Corrie

Corrie (countable and uncountable, plural Corries)

From Scottish Gaelic coire (“cauldron, boiler; corrie”), which denotes a bowl-shaped geographical feature similar to a cirque.

der

A village in the isle of Arran, in North Ayrshire council area, Scotland (OS grid ref NS0242).

A male given name transferred from the surname, of occasional usage.


Corrie

A diminutive of the female given names Cora or Corinne, or borrowed from the Dutch pet form of Cornelia.


Corrie

Diminutive from Coronation Street + -ie.

It all seems to take place in the hiatus between Neighbours and “Brookie”, “Corrie” or EastEnders.

1989 May 20, Stephen Silk, “Campus: All change for housing”, in The Times, page 34:

Linda lives next door and is dead mumsy, even though she's no one's mum, 'cos she cooks my tea sometimes and lets me watch EastEnders on her massive plasma TV, even though she says I should 'stay true to my Northern Roots' and watch Corrie.

2012, Ellie Irving, Billie Templar's War, Random House (The Bodley Head):

(British, informal) Abbreviation of Coronation Street, a soap opera.


Drake

* As an English surname, from both senses of the noun drake meaning "male duck" and "dragon."
* As a German surname, from Low German drake (“dragon”), related to the above.
* As a Dutch surname, Americanized/West Flemish variant of Draak, also related to the above.

Drake was not at all what I'd anticipated. His macho soap opera name had put me in mind of aristocrats or oversexed mallards.

2004, Torey Hayden, chapter 4, in Twilight Children, HarperCollins UK, published 2013, →ISBN:

A male given name transferred from the surname.


Elan

A male given name from Hebrew, variant of Elon.


Eddy

A diminutive of Edward, Edgar, Edwin, or other male given names beginning with Ed-.


Blanche

From Old French blanc (“white”). The surname originated as a nickname, or as a matronymic.


Emerald

Emerald, Queensland
Peter Fitzallan MacDonald
Queensland Government
The Courier-Mail

The Queensland town takes its name from the emerald and other precious stone deposits in the area and from the pastoral run Emerald Downs, a name chosen circa 1860 by pastoralist Peter Fitzallan MacDonald. It is unclear if emeralds were found in or around Emerald.
The given name is a modern coinage from the name of the gemstone, representing a vernacular form of Esmeralda.

The child, a girl, was albino like April, and had exactly April's deep red eyes. Sol and Libra named her Emerald, a green name and a ground-term rather than a sky-term, as if in open expression of the slow spell worked on them all by Viridis.

1954 Theodore Sturgeon, The Golden Helix, in Leo Marguelis:Three Times Infinity, Fawcett Publications 1958, page 109

Mrs. Emerald Walsh was helping out at the presbytery.

1978, Mary Manning, The last chronicles of Ballyfungus, page 48:

(rare) A female given name from English.


Eth

A short form of the female given name Ethel.


Bianca

en-proper noun

Bianca (countable and uncountable, plural Biancas)

From Italian Bianca, equivalent of English Blanche.

Sweet Bianca! Happy man be his dole! He that runs fastest gets the ring.

c. 1590–1592 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Taming of the Shrew”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:


Di

A diminutive of the female given name Diana.


Ewondo

The language spoken by the Beti tribe from Cameroun, Yaounde area.


Chuck

A form of the male given name Charles, of mostly American usage.


Fante

She loved days like this one, where she could speak Fante as fast as she wanted.

2016, Yaa Gyasi, Homegoing, Penguin Books (2017), page 24:

A language spoken in Ghana, a dialect of Akan.


Fanagalo

A pidgin language based primarily on Zulu, spoken in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Zambia.


Em

And oh, Aunt Em! I'm so glad to be at home again!

1900 May 17, L[yman] Frank Baum, chapter 24, in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Chicago, Ill., New York, N.Y.: Geo[rge] M[elvin] Hill Co., →OCLC:

Mind you, he never calls me anything back. Isn't that the way of it? What do men call their wives. 'Em...' Like every woman in the planet was christened Emily. 'Em...is that shirt clean?'

2008, Anne Enright, Yesterday's Weather, Vintage, published 2009, →ISBN, page 4:

A diminutive of the female given names Emily, Emma, or Emmeline.


Dolly

Her name is Dorothy, though everyone has always called her Dolly. I do not know why, for there is nothing doll-like about her. She is a large, vigorous woman with the broad face and heavy hair of a tinker's wife.

1989, John Banville, The Book of Evidence, page 41:

A diminutive of the female given names Dorothy, Dolores, or Doris.


Candy

A pet form of the female given name Candace or Candice.


Deutsch

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-Deutsch.wav

PIE word
 *tewtéh₂
Borrowed from German Deutsch (“German”). Doublet of Dutch and Doitsu.

Riley's father, Reuben, spoke Deutsch in his boyhood home and did not learn to speak English until after his childhood even though he came from Irish roots. Riley's ancestors kept alive many of the old folktales and stories of their lives. Few of these Deutsch tales survive.

1997, Thomas E. Q. Williams, James Whitcomb Riley: the poet as flying islands of the night, page 76:

This letter had to be written in Deutsch because neither Paul nor Harriet knew Danish.

2002, Richard Braden, Escape from Europe, page 102:

“We sing our Sunday hymns a cappella, too,” Sadie said. “But Amish songs are very different from yours. They're written in Deutsch, and there's no harmony.”

2012, Rosalind Lauer, A Simple Spring: A Seasons of Lancaster Novel, page 163:


Deutsch

en-adj

Deutsch (comparative more Deutsch, superlative most Deutsch)

more Deutsch (comparative)
most Deutsch (superlative)


Fi

Short form of the female given name Fiona.


Dev

A diminutive of the male given name Devdas.


Caro

She hadn't realized that 'Caro' was a diminutive of Caroline until she met Jonathan. It sounded very Regency, like in all those historical novels she used to read when she was younger. Much younger. Of course, he came from the kind of background - county - where people are called 'Caroline'. And Lucy and Amanda and Jemima, so he should know.

2004, Kate Atkinson, Case Histories, →ISBN, pages 96–97:

A diminutive of the female given name Caroline.


Canadien

(Canada) A French Canadian (male or of unspecified sex).


Fay

A female given name, pet form of Faith or Frances; often used as a middle name.


Del

(British) A diminutive of the male given name Derek.


Felicity

From the noun felicity, and also the English form of Latin Felicitas, a name borne by early martyrs.

Fliss had them. Felicity Benson, Happiness Benson. Except she's not very happy at the moment, not with me.

2010, Sophie Hannah, A Room Swept White, Hodder & Stoughton, →ISBN, page 130:


Fern

From fern; in the case of the surname, it was given to someone who lived in a place where there was an abundance of these plants.

"Charlotte is the best storyteller I ever heard," said Fern, poking her dish towel into a cereal bowl.


Fleur

French fleur (“flower”), name of a character in Galsworthy's Forsyte Saga.

"Ma petite fleur!" Annette said softly.
"Fleur," repeated Soames: "Fleur! we'll call her that."

1920 John Galsworthy, The Forsyte Saga: In Chancery:III: Chapter 14

A female given name from French in quiet use since the 1920s.


Dexter

I was in Atlanta with our three children — our second son, Dexter, named for our beloved church in Montgomery, had been born in January, and was still an infant.

1969, Coretta Scott King, My Life with Martin Luther King, Jr, Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, pages 204–205:

A male given name transferred from the surname.


Eric

From Middle English Eric, from Old English Eoric, from Old Norse Eirríkr, Eiríkr (from ei (“always, eternal”, see aye) + ríkr (“ruler”)), or from Proto-Germanic *Aizarīkijaz (from *aizō (“honor”) + *rīkijaz (“ruler”)). Less likely from einn (“sole, alone”) + ríkr (“ruler”), from Proto-Germanic *rīks (“king”, cognate to Latin rēx and Gaulish *rīx). The name was in use in Anglo-Saxon Britain, reinforced by Scandinavian settlers before the Norman Conquest. Compare Danish Erik, German Erich. Possible doublet of Euric.

af

see <i class="Latn mention" lang="en">aye</i>

der

"What's your name?" "Eric - I mean Williams." "Then why don't you say what you mean?"

1859, Frederic William Farrar, chapter II, in Eric, or Little by Little: A Tale of Roslyn School:

Mark it. Professor Roberts does not like the name Eric. This happens to be one of his given names, and it is a very honorable one. Eric was the first Viking explorer of the North American continent, and this ERIC we hope will be an explorer in the fields of complex therapy.

1959, Roentgens, Rads and Riddles: A Symposium on Supervoltage Radiation Therapy., U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, page 71:

A male given name from the Germanic languages.


Bar

A diminutive of the female given name Barbara.


Elma

A 19th-century creation, usually explained as a form of Wilhelmina or Italian Guglielma. It has also been recorded as a blend of Elizabeth and Mary.

A female given name originating as a coinage.


Crow

From French gens de corbeaux, calque of Dakota apsáaloke (“crow people”). Compare Crow Apsáalooke.

calque

(linguistics) The Siouan language of this tribe.


Duke

en-proper noun

Duke (countable and uncountable, plural Dukes)

(countable) A male given name from English; mostly US and rather rare.

A township in Harnett County, North Carolina, United States.


Carl

From Germanic, cognate with English Charles.
* From German and other north European Carl and Karl.
* From Latin Carolus.

Of course you know that Carl Duruside, or 'Doctor Carl', as he is always called by almost anybody, is my husband's brother?

1882, “Doctor Carl”, in Frank Leslie's Pleasant Hours, volume 31, F. Leslie Pub. Co., page 293:

And Thomas Carlyle is nine. They call him Carl, and he has a regular mania for collecting toads and bugs and frogs and bringing them into the house.

1919 Lucy Maud Montgomery, Rainbow Valley, 1st World Publishing (2007), page 19

I'd weave through the throng — scanning for empties to return while flirting, sniffing out kids smoking grass and sharing smokes with Ivor and Carl on the door. With a name like Carl you can imagine a six-foot tall and wide bouncer, but Ivor...

2004, David W. Scott, The Disillusioned: A Story of Our Times, Fraser Books, →ISBN, page 204:

A male given name from the Germanic languages, equivalent to English Charles.

Kërl

transliterations and equivalents of "Carl"


Daisy

From the flower daisy, one of the flower names dating from the 19th century. Also a nickname for Margaret, since Marguerite and Margarita are identical with the French and Spanish word for "daisy".

Mrs. Fairfax kept always an eye upon him, and in spite of his familiarity with her, so restrained him in his intercourse with Margaret, that he could not for his life call her Daisy any more, though he had done so on the first day of their acquaintance.

1867, Alice Cary, The Bishop's Son, G. W. Carleton&Co, published 1867, page 31:

Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer, do! / I'm half crazy all for the love of you!

1892, Harry Dacre (lyrics and music), “Daisy Bell”:

She was a timid, sensitive girl, looking like her name - Daisy-ish industrious and thorough in her studies; - - -

1929, Thomas Wolfe, Look Homeward, Angel, Modern Library, published 1957, page 45:

"Isn't she a Christian or something - a name which is..."
"Nothing more than the name of a flower, that's all. Daisy is a flower." He realized he was not sure what flower it was. "It's a most lovely flower grown in America, England, and so forth. What is wrong with that name?"

1976, R. K. Narayan, The Painter of Signs, Penguin Classics, published 1982, →ISBN, page 115:


Donna

A 19th-century invention from the Italian noun donna; also interpreted as a feminine form of Donald.

"Did you ever know a lady named Miss May-rant? With a funny sort of first name, like Donna? Yes, that is it - Miss Donna May-rant."

1914, Mary McNeil Fenollosa, Ariadne of Allan Water, Burt, published 1914, page 30:

I had a girl / Donna was her name. / Since she left me / I've never been the same.

1958, Ritchie Valens (lyrics and music), “Donna”:


Fuchsia

[…] the attic, which since the earliest days Fuchsia could remember had been for her a world undesecrate.

