Adela f English, Spanish, Romanian, Polish, Slovak, Germanic [1] Originally a short form of names beginning with the Old German element
adal meaning
"noble" (Proto-Germanic *
aþalaz )
[2] [3] [4] . Saint Adela was a 7th-century Frankish princess who founded a monastery at Pfalzel in France. This name was also borne by a daughter of William the Conqueror.
Beryl f English From the English word for the clear or pale green precious stone, ultimately deriving from Sanskrit. As a given name, it first came into use in the 19th century.
Blossom f English From the English word
blossom, ultimately from Old English
blóstm. It came into use as a rare given name in the 19th century.
Claude m & f French, English French masculine and feminine form of
Claudius. In France the masculine name has been common since the Middle Ages due to the 7th-century Saint Claude of Besançon. It was imported to Britain in the 16th century by the aristocratic Hamilton family, who had French connections. A famous bearer of this name was the French impressionist painter Claude Monet (1840-1926).
Clotilde f French, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish French form of
Chrodechildis, the Latin form of a Frankish name composed of the elements
hruod "fame, glory" and
hilt "battle"
[1] [2] [3] . Saint Clotilde (whose name was originally recorded in forms such as
Chrodechildis or
Chrotchildis in Latin sources
[4] ) 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"
[5] [6] .
Cora f English, German, Greek Mythology (Latinized) Latinized form of
Kore. It was not used as a given name in the English-speaking world until after it was employed by James Fenimore Cooper for a character in his novel
The Last of the Mohicans (1826). In some cases it may be a short form of
Cordula,
Corinna and other names beginning with a similar sound.
Corentin m Breton, French French form of the Breton name
Kaourintin, possibly from
korventenn meaning
"hurricane, storm". Alternatively, it could be connected to the Brythonic root *
karid meaning
"love" (modern Breton
karout). This was the name of a 5th-century bishop of Quimper in Brittany.
Corey m English From an English surname that was derived from the Old Norse given name
Kóri, of unknown meaning. This name became popular in the 1960s due to the character Corey Baker on the television series
Julia [1] .
Earl m English From the aristocratic title, which derives from Old English
eorl "nobleman, warrior". It has been used as a given name since the 19th century.
Edward m English, Polish Means
"rich guard", derived from the Old English elements
ead "wealth, fortune" and
weard "guard"
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] . This was the name of several Anglo-Saxon kings, the last being Saint Edward the Confessor shortly before the Norman Conquest in the 11th century. He was known as a just ruler, and because of his popularity his name remained in use after the conquest when most other Old English names were replaced by Norman ones. The 13th-century Plantagenet king Henry III named his son and successor after the saint, and seven subsequent kings of England were also named Edward.
... [more] Fletcher m English From a surname meaning
"maker of arrows" in Middle English, ultimately from Old French
flechier.
Gladys f Welsh, English, French, Spanish From the Old Welsh name
Gwladus [1] , probably derived from
gwlad meaning
"country" [2] . Alternatively, it may have been adopted as a Welsh form of
Claudia [3] . Saint Gwladus or Gwladys was the mother of Saint
Cadoc. She was one of the daughters of
Brychan Brycheiniog. This name became popular outside of Wales after it was used in Ouida's novel
Puck (1870).
Gordon m Scottish, English From a Scottish surname that was originally derived from a place in Berwickshire, itself derived from Brythonic elements meaning
"spacious fort" [1] [2] . It was originally used in honour of Charles George Gordon (1833-1885), a British general who died defending the city of Khartoum in Sudan.
... [more] Hank m English Originally a short form of
Hankin, which was a medieval diminutive of
John. Since the 17th century in the United States this name has also been used as a diminutive of
Henry, probably under the influence of the Dutch diminutive
Henk. A famous bearer is the American former baseball player Hank Aaron (1934-2021).
Harry m English, Dutch, Swedish, German Medieval English form of
Henry. In modern times it is used as a diminutive of both
Henry and names beginning with
Har. Famous bearers include the American president Harry S. Truman (1884-1972), who was named after his uncle Harrison, and the British royal Prince Harry (1984-), who is actually named Henry. It is also the name of the boy wizard in J. K. Rowling's
Harry Potter series of books, first released in 1997.
Hazel f English From the English word
hazel for the tree or the light brown colour, derived ultimately from Old English
hæsel [1] . It was coined as a given name in the 19th century and quickly became popular, reaching the 18th place for girls in the United States by 1897. It fell out of fashion in the second half of the 20th century, but has since recovered.
Helen f English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Estonian, Greek Mythology (Anglicized) English form of the Greek
[1] [2] [3] , probably from Greek [4] [5] [6] , or possibly related to selene) meaning "moon" [7] . In Greek mythology Helen was the daughter of Zeus and Leda, whose kidnapping by Paris was the cause of the Trojan War. The name was also borne by the 4th-century Saint Helena, mother of the Roman emperor Constantine, who supposedly found the True Cross during a trip to Jerusalem.... [more] Henry m English From the Germanic name
Heimirich meaning
"home ruler" [1] [2] [3] , composed of the elements
heim "home" and
rih "ruler"
[4] [5] . 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".
... [more] Herbert m English, German, Dutch, Czech, Swedish, French Derived from the Old German elements
heri "army" and
beraht "bright"
[1] [2] [3] [4] . It was borne by two Merovingian Frankish kings, usually called
Charibert. The Normans introduced this name to England, where it replaced an Old English cognate
Herebeorht [5] . In the course of the Middle Ages it became rare, but it was revived in the 19th century.
... [more] 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.
