AARON "he who is noble" or "exalted as a mountain" or "singing" or "to shine" or "teaching" (Heb) or "messenger" (Arb) or possibly an Egyptian name
The biblical Aaron was the brother of MOSES and the first priest. There is much debate about the origins of this name.

ABDUL "servant of" (Arb)

ABDULLAH "servant of God" (Arb)
A name of MUHAMMAD the prophet.

ABE short form of ABRAHAM

ABIGAIL "father's joy" (Heb)
A servant in 'The Scornful Lady', a play by Francis Beaumont.

ABNER "father's lamp" or "father's son" (Heb)
In the Old Testament Abner was the uncle of Saul and the commander of his army.

ABRAHAM "father of many" (Heb)
The biblical Abraham lead the Hebrews into Canaan. He is regarded by the Jews as being the founder of the Hebrews through his son ISAAC and by the Muslims as being the founder of the Arabs through his son ISHMAEL.

ACE "highest rank" (Eng)
Modern usage.

ADA form of EDITH

ADAM "red skin" or "red earth" (Heb)
The biblical Adam was created from the earth. He and EVE were supposedly the first people.

ADELA short form of ADELAIDE

ADELAIDE "noble" (Teu)
The wife of OTTO the Great. Also the wife of King WILLIAM IV of England. A city in Australia bears this name.

ADELE French form of ADELA

ADELINE form of ADELAIDE

ADORA "adoration" or "glorious lady" (Lat)
From the longer name 'Adoracion'. Visit a web page devoted to the name Adora.

ADRIAN "of the Adriatic" or "of Hadria" (Lat) or "wealthy" (Gre)
Hadria was the city from which came Hadrian the Emperor.

AGATHA "good" (Gre)
A saint and martyr of the third century.

AGNES "chaste" (Gre)
A virgin saint who was martyred by Roman emperor Diocletian.

AL short form of ALAN, ALBERT, ALEXANDER, ALVIN or ALFRED

ALAN "peace" or "handsome" or possibly "hound" or possibly "rock" (Cel)

ALANA female form of ALAN

ALBERT "noble bright" (Teu: OE)
The name has been popular among European royalty.

ALESSANDRIA Italian form of ALEXANDRA

ALEXANDER "defending men" (Gre)
Alexander the Great of Macedonia built a large empire in the fourth century BC. It was also the name of eight popes.

ALEXANDRA female form of ALEXANDER

ALEXIS "helper" or "defender" (Gre)
From Greek 'alexios'.

ALFRED "elf counsel" or "all peace" (Teu: OE)
Alfred the Great was a king of Wessex.

ALF short form of ALFRED

ALI "sublime" or "to rise" (Arb)
A cousin of MUHAMMAD. The fourth caliph to rule the Muslim world.

ALICE contraction of Adalheidis = ADELAIDE
The heroine of LEWIS Carroll's 'Alice in Wonderland' and 'Through the Looking Glass'.

ALISON French form of ALICE

ALISTAIR Gaelic form of ALEXANDER

ALLAN form of ALAN

ALLANNAH form of ALANA influenced by the spelling of HANNAH

ALLISON form of ALISON

ALLYSON form of ALISON

ALVIN form of ELWIN

AMANDA "lovable" (Lat)

AMBER "amber" or "yellow" (Arb)

AMELIA form of EMILY

AMY "I love" (Lat) or short form of AMELIA

ANASTASIA "revival" (Gre)
It derives from 'ana' (not) and 'stasis' (still).

ANDREA female form of ANDREW

ANDREW "manly" or "a brave man" (Gre)
An apostle who was the brother of the apostle SIMON.

ANGELA "messenger" (Gre)
From the Greek word 'angelos'.

ANGUS "one" or "choice" (Cel)
The name of a Celtic god. Also, the name of an eighth century Pictish king.

ANITA Spanish pet form of ANNE

ANN English form of HANNAH or sort form of ANNABEL

ANNA Latin form of HANNAH

ANNABEL "lovable" (Lat)
From 'Amabel'.

ANNE French form of HANNAH

ANNETTE French pet form of ANNE

ANTHONY "flower" or "flourishing" or "beautiful" (Gre)
MARK Anthony was a Roman general.

ANTONIA feminine form of ANTHONY

ANTONIO Spanish form of ANTHONY

APRIL "born in April" (Eng)

ARABELLA form of ANNABEL

ARCHIBALD "quick learner" or "noble bold" (Teu)

ARCHIE short form of ARCHIBALD

ARIEL "light of God" (Heb)
A spirit in 'The Tempest' by Shakespeare. One of Uranus' moons bears this name.