1946, Mervyn Peake, Titus Groan, London: Eyre & Spottiswoode, →OCLC:

Slater quotes from a new book titled Sichuan Cookery, by Fuchsia Dunlop, the BBC's East Asia specialist.

2012, William Shurtleff, Akiko Aoyagi, History of Yuba - The Film That Forms Atop Heated Soymilk (1587-2012):


Brett

Related to Breton, Brittany, and more distantly Briton.

A unisex given name transferred from the surname.


Gav

Short form of the male given name Gavin.


Faith

Faith (countable and uncountable, plural Faiths)

"Now, I was called Faith after the cardinal virtue; and I like my name, though many people would think it too Puritan; that was according to our gentle mother's pious desire.

1853, Elizabeth Gaskell, chapter XVII, in Ruth:

“Faith.”
“No name that—no name that! I can’t stomach such a name. Got any other?”
“No, sir.”
“Don’t like the name, don’t like it. There’s no smeddum to it. Besides, it makes me think of my Aunt Jinny. She called her three girls Faith, Hope, and Charity. Faith didn’t believe in anything—Hope was a born pessimist—and Charity was a miser.

1919, Lucy Maud Montgomery, chapter XVI, in Rainbow Valley, Echo Library, published 2006, →ISBN, page 90:

There was something to be said for all those religiously influenced names – Patience, Grace, Chastity, Faith. Better to be named for a virtue than to be landed with a forgettable name like 'Martin'.

2006, Kate Atkinson, One Good Turn, Black Swan, published 2007, →ISBN, page 81:


Erin

Anglicisation of Irish Éirinn (dative singular and dialectal nominative singular of Éire (“Ireland”)).

bor

dative singular and dialectal nominative singular of <i class="Latn mention" lang="ga">Éire</i> (“Ireland”)

Erin (disambiguation)
Thomas Buchanan Read

Alternative forms: Eryn, Arin, Eireann

A female or male given name, in use since the mid-20th century, used in honor of Ireland.


Gene

A diminutive of Eugene, also used as a formal male given name.


Fauna

Feminine form of Faunus.
Some refer it to Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₂w-, whence Ancient Greek θαῦνον (thaûnon, “beast”), Illyrian-related Daunus. Some refer it to faveō.


Elle

A diminutive of the female given name Eleanor and other names beginning with El. Also given as a name in its own right.


Garland

en-proper noun

Garland (countable and uncountable, plural Garlands)

English surname, from the noun garland. Also derived from Garland in Devon, from an ancestor of the noun gore (“triangular piece of land”) + land.

(countable) A male given name transferred from the surname.


Ginger

A diminutive of Virginia; also a nickname for someone or something with ginger-coloured hair.

A female given name from English and nickname. Popularized by actress Ginger Rogers

A given name for animals having ginger- or orange-coloured fur or feathers.


Foster

Foster (countable and uncountable, plural Fosters)

English surname, reduced from Forster; also from the noun foster.


Dia

A language spoken in Sandaun Province, Papua New Guinea.


Gin

A Hanyu Pinyin-esque romanization of Vietnamese Kinh (京).

An ethnic Vietnamese, in reference to those whose lands are in China.


Ge

A group of aboriginal languages of Brazil.


Flathead

From flat + head, from the practice of compressing the skull in infancy by artificial means. However, the Salish tribe never practised this custom, the confusion arising from the fact that the early traders felt compelled to adopt the local Indian classification, which considered the prevailing compressed skull of the neighbouring tribes as pointed and the naturally shaped Salish skull by contrast as flat.


Ada

Short form of Germanic names beginning with adal (“noble”), such as Adelaide. Also Latinized form of Hebrew Adah. The programming language takes its name from Ada Lovelace.

Is thy face like thy mother's, my fair child! / Ada! Sole daughter of my house and heart?

1818 George Gordon Byron, Childe Harold's Pilgrimage, Canto the third: I

A female given name from the Germanic languages.


Gay

A female given name from English, from the word gay (“joyful”); rare today.

A male given name transferred from the surname

- - - my father's father, Gaetano Talese (whose name I inherited after my birth in 1932, in the anglicized form "Gay"), was an atypically fearless traveler,

1992, Gay Talese, Unto the Sons, Ballantine Books, published 1993, →ISBN, page 15:

A diminutive of the male given names Gaylord or Gabriel, and similar names

"Mr Gay Brawls. What a name."
"It didn't use to mean what it means now. Plenty were named Gay. Even in Nevada. Was old Gay Pitch had a gas station in Winnemucca. Nobody thought nothin about it and he raised a railroad car of kids.

2004, Annie Proulx, Bad Dirt, Fourth Estate, →ISBN, page 32:

A unisex given name from English
A male given name from English


Drew

A diminutive of the male given name Andrew


Drew

From Anglo-Norman Drew, Drieu, Drue, from Old French Drogon, Dreus, Drues (made popular by Charlemagne's son Drogo) from Old Dutch Drogo, of uncertain ultimate origin. Possibly from Proto-West Germanic *dragan (“to carry, pull”), or from Proto-Germanic *draugaz (“phantom, apparition”).

der

A male given name from the Germanic languages


Drew

Sunflower County
Sunflower County#English

A city in Sunflower County, Mississippi, named after Miss Drew Daniel.

An unincorporated community in Laclede County, Missouri, named after S. E. Drew.

Wellington County
Wellington County#English

A rural community in Wellington County, Ontario, Canada, named after George Alexander Drew (Liberal-Conservative MP).


Geat

From Old English Ġēat, from Proto-West Germanic *Gaut, from Proto-Germanic *gautaz (“Geat”).

(history) A member of a North Germanic tribe formerly occupying what is now Götaland in Sweden.


Dom

A unisex given name, a form of Dominic or Dominique.


Gray

Gray (surname)
Gray, Haute-Saône
Graye-sur-Mer
Grey (disambiguation)

* As an English, Irish, Scottish, and Norman surname, from the placename Graye-sur-Mer in Calvados, from Late Latin Graecus (“Greek”).
* Also as an English surname, from the adjective gray. Compare the Irish calque McGreevy.
* As a French surname, from Gray, Haute-Saône in France, from the personal name Gradus, a Gallo-Roman/Celtic pronunciation of Gratus, from the name Gratius.


Gage

en-proper noun

Gage (countable and uncountable, plural Gages)

An occupational surname from Middle English gage, guage (“measure”) for an assayer, or gage (“pledge”) for a moneylender.

A male given name transferred from the surname, of modern usage.

An unincorporated community in Ballard County, Kentucky.

A ghost town in Luna County, New Mexico.

A town in Ellis County, Oklahoma, named after Lyman J. Gage.

An unincorporated community in Barbour County, West Virginia.


Earl

"Of course Gladys and Eleanor, having graced the last generation of heroines and being at present in their social prime, will be passed on to the next generation of shopgirls -"
"Displacing Ella and Stella," interrupted Dick.
"And Pearl and Jewel,", Gloria added cordially, " and Earl and Elmer and Minnie."

1922, F[rancis] Scott Fitzgerald, The Beautiful and Damned, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC, (please specify |book=1, 2, or 3):

- - - in a world of mandatory diminutives, a corporation of jolly Bills and Jacks and Herbs and Teds in which an unabbreviable given name like Earl must have been a minor handicap, "Oat" was the best that could be done for a man with the given name of Otis.

1961, Richard Yates, Revolutionary Road, Vintage Contemporaries, published 2000, →ISBN, page 74:

(chiefly US) A male given name from English from the English noun earl.

Las Animas County
Las Animas County#English

A number of places in the United States:

An unincorporated community in Las Animas County, Colorado.

An unincorporated community in Callaway County, Missouri.

Cleveland County
Cleveland County#English

A town in Cleveland County, North Carolina.

An unincorporated community in Springbrook, Washburn County, Wisconsin.


Gem

A diminutive of the female given name Gemma.


Ellen

→ Hawaiian: ʻElena

Medieval English variant of Helen, from Ancient Greek Ἑλένη (Helénē); also used as a variant of Eleanor or a feminine counterpart to Elliot.

And how doth my cousin, your bedfellow? and your fairest daughter and mine, my god-daughter Ellen?

c. 1596–1599 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene iv]:

"Is her name Ellen or Helen, Miss Viner? I thought - "
Miss Viner closed her eyes.
"I can sound my h's, dear, as well as anyone, but Helen is not a suitable name for a servant. I don't know what the mothers in the lower classes are coming to nowadays."

1928, Agatha Christie, The Mystery of the Blue Train:


Herb

A diminutive of the male given name Herbert


Dai

A male given name from Welsh, a Welsh diminutive of David.


Fred

When I referred to the confusion which would result from the presence in the house of two people with the same name, she tossed her head and said it would be easy to obviate that by calling me Frederick instead of Fred. […] Imagine Harry Bolles and other kindred spirits calling me stiff, august Frederick! I vowed that this should not be brought to pass […]

1892, Robert Grant, The Reflections of a Married Man, Scribner, pages 98–99:

I had great parents, but they made one major mistake. They named me Fred. I'm sorry in case other Freds read this, but Fred is a rather weak name. It just sort of fades away on the tongue. It's not positive like Matt or Jim or Mike or Luke.

2002, Fred Hill, You May as Well Laugh: The Columns of Fred Hill, iUniverse, →ISBN, page 59:

A short version of Frederick, Alfred, or Wilfred, also used as a formal male given name.


Hetty

A diminutive of the female given names Henrietta, Hester and Esther.


Hanzi

From the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of Mandarin 漢字／汉字 (Hànzì). Doublet of kanji and hanja.

On May 21, 1957, the Jen min je pao published the text of the previous day’s discussions during which writers and scholars of various tendencies had examined before the Commission the proposed reform (which, in the opinion of certain “leftists,” entailed in fact the suppression of the han tzŭ, the Chinese characters).

[1959, Etiemble, “One China or Two?”, in Evergreen Review, volume 2, number 8, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 31:

Chinese character
Chinese character#English

Synonym of Chinese character (specifically in relation to Chinese)


Griffin

A male given name from Welsh derived from Griffinus, a latinized form of Gruffudd.

A male given name from Cornish derived from Gryffyn, of relation to the Welsh name.


Calliope

From Latin Calliope, from Ancient Greek Καλλιόπη (Kalliópē), from κᾰλλῐ- (kalli-, “beautiful”) + ὄψ (óps, “voice”).


Ana

From various languages including Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Bulgarian, Serbo-Croatian, Slovene, and Macedonian, all derived—sometimes via Late Latin Anna in the Vulgate—from Koine Greek Ἄννα (Ánna, “Anna”), chiefly in reference to St Anne the apocryphal mother of Mary mother of Jesus but appearing in the New Testament in reference to Anna the Prophetess, from Hebrew חַנָּה (Ḥanâ, “Hannah”), from חַנָּה (ḥanâ, “grace, gracious, graced with child”). As an Oregonian river, named for Ana Byars, daughter of the surveyor W.H. Byars. Doublet of Ann, Anne, Anna, and Hannah.

A female given name, equivalent to English Anna or Hannah.


Ana

An ethnicity within the Yoruba people, mostly living in Benin and Togo in West Africa.

The language within the Niger-Congo family spoken by the Ana people.


Honour

A female given name from English, a less common spelling of Honor.


Gallo

Gallo (countable and uncountable, plural Gallos or Galloes)

* As an Italian and Spanish surname, from the noun gallo (“rooster”).
* Also as an Italian surname, from the personal name Gallo, from Latin gallus (“a Gaul”). This is sometimes Americanized from Greek Γάλλος (Gállos). Compare Gallia.
* As a Breton surname, shortened from Le Gallo, a diminutive of Le Gall; compare Legall.
* (language): From Breton gall (“a Gaul or a foreigner”), from being a language found in eastern Brittany of the non-Celts, from Latin gallus.

A Romance language spoken in north-west France, see Gallo language.

gallaoueg

Romance language spoken in northwest France


Glen

A male given name transferred from the surname.


Gram

(US) A male given name Alternative form of Graham


Hal

A diminutive lambdacism of Harry (compare Sally from Sarah and Moll from Mary).

