Sarai

Sarai was the original name of Sarah, the wife of Abraham, the mother of Isaac. The name means “my princess” and derives from the same root word as Sarah which comes from Hebrew root word sarar (to rule, to be princely) via sar (chief, ruler, prince, captain, chieftain, official) which seems to be a cognate of Akkadian šarru (king) which ultimately…

Townsend

Townsend comes from an English surname, a topographical name for someone who lived at the extreme end of a village or town. The name is made up of Middle English toun (hamlet, village) and ende (end). Origin: Proto-Indo-European Meaning: “village at the end” or “hamlet at the end” Usage: English

Asiya

Asiya آسية is the name of the wife of the pharaoh during the time of Moses, his adoptive mother according to Islamic tradition. The name seems to be derived from Arabic root word a-s-y أسي “to be distressed, to be gloomy”. Origin: Arabic Meaning: “to be distressed, to be gloomy, grieved” Usage: Arabic Variants: Assia…

Ridwan

Ridwan رضوان is an Arabic male name meaning “satisfaction” and “being pleased with; consent, approval”. It’s the name of an angel in Islam who guards the gates of heaven. Origin: Arabic Meaning: “satisfaction, contentment, approval” Usage: Arabic, Indonesian Variants: Female forms:

Glynis

Glynis is a Welsh female name, either a variant of Glenys derived from the Welsh word glân meaning “clean, clear, holy” via Proto-Celtic *glanos (clean; clear), or it’s an elaborated form of Welsh glyn “valley”. Origin: Proto-Celtic Meaning: “clean, clear, holy” or “valley” Usage: Welsh Variants: Glenys (Welsh) Glennis (anglicized spelling of Glynis/Glenys) Glenice (anglicized…

Pelagio

Pelagio is the Spanish and Italian form of Pelagius, the latinized form of Ancient Greek Pelagios meaning “of the sea” via Ancient Greek pelagos (sea) via an uncertain origin. Origin: Ancient Greek via an uncertain etymology Meaning: “of the sea” Usage: Spanish, Italian Variants: Pelagius (Latinized Ancient Greek) Pelagios (Ancient Greek) Pelayo (Spanish) Female forms:…

Lakshmi

Lakshmi is the name of the Hindu goddess of good luck, prosperity, and beauty. The wife of Vishnu (a major deity in Hinduism). The name means “sign, mark” which derives from Sanskrit root lakṣ लक्ष् (perceive, observe) which ultimately derives from a PIE root word. Origin: Proto-Indo-European Meaning: “sign, mark” Usage: Indian, Hindi, Telugu, Kannada,…

Sunil

Sunil is an Indian male name meaning “very dark” or “very blue”, composed of su- सु (good, well) and nila नील (dark blue). Origin: Proto-Indo-European Meaning: “very dark” or “very blue” Usage: Indian, Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Assamese, Gujarati, Punjabi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Nepali Female forms: Sunila (Indian, Hindi)

Contessa

Contessa is the Italian word for “countess”, the feminine equivalent of a count (or conte in Italian). The word derives from Latin come, comitem (companion, comrade; attendant), made up of Latin prefix com- (with) and eō (to go). Origin: Proto-Indo-European Meaning: “countess” Usage: English, Italian (word, although I’m not sure if this is used as…

Sforza

Sforza comes from an Italian surname, famously associated with a ruling family in Renaissance Italy, in Milan, a powerful family from 1450 to 1535. The name comes from Italian sforzare meaning “to force; to strain”, from Vulgar Latin *exfortiare via ex- (out, away) and fortiare< fortiō< fortis (strong, powerful). The name was occasionally used as…

Duvessa

Duvessa is the anglicized form of Dubh Essa meaning “black waterfall”, made up of Irish dubh (black; black-haired) and eas (waterfall, cascade, rapid). Dubh Essa (also spelled Dubhessa) was a fairly common given name in medieval Ireland, in the 13th/14th century. Duvessa was used in Irish playwright M.J. Molloy’s play The Wooing of Duvessa (1964)….

Abeiku

Abeiku is an Akan male name in the Fante dialect meaning “born on Wednesday”, the Akan an ethnic group living primarily in Ghana and the Ivory Coast. Origin: Akan Meaning: “born on Wednesday” Usage: Akan (Fante) Variants: Abeeku Kwaku Kaku Kuuku Kweku Keku Koku Female forms: Akua Aku Akuba Kukua Akuma Akusea Ekua

Nita

Nita as an English name originated as a shortened form of names ending in nita such as Anita (a diminutive of Ana/Anna meaning “favor, grace” which ultimately derives from a Proto-Semitic root word), Juanita (diminutive of Juana, the Spanish equivalent of Joanna, the feminine form of John “Yahweh is gracious”); or Bonita, a Spanish/Portuguese word…

Maynard

Maynard comes from an English surname of Norman origin which derived from Germanic personal name Mainard, Meinard meaning “strength + hardy”, composed of Germanic elements magin (strength) and hard (brave, hardy). Origin: Proto-Indo-European Meaning: “strength + brave, hardy” Usage: English Variants: Maynerd (English) Mainard (English, French) Meinard (Dutch) Meindert (Dutch) Meinhard (German) Meginhard (German)