Al m English Short form of
Albert and other names beginning with
Al. A notable bearer is American actor Al Pacino (1940-).
Alfred m English, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Polish, Dutch, Catalan, Albanian Means
"elf counsel", derived from the Old English name
Ælfræd, composed of the elements
ælf "elf" and
ræd "counsel, advice"
[1] [2] [3] [4] . Alfred the Great was a 9th-century king of Wessex who fought unceasingly against the Danes living in northeastern England. He was also a scholar, and he translated many Latin books into Old English. His fame helped to ensure the usage of this name even after the Norman Conquest, when most Old English names were replaced by Norman ones. It became rare by the end of the Middle Ages, but was revived in the 18th century.
... [more] Alvin m English, Swedish From a medieval form of any of the Old English names
Ælfwine,
Æðelwine or
Ealdwine. It was revived in the 19th century, in part from a surname that was derived from the Old English names
[1] . It is now associated with a cartoon chipmunk from the fictitious musical group Alvin and the Chipmunks, who released songs starting 1958 and later appeared on television and in movies.
... [more] Amos m English, Hebrew, Biblical, Biblical Latin [1] , Biblical Greek [2] , Biblical Hebrew [3] From Hebrew
עָמַס (ʿamas) meaning
"load, burden" [4] . Amos is one of the twelve minor prophets of the Old Testament, the author of the Book of Amos, which speaks against greed, corruption and oppression of the poor. Written about the 8th century BC, it is among the oldest of the prophetic books. As an English name,
Amos has been used since the Protestant Reformation, and was popular among the Puritans.
Andreas m German, Greek, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Welsh, Ancient Greek [1] , Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek [2] Ancient Greek and Latin form of
Andrew. It is also the form used in Modern Greek, German and Welsh.
Ansel m English From an English surname that was derived from the given name
Anselm. A famous bearer was American photographer Ansel Adams (1902-1984).
Antony m English Variant of
Anthony. This was formerly the usual English spelling of the name, but during the 17th century the
h began to be added.
Barbara f English, Italian, French, German, Polish, Hungarian, Slovene, Croatian, Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Ancient Roman [1] [2] Derived from Latin
barbarus meaning
"foreign, savage, strange", originally from Greek
[3] [4] [5] . According to legend, Saint Barbara was a young woman killed by her father Dioscorus, who was then killed by a bolt of lightning. She is the patron of architects, geologists, stonemasons and artillerymen. Because of her renown, the name came into general use in the Christian world in the Middle Ages. In England it became rare after the Protestant Reformation, but it was revived in the 19th century. Bentley m English From a surname that was from a place name, itself derived from Old English
beonet "bentgrass" and
leah "woodland, clearing". Various towns in England bear this name.
Carrie f English Diminutive of
Caroline. This name declined in use shortly after the 1976 release of the horror movie
Carrie, which was based on a 1974 novel by Stephen King.
David m English, Hebrew, French, Scottish, Welsh, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Czech, Slovene, Russian, Croatian, Serbian, Macedonian, Romanian, Biblical, Biblical Latin [1] From the Hebrew name
דָּוִד (Dawiḏ) [2] , which was derived from
דּוֹד (doḏ) meaning
"beloved" or
"uncle" [3] . David was the second and greatest of the kings of Israel, ruling in the 10th century BC. Several stories about him are told in the Old Testament, including his defeat of
Goliath, a giant Philistine. According to the New Testament,
Jesus was descended from him.
... [more] Donald m Scottish, English From the Scottish Gaelic name
Dòmhnall meaning
"ruler of the world", composed of the Old Irish elements
domun "world" and
fal "rule"
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] . This was the name of two 9th-century kings of the Scots and Picts. It has traditionally been very popular in Scotland, and during the 20th century it became common in the rest of the English-speaking world. This is the name of one of Walt Disney's most popular cartoon characters, Donald Duck, introduced 1931. It was also borne by Australian cricket player Donald Bradman (1908-2001) and American president Donald Trump (1946-).
Ebenezer m Literature, English From the name of a monument erected by
Samuel in the Old Testament, from Hebrew
אֶבֶן הָעָזֶר (ʾEven Haʿazer) meaning
"stone of help". Charles Dickens used it for the miserly character Ebenezer Scrooge in his novel
A Christmas Carol (1843). Currently the name is most common in parts of English-influenced Africa, such as Ghana.
Eliot m English From a surname that was a variant of
Elliott. A famous bearer of the surname was T. S. Eliot (1888-1965), an Anglo-American poet and dramatist, the writer of
The Waste Land. As a given name, it was borne by the American mob-buster Eliot Ness (1903-1957).
Emmanuel m Biblical, French, English From the Hebrew name
עִמָּנוּאֵל (ʿImmanuʾel) meaning
"God is with us", from the roots
עִם (ʿim) meaning "with" and
אֵל (ʾel) meaning "God"
[1] [2] . This is the foretold name of the Messiah in the Old Testament. It has been used in England since the 16th century in the spellings
Emmanuel and
Immanuel, though it has not been widespread
[3] . The name has been more common in continental Europe, especially in Spain and Portugal (in the spellings
Manuel and
Manoel ).
Endre 1 m Hungarian Possibly a Hungarian form of
Andrew, though it may in fact originate from a pre-Christian source.
Geoffrey m English, French From a Norman French form of a Frankish name. The second element is Old German
fridu "peace", while the first element could be *
gautaz "Geat" (a North Germanic tribe),
gawi "territory" or
walah "foreigner"
[1] [2] [3] [4] . It is possible that two or more names merged into a single form
[5] [6] . In the later Middle Ages
Geoffrey was further confused with the distinct name
Godfrey .
