Category Archives: Christian Names

Daniel, Danielle

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Gender: Masculine
Origin: Biblical Hebrew
Meaning: “God is my Judge.”

If you are like me, you probably think Daniel is dull and overused. Then there is the other camp who might think this is a wonderful classic. It has the youthful nickname options of Dan and Danny and its used in just about every European country with such variants as the Italian Daniele and the Czech and Polish diminutive forms of Danek. Another plus is that, while the name has religious connotations, its doesn’t adhere to a specific denomination. It is fair game for both Jewish and Christian parents alike, Catholic and Protestant. It is even used among Muslims.

The name Daniel is found in the Old Testament, (it has its own book), composed of the Hebrew elements dan meaning “judge” and the 1st person possessive singular suffix of i plus El which was a reference to God.

As for the Biblical Daniel himself, according to the Bible, he was a Jewish boy who was captured by the Babylonians and employed as a sort of dream-reader, (sounds like a pretty cool job). Daniel was so good at his job that he eventually became famous, even among his Persian and Babylonian captives. Due to his prestige and influence, Daniel was also able to persuade his captors to release the Jews back to their homeland. There is far more to the Biblical Daniel’s story than I will write here, but he is probably most noted for his steadfast loyalty to his faith and people as well as his miraculous survival after being thrown in a den of lions.

In the United States, Daniel has been steadfast in its popularity. He currently comes in at # 5. Meanwhile, in the United Kingdom, he comes in at # 7. In Scotland at # 3. In Ireland # 4. While in Spain he comes in at a whopping # 2.

This forms is also used in the Czech Republic, Finland, French-speaking countries, German-speaking countries, Poland, Portuguese-speaking countries, Romania,  Scandinavia, Slovakia and Spanish-speaking countries

Other forms include :

  • Dana (Afrikaans)
  • Danieli (Albanian)
  • Danyal دانيال (Arabic)
  • Taniel (Armenian)
  • Danel (Basque)
  • Danilo (Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian)
  • Deniel (Breton)
  • Danail Данаил (Bulgarian)
  • Danelu (Corsican/Sardinian/Sicilian)
  • Daan (Dutch/Limburgish)
  • Daniël (Dutch)
  • Daaniel/Taaniel (Estonian)
  • Tanel/Tani (Estonian)
  • Taano/Tanno (Estonian)
  • Taneli/Tatu (Finnish)
  • Dāniyyêl דָּנִיֵּאל (Hebrew: Modern)
  • Dániel (Hungarian)
  • Daniló (Hungarian)
  • Dános (Hungarian)
  • Daniele (Italian: dahn-YAY-lay)
  • Daniello (Italian: an archaic version which died out in the 17th-century)
  • Danilo/Danilio (Italian: obscure)
  • Danielius (Lithuanian)
  • Daniilu Данїилъ (Old Church Slavonic)
  • Dani داني (Persian)
  • Daniyal دانيال (Persian)
  • Danil/Dănuṭ (Romanian: duh-NOOTS)
  • Daniil Даниил (Russian)
  • Daniele/Danijel (Slovene)
  • Dani/Däne/Dänu/Danü (Swiss-German: Bern dialect)
  • Danyal/Danyel(Turkish)
  • Deiniol (Welsh)

Czech diminutives are: Dan, Daník, Daneček, Danoušek, Danny, Dandýsek, Dady, Danda, Dáda, Danda, Dannys, Danušík and Dandýsek, Italian diminutive forms are: Nilo, Danio, Danino and Nilio.

Danya Даня is a common Russian and Ukrainian diminutive form.

Let us not forget its feminine versions of Daniella, Daniela and Danielle. As of 2010, its Spanish and Slavic diminutive form of Dania reached the top 1000, coming in as the 999th most popular female name in the United States.

The French Danielle, does not have the same staying power as its masculine counterpart. Though always more common as a middle name, Danielle is one of the quintessential names of the 1980s. In 1987, she came close to reaching the top 10 by hitting # 14. In the last popularity census, Danielle still comes in rather high at # 144.  Its Latinate counterpart of Daniela comes in a tad bit higher at # 121, while the Italian Daniella is all the way down at # 303.

Other forms are:

  • Danijela (Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian/Slovene)
  • Danaila (Bulgarian)
  • Daniela (Czech/German/Polish/Portuguese/Romanian/Scandinavian/Slovene/Spanish)
  • Danielle (English)
  • Danièle (French)
  • Danelia (Italian: obscure)
  • Daniella (Italian)
  • Danila/Danilla (Italian: obscure)

Italian feminine diminutives are : Dana, Dania and Nila.