I prethee, good Prince Hal, help me to my horſe, good Kings ſonne.

c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene ii], page 54, column 1:

A diminutive of the male given names Henry, Harold and Harry.


Holly

Breakfast at Tiffany's
Holly (disambiguation)
Holly (name)

* As an Irish surname, calque of mac cuilinn (“holly”) (see McCullen) and sometimes McQuillan.
* As an English surname, variant of Holley.
* As a Czech and Slovak surname, variant of Holý, Holy.
* Also as a locational English surname, from Old English hol leah (“wood, clearing, meadow”), compare Hollywood.
* Also as an English surname, short form of Holiday.
* Also as an English surname, after the holly tree.
* As a feminine given name popularized by Truman Capote's Breakfast at Tiffany's (especially the 1961 film adaptation starring Audrey Hepburn).

Grandma said, "I used to know a little girl called Holly - she always had her dresses trimmed with red or green." Milly-Molly-Mandy thought that was quite a nice name.

1929, Joyce Lankester Brisley, chapter 8, in More of Milly-Molly-Mandy:

"Holly, would you mind if I named my little girl 'Holly'? I mean, it's right around Christmas time, and I always think of holly with Christmas.

2006, Joyce Winters, Let Your Light Shine, →ISBN, page 209:

(rare) A male given name transferred from the surname.

A town in Prowers County, Colorado, named after cattleman Hiram S. Holly.

A township and village therein, in Oakland County, Michigan.

An unincorporated community in Kitsap County, Washington, named for a large holly tree.

An unincorporated community in Kanawha County, West Virginia.


Ga

A Niger-Congo language spoken in Ghana and Togo.


Euripides

From the Ancient Greek Εὐρῑπῐ́δης (Eurīpídēs).

Ευριπίδης Ευριπίδης#Greek

A male given name from Ancient Greek, mostly representing a transliteration of the modern Greek Ευριπίδης (Evripídis).


Gill

* As an English surname, converged from variants of Giles (sometimes through Dutch), Julian, and William.
* As a northern English surname, from Middle English gil (“ravine, glen”), from Old Norse gil. The Old Norse is also a source of the Norwegian surname.
* As an Irish and Scottish Gaelic surname, variant of McGill.
* Also as an Irish surname, variant of Gall.
* As a Jewish/Israeli surname, from Hebrew גיל (“joy”).
* As a German surname, variant of Gilger.
* As an Indian/Sikh/Punjabi surname, from ਗਿੱਲ (gill, “moisture”).

A diminutive of the male given names Giles, Julian, or William, of medieval usage.

each Jack with his Gill

1621 August 13 (first performance; Gregorian calendar), Ben Jonson, “The Masque of the Gypsies”, in Q. Horatius Flaccus: His Art of Poetry. […], London: […] J[ohn] Okes, for John Benson […], published 1640, →OCLC:

A diminutive of the female given name Gillian, variant of Jill.

A male given name transferred from the surname, of modern usage.

An unincorporated community in Weld County, Colorado; named for early landowner William H. Gill.


Hazel

Hazel (countable and uncountable, plural Hazels)

GREEN. - - Squire Rodney has been looking into your affairs, and, by Jove! he swears you've deceived Hazel Kirke!
ARTHUR. Deceived her? How?
GREEN. He says that your marriage to her was a pretence, a farce, a lie.

1880, Steele MacKaye, Hazel Kirke ( An Iron Will):

In the month of May,
When all nature seems in touch with hidden jewels,
We called her Hazel,
Hazel May.

1908, S. Florence Ray, Fallen Petals, page 17:

Now, as I mentioned earlier, I never liked the name Hazel. I didn't like being called after a nut. I wanted to be called Rosemary, something pretty.

2002, Susan Starbuck, Hazel Wolf: Fighting the Establishment., →ISBN, page 26:

A female given name from English from the plant or colour hazel. Popular in the U.S. at the turn of the 20th century.


Dari

Borrowed from Classical Persian دری (darī), of disputed origin, probably from دربار (darbār, “royal court”). The term was adopted by the government of Afghanistan in 1964 as the official name of the varieties of Persian spoken in the country, which has become the most common usage of the term since.

bor+

The variety of the Persian language that is chiefly used in Afghanistan, contrasted with varieties spoken elsewhere such as Iranian Persian or Tajik.

دَرِيَّة

variety of Persian spoken in Afghanistan

(historical, now less common) A variety of Middle Persian which served as the court language of the late Sasanian Empire.

A language primarily spoken in the Yazd and Kerman areas of Iran.


Creek

* As an English surname, from Creake in Norfolk, a variant of the noun crag (“steep rugged cliff”).
* Also as an English surname, from the archaic noun cratch (“crib, manger”).
* As a German surname, Americanized from Krieg (“war, warfare”), Krück, Kruck (see Krug (“jug”) and Krücke (“crutch”)), Krick.
* As a Dutch surname, Americanized from Kreek (from the noun kreek (“creek”), see creek) and Kriek (from kriek (“cherry”)).
* The Native American tribe name is likely shortened from Ocheese Creek.

One of a Native American tribe from the Southeastern United States, also known as the Muscogee.


Creek

The Muskogean language of the Creek tribe.


Honor

Shortened from Honoria and Honora; later also interpreted as a virtue name by Puritans.

They had named the baby Honor because Eugenie had been moved by Honoré de Balzac's Le Père Goriot in her French class.

2004, Annie Proulx, Bad Dirt, Fourth Estate, →ISBN, page 104:


Handy

Originating as a nickname for a handy person.


Ish

A diminutive of the male given name Ishmael.

A diminutive of the female given name Ishani.


Genie

A male given name Diminutive of Eugene and pet form of Gene

A female given name Diminutive of Eugenie and Eugenia


Greens

In reference to the ancient Roman and medieval Byzantine racing faction, a calque of Latin prasinī (“Leek-Greens”) or factio prasina (“the leek-green faction”) and Byzantine Greek Πράσινοι (Prásinoi, “Leek-Greens”).

bor

(informal) Synonym of Green Party in various other contexts.


Heather

From heather; the given name is one of the plant names taken up in the 19th century. The surname is habitational, also meaning someone living on a heath.

She struck his fancy - that pretty girl with the quaint name: sweet Heather Bell, as Mr. Travers always called her.
"The name was a fancy of her godfather, an eccentric bachelor," the lady explained. " She was the youngest of three daughters, and the other two were called, respectively, 'Lily' and 'Rose'. 'Call this one Heather,' said Mr. Stewart, who loved Scotland and her purple mountains, 'she will grow up like the heather, perhaps - strong, hardy, a wild flower, worth of a hundred of your garden rarities.'

1867, J.H.Riddell, Far Above Rubies, Bernhard Tauchnitz, page 50:

"I like Hazel and Heather," Angel said, after a while. "They're both names of plants, so they sort of go with Rose."
"I don't have no plant, I got a little girl," Rose Rose said, smiling.

2001, John Irving, The Cider House Rules, Ballantine Books, →ISBN, page 506:


Islander

Prince Edward Islander
Prince Edward Islander#English

Vancouver Islander
Vancouver Islander#English

Pacific Islander
Pacific Islander#English


Jed

A diminutive of the male given name Jedidiah.


Jak

(rare) Alternative form of Jack (male given name)


Hunt

en-proper noun

Hunt (countable and uncountable, plural Hunts)

A male given name transferred from the surname.


Hardy

* As an English, Scottish, and French surname, from Middle English hardy, hardi, from Old French hardi (“hardy, daring, stout, bold”).
* As an Irish surname, via mac giolla deacair (“son of the hard lad”) as a calque of the above.
* Also as a Scottish surname, variant of Hardie.


Gabe

A diminutive of the male given name Gabriel.


Heaven

(rare) A female given name from English of modern usage from the noun heaven.


Hyacinth

From Latin Hyacinthus, a saint's name from the name of an Ancient Greek Ὑάκινθος (Huákinthos), a mythological character .

(rare) A male given name from Ancient Greek.

A female given name from English. One of the less common flower names used since the 19th century.


Grace

en-proper noun

Grace (countable and uncountable, plural Graces)

From the noun grace, first used by Puritans in the 16th century. In Roman Catholic use it may refer to Our Lady of Graces, cognate with Italian Grazia.

To The Handsome Mistress Grace Potter: As is your name, so is your comely face / Touch'd everywhere with such a diffused grace /

Grace does not belie her name; for she is indeed a sweet girl, modest and unassuming, and appearing to be unconscious of having done anything great or noble. - OBSERVER, Dec.16, 1838.

1839, George William MacArthur Reynolds, Grace Darling, or the Heroine of the Fern Islands, page 24:

They named me Grace and waited for a light and agile dancer. / But some trick of genes mixed me up / And instead I turned out big and black and burly.

1965 Naomi Long Madgett: Her Story, Star By Star, Harlo Press

Had I given birth to a daughter of my own, I'd like to have called her Grace, a classic and poetic name, one that illuminates a person of dignity and poise.

2002 June, Deborah Paul, “Amazing Grace”, in Indianapolis Monthly, page 249:

(countable) A female given name from English.


Angel

"What is your first name, Mr Botibol? What does the A stand for?" "Angel," he answered. "Not Angel." "Yes," he said irritably. "Angel Botibol," she murmured and she began to giggle. But she checked herself and said, "I think it's a most unusual and distinguished name."

1973, Roald Dahl, More Tales of the Unexpected: Mr Botibol:

A male given name from Latin Angelus [in turn from Ancient Greek], used since 16th century; or an anglicized spelling of Ángel.

A female given name from English of modern usage from the English noun angel.


Jas

A diminutive of the male given name James

A diminutive of the female given name Jasmine


Jewel

Jewel he called her; and he would say this as he might have said ‘Jane,’ don’t you know, with a marital, homelike, peaceful effect. I heard the name for the first time ten minutes after I had landed in his courtyard, when, after nearly shaking my arm off, he darted up the steps and began to make a joyous, boyish disturbance at the door under the heavy eaves. ‘Jewel! O! Jewel. Quick! Here’s a friend come,’ …

1899 September – 1900 July, Joseph Conrad, chapter XXVIII, in Lord Jim: A Tale, Edinburgh, London: William Blackwood and Sons, published 1900, →OCLC, pages 297–298:

"Of course Gladys and Eleanor, having graced the last generation of heroines and being at present in their social prime, will be passed on to the next generation of shopgirls——" / "Displacing Ella and Stella," interrupted Dick. / "And Pearl and Jewel,", Gloria added cordially, "and Earl and Elmer and Minnie." / "And then I'll come along," remarked Dick, "and picking up the obsolete name, Jewel, I'll attach it to some quaint and attractive character and it'll start its career all over again."

1922, F[rancis] Scott Fitzgerald, “Portrait of a Siren”, in The Beautiful and Damned, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC, book 1, pages 58–59:

A female given name from English from the noun jewel, used since the end of the 19th century.

A male given name from English, a variant of Jewell, or from "jewel" like the female name.


Jazz

A fanciful spelling variant of Jaz and Jas.

His real name was James, but those who knew him seemed never to call him that. He was Jamesy, or more often Jazz.

2001, Ian Rankin, Resurrection Men, Orion, page 4:

A diminutive of the male given name James.

"He calls you Jazzikins." He would. He had. Couldn't call me Jazz or Jasmine the way everyone else did.

2012? Madeleine Oh, At Long Last, in The Mammoth Book of Erotica: Volume 4, Constable and Robinson Ltd (2012)

A diminutive of the female given name Jasmine.


Bari

Borrowed from Italian Bari, ultimately from Latin Barium.


Bari

Synonym of Motilon (“a people of Colombia”)


Bari

A tribe of Karo, Nilotic people inhabiting South Sudan, who speak the Bari language.


Joey

A diminutive of the male given names Joe or Joseph

A diminutive of the female given name Josephine


Gloria

/ˈɡlɔːɹ.ɪ.ə/

/ˈɡlɔːɹ.iː.ə/

From Latin gloria (“glory”), first used as a name in 19th-century literature.