... [more] Grace f English From the English word
grace, which ultimately derives from Latin
gratia [1] . This was one of the virtue names created in the 17th century by the Puritans
[2] . The actress Grace Kelly (1929-1982) was a famous bearer.
... [more] Gyula m Hungarian From a Hungarian royal title, which was probably of Turkic origin. This name is also used as a Hungarian form of
Julius.
Henri m French, Finnish French form of
Heinrich (see
Henry). A notable bearer was the French artist Henri Matisse (1869-1954).
Hla m & f Burmese Means
"pretty, favourable" in Burmese.
Horace m English, French English and French form of
Horatius, and the name by which the Roman poet Quintus Horatius Flaccus is commonly known those languages. In the modern era it has been used as a given name since the Renaissance, in honour of the poet.
Hugo m Spanish, Portuguese, English, Dutch, German, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Latvian, Germanic [1] Old German form of
Hugh. As a surname it has belonged to the French author Victor Hugo (1802-1885), the writer of
The Hunchback of Notre-Dame and
Les Misérables.
Imogen f English (British) The name of the daughter of King
Cymbeline in the play
Cymbeline (1609) by William Shakespeare. He based her on a legendary character named
Innogen, but it was printed incorrectly and never emended.
Innogen is probably derived from Gaelic
inghean meaning
"maiden". As a given name it is chiefly British and Australian.
Kalliope f Greek Mythology Means
"beautiful voice" from Greek
kallos) meaning "beauty" and
ops) meaning "voice"
[1] [2] . In Greek mythology she was a goddess of epic poetry and eloquence, one of the nine Muses.
Lewis m English Medieval English form of
Louis. A famous bearer was Lewis Carroll (1832-1898), the author of
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. This was also the surname of C. S. Lewis (1898-1963), the author of the
Chronicles of Narnia series.
Louis m French, English, Dutch French form of
Ludovicus, the Latinized form of
Ludwig [1] . 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.
... [more] Mario m Italian, Spanish, German, Croatian Italian and Spanish form of
Marius. Famous bearers include American racecar driver Mario Andretti (1940-) and Canadian hockey player Mario Lemieux (1965-). It is also borne by a Nintendo video game character, a moustached Italian plumber, who debuted as the playable hero of
Donkey Kong in 1981. Spelled
Mervyn m Welsh, English
Welsh variant of Merfyn, as well as the usual Anglicized form. Meryl f English Variant of
Muriel. A famous bearer is American actress Meryl Streep (1949-), whose real name is Mary Louise Streep.
Morgan 2 f Arthurian Cycle Modern form of
Morgen, which was used by Geoffrey of Monmouth
[1] in the 12th century for the Arthurian sorceress Morgan le Fay, who was unnamed in earlier stories. Geoffrey probably did not derive it from the Welsh masculine name
Morgan , which was more commonly spelled
Morcant or
Morgant in his time.
Morgen is likely from Old Welsh
mor "sea" and the suffix
gen "born of"
[2] .
Richard m English, French, German, Czech, Slovak, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Estonian, Germanic [1] Means
"brave ruler", derived from the Old German elements
rih "ruler, king" and
hart "hard, firm, brave, hardy"
[1] [2] [3] . This was the name of three early dukes of Normandy. The Normans introduced it to England when they invaded in the 11th century, and it has been very common there since that time
[4] . It was borne by three kings of England including the 12th-century Richard I the Lionheart, one of the leaders of the Third Crusade.
... [more] Robert m English, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, Finnish, Estonian, Czech, Polish, Russian, Slovene, Croatian, Albanian, Romanian, Catalan, Germanic [1] From the Germanic name
Hrodebert meaning
"bright fame", derived from the elements
hruod "fame" and
beraht "bright"
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] . The Normans introduced this name to Britain, where it replaced the rare Old English cognate
Hreodbeorht. It has been consistently among the most common English names from the 13th to 20th century. In the United States it was the most popular name for boys between 1924 and 1939 (and again in 1953).
... [more] Saul m Biblical, Jewish, Biblical Latin From the Hebrew name
שָׁאוּל (Shaʾul) meaning
"asked for, prayed for". This was the name of the first king of Israel, as told in the Old Testament. Before the end of his reign he lost favour with God, and after a defeat by the Philistines he was succeeded by
David as king. In the New Testament, Saul was the original Hebrew name of the apostle
Paul.
Scout f & m English (Modern) From the English word
scout meaning
"one who gathers information covertly", which is derived from Old French
escouter "to listen". Harper Lee used this name in her novel
To Kill a Mockingbird (1960).
Velvet f English From the English word for the soft fabric. It became used as a given name after the main character in Enid Bagnold's book
National Velvet (1935) and the movie (1944) and television (1960) adaptations.
Venetia f English (Rare), Greek From the Latin name of the Italian region of Veneto and the city of Venice (see the place name
Venetia). This name was borne by the celebrated English beauty Venetia Stanley (1600-1633), though in her case the name may have been a Latinized form of the Welsh name
Gwynedd [1] . Benjamin Disraeli used it for the heroine of his novel
Venetia (1837).
Wilda f English Meaning uncertain, perhaps from a German surname, or perhaps from the English word
wild. It has been in use since the 19th century.
Willard m English From an English surname that was derived from the Old German given name
Willihard (or the Old English cognate
Wilheard).
Williamina f Scottish Feminine form of
William. A famous bearer of this name was Williamina Fleming (1857-1911), a Scottish astronomer.