Designated name-days are: July 21 (Germany/Hungary/Slovakia), December 10 (Poland/Lithuanian), December 11 (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Norway, Sweden), December 17 (Greec/Czech Republic)

Araceli

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Gender: Feminine
Origin: Latin
Meaning: alter of the sky
Pronunciation: ah-rah-THE-lee (Spanish), ah-rah-SE-lee (Latin American Spanish)

The name is composed of the Latin elements, ara (alter) and coeli (sky).

The name caught on in the Spanish-speaking world due to an epithet to the Virgin Mary, Nuestra Señore de Araceli, revered as the patroness of Lucena Spain. There is also a place in Italy which bears the same name.

The name is currently the 821st most popular female name in the United States (2010).  Another form is Arcelia.

Sources:

  1. http://www.behindthename.com/name/araceli

Belén

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Gender: Feminine
Origin: Spanish
Meaning: “Bethlehem”
(be-LEN)

The name is a Spanish form of Bethlahem and was originally used in honor of Mary of Bethlehem.

The name is found alone and in various Spanish compounds, which include:

  • Ana Belén
  • Maria Belén

Diminutives include:

Anabel (for Ana Belén)
Belu
Belencita
Bel
Belencilla

Sources

  1. http://www.behindthename.com/name/bele10n
  2. http://kurufin.narod.ru/html/spain.html
  3. http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hipocor%C3%ADstico

Sibyl

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a woman looking at the mirror

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Gender: Feminine
Origin: Greek
Meaning: “prophetess; sibyl.”
(SIB-el)

The name comes from the Greek, Σιβυλλα (Sibylla) meaning “prophetess.” In Greek and Roman legend, the sibyls were ten female prophets who were located at various sites throughout the ancient world, one notable location being Delphi.

Among Christians, the sibyls were believed to have had divine knowledge, especially with the coming of Christ, and were respected on par as the prophets of the Old Testament. The name was quite common in Medieval Europe as a result, but fell out of usage after the Protestant Reformation. It was revived in the 19th-century.

The name is the subject of a novel by Benjamin Disraeli (1845).

Other forms of the name include:

Sibil·la (Catalan)
Sibyla (Czech)
Sibylle (Danish/French/German)
Sibille (Dutch)
Pille, Sibülle (Estonian)
Sybille (French/German)
Sibylla (German/Greek/Swedish)
Szibilla (Hungarian)
Szibill (Hungarian)
Sibilina (Italian)
Sibilla (Italian/Latvian/Lithuanian/Polish)
Sybilla (Late Latin/Estonian)
Sibila (Portuguese/Spanish)
Sebille (Turkish)

Nicknames include:

Billie, Sibbie (English)
Bülle, Sibä, Sible (Swiss German)

Notable bearers include: Sibylla of Burgundy, Queen of Jerusalem (1126-1150); Sibylla of Burgundy, Duchess of Burgundy (1065-1103)

The designated name-days are: April 29 (Poland); May 19/20 (Latvia); October 3 (France); October 20 (Sweden)

Source

  1. http://www.behindthename.com/php/find.php?name=sybilla

Léger

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Gender: Masculine
Origin: German/Frankish
Meaning: “people of the spear; spear people.”
Fre (leh-ZHAY)

The name is derived from the Old German name, Leudgari, which is composed of the Germanic elements, leud (people) and gar (spear).

The name was borne by an early saint, St. Léger of Autun, a 5th-century bishop and martyr. He was tortured by the Duke of Champagne, by having his eyes gouged out and cauterized and was not murdered until years later.

Other forms of the name include:

Leodogari (Catalan)
Leodegarius (Dutch/Late Latin)
Leodegar (English/Polish)
Leodogar (German)
Leodogario (Italian)

The designated name-day is October 2 (France and Poland).

Source

  1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leodegar
  2. http://www.behindthename.com/namedays/lists/10.php

Ariel

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Gender: Masculine
Origin: Biblical Hebrew
Meaning: “lion of God.”
אֲרִיאֵל
Eng (Air-ee-el): Mod Heb (AHR-ee-EL)

The name is from the Biblical Hebrew, meaning “lion of God” and is found in the Old Testament as another name for the city of Jerusalem.

In Jewish and Christian apocrypha, it is also the name of an archangel, believed to be the angel who has authority over the Earth and its elements.

As a given name, it has been used by Jews, exclusively as a masculine name for centuries. It has only been in recent years, most notably, following the release of Walt Disney’s, the Little Mermaid (1989), that is has been given to females.

As a male name, it was the 556th most popular male name in the United States (2009), while for females it was the 206th most popular (2009).

In 2006, Ariel was the 78th most popular male name in Chile.

Shakespeare used this name for one of his characters in his play, The Tempest (1611).

Other forms of the name include:

Ariel (Catalan/English/French/German/Hebrew/Hungarian/Polish/Spanish)
Ariël (Dutch)

Feminine forms include:

Ariëlle (Dutch)
Arielle (French)
Ariela (German/Modern Hebrew/Polish/Spanish)
Ariella (Italian)

Hebrew short forms for the masculine version include: Ari and Arik.