Miss Flax, the little thin sister, and Miss Gloria, the stout able-bodied sister, lifted up their hands and eyes in horror at the mere hint of a wet nurse.

1835 October, Jacobus Flax: The Knickerbocker, page 291:

Crampton. […] What's your name? I mean your pet name. They can't very well call you Sophronia.
Gloria. Sophronia! My name is Gloria. I am always called by it.
Crampton. Your name is Sophronia, girl: you were called after your aunt Sophronia, my sister: she gave you your first Bible with your name written in it.
Gloria: Then my mother gave me a new name.

1898, George Bernard Shaw, You Never Can Tell, act II:

A female given name from Latin. Popular during the first half of the 20th century.


Josh

A diminutive of the male given name Joshua.


Hunter

Hunter (countable and uncountable, plural Hunters)

A male given name transferred from the surname.


Ido

Borrowing from Ido Ido. Began as a pseudonym, probably directly from Esperanto ido (“offspring”).

constructed language
constructed language

A constructed language; a reform of Esperanto and Idiom Neutral

إِيدُو

artificial language reformed from Esperanto


Ivy

From ivy, the name of a plant. An ivy branch used to be hung outside an establishment to advertise that it sold alcohol, so it may originally been an occupationational surname for the proprietor of such an establishment.

Little Ivy's life, as the months pass on, is a quiet, uneventful one, but exceedingly happy withal: - - - "You have a strange name, my dear," the old lady says one day, and the child answers in her serious, old-fashioned way, "Yes, so everyone has always said. You know my mamma died when I was born, and papa named me that because he said that I came when his heart was all aching with sorrow, and twined around it and comforted him."

1882 Something to Read. (Edited by) Edwin John Bret: Something to read novelette. page 254

Kind people apply all the milder words to your face; only Father ever called it ugly. Ugly Ivy mingy as her name. Father himself was handsome and drunken. Mother had wanted 'Ivy' simple and yet pretty and for once stuck to her guns. You wished she hadn't.

1974, Patrick White, The Cockatoos: Shorter Novels and Stories., Cape, →ISBN, page 204:

A female given name from English; popular in the UK in the beginning of the 20th century.


Kitty

A diminutive of Katherine and related female given names.


Gunter

From German Gunther, from Proto-West Germanic *Gunþihari, from Proto-Germanic *Gunþiharjaz.

(obsolete) A male given name from the Germanic languages used in medieval England.


Edo

A state of Nigeria in the South South geopolitical zone. Capital and largest city: Benin City.


Barbie

A diminutive of the female given name Barbara.


Jute

From Latin plural Iuti, Iutae (in Bede), from Old English Ēotas. Ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *eut, from Proto-Germanic *eutaz, *eutaniz. The spelling was later influenced by Medieval Latin Jutae, Juti.

A member of the Germanic tribe that existed in modern-day Denmark that invaded England about the same time as the Angles and the Saxons in the beginning of the Middle Ages, but were eventually integrated by the time of the Norman Conquest.


Gad

Borrowed from Biblical Hebrew גָּד (gad), a son of Jacob.


Fang

The dominant Bantu language of Gabon and Equatorial Guinea, spoken by 1.3 million people, also called Pahouin.

Fang

the language of Guinea which is also called Pahouin

A Beboid language of Cameroon, spoken by only 2400 people, so called because it is spoken in the village of Fang.


Fang

The county sense is from Mandarin 房 (Fáng). The surname sense could be from Mandarin 方 (Fāng), 房 (Fáng), 芳 (Fāng), 仿 (Fǎng) or 放 (Fǎng).

Many valuable medicines are produced in Hupei, particularly in the Shih-nan Prefecture and in the Fang and Hsing-shan districts.

1907, Report for the Year 1907 on the Chemical, Metal and Mining Industries of the Consular District of Lyons, →OCLC, page 23:

FANG COUNTY HYDROELECTRICITY--This year the people in Fang County have developed 135 small hydroelectric power stations with a total installed[...]

1978, Translations on People's Republic of China, numbers 471-479, →OCLC:

After parting with his brothers, Wang Yü-yang journeyed on the southwest road and came to a small town nestled in the rural region of Fang County.

1990, Eva Wong, transl., Seven Taoist Masters: A Folk Novel of China, Boston & London: Shambhala Publications, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 110:

“Its speed was very fast, but it was walking, not running,” Yuan said. As the creature ranged across a mountain in Fang county, bordering the Shennongjia Forestry District, “it walked faster than a human ran”.

2018 August 26, Laurie Chen, “Dreamers, crackpots or realists? The diehards on the trail of China’s ‘Bigfoot’”, in South China Morning Post, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2018-08-25:

Hubei Sanxin Biotechnology Co., LTD, located in Fang County, Shiyan City, has developed a series of traditional Chinese medicine [from] Polygonum Cuspidatum, including "yellow bud stem" vegetables, resveratrol extract, emodin extract, and crude Polygonum cuspidatum extract and so on.

2019, Na Li, Ni Yan, “Present Situation and Development Suggestions of Traditional Chinese Medicine Industry in Hubei Province”, in 2019 4th International Conference on Education and Social Development (ICESD 2019), →DOI, →ISBN, page 147:

Now, the Fang County government is trying “incentives,” according to a statement posted Saturday on its website. People who report their own fevers will receive 1,000 renminbi, the equivalent of $143 — a few days’ salary for the average Hubei resident.

2020 March 12, “Deaths in China Surpass Toll From SARS”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2020-05-21, Asia Pacific:


Kay

A male given name from Welsh derived from the surnames, or from a rare medieval given name (as the Sir Kay of Arthurian legend), Welsh Cai, Latinized as Caius, related to the modern male name Kai.


Koko

A Khoisan language of Namibia and Botswana.


Dorcas

From Ancient Greek δορκάς (dorkás, “gazelle”), translation of Tabitha in the Bible.

uder

A female given name from Ancient Greek of biblical origin.


Apollo

From Latin Apollō, from Ancient Greek Ἀπόλλων (Apóllōn).


Kris

A diminutive of the female given names Kristina, Kristin, Kristine and related given names (Christina, etc).

A diminutive of the male given names Christopher, Christian, and related given names.


Even

From Russian Эве́нский (Evénskij), from эвэн (evɛn), of Tungusic origin. Compare Evenki.

A Tungusic language spoken by the Evens in Siberia and the Russian Far East.


Even

An ethnic Even: a member of an indigenous people living in Siberia and the Russian Far East.


Khan

As a surname via Hindi खान (khān), Persian خان (xân), among others. As a title, a proper noun form of khan.

A male given name used extensively among Muslims of South Asia.


Jehu

Borrowed from Hebrew יְהוּא (y'hu). Attested to in Akkadian as 𒅀𒌑𒀀 𒈥 𒄷𒌝𒊑𒄿 (Iaúa mar Chumrii, literally “Jehu of the people of the land of Omri”).


Jock

Believed to be a Scots variant of Jack. Because of its specific association with Scotland, the British English slang term is believed by most sources to be derived from the frequency of the use of the given name in Scotland, rather than from the "common man" etymology.


Joy

From the noun joy, first used by Puritans in the 17th century.

"I have no name: / I am but two days old." / What shall I call thee? / "I happy am, / Joy is my name." / Sweet joy befall thee!

She was named Muriel — after the rather peculiar name of John's mother. Her own mother would have it so; only wishing out of her full heart, happy one! that there should be a slight alteration made in the second name. Therefore the baby was called Muriel Joy — Muriel Joy Halifax.

1857, Dinah Craik, John Halifax, Gentleman, Chapter XXI

All the while, our baby Joyce was growing to be a very outgoing baby. ( - - - ) Given the joy we felt watching her grow and from our connection to the church, the name Joy seemed appropriate for our baby girl. Soon that's what we shortened it to, and what she is known by to this day.

2009, Princess Kasune Zulu, Warrior Princess, IVP Books, →ISBN, page 80:


Grant

en-proper noun

Grant (countable and uncountable, plural Grants)

From Scottish Gaelic Grannd, from Anglo-Norman graunt (“big, large”), from Old French grant, from Latin grandis. Doublet of grand.

A male given name transferred from the surname.


Gun

A Gbe language spoken in parts of Benin and Nigeria.


Ali

From Arabic عَلِيّ (ʕaliyy, literally “high, exalted”), from the Arabic root ع ل ي (ʕ-l-y).


Ali

A diminutive of the female given name Alison or of its variants.

A diminutive of the male given name Alistair or of its variants.


Lez

(informal) A diminutive of the male given name Leslie.


Hope

en-proper noun

Hope (usually uncountable, plural Hopes)

Nadine f (from Nadia (pet form from Надежда) + -ine)

A female given name from English from the virtue, like Faith and Charity first used by Puritans.


Joh

How Joh inspired a generation.

Nationals shake off Joh era.

Abolishing compulsory voting would take Queensland back to Joh era, says Wayne Swan.

diminutive of Johannes — notably used in reference to:

(Australian politics) Sir Johannes “Joh” Bjelke-Petersen (1911–2005), Premier of Queensland 1968–1987.


Joh

Various origins:
* Borrowed from German Joh.
* Variant of Cho, a Korean surname.


Lance

The surname is derived from a medieval given name Lanzo, short form of names beginning with the Germanic element *land; see land. Doublet of Lanzo.

A male given name from the Germanic languages; by folk etymology associated with a lance.

A diminutive of the male given name Lancelot

A male given name transferred from the surname


Kirk

Kirk (countable and uncountable, plural Kirks)

From kirk (“church”). Doublet of Church.


Les

A diminutive of the male given names Lester or Leslie.

A diminutive of the female given name Leslie.


Lil

A diminutive of the female given name Lilian/Lillian/Lily.


Ken

A diminutive of the male given name Kenneth.


Lex

A pet form of the male given name Alexander.

A pet form of the female given names Alexandra, Alexia, and Alexis.


Ira

From a Hebrew name עִירָא ('ira), from a word meaning "watchful".

So is Ira Gershwin something to do with the more famous George Gershwin? Caroline says.
She was his wife, wasn't she? Jen says coming in with plates balanced on her arm.
He was his brother, Mark says. It comes into his head how much Faye loved songs. He had quite forgotten how much.
It does sound like a girl's name, though, doesn't it? Caroline is saying.
There's no way I'd ever call a daughter that, Hannah says.

2011, Ali Smith, There but for the, Hamish Hamilton, →ISBN, pages 140–141:

A male given name from Hebrew, mostly of American usage.

An unincorporated community in Laclede County, Missouri.

An unincorporated community in Scurry County, Texas.


Ira

From the Russian and Czech diminutive of the cognates of Irene.

A female given name from the Slavic languages


Don

en:Don (disambiguation)
en:Don River (disambiguation)

A diminutive of the male given names Donald or Gordon.


Himalayan

A domestic cat breed similar to (and, in some places, considered a variety of) the Persian breed, but with the colourpoint coat pattern of the Siamese.


Lark

A male given name transferred from the surname, of occasional usage.

Mama had chosen the name Lark. Lark Browning Erhardt. Papa had wanted to call me Beverly Mary; Mary after the Blessed Virgin. Mama said she wouldn't hang a name like Beverly Mary on a pet skunk. Where she got the idea for Lark, I don't know, though one time when I asked, she said that larks flew high and had a happy song.

1989, Faith Sullivan, The Cape Ann, Penguin, published 1989, →ISBN, page 2:

A female given name from English from the lark bird.


Jay

A diminutive of the male given names James, Jacob, Jack, John, or Jason, or for any other name beginning with ⟨J⟩; also used as a formal given name.

To Lt. and Mrs. John Ellingston (Beth Vollstedt), a daughter, Jay Karen, on September 17, 1945.

1947, Alpha Delta Pi, The Adelphean, volume 40, number 2, page 102:

In 1993, my daughter Jay returned home aged 21 after a disastrous marriage.

2007, Gráinne Smith, Families, Carers and Professionals: Building Constructive Conversations:

Within a few weeks, having endured a number of lengthy interviews, Jay found herself working in the Beijing office of the bureau of information.

2010, Ray Thompson, Fires Within, page 206:


Jay

Borrowed from Hindi जय (jay, literally “victory”).


