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Every name carries a story. This site is a small, slowly growing collection of first names, what they mean, and the languages and legends they come from. Pick a letter on the left or scroll down to browse.

A

• Alice (Old French, from Germanic) - "noble kind"
  A contraction of Adelais, the Old French form of the Germanic Adalheidis. It spread through England after the Norman conquest and was revived in the nineteenth century, helped along by Lewis Carroll.
• Aurora (Latin) - "dawn"
  The Roman goddess of the dawn, who renewed herself every morning and flew across the sky announcing the sun. Used as a given name since the Renaissance.

B

• Beatrice (Italian, from Latin) - "she who brings happiness"
  From Beatrix, later associated with Latin beatus, "blessed". Dante's Beatrice guided him through Paradise, which made the name a lasting favourite in Italy and England.

C

• Celeste (Latin) - "heavenly"
  From caelestis, "of the sky". The French and Italian forms became popular in the nineteenth century.
• Clara (Latin) - "bright, clear"
  From clarus. Borne by Saint Clare of Assisi, founder of the Poor Clares.

D

• Daisy (English) - "day's eye"
  From Old English dægesēage, for the way the flower opens at dawn. Traditionally a nickname for Margaret.
• Delia (Greek) - "from Delos"
  An epithet of Artemis, who was born on the island of Delos. Also used as a short form of Cordelia and Adelia.

E

• Elara (Greek) - "uncertain, often linked to "bright" or "shining""
  In Greek myth, a mortal princess loved by Zeus, who hid her deep beneath the earth to shield her from Hera. One of the moons of Jupiter is named after her.
• Eris (Greek) - "strife"
  The goddess of discord, whose golden apple set off the chain of events leading to the Trojan War. A dwarf planet discovered in 2005 bears her name.
• Esme (Old French) - "esteemed, loved"
  Originally a masculine name in Scotland, it has since become almost exclusively feminine.

F

• Flora (Latin) - "flower"
  From flos, floris. Flora was the Roman goddess of flowers and spring, honoured each year at the Floralia.
• Freya (Old Norse) - "lady"
  From Freyja, the Norse goddess of love, beauty and war, who rode a chariot drawn by cats. Friday is often said to be named after her.

G

• Grace (Latin) - "grace"
  From gratia. Taken up as a virtue name by the Puritans in the seventeenth century, alongside Faith, Hope and Charity.

H

• Hazel (English) - "the hazel tree"
  From Old English hæsel. The hazel was long associated with wisdom and protection in British folklore.
• Helena (Greek) - "uncertain, often linked to "torch" or "bright one""
  The Latinate form of Helen. Saint Helena, mother of Constantine, spread the name across the Christian world.

I

• Iris (Greek) - "rainbow"
  The messenger of the gods, who travelled on the rainbow between heaven and earth. The flower and the part of the eye are both named after her.
• Isla (Scottish) - "from Islay"
  Taken from the Hebridean island of Islay and the river Isla. It has only been used as a given name since the twentieth century.
• Ivy (English) - "the ivy plant"
  One of the Victorian plant names. Evergreen ivy was a symbol of faithfulness.

J

• June (Latin) - "the month of June"
  The month takes its name from Juno. Popular as a given name in the early twentieth century.
• Juno (Latin) - "queen of the gods"
  The Roman goddess of marriage and childbirth, wife of Jupiter and protector of Rome.

L

• Lily (English) - "the lily flower"
  The lily has stood for purity and renewal since antiquity. Sometimes also used as a short form of Elizabeth.
• Luna (Latin) - "moon"
  The Roman personification of the moon, counterpart to the Greek Selene.

M

• Maeve (Irish) - "she who intoxicates"
  From Medb, the warrior queen of Connacht in the Ulster Cycle.
• Maya (several) - "illusion (Sanskrit), mother (Greek)"
  In Sanskrit māyā means "illusion". In Greek, Maia was the eldest of the Pleiades and the mother of Hermes.
• Mira (Latin and Slavic) - "wonderful, peace"
  From Latin mirus, "wonderful". In Slavic languages it is linked to mir, "peace". Also the name of a variable star in the constellation Cetus.

N

• Nora (Irish, from Latin) - "honour"
  A short form of Honora and Eleanor that became a name in its own right. Ibsen's A Doll's House made it famous.
• Nyx (Greek) - "night"
  The primordial goddess of the night, so powerful that even Zeus feared her. Mother of Hypnos (sleep) and Thanatos (death).

O

• Olive (Latin) - "the olive tree"
  From oliva. The olive branch has been a symbol of peace since ancient Greece.
• Opal (Sanskrit, via Latin) - "precious stone"
  From Sanskrit upala, through Latin opalus. The October birthstone.

P

• Penelope (Greek) - "uncertain, often linked to "weaver""
  The faithful wife of Odysseus, who wove and unwove a shroud each night to keep her suitors waiting.

R

• Ruby (Latin) - "red"
  From ruber. One of the gemstone names that became popular in the late nineteenth century.

S

• Selene (Greek) - "moon"
  The Titan goddess of the moon, who drove her chariot across the night sky.
• Stella (Latin) - "star"
  Coined as a name by Sir Philip Sidney in his sonnet sequence Astrophel and Stella.

T

• Thea (Greek) - "goddess"
  Also a short form of Dorothea and Theodora. Theia was the Titan mother of the sun, the moon and the dawn.

V

• Vera (Russian and Latin) - "faith, true"
  In Russian вера means "faith". In Latin verus means "true".

W

• Wren (English) - "the wren"
  From Old English wrenna. In folklore the tiny wren was crowned king of the birds.

Z

• Zoe (Greek) - "life"
  Used by Hellenistic Jews as a translation of Eve, and later borne by several Byzantine empresses.

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