Category Archives: Latvian Names

Hugh, Hugo

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Gender: Masculine
Origin: German
Meaning: “heart; mind; spirit
(HYOO); (HYOO-go)

The name is derived from the Germanic element, hug, meaning “heart; mind; spirit” or even “memory.” The original meaning of the name seems to refer to abstract consciousness.

It appears in Norse mythology in the form of Hugin(n), (thought), the name of one of Odin’s messenger ravens who would fly around Midgård and bring Odin messages. The other raven’s name was Muninn (memory).

It was a very popular name among the Franks and was introduced into England after the Norman invasion. It was borne by an early British saint, Hugh of Lincoln. The name’s popularity spread across the British Isles, often being Gaelicized in Ireland as Aodh and in Scotland as Ùisdean.

It was borne by a 10th-century French monarch, Hugh Capet, founder of the Capetian dynasty.

Hugh is currently the 963rd most popular male name in the United States, while it’s Latin cognate of Hugo ranks significantly higher at # 441. Hugo is currently a very trendy name across Europe. Its rankings in other countries are as follows:

#4 (Spain, 2010)
#6 (Sweden, 2010)
#8 (France, 2008)
# 12 (Catalonia, Spain, 2009)
#13 (Belgium, 2008)
#50 (the Netherlands, 2o1o)
#86 (Australia, NSW, 2010)

Other forms of the name include:

Hugo (Catalan/Czech/Dutch/English/Estonian/Finnish/French/German/Hungarian/Icelandic/Latvian/Polish/Portuguese/Romanian/Scandinavian/Slovak/Slovene/Spanish)
Hugh (English)
Hugues (French)
Hauke (Frisian)
Huguo (German)
Ughetto (Italian)
Ughino (Italian)
Ugo (Italian)
Ugolino (Italian)
Ugone (Italian)
Uguccione (Italian)
Hugas (Lithuanian)
Hudde/Hud (Middle English)
Huginn (Old Norse/Icelandic)
Hugon (Polish)
Ugu (Sardinian)
Shug (Scottish)
Hugolín (Slovak)
Huw (Welsh)

Common English diminutives are: Hewie and Hughie.

Feminine forms include, Huguette (French), Uga (Italian), Ughetta (Italian), Ugolina (Italian).

The designated name-days are: Febuary 3 (Estonia), April 1 (Estonia/Hungary/Poland/Slovakia), April 29 (Germany/Poland), November 3 (Sweden), November 17 (Latvia/Poland).

The rest of its bearers are too numerous to list.

Sources

  1. http://www.behindthename.com/name/hugo
  2. Ernst Förstemann, Altdeutsches namenbuch (1900), page 923

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)

Snow Day! Snow Names

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Was your baby a snow baby? Born on a snow day? Or perhaps you are just curious to see if here are any names with the meaning of “snow; ice or blizzard.”

As part of the holidays and in honour of the snow rich winter season, I have compiled a list of “snowy” “icy” baby names. Enjoy!

Male

Alluaq “hole in the ice for fishing” (Greelandic)
Andri “snow shoe” (Old Norse)
Anil “wind” (Sanskrit)
Aputsiaq “snowflake” (Greenlandic)
Edur“snow” (Basque)
Fannar “snow drift” (Icelandic)
Frediano “cold” (Italian)
Frosti “frost” (Icelandic)
Govad “the wind” (Persian)
Hjarnar “hard; frozen snow” (Old Norse)
Ilgar “first snow” (Azeri)
Isbert “bright ice” (Frisian)
Isbrand “ice sword” (Frisian)
Izo “ice” (Frisian)
Izozts “ice” (Basque)
Jouko “snow; ice” (Finnish)
Persoq “snow flurry” (Greenlandic)
Pyry “blizzard” (Finnish)
Sarmis “snowfrost” (Latvian)
Sheleg “snow” (Hebrew)