Frances

From Old French Franceise, feminine form of Franceis, from Late Latin Franciscus (“Frankish”).

Armado. Sirrah Costard, I will enfranchise thee.
Costard. O! marry me to one Frances: I smell some l'envoy, some goose, in this.

c. 1595–1596 (date written), William Shakespeare, “Loues Labour’s Lost”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene i]:

"My name is Frances. Don't call me Fanny!" "Why not?" "Because it's too absurd to be endured! What does the mere sound of Fanny suggest? A flirting dancing creature - plump and fair, and playful and pretty! - - - Call me Frances - a man's name, with only the difference between an i and an e. No sentiment in it, hard, like me."

1883, Wilkie Collins, Heart and Science, Chatto and Windus, page 227:

My other sisters had interesting names. There was Francie, that was Frances, and though she wore slacks and my father seemed angry with her, I thought she was some relation to Saint Francis, who, I believed, kept animals in his pocket and took them out and licked them, the way Francie licked a blackball or acid drop, for pure love.

1961, Janet Frame, Owls Do Cry, →ISBN, page 97:

A female given name from Latin, feminine form of Francis.


Kelvin

Of Celtic/Scottish Gaelic origin, possibly from caol (“narrow”) or coille (“wooded”) + abhainn (“river”). The surname is derived from the river.
The surname was also possibly influenced by Calvert (Middle English calfhirde).

A male given name transferred from the surname, of rather rare usage.


Jon

In that Summer of 1909 the simple souls who even then desired to simplify the English tongue, had, of course, no cognizance of little Jon, or they would have claimed him for a disciple. But one can be too simple in this life, for his real name was Jolyon, and his living father and dead half-brother had usurped of old the other shortenings, Jo and Jolly. As a fact little Jon had done his best to conform to convention and spell himself first Jhon, then John; not till his father had explained the sheer necessity, had he spelled his name Jon.

1920 October, John Galsworthy, Awakening, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC, page 6:

A male given name from Hebrew, variant of John.

"I suppose I ought to call you Uncle Jack now." "Please don't. My name is Jonathan, and I've never had a nickname. Doesn't go with my character. So, Uncle Jon - if you must."

1994, Robertson Davies, The Cunning Man, Viking, published 1995, →ISBN, page 16:

A diminutive of the male given name Jonathan.


Labor

(UK politics, American spelling, Australian spelling) Misspelling of Labour. (UK political party)


Limburgish

A Germanic language or dialect continuum spoken near the common border between the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.

Limburgisch

Dutch and Belgian dialects; sometimes the whole group


Kat

During her childhood she was a romanticized Katherine, dressed by her misty-eyed, fussy mother in dresses that looked like ruffled pillowcases. By high school she'd shed the frills and emerged as a bouncy, round-faced Kathy - - - At university she was Kath, blunt and no-bullshit in her Take-Back-the-Night jeans and checked shirt - - - When she ran away to England, she sliced herself down to Kat. It was economical, street-feline, and pointed as a nail.

1991, Margaret Atwood, Wilderness Tips, →ISBN, page 36:

A short form of the female given names Katharine and Katherine.


Kit

A diminutive of the male given name Christopher.


Kit

A diminutive of the female given name Katherine and related female given names.


Kit

(Hong Kong) A male given name from Cantonese 傑／杰 (git⁶).


Ho

A Munda language spoken in India and Bangladesh.


Lily

A 19th-century flower name, from lily. Also a diminutive of Lilian and sometimes Elizabeth.

"Poor little thing! She is very wee and frail, isn't she? Only two months old. We came away from the north, as soon as I was able to travel. She is called Lily."
I remembered Horace having once told me that his mother's name had been Lilias.

1866 August 11, Frances Eleanor Trollope, “The Tale of Aunt Margaret's Trouble”, in All the Year Round, page 100:

"Lily is such a romantic name. It sounds to me like soft music; it's the sort of name to make one dream of fanciful things."
Lily smiled. "It's my grandmother's name. Coincidence, maybe, but she grew the most beautiful lilies."

2001, Catherine Coulter, Hemlock Bay, Jove, published 2002, →ISBN, page 57:

A female given name from English. Popular around 1900 and currently returning to favor.


Harry

Medieval English spoken form of Old French Henri.

A male given name from the Germanic languages

A male given name from French, originating as an Anglicization of Henri

A diminutive of the male given name Henry, Harold

Yet weep that Harry's dead, and so will I; / But Harry lives that shall convert those tears / By number into hours of happiness.

c. 1596–1599 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene v]:

Henry now, what a soft swain your Henry is! the proper theme of gentle poesy; a name to fall in love withal; devoted at the font to song and sonnet, and the tender passion; a baptized inamorato; a christened hero. Call him Harry, and see how you ameliorate his condition. The man is free again, turned out of song and sonnet and romance, and young ladies' hearts. Shakspeare understood this well, when he wrote of prince Hal and Harry Hotspur. To have called them Henry would have spoiled both characters.

1830, Mary Russell Mitford, Our Village: Fourth Series: Cottage Names::

'I suppose you think I should call him Harry,' says Ruth.
'Harry? No. Ever since Harry bloody Potter that's been a nightmare.[…]

2010, Elly Griffiths, “The Janus Stone”, in Ruth Galloway: The Early Cases: A Dr Ruth Galloway Mysteries Collection, Hachette UK, →ISBN:

(rare nickname) A diminutive of the female given name Harriet


Bob

Probably from a medieval hypocorism of Rob.

A diminutive of the male given name Robert.


Lynne

A female given name transferred from the surname, of common usage, variant of Lynn.


Lane

As an English surname, from lane; as an Irish surname, from several origins, including Laighin. See Lane.

A male given name transferred from the surname.

A number of places in the United States:

An unincorporated community in Kootenai County, Idaho.

census-designated place
census-designated place

A census-designated place in Atoka County, Oklahoma.

Williamsburg County
Williamsburg County#English

A town in Williamsburg County, South Carolina.


Lyn

A short form of female given names ending in -lyn, such as Evelyn and Carolyn; also used as a formal unisex middle name.


Kan

Borrowed from Japanese 菅 (Kan) or かん (Kan).


Mace

en-proper noun

Mace (countable and uncountable, plural Maces)

* As an English surname, from the personal name Masse, probably shortened from Matthew. Compare Massey, Massett.
* As a French and Breton surname, from Macé, vernacular form of Mathieu. Compare Maze.
* Also as a French surname, from Macé in Orne, from Late Latin Macciacum, from the personal name Maccius.
* Also as a French surname, variant of Massé; see Masse.

(countable) A male given name, a name derived from the war instrument, a mace


Mamba

a dialect of the Zimba language spoken in the Congo


Lai

A Tibeto-Burman language of India and Burma.


Guy

PIE word
 *dwóh₁
From Old French Gui, a form of Proto-Germanic *Wido, a short form of names beginning with the element *widuz (“wood”), such as Witold and Widukind. Cognate with Italian Guido and thus a doublet of Guido. More at wood.

I am not Samson, nor Sir Guy, nor Colbrand, / To mow 'em down before me;

1613 (date written), William Shakespeare, [John Fletcher], “The Famous History of the Life of King Henry the Eight”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene iv]:

"Guy," he said. He said it slowly and with a certain puzzlement. He said it again, thoughtfully, as if it were a name of someone he had known long ago but couldn't quite place. "Guy. Yes - don't you find it difficult being called that? I mean, if Nora hadn't said, I'd have put you down as a Kevin, or a Barry. Yes, Barry would suit you."
He looked like an innocent child, smiling, wide-eyed, his cheeks plump and rosy, defying the object of his insults to take offence. For they were insults, Guy was in no doubt about that. Leonora's brother was implying that his name was far too upper-class for its possessor.

1990, Ruth Rendell, Going Wrong, →ISBN, page 157:

“She was a new student. I was a counterculture hero. Back then I went by a different name. Sebastian. Sexy, right? And so much better than Guy. You can't be a counterculture hero and a Guy. That name is way too average. […]

2016, Nathan Hill, The Nix: A novel, Vintage, →ISBN, page 596:

A male given name from the Germanic languages.


Guy

From the Hebrew name גַּיְא (gáy, literally “valley”), with the spelling influenced by the existing English name.


Joan

A clipped or hypochoristic form of Joanna, from Latin Joanna, from Koine Greek Ἰωάννα (Iōánna), from Hebrew יוֹחָנָה (Yôḥānāh, literally “God is gracious”), the feminized form of יְהוֹחָנָן (Yəhōḥānān) which produced John and its many doublets. As a placeholder name, cf. similar use of John and Jack.
Doublet of Ivana, Jana, Jane, Janice, Janis, Jean, Jeanne, Jen, Joanna, Joanne, Johanna, Juana, Shavonne, Sian, Siobhan, Shane, Shaun, Shauna, and Sheena.

doublet

Maybe my mother didn't name me after Joan Crawford after all, I thought; she just told me that to cover up. She named me after Joan of Arc, didn't she know what happened to women like that?

1979, Margaret Atwood, Lady Oracle, page 336:

A female given name from French, a feminine form of John.


Lords

(British, UK politics, plural only) Ellipsis of House of Lords.


Manual

A male given name from Spanish: a rare spelling variant of Manuel, sometimes considered erroneous.


Link

(rare) A diminutive of the male given name Lincoln


Love

en-proper noun

Love (countable and uncountable, plural Loves)

An unincorporated community in Butler County, Kentucky.


Marge

A diminutive of the female given names Marjorie or Margaret


Mat

A diminutive of the male given name Matthew.


Mato

A Malayo-Polynesian language spoken in Papua New Guinea.


Kai

Taken into regular use in the 1990s, with earlier popularity peaks in Scandinavia and Germany. The medieval Danish Kaj is possibly of Roman origin, Latinized as Caius, like the rare medieval English male given name Kay. The German Kai may also derive from a West Frisian pet form of Gerard, Cornelius, Nicholas, or Kampe "warrior". In the U.S. Kai has also been explained as Hawaiian kai (“sea”).

A male given name from the Germanic languages of modern usage.

(rare) A female given name of modern usage.


Hamlet

François de Belleforest
Hamlet
Hamlet (disambiguation)#Places
Hamlet (name)
Saxo Grammaticus

From Latin Amlethus, as written by 13th-century Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus, and borrowed into English by way of François de Belleforest's French Hamlet, originally rendered as Hamblet in English. Ultimately from Old Danish Amlethæ, corresponding to Old Norse Amlóði (“fool”), claimed to be suggestive of the way that Hamlet acts in the play, from ama (“to annoy”).


Logan

From Scottish Gaelic lag (“little hollow”).

Col. Cresop, the last spring, in cold blood, and unprovoked, murdered all the relations of Logan, not sparing even my women and children. - - - Logan never felt fear. He will not turn on his heel to save his life. Who is there to mourn for Logan? No one.

1782 Thomas Jefferson: Notes on the State of Virginia: ( Chief Logan's Lament )

"How about Logan?"
"That's it. The perfect name!" I exclaimed. Starla liked the name, and I thought it was exceedingly cool because one of the most exciting characters in the X-Men comics is also named Logan (nicknamed Wolverine). - - - I didn't tell Starla about the comic book connection because she would probably think I was being stupid.

2003, Dale Alderman, Being a Dad: The Stuff No One Told Me., →ISBN, page 18:

A male given name transferred from the surname. Used since at least the 19th century, and popular in the 2000s.

A female given name transferred from the surname, of 1990s and later usage; much less common than the male name.


Jenny

→ Dutch: Jenny

→ Faroese: Jenný

→ Finnish: Jenny

→ German: Jenny

→ Spanish: Jenny

→ Swedish: Jenny

From Jen + -y, historically as a hypochoristic form of Janet, Jane, etc. or (rarely) Eugenia, Virginia, etc. but now more often used as a diminutive of Jennifer.
Doublet of Ivanka, Jan, Janelle, Janet, Janey, Janine, Jeanette, Jeanie, Jeannette, Jeannine, Jen, Jenna, Jenny, Jessie, Jo, Jody, Juanita, Shanae, Sinead, and Vanna in derivations from Jane etc.
In senses related to inanimate objects, partially derived from the generic senses of Jane and partially an informal pronunciation of engine.

doublet

Jenny kissed me when we met,
Jumping from the chair she sat in;
Time, you thief, who love to get
Sweets into your list, put that in!
Say I'm weary, say I'm sad,
Say that health and wealth have missed me,
Say I'm growing old, but add,
Jenny kissed me.