Karl m German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, English, Finnish, Estonian, Germanic [1] , Old Norse [2] [3] German and Scandinavian form of
Charles. This was the name of seven rulers of the Franks and the Holy Roman Empire. It was also borne by a beatified emperor of Austria (1887-1922), as well as ten kings of Sweden. Other famous bearers include the German philosophers Karl Marx (1818-1883), a political theorist and socialist, and Karl Jaspers (1883-1969), an existentialist and psychiatrist.
Landon m English From a surname that was derived from an Old English place name meaning
"long hill" (effectively meaning
"ridge"). Use of the name may have been inspired in part by the actor Michael Landon (1936-1991).
Lillian f English Probably originally a diminutive of
Elizabeth [1] . It may also be considered an elaborated form of
Lily, from the Latin word for "lily"
lilium [2] . This name has been used in England since the 16th century.
Lionel m French, English, Arthurian Cycle French diminutive of
Léon. It appears in Arthurian legend in the 13th-century Lancelot-Grail Cycle, belonging to a knight who was the brother of Sir
Bors. A notable modern bearer is the Argentine soccer star Lionel Messi (1987-).
Ludolf m German (Rare), Germanic [1] From the Old German name
Hludolf, which was composed of the elements
hlut meaning "famous, loud" and
wolf meaning "wolf"
[2] [3] . Saint Ludolf (or Ludolph) was a 13th-century bishop of Ratzeburg.
Ludwig m German From the Germanic name
Hludwig meaning
"famous in battle", composed of the elements
hlut "famous, loud" and
wig "war, battle"
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] . This was the name of three Merovingian kings of the Franks (though their names are usually spelled as
Clovis ) as well as several Carolingian kings and Holy Roman emperors (names often spelled in the French form
Louis ). Other famous bearers include the German composer Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) and the Austrian philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951), who contributed to logic and the philosophy of language.
Marganita f Hebrew From the name of a type of flowering plant common in Israel, called the scarlet pimpernel in English.
Myra f English Created by the 17th-century poet Fulke Greville. He possibly based it on Latin
myrra meaning "myrrh" (a fragrant resin obtained from a tree). Otherwise, he may have simply rearranged the letters from the name
Mary. Although unrelated etymologically, this is also the name of an ancient city of Anatolia.
Nerissa f Literature Created by Shakespeare for a character in his play
The Merchant of Venice (1596). He possibly took it from Greek
Nereis) meaning "nymph, sea sprite", ultimately derived from the name of the Greek sea god
Nereus, who supposedly fathered them.
Prudence f & m English, French Medieval English form of
Prudentia, the feminine form of
Prudentius. In France it is both the feminine form and a rare masculine form. In England it was used during the Middle Ages and was revived in the 17th century by the Puritans, in part from the English word
prudence, ultimately of the same source.
Rodrigo m Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Galician Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and Galician form of
Roderick, via the Latinized Gothic form
Rudericus. A notable bearer was Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, also known as El Cid, an 11th-century Spanish military commander.
Sanford m English From an English surname, originally from a place name, which meant
"sand ford" in Old English.
Sara f Hebrew, Greek, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, French, Catalan, Galician, Romanian, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Finnish, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Albanian, Macedonian, Polish, English, Arabic, Persian, Amharic, Tigrinya, Biblical Hebrew [1] , Biblical Latin Form of
Sarah used in various languages.
Saskia f Dutch, German From the Old German element
sahso meaning
"a Saxon" [1] [2] . The Saxons were a Germanic tribe, their name ultimately deriving from the Germanic word *
sahsą meaning "knife". Saskia van Uylenburgh (1612-1642) was the wife of the Dutch painter Rembrandt.
Speranza f Italian Italian cognate of
Esperanza. Edmund Spenser used it in his epic poem
The Faerie Queene (1590) for the sister of
Fidelia. It was also assumed as a pen name by the Irish poet Lady Wilde (1821-1896), the mother of Oscar Wilde.
Stanley m English From an English surname meaning
"stone clearing" (Old English
stan "stone" and
leah "woodland, clearing")
[1] [2] [3] . A notable bearer of the surname was the British-American explorer and journalist Henry Morton Stanley (1841-1904), the man who found David Livingstone in Africa. As a given name, it was borne by American director Stanley Kubrick (1928-1999), as well as the character Stanley Kowalski in Tennessee Williams' play
A Streetcar Named Desire (1947).
Sylvan m English Either a variant of
Silvanus or directly from the Latin word
silva meaning
"wood, forest".
Toshiko f Japanese From Japanese
敏 (toshi) meaning "quick, clever, sharp" and
子 (ko) meaning "child". Other kanji characters can also form this name.
Twila f English Meaning unknown. Perhaps based on the English word
twilight, or maybe from a Cajun pronunciation of French
étoile "star"
[1] . It came into use as an American given name in the late 19th century.
Vincent m English, French, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Slovak From the Roman cognomen
Vincentius, which was derived from Latin
vinco meaning
"to conquer" [1] [2] [3] [4] . This name was popular among early Christians, and it was borne by many saints, notably Vincent of Saragossa who was martyred during the persecutions of the Roman emperor
Diocletian in the early 4th century.
... [more] Willard m English From an English surname that was derived from the Old German given name
Willihard (or the Old English cognate
Wilheard).
Wolfgang m German, Germanic [1] Derived from the Old German elements
wolf meaning "wolf" and
gang meaning "path, way"
[2] [3] . Saint Wolfgang was a 10th-century bishop of Regensburg. Two other famous bearers of this name were Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) and German novelist and poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832).