughout the Christian world (in various spellings). In England the Normans introduced it in the Old French form Piers, which was gradually replaced by the spelling Peter starting in the 15th century [1].

Besides the apostle, other saints by this name include the 11th-century reformer Saint Peter Damian and the 13th-century preacher Saint Peter Martyr. It was also borne by rulers of Aragon, Portugal, and Russia, including the Russian tsar Peter the Great (1672-1725), who defeated Sweden in the Great Northern War. Famous fictional bearers include Peter Rabbit from Beatrix Potter's children's books, Peter Pan, the boy who refused to grow up in J. M. Barrie's 1904 play, and Peter Parker, the real name of the comic book superhero Spider-Man.

Feminine form of Peter. This was also the name of an ancient city in the region that is now Jordan.

From the Greek Φαίδρα (Phaidra), derived from φαιδρός (phaidros) meaning "bright". Phaedra was the daughter of Minos and the wife of Theseus in Greek mythology. Aphrodite caused her to fall in love with her stepson Hippolytos, and after she was rejected by him she killed herself.

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.

Diminutive of Philip or Philippa. This is the name of the main character in Great Expectations (1860) by Charles Dickens.

Diminutive of Philippa.

Diminutive of Josephine. It can also be inspired by the English word posy for a bunch of flowers.

Roman name, a diminutive of Prisca. In Acts in the New Testament Paul lived with Priscilla (also known as Prisca) and her husband Aquila in Corinth for a while. It has been used as an English given name since the Protestant Reformation, being popular with the Puritans. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow used it in his 1858 poem The Courtship of Miles Standish [1].

Either an elaboration of Raven, or else from the name of the city of Ravenna in Italy.

Meaning uncertain, possibly from Old Latin *yemos meaning "twin" with the initial consonant altered due to the influence of Romulus. In Roman legend the twin brothers Romulus and Remus were the founders of the city of Rome. Remus was later slain by his brother.

Means "little seal", derived from Old Irish rón "seal" combined with a diminutive suffix. This was the name of several early Irish saints, including a pilgrim to Brittany who founded the hermitage at Locronan in the 6th century.

Anglicized form of Ruaidhrí. Typically a masculine name, it gained some popularity for girls in the United States after it was used on the television series Gilmore Girls (2000-2007), in this case as a nickname for Lorelai. Despite this, the name has grown more common for boys in America, especially after 2011, perhaps due to Northern Irish golfer Rory McIlroy (1989-).

Derived from the Old German elements hros meaning "horse" and lind meaning "soft, flexible, tender". The Normans introduced this name to England, though it was not common. During the Middle Ages its spelling was influenced by the Latin phrase rosa linda "beautiful rose". The name was popularized by Edmund Spencer, who used it in his poetry, and by William Shakespeare, who used it for the heroine in his comedy As You Like It (1599).

Simply from the name of the precious stone (which ultimately derives from Latin ruber "red"), which is the traditional birthstone of July. It came into use as a given name in the 16th century [1].

Roman cognomen meaning "red-haired" in Latin. Several early saints had this name, including one mentioned in one of Paul's epistles in the New Testament. As a nickname it was used by William II Rufus, a king of England, because of his red hair. It came into general use in the English-speaking world after the Protestant Reformation.

German variant form of Robert, from the Old German variant Hrodperht. It was borne by the 7th century Saint Rupert of Salzburg and the 8th-century Saint Rupert of Bingen. The military commander Prince Rupert of the Rhine, a nephew of Charles I, introduced this name to England in the 17th century. A notable bearer is the Australian-American businessman Rupert Murdoch (1931-).

From a now extinct English surname that was derived from a Norman place name. It was occasionally given in honour of the English preacher Henry Sacheverell (1674-1724), especially by the Sitwell noble family.

Possibly means "traveller" in Arabic.

From the Hebrew name שְׁמוּאֵל (Shemuʾel) meaning "name of God", from the roots שֵׁם (shem) meaning "name" and אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God". Other interpretations have the first root being שָׁמַע (shamaʿ) meaning "to hear" leading to a meaning of "God has heard". As told in the Books of Samuel in the Old Testament, Samuel was the last of the ruling judges. He led the Israelites during a period of domination by the Philistines, who were ultimately defeated in battle at Mizpah. Later he anointed Saul to be the first king of Israel, and even later anointed his successor David.

As a Christian name, Samuel came into common use after the Protestant Reformation. It has been consistently popular in the English-speaking world, ranking yearly in the top 100 names in the United States (as recorded since 1880) and performing similarly well in the United Kingdom.