All this I recollect, but little more, except my mother gave me several beatings for calling my sister "Jenny", which I had learnt to do from others who knew her; but when my mother heard them, she was always very angry, and told them that her child had not such a vulgar name; at which many would laugh, and make a point of calling out "Jenny" to Virginia whenever they passed and saw her at the door.

1840, Frederick Marryat, chapter IV, in Poor Jack:

Jennifer Jo McIntire (with two Jennys now, everyone had followed Matthew’s lead and taken to calling her by her full name) […]

1994, Gerald N[iels] Lund, chapter 27, in A Season of Joy: A Historical Novel (The Work and the Glory; 5), Salt Lake City, Ut.: Bookcraft, published 1996 (3rd printing), →ISBN, pages 452–453:


Jade

Cebuano: Jade

Mandarin: 傑德／杰德 (Jiédé)

Japanese: ジェイド (jeido)

From the precious stone jade; taken into general use in the 1970s.

Emily. Em-il-y, three syllables, like a knock on the door of destiny. Such an odd, old-fashioned name, compared to those Kylies and Traceys and Jades — names that reeked of Impulse and grease and stood out in gaudy neon colours —

2010, Joanne Harris, blueeyedboy, Doubleday, →ISBN, page 102:


Hub

(informal) Nickname for Boston, Massachusetts, United States.


Mart

He looked at me when introduced and said “Mart's boy!” 'I was in fact Martin's grandson, but didn't bother splitting hairs — […]

2015, Deborah Coddington, The Good Life On Te Muna Road:

A diminutive of the male given name Martin.


Mien

A group of related languages spoken by the Yao people.


Matt

A diminutive of the male given name Matthew

A diminutive of the male given name Matthias


Melody

From the noun melody; in regular use since the 20th century.

Melody, for this, impossibly, was her mother's name, twinkled in a searching manner over the glasses.

2000, Anne Enright, What Are You Like?, Random House, published 2001, →ISBN, page 150:


Mills

A male given name transferred from the surname


Merry

'Is he handsome, Pa?' inquired the younger daughter.
'Silly Merry!' said the eldest: Merry being fond for Mercy. 'What is the premium, Pa? tell us that.'

1842 December – 1844 July, Charles Dickens, chapter 2, in The Life and Adventures of Martin Chuzzlewit, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published 1844, →OCLC:

It was on account of she had such a happy temperament I persuaded Mr. van der Most to let me call her Merry. Lots of folks, when they first meet her, they think she's called Mary - Maria, as you would say it, Signor Lumaca - but no, her name is really Merry, M-E-double-R-Y, because, I always tell them, she is.

1964 Brigid Brophy, The Waste Disposal Unit, Best Short Plays of the World Theatre 1958-1967, page 50

A female given name from English from the adjective, also a diminutive of Mercy.

A diminutive of the male given name Meredith.


Amerika

[…] As far as he could determine, the victim had been stealing from Amerika in order to support his crystal habit. The victim had also been Amerika's lover and had lived in the carraca with her.

2008, Sam Warren, Tales from the Tijuana Jails, Bookwarren Publishing Servi, →ISBN, page 203:

A female given name, a variant of America.


Marc

A male given name from French, equivalent to English Mark


Florentine

en-adj

Florentine (comparative more Florentine, superlative most Florentine)

more Florentine (comparative)
most Florentine (superlative)

From French florentin, from Latin flōrentīnus.

Of or relating to the Italian city of Florence.

florentín

of or relating to the Italian city of Florence


Luka

From the common Slavic (Serbo-Croatian, etc) male given name Luka and from Russian Лука́ (Luká), all cognates of English Luke and Lucas.

My name is Luka / I live on the second floor / I live upstairs from you / Yes I think you've seen me before

A male given name from the Slavic languages, of modern usage.

Лука́ Лука#Russian

A transliteration of the Russian male given name Лука́ (Luká).


Flora

From Latin Flōra (Roman goddess of flowers).

What lovely names for girls there are! / There's Stella like the Evening Star, / And Sylvia like a rustling tree, / And Lola like a melody, / And Flora like a flowery morn, […]

1933, Eleanor Farjeon, “Girls' Names”, in Over the Garden Wall, Faber and Faber, page 91:


Ewe

Most Ewes are farmers or fishermen, although a growing number are urban dwellers living in Accra, Lomé, and other cities. The Ewes are a patrilineal people, with inheritance passing from father to son.

2002, James Minahan, “Ewes”, in Encyclopedia of the Stateless Nations: Ethnic and National Groups Around the World, volumes II (D–K), Westport, Conn., London: Greenwood Press, →ISBN, page 590:

A person from Ho, like all Ewes, attaches great importance to a friendly greeting.

2011, Jakob Spieth, “[The HO – Tribe] Economic Life”, in Emmanuel F. Tsaku, Marcellinus Edorh, Raphael Avornyo, Mary Esther Kropp Dakubu, transl., edited by Komla Amoaku, The Ewe People: A Study of the Ewe People in German Togo, Legon, Accra, Ghana: Sub-Saharan Publishers, →ISBN, page 289:

Among the Ewes, and equally among other language and ethnic groups in Ghana, names form an integral part of people’s identity.

2018, Elvis Yevudey, “The representation of African languages and cultures on social media: a case of Ewe in Ghana”, in Augustine Agwuele, Adams Bodomo, editors, The Routledge Handbook of African Linguistics, Routledge, →ISBN, part IV (Language and society: theory and practice):

An ethnic group who inhabit southeastern Ghana, Togo, and Benin.


Ewe

The Niger-Congo language, belonging to the Gbe family, spoken by these people.


Ewe

Of or pertaining to the Ewe people or language.


Kuna

* As a Polish, Czech, Slovak, Serbo-Croatian/Bosnian, Hungarian and Jewish surname, from Kuna, from kuna (“marten”), nickname for a quick-tempered or aggressive person.
* Also as a Czech surname, from the personal name Kuna, a pet form of Kunrat, medieval form of Konrad.


Hector

From Latin Hectōr or Ancient Greek Ἕκτωρ (Héktōr), from ἕκτωρ (héktōr, “holding fast”), from ἔχειν (ékhein), present active infinitive of ἔχω (ékhō, “to have, own, possess; to hold”), from Proto-Indo-European *seǵʰ- (“to hold; to overpower”).

der

Eachann

unrelated, but usually Anglicised as Hector


Mel

Short form of female given names such as Melanie, Melinda, Melissa, Melina, Melody and Carmel.

Short form of the male given names Melvin, Melvyn and Melchor.


Mel

A language family, a branch of Atlantic-Congo, spoken from Guinea-Bissau to Liberia.


Madeleine

From French Madeleine. Doublet of Magdalene.

"We've been making up the most glamorous names for you, Marguerite and Marlene and Madeleine―"
"And Melanie and Marianne and Marietta," put in Jane.

1967, Joan G. Robinson, When Marnie Was There, HarperCollins, published 2014, →ISBN, page 185:


Miles

en-proper noun

Miles (countable and uncountable, plural Miles or Mileses)

From Old French given name Milo, of problematic origin, possibly from an unknown Germanic element, or a short form of Slavic names beginning with mil- "grace, favor". The English form is associated by folk etymology with Latin mīles (“soldier”).
As a surname, it is also derived from a Middle English [Term?] form of Michael.

Clad in doublet and hose, and boots of Cordovan leather, / Strode, with a martial air, Miles Standish the Puritan Captain.

1858, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, The Courtship of Miles Standish:

Just one thing, if I may, Mark said. It's Miles, his name. Not Milo.
Yeah, I know, Anna's always going on about that too. But Milo's better, Milo's got something about it, hasn't it? the man said. It's catchier. It's catching on round the camp, Milo, where Miles sounds a bit, well, wet. A bit middle class, you know?

2011, Ali Smith, There but for the, Hamish Hamilton, →ISBN, page 191:

A male given name from the Germanic languages.


Motu

An Oceanic language of Papua New Guinea.


Dan

Traditionally held to be derived from Hebrew דָּן (Dan), although recent scholars instead link the name to Denyen, the Sea Peoples.

A male given name from Hebrew, derived from the son of Jacob.

In Welland, a blue-collar burg between Buffalo and Toronto, [Daniel] Paille’s and [Dan] Girardi’s friends, relatives and fans will tune in to the latest installment of what some have labeled the Battle of Welland or the Battle of the Dans.

2013 May 22, Matt Higgins, “A Bruin and a Ranger Share a Bond While Dividing a City”, in The New York Times:

A male given name from Hebrew & nickname, derived from the prophet Daniel.


Jo

Clipping or hypochoristic form of various female given names beginning with Jo..., primarily Joan, Joanna, etc. but also Josephine and Jolene.
Doublet of Ivanka, Jan, Janelle, Janet, Janey, Janine, Jeanette, Jeanie, Jeannette, Jeannine, Jen, Jenna, Jenny, Jessie, Jody, Juanita, Shanae, Sinead, and Vanna in reference to the first derivation.

doublet

"Its name is Samantha Jo, after Josiah and me. You know they call girls Jo and Josie a sight lately; its name is agreeable to Josiah and me, very.

1888, Marietta Holley, Josiah Allen's Wife as a P.A. and P.I.: Samantha at the Centennial, page 577:


Mercy

From mercy in the 17th century; one of the less common Puritan virtue names. In modern use sometimes used to anglicize Spanish Mercedes.

Mr Pecksniff was a moral man — a grave man, a man of noble sentiments and speech — and he had had her christened Mercy. Mercy! oh, what a charming name for such a pure–souled Being as the youngest Miss Pecksniff! Her sister’s name was Charity. There was a good thing! Mercy and Charity!


Mort

A diminutive of the male given names Mortimer and Morton.


Italic

Via Latin ītalicus from Ancient Greek Ἰταλικός (Italikós), from Ἰταλία (Italía, “Italy”).

իտալյան

pertaining to a subfamily of a branch of the Indo-European language family

Of or relating to the Italian peninsula.

Indo-European studies
Indo-European studies

(Indo-European studies) Pertaining to a subfamily of the Centum branch of the Indo-European language family, that includes Latin and other languages (as Oscan, Umbrian) spoken by the peoples of ancient Italy

The ancient Italic languages that are now extinct include Oscan, Umbrian, and South Picene.

(dated) Osco-Umbrian; an extinct branch of such language family, which excludes the Latino-Faliscan languages

There were several Italic alphabets, one being the Etruscan alphabet.

(historical) Pertaining to various peoples that lived in Italy before the establishment of the Roman Empire, or to any of several alphabet systems used by those peoples.

itàlic

pertaining to various peoples that lived in Italy


Italic

The centum families include Celtic, Germanic, Greek, and Italic.


Hun

From Old English Hūnas, Hūne (both plural), from Late Latin Hunni, from Koine Greek Οὗννοι (Hoûnnoi), borrowed through Middle Iranian. Cognate with Old Norse húnir, Old High German Hunni. See also etymology of Xiongnu.
Compare Sogdian [script needed] (xwn), Sanskrit हूण (hūṇa), and 匈奴 (OC *hoŋ-nâ) (c. 318 BCE) > *hɨoŋ-nɑ (Eastern Han), which Schuessler (2014:264) proposes to be transcription of foreign *Hŏna ~ Hŭna. More at Huns.
As a derogatory term for Germans popularized by Rudyard Kipling, reacting to Germany's proposal that the Royal Navy be used to collect debts from Venezuela.

(slang, derogatory, UK, Ireland) A Protestant.


Magnus

From Latin magnus (“great”), taken from the title of Carolus Magnus "Charlemagne" by an eleventh century king of Norway, and brought to Scotland in medieval times.

