Gender: Masculine
Origin: Italian
(jahn-KAR-lo)
The name is compound of the Italian diminutive Gian and Carlo. It is currently the 720th most popular male name in the United States.
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Giancarlo
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Category Archives: Italian Names
Liana
The name can either be a contraction of Juliana or Liliana or it may be taken from the name of the type of vine that grows in the jungle.
Currently, Liana is the 448th most popular female name in France, (2009) and the 525th most popular in the United States, (2010).
Another form of the name is the French and German Liane.
The name is also used in the Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Romania, Slovakia and in Spanish-speaking and Portuguese-speaking countries.
Designated name-days are: April 8 (Estonia), April 30 (Latvia) and December 10 (Czech Republic and Slovakia)
Czech diminutives include:
Li
Lia
Lianka
Liuška
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Elisha
Gender: Masculine
Origin: Hebrew אֱלִישַׁע
Meaning: “my God is salvation”
Eng (ee-LIE-shah)
The name comes from the Hebrew (Elishu’a) אֱלִישׁוּעַ and is found in the Old Testament and in the Quran as the name of a prophet and successor to Elijah.
In the English-speaking world, the name did not become common until after the Protestant Reformation.
Currently, Elisha is the 656th most popular male name in the United States, (2010).
Other forms of the name include:
Elyasa الْيَسَع (Arabic)
Eliseu (Catalan/Portuguese)
Elíša (Czech)
Elisa (Dutch/Finnish/Swedish: obscure)
Élisée (French)
Elise ელისე (Georgian)
Elischa (German)
Elisäus (German)
Elisaίos Ελισαίος (Greek: modern)
Eliseo (Italian/Spanish)
Eliseus (Latin)
Eliziejus (Lithuanian)
Elisie Елисие (Macedonian)
Elisja (Norwegian)
Elizeusz (Polish)
Elisei (Romanian)
Elisej Елисей (Russian)
Elizeus (Slovene)
Jelisej Јелисеј (Serbian)
Elyesa (Turkish)
Yelyséj Єлисе́й (Ukrainian)
The designated name day is June 14.
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Sylvia
Gender: Feminine
Origin: Latin
Meaning: “wood; forest.”
(SIL-vee-ah)
The name is a feminine form of Silvius, which is derived from the Latin silva meaning, “wood; forest.”
In Roman legend it was borne by the mother of Romulus and Remus (the founders of Rome), Rhea Silvia. It has been suggested that at one time she have been worshipped as a minor forest diety.
It was also borne by a 6th-century Italian saint credited as being the mother of St. Gregory the Great.
Before the 16th-century, Silvia’s usage was relegated to continental Europe, it gained notoriety in England after being used by Shakespeare in his 1594 play, The Two Gentleman of Verona.
The spelling of Sylvia has been the standard in the English-speaking world since the 19th-century.
Currently, it is the 554th most popular female name in the United States, (2010). Her rankings in other countries are as follows:
# 61 (Spain, 2010)
# 282 (the Netherlands, 2010)
Other forms of the name include:
Sylviya Сыльвія (Belarusian)
Silviya Силвия (Bulgarian)
Sílvia (Catalan/Portuguese)
Silvija (Croatian/Lithuanian/Slovene)
Lesana (literally meaning “woods; forest” it is sometimes used as a Czech and Slovakian equivalent of Sylvia)
Silvie (Czech)
Silvia (Estonian/Italian/Romanian/Slovak/Spanish)
Sylvia (Finnish/English/German/Scandinavian)
Sylphide (French)
Sylvaine (French)
Sylviane (French)
Sylvie (French)
Szilvia (Hungarian)
Sylvía (Icelandic)
Silva (Italian/Slovene)
Silvestra (Italian)
Silvana (Italian/Hungarian/Slovene)
Silvania (Italian)
Silviana (Italian)
Silvina (Italian)
Silvietta (Italian)
Sylvi (Norwegian)
Sylwia (Polish)
Sil’vija Сильвия(Russian)
Silvena (Slovene)
Silvenka (Slovene)
Silverija (Slovene)
Silvica (Slovene)
Zülfiye (Turkish)
Síl”viya Сі́львія(Ukrainian)
Common diminutives include:
Silva/Silvinka (Czech)
Sylvette (French)
Silviuccia (Italian)
Lyya or Lyka (Russian)
Syl”va or Sylya (Russian)
Ylya (Russian)
It is the name of a classical French ballet, Sylvia, ou La nymphe de Diane, (1876).