ARLENE "pledge" (Teu)

ARNE "fireplace" or "eagle" (Teu: Sca) or short form of ARNOLD or ADRIAN

ARNOLD "honest" (Teu)
The name is 'Probus' in Lain. Arnold was a musician in the court of Charlemange (see CHARLES).

ART short form of ARTHUR

ARTHUR "noble" or "a strong man" (Cel)
A character in 'The Tales of King Arthur'. He supposedly drew a sword from a stone to become the king of the Britons. He may have or may not have been an actual person.

ASHLEY "ash clearing" (Teu: OE)
From a place name or a surname.

ASTAROTH (??)
Astaroth was the Phoenician goddess of love.

ATARAH "crown" (Heb)
A minor Old Testament character.

AUBREY "elf power" (Teu)
From 'Alberic'.

AUDREY "noble strength" (Teu)

AUGUST "venerable" or "consecrated" (Lat) or "born in August" (Eng)
From Latin 'Augustine'. Augustus Caesar was the first Roman emperor. Also the name of a saint and church father.

AUSTIN form of AUGUST

AVERY Norman French form of ALFRED

BARBARA "foreign" (Gre)
A saint killed by her father. She is the patron of architects, stonemasons and artillerymen.

BARNABAS "son of consolation" (Ara) or "son of the prophet (Heb)
A companion of PAUL on his missionary journeys.

BARNABY Teutonic form of BARNABAS

BARNEY short form of BARNABAS, BERNARD or BARNABY

BARRY "spear" or "ruler of the home" (Cel) or from the Barry Islands
The Barry Islands are off Wales and are named after a man named Barruch who lived there.

BART short form of BARTHOLOMEW

BARTHOLOMEW "son of Talmai" (Ara)
An apostle. Talmai is a Hebrew name that apparently means 'abounding in furrows'.

BASIL "royal" (Gre)
One of the fathers of the Eastern Christian church.

BEATRICE "blessed" or "happy" (Lat)
From Latin 'beatrix'.

BELINDA "beautiful snake" (Teu)
The snake signifies wisdom.

BEN short form of BENJAMIN or "son" (Heb)

BENEDICT "blessed" (Lat)
A saint of the fifth and sixth centuries who reformed the monasteries.

BENJAMIN "son of the south" or "son of the right hand" (Heb)
The biblical Benjamin, twelfth son of JACOB, founded the southernmost tribe of the Jews.

BERNARD "brave as a bear" (Teu)

BERNICE "bringing victory" (Gre)
Originated in the royal house of Macedon in ALEXANDER the Great's time.

BERTHA "bright" or "famous" (Teu: OE)

BEVERLEY "beaver stream" (Teu: OE)
From a place name or a surname.

BIANCA Italian form of BLANCHE
Shakespeare uses characters named Bianca in 'The Taming of the Shrew' and 'Othello'.

BILL short form of WILLIAM

BJOERN "bear" (Teu: Sca)

BLANCHE "white" or "fair" (Fre)

BOB short form of ROBERT

BOBBY short form of ROBERTA, ROBERT or BARBARA

BRADLEY "broad clearing" (Teu: OE)
From a place name or a surname.

BRANDI "brandy" (Eng)

BRANDON "aflame" (Teu)

BRENDA female form of BRENDAN

BRENDAN "dark haired" (Cel) or "firebrand" (Teu)

BRETT "a Briton" (Fre)

BRIAN "one who is eloquent" or "nobly born" (Cel) or "shrill voiced" (Fre)

BRIDGET "the high one" or possibly "fiery dart" (Cel)
The name of a muse who was believed to preside over poetry in ancient Ireland.

BRUCE "woods" or "thicket" (Cel)
From a Scottish surname.

BRUNO "brown" (Teu)

BRYAN form of BRIAN

BRYANT form of BRIAN

CALVIN "bald" (Lat)
JEAN Calvin was a French Protestant theologian.

CAMERON "crooked nose" (Cel: Gae)
From a Scottish surname. The Camerons were one of the great Highland clans.

CAMILLA "a servant sacrifice" (Gre) or "companion" (Lat)
A legendary warrior maiden of the Volscians.

CANDACE "incandescent" (Gre) or "pure" (Lat)
The title of the queens of Ethiopa in New Testament times.

CANDY short form of CANDACE

CARL English short form of CHARLES

CARLA feminine form of CHARLES

CARLO Italian form of CHARLES

CAROL feminine form of CHARLES

CAROLINE Italian feminine form of CHARLES

CARRY short form of CAROLINE

CASSANDRA "inflaming men with love" (Gre)
A legendary Trojan princess.