Famous bearers include English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834), American inventor Samuel Morse (1791-1872), Irish writer Samuel Beckett (1906-1989), and American actor Samuel L. Jackson (1948-). This was also the real name, Samuel Clemens, of the American author Mark Twain (1835-1910).

Russian and Ukrainian diminutive of Aleksandr or Aleksandra.

Feminine form of the Late Latin name Seraphinus, derived from the biblical word seraphim, which was Hebrew in origin and meant "fiery ones". The seraphim were an order of angels, described by Isaiah in the Bible as having six wings each.

This was the name of a 13th-century Italian saint who made clothes for the poor. As an English name, it has never been common.

From the Hebrew name שֵׁת (Sheṯ) meaning "placed, set". In the Old Testament he is the third named son of Adam and Eve, and the ancestor of Noah and all humankind. In England this name came into use after the Protestant Reformation.

The name of a companion of Saint Paul in the New Testament. It is probably a short form of Silvanus, a name that Paul calls him by in the epistles. It is possible that Silvanus and Silas were Latin and Greek forms of the Hebrew name Saul (via Aramaic).

As an English name it was not used until after the Protestant Reformation. It was utilized by George Eliot for the title character in her novel Silas Marner (1861).

Feminine form of Silvester.

Means "elf, sprite" in Irish. This name was created in the 20th century.

Latin form of Solange.

Russian diminutive of Sophia. This is the name of a character in Leo Tolstoy's novel War and Peace (1869, English translation 1886).

Feminine form of Sophronius. Torquato Tasso used it in his epic poem Jerusalem Delivered (1580), in which it is borne by the lover of Olindo.

Persian form of Thurayya. It became popular in some parts of Europe because of the fame of Princess Soraya (1932-2001), wife of the last Shah of Iran, who became a European socialite.

Means "wanderer" in Old Norse.

Feminine form of the Roman name Tatianus, a derivative of the Roman name Tatius. This was the name of a 3rd-century saint who was martyred in Rome under the emperor Alexander Severus. She was especially venerated in Orthodox Christianity, and the name has been common in Russia (as Татьяна) and Eastern Europe. It was not regularly used in the English-speaking world until the 1980s.

Short form of Theresa. This is the name of the main character in Thomas Hardy's novel Tess of the d'Urbervilles (1891).

Medieval feminine form of Thomas.

Probably from the Celtic name Drustan, a diminutive of Drust, which occurs as Drystan in a few Welsh sources. As Tristan, it first appears in 12th-century French tales, probably altered by association with Old French triste "sad". According to the tales Tristan was sent to Ireland by his uncle King Mark of Cornwall in order to fetch Iseult, who was to be the king's bride. On the way back, Tristan and Iseult accidentally drink a potion that makes them fall in love. Later versions of the tale make Tristan one of King Arthur's knights. His tragic story was very popular in the Middle Ages, and the name has occasionally been used since then.

Feminine form of Ulysses.

Galician form of Eugenia.

Feminine form of Valentinus (see Valentine 1). A famous bearer is the Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova (1937-), who in 1963 became the first woman to visit space.

From the Roman name Vincentius, which was derived from Latin vincere meaning "to conquer". This name was popular among early Christians, and it was borne by many saints. As an English name, Vincent has been in use since the Middle Ages, though it did not become common until the 19th century. Famous bearers include the French priest Saint Vincent de Paul (1581-1660) and the Dutch post-impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890).

French form of Vivianus (see Vivian).

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.

From an English surname that was originally derived from a diminutive of the given name William.

Dutch short form of Willem.

Derived from Greek ξανθός (xanthos) meaning "yellow, blond, fair-haired". This was the name of a few minor figures in Greek mythology.

Possibly based on Zahra 2 or the Nigerian city of Zaria.

Modern Persian form of Zarathustra.

Possibly a feminine form of Zelig.

Means "life of Zeus", derived from Greek Ζηνός (Zenos) meaning "of Zeus" and βίος (bios) meaning "life". This was the name of the queen of the Palmyrene Empire, which broke away from Rome in the 3rd-century and began expanding into Roman territory. She was eventually defeated by the emperor Aurelian. Her Greek name was used as an approximation of her native Aramaic name.

Probably means "my music" in Hebrew, a possessive form of זִמְרָה (zimra) meaning "music, song". This was the name of a king of Israel according to the Old Testament. He ruled for only seven days, when he was succeeded by the commander of the army Omri. Another Zimri in the Old Testament was the lover of the Midianite woman Cozbi.

From the name of the flower, which was itself named for the German botanist Johann Zinn.

Means "dawn, aurora" in the South Slavic languages, as well as Czech and Slovak.

English form of Zarathustra, via the Greek form Ζωροάστρης (Zoroastres).