Sylvia is also the name of a species of warbler.
In recent years the name has been borne by American poet, Sylvia Plath (1932-1963), Queen Silvia of Sweden (b.1943)
Masculine forms include:
Silvije (Croatian)
Silvijo (Croatian/Slovene)
Silvio (Croatian/Italian/Portuguese/Spanish)
Sylvain (French)
Silvius (Latin)
Sylwiusz (Polish)
Silviu (Romanian)
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Santino
Gender: Masculine
Origin: Italian
Meaning: “little saint; holy card.”
(sahn-TEE-no)
The name comes directly from the Italian word santo meaning “saint” and is also used as word in Italian to describe small images of saints, known in English as a holy card or a prayer card.
The name was always very common among Italian-Americans, most of whom were anglicized as Sonny.
Currently, Santino is the 652nd most popular male name in the United States, (2010).
Santo is also used as a given name in Italy.
Feminine forms include: Santa, Santina and Santuzza.
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Hezekiah
Gender: Masculine
Origin: Hebrew חִזְקִיָהוּ
Meaning: “Yahweh strengthens”
Eng (hez-eh-KYE-ah)
The name is a transliteration of the Hebrew masculine name Chizqiyahu which is found in the Old Testament as the name of one of the kings of Judah.
The name was in usage among the Puritans and is currently the 930th most popular name in the United States (2010).
Other forms of the name include:
Ezequies (Catalan)
Ezekija (Croatian)
Hizkia (Dutch)
Hiskia (Finnish/Norwegian/Swedish)
Ézéchias (French)
Eze’kia ეზეკია (Georgian)
Ezekias Εζεκίας (Greek)
Hiskija (German)
Chizqiyahu (Hebrew)
Ezékiás (Hungarian)
Hiszkija (Hungarian)
Ezechia (Italian/Romanian)
Ezechiasz (Polish)
Ezequias (Portuguese)
Ezekíja Езеки́я (Russian)
Jezekija (Serbian)
Ezequías (Spanish)
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Conrad, Cord, Kurt & Koen
It sounds like it could be the name of a law firm, but all of the above are derivatives of the Germanic name Conrad.
Conrad is composed of the Germanic elements, kuoni (brave) and rad (counsel). It was borne by a 10th-century Bavarian saint, and his name has left its mark on Catholic Germany since. In fact, it was a very popular name in Medieval Germany and Konrad has seemed to have been so common that the proverb Hinz und Kunz (the equivalent of the English, Every Tom, Dick & Harry) was created.
It was also borne by several illustrious German kings and dukes.
Conrad is still a fairly common name modern Germany and is currently rising in popularity in the United States. As of 2010, it was the 772nd most popular male name. Its Dutch diminutive form of Koen has recently appeared in the U.S. top 1000, coming in as the 940th most popular male name (2010). In the Netherlands, Koen ranks significantly higher, he is the 39th most popular male name (2010). In English, it is pronounced (KOH-en) like the common Jewish surname, while in Dutch it is pronounced (KOON).
In 2009, Konrad was the 44th most popular male name in Poland.
The once popular Kurt and the newly introduced Cord are also Germanic contractions.
Other forms of the name include the following:
Conráu (Asturian)
Korrada (Basque)
Konrad Конрад (Belarusian/Bulgarian/Estonian/Finnish/Polish/Scandinavian/Slovene/Ukrainian/Russian)
Conradí (Catalan)
Conradu (Corsican)
Konrád (Czech/Hungarian/Slovak)
Coenraad (Dutch)
Kiefer (Dutch)
Koenraad (Dutch)
Konradijn/Conradijn (Dutch)
Kuber (Dutch)
Conrad (English/French/German/Swedish)
Konradin (German: archaic)
Kunó (Hungarian)
Konráður (Icelandic)
Corrado (Italian)
Corradino (Italian: archaic)
Konrads (Latvian)
Konradas (Lithuanian)
Kondrat (Polish: archaic)
Conrado (Portuguese/Spanish)
Corràdu (Sardinian)
Currado (Sicilian)
Curradino (Sicilian)
In German, Conrad/Konrad has a plethora of diminutives such as: Cohen, Conni, Conz, Curd, Keno, Koni, Konni, Konz, Kord, Kuno and Kuntz.