CATARINA form of CATHERINE

CATHERINE "pure" (Gre)
Catherine the Great was an empress of Russian. The name was also borne by three of king HENRY the Eighth's wives.

CATHY short form of CATHERINE

CECIL "grey-eyed" or "blind" (Lat) or "sixth" (Cel from Lat)
In older times this was a boy's or girl's name.

CECILIA female form of CECIL

CEDRIC meaning unknown (Teu: OE)
From Cerdic, the founder of the kingdom of Wessex.

CELESTE "heavenly" (Lat)

CELINE form of CECILIA or short form of MARCELINE or "heavenly" (Lat)

CHAD "battle" or "warrior" (Cel)

CHANDLER "candle seller" (Fre)
From a surname.

CHANDRA "moon" (San)

CHARITY "love" (Lat)

CHARLENE feminine form of CHARLES

CHARLES "a man" (Teu)
Charlemange was a great king of the Franks. Kings of England, France, Spain, Sweden, Hungary have also had this name.

CHARLOTTE French feminine form of CHARLES

CHARLTON "CHARLES' farm" (Fre) and (Teu: Ger)

CHERI "darling" (Fre) or form of CHARITY or CHERYL
Anglicized form of French word 'chérie' meaning darling.

CHERYL form of CHARLOTTE

CHESTER "of Chester" (Lat)
From a surname. Chester was an encampment of the Romans in Britain. The name comes from Latin 'castrum' meaning a fortified place.

CHET short form of CHESTER

CHRISTIAN "Christian" (Lat)

CHRISTINA "Christian" (Lat)

CHRISTINE English form of CHRISTINA

CHRISTOPHER "bearing Christ" (Gre)
Saint Christopher was martyred in the third century by the Romans.

CHRYSANTA
From chrysanthemum, the flowering plant.

CHUCK short form of CHARLES

CINDY short form of CYNTHIA

CLAIRE form of CLARA

CLARA feminine form of CLARENCE

CLARENCE "clear" or "bright" (Lat)
A popular son of the English king EDWARD VII. From Latin 'clarus'.

CLAUDE form of CLAUDIUS

CLAUDIA feminine form of CLAUDIUS

CLAUDINE feminine form of CLAUDIUS

CLAUDIUS "of Clauda" (Lat)
Clauda was the name of an island near Crete. It signifies a broken or weeping voice.

CLEMENT "meek" or "gentle" (Lat)
The name of 14 popes.

CLIFF form of CLIVE or short form of CLIFFORD

CLIFFORD "ford by a cliff" (Teu: OE)
From a place name or a surname.

CLINTON "[dweller at the] farmstead on the summit" (Teu)
From a surname.

CLIVE "[dweller by the] cliff" (Teu)
From a surname.

CLYDE (Cel)
From a river name in Scotland.

COLLEEN "girl" (Cel)
From Irish 'cailin' meaning girl.

COLIN short form of NICHOLAS or form of COLUMBIA

COLUMBIA "dove" (Lat)
Saint Columbia was a sixth century Irish monk.

CONAN possibly "high" or possibly "hound" (Cel: Gae)
Sir ARTHUR Conan Doyle was the author behind Sherlock Holmes.

CONRAD "able council" (Teu)
A tenth century Swiss bishop.

CORAL "coral" (Eng)
From the underwater skeletal deposits.

COREY "the chosen one" (Teu: OE)

CORINNA "maiden" (Gre)
From the Greek name 'Korinna'.

CORNELIA female form of CORNELIUS

CORNELIUS "horn sun" (Lat and Gre)
From Latin 'cornu' meaning horn and the Greek word for the sun.

COSMO "order" or "beauty" (Gre)
From the Greek name 'Kosmas' from Greek 'kosmos'. He was a saint martyred with his brother DAMIAN.

COURTNEY "short nose" (Fre) or from a French place name
The place name Courtenay is from 'domain of CURTIS'.

CRAIG "[dweller by the] crag" (ME)
From a surname.

CRISPIN "curly hair" (Lat)
From Latin 'crispus'.

CRYSTAL "crystal" (Eng) or (Gre)
From Greek 'krystallos' meaning ice.

CURT form of KURT or short form of CURTIS

CURTIS "courteous" (Fre)

CYNTHIA "of Cynthus" (Gre)
Cynthia was an epithet of the Greek moon goddess Artemis. Cynthus was the mountain on which she was born. The see also PHOEBE and DIANA.

CYRIL "lord" or "ruler" (Gre)
A Greek evangelist.