A Polish diminutive form is Arielka.

Other notable bearers include: Ariel Sharon, former Israeli Prime Minister (b.1928); Polish soccer player, Ariel Jakubowski (b.1977); Polish Soccer Player, Ariel Borysiuk (b.1991); Argentine writer, Ariel Dorfman (b.1948); Mexican soap actor, Ariel López Padilla (b.1962); Argentine soccer player, Ariel Ortega (b.1974).

The designated name-day is October 1 (France).

Source

  1. http://www.behindthename.com/name/ariel

Zita

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Gender: Feminine
Origin: Italian
Meaning: “little girl; maiden; virgin.”
(ZEE-ta)

The name is derived from the Tuscan medieval dialectical term referring either to a little girl or unmarried woman. Over time, the term has taken on various meanings depending on the region of Italy. In some instances, it was used as a term of endearment for a young girl, in others, it was used to refer to a “spinster.” In modern Sicilian, zita literally means “girlfriend” while zito is boyfriend.

The name was borne by a famous medieval Italian saint, Zita of Lucca (1218-1227). Since she was a poor servant of unknown background, Zita may have actually been an affectionate nickname given by her devout followers, her true name being lost to history.

St. Zita was known for her piety and selfless acts. She was known for taking her megre earnings and food to the poor. She is also known for many miracles. She is considered the patron saint of servants and lost keys. Due to her cult, the name became popular outside of Italy and in other Catholic countries.

In German, the name could also be considered a contracted form of Felizitas.

As of 2009, Zita was the 65th most popular female name in Hungary and the 65th most popular female name in Belgium (2006)

Other forms of the name include:

Zita (Czech/French/German/Hungarian/Italian/Latvian/Lithuanian/Portuguese/Slovak/Slovene)
Zite (French)
Zitella (French)
Zéra (French)
Zérane (French)
Cita (Italian)
Zyta (Polish)

Nicknames include the Czech, Zitka, Zituška, Zitunka, Zituš, Zituna, Zitule and Zitulka. The Polish Zytka.

Italian masculine forms include: Zito, Zitolo, Cito and Citolo

The designated name day is April 2 (Slovakia); April 24 (Italy; Poland) April 27 (Lithuanian); August 11 (Latvia); September 19 (Czech Republic)

Sources

  1. http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zita
  2. http://www.behindthename.com/php/find.php?name=zita

Agape

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Gender: Feminine
Origin: Greek
Meaning: “love.”
Eng (AG-uh-PEE); Grk (ah-GAH-pey)

The name comes from the Greek word αγαπη (agape), literally meaning love, but in Christian theology, was used to describe the all-encompassing, self-sacrificial love of God for mankind.

The term, (in the plural form) was also used to describe a type of feast celebrated by early Christians.

The name was borne by two early Greek saints.

As a given name, it is rarely used outside Greek, but other forms do include:

Àgape (Catalan)
Agape (English/French/German/Italian/Latvian)
Agápē αγάπη (Greek)
Agapa (Polish)

Male forms include: Agapios Αγαπιος and Agapito.

The designated name-days are: April 14 (Latvia); September 15 (Greece)

Source

  1. http://www.behindthename.com/php/find.php?name=agape

Dolores

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Gender: Female
Origin: Spanish
Meaning: “sorrows.”
Eng (do-LORE-iss);

The name is taken from the Spanish word, dolores, meaning “sorrows.” The name was initially used in honour of the Virgin Mary, María de los Dolores, roughly translating as Our Lady of the Sorrows.

This was the full name of the title character in the Vladimir Nabokov book, Lolita.

Due to its strong Catholic origins, the name first appeared in Ireland during the 19th-century. In 1880, the name entered the U.S. top 1000, coming in as the 466th most popular female name. By 1930, she was then 13th most popular female name in the United States.

As of 2009, she does not even appear in the U.S. top 1000.

The name as also been occasionally used in Slovakia and France.

The designated name-day in most Catholic countries is September 15.

Other notable bearers include: Mexican actress, Dolores del Río (1905-1983); Former American actress turned nun, Dolores Hart (b.1938); Irish singer, Dolores O’Riordan (b.1971).

Other forms of the name include:

Nekane (Basque)
Dolors (Catalan)
Dores (Galician/Portuguese)
Addolorata (Italian)
Dolorata (Italian)
Dolorosa (Italian)
Doloretta (Italian)
Dolorina (Italian)
Dolorinda (Italian)

A common Spanish nickname is Lola or Lolita, both of which are now used as independent given names.

Source

  1. http://www.behindthename.com/php/related.php?name=dolores