Feminine forms include:
Conradine/Konradine (German/Norwegian)
Corrada (Italian)
Corradina (Italian)
Konradyna (Polish)
The designated name-days are: February 14 (Poland), February 19 (Poland), April 21 (Hungary & Poland), June 1 (Poland), August 1 (Poland), October 4 (Poland), November 12 (Estonia & Poland), November 21 (Poland) and November 26 (Poland & Germany).
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Mina
The name has several origins, meanings and derivatives depending on where in the world you find the bearer of the name. In the Western world, it is a female name, a contracted form of Wilhelmina and Hermina. It was always common in Germanic and Scandinavian countries, but was first introduced into the English-speaking world through Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1897).
It is also an Indian name, derived from the Sanskrit word for fish मीना , it is sometimes transliterated as Meena. In Hinduism, it is the name of the daughter of the Goddess Usha and the God Kubera.
It is also a common Persian female name, being derived from the Farsi word for “blue glass; enamel; lapis lazuli.” It also coincides with the name of a valley near Mecca, and is therefore found as feminine given name in the Arabic-speaking world. In Arabic it means “port; harbor.”
Among Coptic Christians, it is a very popular male name. It is borne by a renowned early Christian Egyptian martyr and saint, known in the Western world as St. Menas. Mīna مينا is its original Coptic version and according to legend, the saint’s mother heard a voice saying “amen” while praying for a pregnancy.
Currently, Mina is 41st most popular female name in Norway (2010), the 314th most popular in France (2009) and the 961st most popular in the United States (2010).
The designated name-days are: November 24 (Poland) and December 23 (Lithuania/Poland).
Other forms its masculine Egyptian counterpart include:
Menna (Catalan)
Ménas (French)
Menas (Greek)
Mena (Italian: RARE)
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Mercedes
Gender: Feminine
Origin: Spanish/Portuguese
Meaning: “mercies”
mer-THE-dhes (Spanish), mer-SE-dhes (Latin American Spanish); mer-SAY-deez (English)
The name is derived from the Spanish word, mercedes, (mercies), and was originally used in honour of the Virgin Mary, María de las Mercedes, (Mary, Full of Grace or Our Lady of Mercies).
The name was popularized outside of the Spanish speaking world via the car make, Mercedes-Benz, which was named in honour of the Austrian creator’s daughter, Mercedes Jellinek (1889-1928). Mercedes was not her true given name, it was given to her as a nickname since childhood and her real name was Adriana Manuela Ramona.
Currently, Mercedes is the 666th most popular female name in the United States, (2010). Its magyarized form of Mercédesz is the 98th most popular female name in Hungary, (2009).
Other forms of the name include:
Eskarne (Basque)
Mercè (Catalan)
Mèrsed (Creole)
Mercédès (French)
Mercede (Italian)
Merceda (Polish: obscure)
Mercédesz (Hungarian)
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Felicity
The name comes directly from the English word for happiness and the Latin word felicitas of the same meaning. It was borne by an early Christian saint and martyr and later became a common name among American puritans.
In Ancient Rome, Felicitas was the personification of luck and fortune.
Currently, Felicity ranked in as the 764th most popular female name in the United States, (2010). It was the name of late 1990s television series and is also the name of one of the original American Girls in the American Girl series of books which recounts the day and a life of a 18th-century American girl living in colonial Williamsburg.
Other forms of the name include:
Felicitat (Catalan)
Félicité (French)
Felicitas/Felizitas (German)
Felicitás (Hungarian)
Felicitász (Hungarian)
Felìcita (Italian)
Felicitas (Latin)
Felicyta (Polish)
Felicidade (Portuguese)
Felicidad (Spanish)
A common 18th-century diminutive was Flick.
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