A male given name from Latin of mostly Scottish and Scandinavian usage.


Lu

Clipping of Lucy, Lucille., and similar names.

"Why?" said Lucy in amazement, "haven't you all been wondering where I was?" "So you've been hiding, have you?" Peter said. "Poor old Lu, hiding and nobody noticed!

1950, C. S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Fontana Lions, published 1980, →ISBN, page 27:

A diminutive of the female given name Lucy and related names.


Ladino

From Ladino לאדינו (ladino) (or from Spanish ladino), from Latin Latīnus (“Latin”).

A Romance language mainly spoken by Sephardic Jews (Wikipedia), derived mainly from Old Castilian (Spanish) and Hebrew.


Ladino

[A]lthough almost all Pedranos consider themselves fully Mayan, many have some European and Ladino ancestry, stemming especially from prior generations when Spanish authorities governed the town.

2011, Barbara Rogoff, Developing Destinies: A Mayan Midwife and Town, Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 89:

A person in Latin America whose culture or ancestry is a mixture of European Spanish and Native American, especially one who speaks Spanish; a mestizo.


Ladino

Borrowed from Spanish Ladino. This surname is mostly found in Colombia.


Mason

A male given name transferred from the surname.


Manu

Transliteration of Sanskrit मनु (manu, “man, mankind”). Doublet of man.

translit

A male given name from Sanskrit commonly used in India.


Morris

en-proper noun

Morris (countable and uncountable, plural Morrises)

* The surname has converged from several origins; see Morris.

A male given name from Old French, a medieval form of French Maurice.

A male given name transferred from the surname.


Mai

Chinese surname with several origins:
* from Mandarin 麥／麦 (“wheat”),
* from Mandarin and Cantonese 買／买 (maai⁵, “buy”)
* Cantonese form of 米 (see Mi).
* Romanized from 马 (mǎ) (see Ma)
* Romanized from 梅 (méi) (see Mei)
As a German surname, variant of May.

A female given name, a rare spelling variant of Mae/May, or borrowed from Scandinavia, with the same ultimate origin.


Met

(London, rail transport) The London Underground Metropolitan line.

(London, rail transport, historical, 1863–1933) The Metropolitan Railway.

The Metropolitan Police has referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) over its handling of the investigation. […] The Met said it had informed its own Directorate of Professional Standards and a "mandatory referral will be made to the IOPC in relation to the initial contact from the woman's friend".

2024 April 11, Victoria Cook, “Westminster murder inquiry: Woman, 27, named by police”, in bbc.com:

(London, law enforcement) The Metropolitan Police Service of London (MPS).

(US) The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.


Met

(baseball) A player for the New York Mets.


Lyra

Borrowed from Latin Lyra/lyra, from Ancient Greek λύρα (lúra, “a lyre; the constellation Lyra”). Doublet of lira and lyre.

der

A little parapet ran all the way around the square roof, and Pantalaimon often draped his pine-marten form over the mock-battlements on the corner facing south, and dozed while Lyra sat below with her back against the sun-drenched stone, studying the books she'd brought up with her.

(rare) A female given name from Ancient Greek


Ned

But, sweet Ned, - to sweeten the name of Ned, I give thee this pennyworth of sugar

c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene iv]:

A medieval diminutive of the male given name Edward.


Noelle

From French Noëlle, the feminine form of the male given name Noël.

A female given name from French, often given to girls born near Christmas.


Maria

From Latin Maria, from Ancient Greek Μαρία (María), Μαριάμ (Mariám), from Aramaic מרים (Maryām), corresponding to the Hebrew מרים (Miryām). Doublet of Mary, Marie, and Miriam.

Yet herein they come short of the monks and friars in their conceits of the word Maria; they have so tossed it and turned it, so anagrammatized and transposed it, that never were five poor letters so worried since time did put them into the alphabet.

1629, Thomas Adams, Meditations upon Creed, The Works of Thomas Adams, James Nichol (1862), volume 3, page 211

By their dresses, their names, and the airs of quality they give themselves, I am rendered ridiculous among all my acquaintance. My wife, who is a very plain good woman, and whose name is Amey, has been new-christened, and is called Amelia; and my little daughter, a child of a year old, is no longer Polly, but Maria.

1776, Adam Fitz-Adam: The World of Adam Fitz-Adam. Edinburgh, Apollo Press 1776: Numb. 187. Thursday, July 29, 1756

I've just kissed a girl named Maria / And suddenly I found how wonderful a sound can be! / Maria! Say it loud and there's music playing / Say it soft and it's almost like praying

1957, “Maria”, in Stephen Sondheim (lyrics), Leonard Bernstein (music), West Side Story:


Mons

A diminutive of the female given name Monica

A diminutive of the male given name Montgomery


Me

(organic chemistry) Abbreviation of methyl.


Hans

From German Hans (occasionally used in English), a medieval short form of Johannes (“John”).


Max

Borrowed from the German Max, diminutive of Maximilian in the 19th century, later also used as a nickname for Maxwell.

Since it seems to me that this fad of child-rearing has turned into an actual trend, that babies are an increasingly popular accessory for people-on-the-go, I first want to say to stop naming your boys Max. Max is a perfectly nice name, ensuring its owner a certain precocious sensibility, but there are enough Maxes now. Any more Maxes and the breed will go to the dogs.

2002, Cynthia Heimel, If You Can't Live Without Me, Why Aren't You Dead Yet?, Grove Press, →ISBN, page 177:

Kyle: Okay, Max. Search.

A diminutive of the female given name Maxine


Kali

From Sanskrit काली (kālī) or कालिका (kālikā).

A female given name from Sanskrit used especially in India.


Nelly

A spelling variant of Nellie, a diminutive of the female given names Eleanor, Helen, and Chanel.


Nick

His name is Nick. I love it. It makes him seem nice, and regular, which he is. When he tells me his name, I say, 'Now, that's a real name.'

2012, Gillian Flynn, Gone Girl, Phoenix, published 2013, →ISBN, pages 14–15:

A diminutive of the male given name Nicholas.

Niĉjo

Diminutive of the male given name Nicholas


Joanna

/ˌd͡ʒoʊˈænə/

From Latin Joanna, from Koine Greek Ἰωάννα (Iōánna), from Hebrew יוֹחָנָה (Yôḥānāh, literally “God is gracious”), the feminized form of יְהוֹחָנָן (Yəhōḥānān) which produced John and its many doublets.
Doublet of Ivana, Jana, Jane, Janice, Janis, Jean, Jeanne, Jen, Joan, Joanne, Johanna, Juana, Shavonne, Sian, Siobhan, Shane, Shaun, Shauna, and Sheena.

doublet

A female given name from Latin [in turn from Hebrew].

جُوَانَّا

transliterations of the given name — see also Jane

乔安娜 (Qiáo'ānnà, literally “tall, peaceful, graceful”)


Margarita

Borrowed from the Latin and Spanish Margarita (“Margaret”).


Norm

A diminutive of the male given name Norman


Nanny

A diminutive of the female given names Ann or Anne.


Ocean

From ocean (“sea”), inspired by the fashionable French female name Océane.

'Ocean still isn't sleeping through the night.' I don't blame her. She's probably traumatised by her ridiculous name.

2019 March 5, Elly Griffiths, The Stranger Diaries, Houghton Mifflin, →ISBN, page 25:

A female given name from English, of modern usage.


Marcel

Borrowed from French Marcel, from Latin Marcellus, diminutive of Marcus. Doublet of Marcellus.


Ndebele

And look, that’s you a few years later, holding up a package at a prize-giving ceremony — throughout primary you always came first in English and Ndebele class.

2022, NoViolet Bulawayo, Glory, Chatto & Windus, page 191:

Any of the languages spoken by these two peoples: Northern Ndebele and the not closely related Southern Ndebele.


Jean

Variant of Jeanne, from French Jeanne, from Old French Jehane, from Medieval Latin Johanna, variant of Latin Ioanna under influence from Latin Iōhannēs, from Koine Greek Ἰωάννα (Iōánna), from Hebrew יוֹחָנָה (Yôḥānāh, literally “God is gracious”), the feminized form of יְהוֹחָנָן (Yəhōḥānān). Doublet of Ivana, Jana, Jane, Janice, Janis, Jeanne, Jen, Joan, Joanna, Joanne, Johanna, Juana, Shavonne, Sian, Siobhan, Shane, Shaun, Shauna, and Sheena.
The unincorporated community in Nevada, originally named Goodsprings Junction, was renamed Jean on 28 June 1905 by postmaster George Arthur Fayle in honor of his wife.

There's not a bonnie flower that springs
By fountain, shaw, or green,
There's not a bonnie bird that sings
But minds me o' my Jean.

1788, Robert Burns, Of A' the Airts the Wind Can Blaw:

Isn't Jean a pretty name?"
"Not bad; but why don't you call her Miss Muir?"
"She begged me not. She hates it, and loves to be called Jean, alone."

1866, Louisa May Alcott, chapter II, in Behind a Mask, or a Woman's Power:

He was trying to think of her name; she had come to cook him dinner twice last spring. Jean, maybe. Or Betty. One of these plain names.

1972, Anne Tyler, The Clock Winder, Knopf, page 67:


Jean

From French Jean, from Old French Jehan, from Latin Iōhannēs, from Koine Greek Ἰωάννης (Iōánnēs), from Hebrew יוחנן (Yôḥānān, literally “God is gracious”). Doublet of John, Jack, Johan, Johann, Johannes, Sean, Shaun, Shane, Ian, Evan, Ivan, Juan, and Giovanni.


Molly

→ Irish: Mallaidh

→ Swedish: Molly

From Moll, diminutive lambdacism of Mary + -y.


Mona

Anglicized from Irish and Scottish Gaelic Muadhnait, from Middle Irish múad (“noble”). In northern Europe, where the name is much more popular, Mona is interpreted as a diminutive of Monica or, rarely, of Ramona, and sometimes associated with the title of da Vinci's painting Mona (=madonna) Lisa.
The Arabic and Persian name مُنىٰ (munā) is sometimes Romanised as Mona.


Mac

A diminutive of the male given name Max.


Laurel

"What on earth made Becky give you a name like that?" she'd asked Laurel, on that first occasion.
"It's the state flower of West Virginia," Laurel told her, smiling. "Where my mother came from."

1972, Eudora Welty, The Optimist's Daughter, Random House, →ISBN, page 27:

A female or male given name from English from the laurel plant.


Cantonese

en-noun

Cantonese (countable and uncountable, plural Cantonese)

广东话

Kńg-tang-ōe / Kúiⁿ-tang-ōa / Kńg-tang-ōa

As a mainland China national, the counter for our trial was fluent in English, Putonghua, and the Sichuan dialect, and was familiar with a number of other major Chinese languages such as Cantonese and Hakka.

2019, Li Huang, James Lambert, “Another Arrow for the Quiver: A New Methodology for Multilingual Researchers”, in Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, →DOI, page 10:

(uncountable) A Sinitic language mainly spoken in the south-eastern part of Mainland China, Guangdong (Canton), Hong Kong, Macau, by the Chinese minorities in Southeast Asia and by many overseas Chinese worldwide.

(uncountable) A dialect of the Cantonese language, spoken in Guangzhou (Canton), Hong Kong, Macau, and treated as the standard dialect of the Cantonese language.

Cantonese dialect

the dialect of Cantonese language treated as standard

Hoisanese/Toisanese/Taishanese

the Cantonese subdialect spoken in the Greater Hoi San area, with subsubdialects

Hong Kong Cantonese

the dialect spoken in Hong Kong and Macau


Cree

⇒ Irish: Craís

From a phonetic rendering of Canadian French Cris, short for Christinaux, from either Algonquin Kirishtinó, or Cree Kenisteniwuik.

The Algonquian language or dialect continuum spoken by this people.

кры

Algonquian language spoken by this people


Cree

Dumfries and Galloway
Dumfries and Galloway#English

A river in Dumfries and Galloway council area, Scotland, which flows into the Solway Firth and Irish Sea.


