Goretti f Various From the surname of Maria Goretti, a 20th-century Italian saint who forgave her murderer on her deathbed. Her surname was derived from the given name
Gregorio.
Iolanthe f Various (Rare) Probably a variant of
Yolanda influenced by the Greek words
iole) meaning "violet" and
anthos) meaning "flower". This name was (first?) used by Gilbert and Sullivan in their comic opera
Iolanthe (1882).
Jeunesse f Various Means
"youth" in French. It is not used as a given name in France itself.
Junípero m Various (Rare) This was the name assumed by the 18th-century Spanish Franciscan monk Miguel José Serra, a missionary to California. He named himself after one of Saint Francis's companions, who was named from Latin
iuniperus "juniper".
Kaiser m Various German form of the Roman title
Caesar (see
Caesar). It is not used as a given name in Germany itself.
Kobe 2 m Various From the name of a city in Japan. The parents of basketball player Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) chose this name after seeing Kobe beef (which is from the Japanese city) on a menu.
Kohinoor f Various From
Koh-i-noor, the name of a famous gemstone, meaning "mountain of light" in Persian.
Lux f & m Various Derived from Latin
lux meaning
"light".
Mahershala m Various (Rare) From the longer name
Mahershalalhashbaz, which appears in the Old Testament at
Isaiah 8:1 in reference to
Isaiah's symbolic son. It is written in Hebrew as
מַהֵר שָׁלָל חָשׁ בַּז , and is composed of the two-word phrases
מַהֵר שָׁלָל (maher shalal) and
חָשׁ בַּז (ḥash baz), which both mean
"hurry to the plunder". A famous bearer is the American actor Mahershala Ali (1974-), whose full name is Mahershalalhashbaz.
Monet f & m Various From a French surname that was derived from either
Hamon or
Edmond. This was the surname of the French impressionist painter Claude Monet (1840-1926).
Nyala f Various (Rare) From the name of a type of African antelope, ultimately derived from the Bantu word
nyálà.
Nyssa f Various (Rare) From the name of an ancient town of Asia Minor where Saint Gregory was bishop in the 4th century. Nyssa is also the genus name of a type of tree, also called the Tupelo.
Odessa f Various 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
Odysseus.
Omega m & f Various From the name of the last letter in the Greek alphabet,
Oprah f Various (Rare) In the case of television personality Oprah Winfrey (1954-), it was a childhood mispronunciation of her real name
Orpah that became permanent.
Paris 2 f Various From the name of
Paris, the capital city of France, which got its name from the Gaulish tribe known as the Parisii
[1] . In America the popularity of this name spiked up and then down between 2003 and 2006, around the time that the television personality and socialite Paris Hilton (1981-) was at the height of her fame.
Rio 1 m & f Various 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.
Roma 2 f Various From the Italian name of the Italian capital city, called
Rome in English.
Roselle f Various Diminutive of
Rose. This is the name of a type of flowering shrub (species Hibiscus sabdariffa) native to Africa but now grown in many places, used to make hibiscus tea.
Sarava m Various (Rare) From a phrase used by members of the Candomblé religion (an African religion that was taken to Brazil by African slaves), which means
"good luck".
Shekinah f Various From the Hebrew word
שׁכִינה (sheḵina) meaning
"God's manifested glory" or
"God's presence". This word does not appear in the Bible, but later Jewish scholars used it to refer to the dwelling place of God, especially the Temple in Jerusalem.
Soleil f Various Means
"sun" in French. It is not commonly used as a name in France itself.
Tivoli m & f Various (Rare) From the name of a picturesque Italian town, used as a summer resort by the ancient Romans.
Valencia f Various From the name of cities in Spain and Venezuela, both derived from Latin
valentia meaning "strength, vigour".
Valkyrie f Various (Rare) Means
"chooser of the slain", derived from Old Norse
valr "the slain" and
kyrja "chooser". In Norse myth the Valkyries were maidens who led heroes killed in battle to Valhalla.
Verbena f Various (Rare) From the name of the verbena plant, which is derived from Latin
verbena meaning "leaves, twigs".
Verona f Various From the name of the city in Italy, which is itself of uncertain meaning, possibly from the Celtic roots *
wernā "alder" and *
magos "field, plain".
Zona f Various Means
"girdle, belt" in Greek. This name was made popular by the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist and poet Zona Gale (1874-1938).