Female

Biruta “snow” (Lithuanian)
Bora “snow” (Albanian)
Dëborake “snow” (Albanian)
Drífa “snowdrift” (Icelandic)
Edurne “snow” (Basque)
Eira “snow” (Welsh)
Eirlys “snowflake” (Welsh)
Elurreta “snowing” (Basque)
Ensilumi “snowfall” (Finnish)
Era “wind” (Albanian)
Esen “the wind” (Turkish)
Fanndís “snow goddess” (Icelandic)
Flykra “snow flake” (Faroese)
Fulga “snowflake” (Romanian)
Fönn “lots of snow” (Icelandic)
Gheata “ice” (Romanian)
Gwyneira “white snow” (Welsh)
Haizea “wind” (Basque)
Halla “frost” (Finnish)
Helbe/Helve “flake” (Estonian)
Himani “snow” (Sanskrit)
Hófehérke “snow white” (Hungarian)
Hukupapa “frost” (Maori)
Ishild “ice battle” (German)
Ilgara “first snow” (Azeri)
Jökla “icicle; glacier” (Icelandic)
Kassoq “bluish piece of ice” (Greenlandic)
Koyuki “little snow” (Japanese)
Kukiko “child of the snow” (Japanese)
Lumi “snow” (Finnish)
Miyuki “silent snow” (Japanese)
Mjöll “fluffy snow” (Icelandic)
Neus “snow” (Catalan)
Neves “snows” (Portuguese)
Nieves “snows” (Spanish)
Nilak “fresh water ice” (Greenlandic)
Pärsla “flake” (Latvian)
Patil “snowflake” (Armenian)
Pire “snow” (Mapuche)
Qinoq “ice sludge'” (Greenlandic)
Tuyét “snow” (Vietnamese)
Sarma/Sarmite “snowfrost” (Latvian)
Shilga “snow” (Hebrew)
Snezhana “snow” (Bulgarian/Croatian/Russian)
Snezhala “snow” (Bulgarian)
Sniedze (Latvian)
Snöfrid “snow peace; snow beauty” (Old Norse)
Snædís “snow goddess” (Icelandic)
Snieguolė “little snow” (Lithuanian)
Śnieżka “little snow” (Polish)
Taidi “snow white” (Estonian)
Tuuli “wind” (Finnish)
Yukiko “snow child” (Japanese)

Sibyl

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a woman looking at the mirror

Photo by cottonbro studio on Pexels.com

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

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

Bertha

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Bertha of Swabia, by Albert Anker 1888

Gender: Feminine
Origin: German
Meaning: “bright.”
Eng (BER-thuh); Germ (BEHR-tah)

The name is derived from the Old Germanic element, beraht, meaning “bright.”

It was borne by an early Germanic goddess of childbearing and weaving, also known as Perchta or Berchta in Southern Germanic dialects.

According to Jacob Grimm and Lotte Motz, Perchta was the Alpine version of Holda (see http://legitimatebabynames.com/2010/09/15/hulda/)

As a given name, it was quite common among the Franks, as is demonstrated with Charlemagne’s mother, whose name was Bertha.

As is to be expected, the name does not appear in the U.S. Top 1000. In the latter half of the 20th-century, Bertha has taken on a bad reputation as being the worst name one can give to a daughter. In 1883, however, Bertha was the 7th most popular female name in the United States.

Other forms of the name include:

Behrte (Anglo-Saxon)
Berta (Czech/Estonian/Faroese/Hungarian/Icelandic/Italian/Norwegian/Polish/Slovak/Slovene/Spanish/Swedish)
Berthe (French)
Bertille (French)
Bertilla (Italian)
Bertina (Italian/Hungarian)
Behrta/Perchta (Old German)

    Obscure Italian male forms include, Berto, Bertinello, Bertillo, Bertino, Bertolo and Bertonello.

    Other notable bearers include: St. Bertha of Kent (593-612) known for her Christianization of Anglo-Saxon England; St. Berthe Val d’Or (d.c 690); St. Berthe of Artois (c.725); St. Bertha of Bingen (c. 757); Berthe of Burgundy, Queen of France (c. late 10th-century); Bertha of Swabia, Queen of France (907-966); Berthe of Holland, Queen of France ( 1055-1093); Bertha of Sulzbach, renamed Irene, was a Byzantine Empress and first wife of Manual I Comnenus (1110-1159); Blessed Berta de Bardi (d. 1163); Austrian novelist and pacifist, Bertha von Suttner (1843-1914); First woman Puisne Justice of the Canadian Supreme Court, Bertha Wilson (1923-2007).

    The designated name-days are: February 8 (Sweden); May 1 (Germany); May 15 (Poland); July 2 (Slovakia); August 6 (Hungary); August 24 (Estonia); September 23 (Czech Republic)

    Source

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

    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