More

From French mooré, from Moore moore (“Moore language”), from moaaga (“Mossi person”) + -re (suffix for names of languages).

suffix

The Volta-Congo language of the Mossi people, mainly spoken in part of Burkina Faso.


Niki

Νίκη Νίκη#Greek

A transliteration of the Greek female given name Νίκη (Níki).


Moro

A Heiban language spoken in the Nuba Mountains of Kordofan, Sudan.


Mina

Borrowed from Arabic مِينَا (mīnā) and South Asian मीना (mīnā).


Mia

A German, Dutch and North Germanic diminutive of Maria.

- - - I know he thinks my name is awkward to say. He rarely calls me Mia." Christened Maria de Lourdes Villiers Farrow, she couldn't pronounce Maria when she was a toddler and called herself Mia.

1991 February 24, Eric Lax, “Woody and Mia: A New York Story”, in New York Times:

A female given name from German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, or Danish.


Lulu

diminutive of Lucy, Lucille, Louise, Louisa, .... From given names with the first syllable of "lu", "lou", thence reduplicated.

diminutive of

"Do excuse me, and forgive my inquisitiveness. I was struck with the name Lulu." "You think it a baby name," she said, laughing. "O, no; it is wonderfully sweet to me! and may I sometimes call you so?"

1860, Minnie S. Davis, “The Rival School-Mates”, in The Ladies' Repository, volumes 28-29, A. Tompkins, page 500:

There emerged from the fringe of things, where she perpetually hovered, Mrs. Deacon's older sister, Lulu Bett, who was "making her home with us." And that was precisely the case. They were not making her a home, goodness knows. Lulu was the family beast of burden.

A diminutive of the female given names Louisa, Louise, Lucy, or Lucille


Lulu

Borrowed from Chinese 璐璐, 露露, 璐露, 露璐, etc.; in turn from 璐, 露, etc. From the Chinese practice of reduplicating a syllable or character to create a female name.
* From Mandarin Lù Lù, Lù-Lù, Lù-lù, Lùlù / Lu4lu4 / ㄌㄨˋㄌㄨˋ; in turn from Lù/lù, ㄌㄨˋ, Lu4/lu4. From Middle Chinese luH/LuH
* From Cantonese Lou6lou6; in turn from Lou6/lou6. From Middle Chinese luH/LuH
* From Taishanese Lu5lu5; in turn from Lu5/lu5. From Middle Chinese luH/LuH


Lulu

From Arabic لُؤْلُؤ (luʔluʔ, literally “pearl”).

A female given name from Arabic, equivalent to English Pearl


Pam

A diminutive of the female given name Pamela.


Patience

From patience, a virtue name first used by Puritans in the sixteenth century.

Meg had named it Patience. "But why?" he had exclaimed, not liking the name at all. "Patience is my favourite virtue," she had replied, "and we can call her Patty for short."

1929, Mazo de la Roche, Whiteoaks of Jalna, Dundurn Press, published 2006, →ISBN, page 229:


Nynorsk

From Norwegian nynorsk (“Modern Norwegian”, literally “New Norwegian”).

While 85-90% of Norwegians today use Bokmål as their written standard, Nynorsk is only used by about 10-15% of the population. Fosse’s English translator Damion Searls says many Nynorsk speakers see him “as a kind of national hero” for his championing of the language.

2023 October 5, Philip Oltermann, “Jon Fosse’s Nobel prize announces his overdue arrival on the global stage”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

One of the two major written standards (language variants) of Norwegian.

նոր նորվեգերեն

one of the two major Norwegian (written) languages


Meri

A diminutive of the female given name Merida.


Lincoln

en-proper noun

Lincoln (countable and uncountable, plural Lincolns)

From Old English Lindcoln, Lindcylene, from Latin Lindum Colonia, from Proto-Brythonic *llɨnn (“pool”), from Proto-Celtic *lindos (“lake, liquid”), in reference to the Brayford. In the United States, many of the places established since 1865 are named after Abraham Lincoln.

A male given name transferred from the surname, of American usage, originally in honor of Abraham Lincoln.


Olive

Medieval form of the Latin saint's name Oliva "olive"; revived in the 19th century when flower and plant names became fashionable. The surname is topographical, often representing an Anglicization of continental European surnames such as Spanish Oliva.

And hear me swear a solemn oath, / That only by thy side / Will I to Olive plight my troth, / And gain her for my bride.

"Elspie, I have a thought! The baby shall be christened Olive!"
"It's a strange, heathen name, Mrs. Rothesay."
"Not at all. Listen how I chanced to think of it. This very morning, just before you came to waken me, I had such a queer, delicious dream. [ - - - ] Then I looked up, after awhile, and saw standing at the foot of the bed a little angel—a child-angel—with a green olive-branch in its hand. [ - - - ] "

1850, Dinah Craik, Olive, Chapman and Hall, page 26:

There was Olive, a soft drowsy girl who didn't like me because I called her Olive Oyl. Even after I was made to apologize she didn't like me.

2006, Alice Munro, The View from Castle Rock, Chatto & Windus, →ISBN, pages 227–228:

Powder River County
Powder River County#English

A number of places in the United States:

An unincorporated community in Powder River County, Montana.

A town in Ulster County, New York, from the bible story of dove and olive branch.

An unincorporated community in Creek County, Oklahoma, from the girl's name.

Spotsylvania County
Spotsylvania County#English

An unincorporated community in Spotsylvania County, Virginia.


My Nan shall be the queen of all the fairies, / Finely attired in a robe of white.

c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merry Wiues of Windsor”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene iv]:

A diminutive of the female given name Ann and Nancy.


Ola

A female given name used in the U.S. in the end of the nineteenth century.


Peta

(chiefly UK, Australia) A female given name from Ancient Greek.


Petunia

(dated) A female given name from English.


Mich

A diminutive of the female given name Michelle.


Pearl

Pearl (countable and uncountable, plural Pearls)

From pearl.
* (river in China): From Chinese 珠江 (Zhūjiāng, Zyu1 Gong1, “Pearl River”); calque of Chinese 珠 (zhū, zyu1, “pearl”).
* (haven in Hawaii): From Hawaiian Wai Momi (“pearl water”); calque of Hawaiian momi (“pearl”).

calque

Her Pearl!—For so had Hester called her; not as a name expressive of her aspect, which had nothing of the calm, white, unimpassioned lustre that would be indicated by the comparison. But she named the infant "Pearl," as being of great price,—purchased with all she had,—her mother's only treasure!

1850, Nathaniel Hawthorne, “Chapter VI”, in The Scarlet Letter, a Romance, Boston, Mass.: Ticknor, Reed, and Fields, →OCLC:

"What was your name?"
"Pearl." Ruby and Pearl, mother and daughter. "It's an ugly name, isn't it?"
"No, it isn't". And I meant it, it wasn't. "Old-fashioned, perhaps, but nice."
She stared at me. "Do you know what pearls are? They're ugliness: dirt or sand gets in an oyster and the oyster coats it over so that it won't be irritating."

1992, Karen Kijewski, Kat's Cradle, page 7:


Merle

Merle Haggard is a name out of a morality play. And that's the kind of songs he sings.

1968 May 3, Al Aronowitz, “New Country Twang Hits Town”, in Life Magazine, page 12:

A male given name transferred from the surname.


Merle

English 19th-century bird name from merle (“blackbird”), possibly also a variant of Muriel, Merrill, etc.

Her name was Merle, and to her name she always said she owed the fact that Gilbert Vanborough ever looked at her.

1887, Emily Frances Adeline Sergeant, Jacob's Wife, page 92:

"I wish I had a name like Merle Oberon or Miriam Hopkins," Mary Agnes said dreamily as she scanned the display of Coming Attractions.

1976, From These Hills, From These Valleys: Pennsylvania Writers' Collection, University of Pittsburgh Press, →ISBN, page 186:


Bavarian

/bəˈvɛəɹɪən/

A German dialect spoken in Bavaria (a state of southern West Germany) and Austria, which varies considerably across different regions.


Pip

My father’s family name being Pirrip, and my Christian name Philip, my infant tongue could make of both names nothing longer or more explicit than Pip. So, I called myself Pip, and came to be called Pip.

1860 December – 1861 August, Charles Dickens, chapter I, in Great Expectations […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: Chapman and Hall, […], published October 1861, →OCLC:

A diminutive form of the given names Philip, Phillip, and Philippa.


Han

Atonal form of the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of the Mandarin pronunciation of Chinese 邗 (Hán).

(history) A canal in Jiangsu, China, connecting Hancheng (now Yangzhou) on the Yangtze with Mokou (now Huai'an) on the Huai.

邗溝

canal in Jiangsu, now mostly part of the Grand Canal


Han

From Korean 한(韓) (han). Cognate with English Han (from Mandarin).


Han

A First Nations people of Canada and an Alaska Native Athabaskan people of the Athabaskan-speaking ethnolinguistic group.

The Northern Athabaskan language spoken by the Han people, or Hän Hwëch'in, in Alaska and the Yukon.


Nova

Did you notice the dog which in the winter sports scenes is clasped in the arms of the child-star, Nova Pilbeam?

1935, Berta Ruck, A Story-Teller Tells the Truth, Hutchinson, page 266:

He murmurs to himself, "Her body is twenty-two, but she is in the infancy of a second life. I will call her Nova, the New One."

1951, The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, Mercury Press, page 71:


Pagan

Borrowed from Latin pāgānus (“rustic, rural”).

'I've always believed that one of the reasons she never named Pagan's father was to spare her a similar pain.' 'You don't know who he is?' 'No. And, at the risk of sounding like Candida, I'd give anything to find out.'

2011 April 19, Michael Arditti, Pagan and Her Parents, Arcadia Books, →ISBN:

In 2012, author Pagan Kennedy was hired by The New York Times magazine to write a column titled “Who Made That?” She began to hunt the people down behind inventions like sliced bread, the 3-D printer, and lipstick.

(Can we date this quote?), QuickRead, Lea Schullery, Inventology by Pagan Kennedy (Summary), QuickRead.com:


Phantom

Nickname of the F-4B jet fighter flown by U.S. marines in Vietnam.


Pierce

A male given name from Ancient Greek, medieval variant of Piers. Modern usage may also derive from the surname.


Ora

en-proper noun

Ora (countable and uncountable, plural Oras)

* (given name): First appeared in the 19th century when similar sounding names like Cora, Dora and Nora were in fashion. Possibly shortened from Aurelia, sometimes spelled Ora Lee, or, Aura Lea, in the American civil war song.
* (Italian commune): Borrowed from Italian Ora

Both ladies received me very graciously; but I was wholly unprepared for so much beauty as I discovered in Ora Doveton […]

1859, William Harrison Ainsworth, The Life and Adventures of Mervyn Clitheroe, J. Routledge, published 1858, page 179:

A diminutive of the female given name Aurelia, from Latin, variant of Aura. Mainly used in the U.S.A. in the latter half of the 19th century.


Linda

Latinised short form of Germanic compound names ending in -lind, -linde (“tender, soft”) (English -inda), such as Sieglinde and Dietlinde, and earlier names such as Old High German Irmilinda and Old Dutch Frithelind, from Proto-Germanic *linþaz (“gentle, mild”), whence also Old English līþe (“gentle, mild, pliable, limber”) (English lithe). Later misassociated with unrelated Spanish linda (“beautiful”). The name became known through 19th century literature and the opera Linda di Chamounix (1842). More at lithe.
The coordination language is named after Linda Lovelace, a reference to the programming language Ada, itself named after Ada Lovelace.

cog

The Orange-Tree stood in a Wood which belong'd to a Princess, who liv'd in a magnificent Palace not far off, and us'd to walk there. This Princess was young, beautiful and witty, and her Name Linda.

1752, Countess D'Aulnoi, Thomas Parnell, The Court of Queen Mab. Tales of Fairies, London: M.Cooper, MDCCLII, page 328:

When I go to sleep / I never count sheep / I count all the charms about Linda.

1946 Jack Lawrence: Linda ( a popular song )

A female given name from the Germanic languages.