Gender: Feminine
Origin: Finnish
Meaning: “heather”
(kuh-NARE-vah)
The name comes directly from the Finnish word for the calluna vulgaris species of heather. The flowers usually bloom in late summer. The name might be an appealing alternative to the dated floral Heather. Its designated name day is August 14. To hear how its pronounced by native speakers, consult this site: http://www.forvo.com/word/kanerva/
Gender: Masculine
Origin: Gaelic
Meaning: “white fire.”
Ir (fin-TAHN); Eng (FIN-tun).
Gender: FeminineThe etymology of the four above names are virtually the same. The original source is the Spanish, Blanca, which was first recorded in the 12th century, as the name of a Spanish princess, the daughter of King Garcia Ramirez of Navarre.
The name comes directly from the Spanish word for “white.”
It is uncertain how it caught on as a name, however, its meaning might have been synonymous with beauty at the time.
Others believe that it may be a direct translation of the Arabic name Elvira, brought to Spain via the Moors and later latinized as Blanca.
It has also been conjectured that it may have started off as a name given to blonde girls.
The name rapidly spread among Western European royalty due to intermarriages and ancestry. It was introduced to the English speaking world after the Norman Conquest of England.
The name was translated as Blanche in French, Bianca in Italian and Branca in Portuguese.
It was borne by Blanche of Champagne (1226-1283); Blanche of Artois (1248-1302); Blanche I of Navarre 1385-1444) and Blanca of Navarre (1420-1464).
Bianca became an exceedingly popular name among the Italian nobility, where it is still very popular till this day.
Blanca and Bianca have spread to Germany and particularly the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia, where they are often rendered phonetically, as Blanka and Bianka.
Currently, Bianca ranked in as the 204th most popular female name in the United States, in Australia, she was the 76th most popular female (2007), and the 9th most popular female name in Romania, (2008). In 2009, Bianka was the 78th most popular female name in Warsaw Poland.
Blanche has not ranked in the U.S. top 1000 since 1964, when it ranked in as the 911th most popular female names, the highest it has ranked in U.S. naming history was at # 51 in 1886. Perhaps its time for a revival?
As for Blanca, she recently fell out of the U.S. top 1000, she was last seen in 2007, where she came in as the 960th most popular female name. In Spain, in 2006, she was the 45th most popular female name. In 2009, Blanka was the 31st most popular female name in Warsaw, Poland.
Other forms of the names include:
Common Italian compound forms include: Biancaurora, (literally meaning “white dawn”), Biancaluisa, Biancamaria and Biancarosa, (literally meaning “white rose.”).
Italian masculine forms include: Biancardo, Bianchino and Bianco.
Gender: Feminine
Origin: English
(HAY-zul)
The name comes directly from the English word for the plant or shrub which is classified in the birch family and produces the flavorful nut known as hazelnut.
The word itself is derived from the Anglo-saxon Haesel. Like many popular floral names, Hazel first came into usage in the 19th-century. The word hazel is also used to describe a type of eye colour that is a mixture of green and brown.
The highest she has ranked in the U.S. top 1000 is in 1897 when she came in at # 18. Hazel completely fell out of the top 1000 in 1975 and reappeared in 1998 coming in at # 940. She currently rests at # 343 and seems to be rising. In Ireland she is quite popular, coming in at # 87 in 2007.
It was the name of a popular sitcom of the 1960s.
Gender: Feminine
Origin: Latin
Meaning: “clear; see through”
Chiara (kee-AH-rah), (KYAH-rah), has been in usage in Italy since the early Middle Ages. Chiara is also the Italian feminine adjective for the word, chiaro meaning, “clear” or “bright.”
It was borne by Saint Chiara d’Assisi. (1194-1253). She was a companion of St. Francis of Assisi, both of whom believed in self-mortification and helping the poor. Chiara decided to start an order, known as the Poor Clares, while Francis went off to start his own order known as the Franciscans.
Chiara is still a very popular first name in Italy. In 2006, she was the 5th most popular female name.
The French form of Claire, also came into usage during the early Middle Ages. No doubt due to the cult of the male St. Clair of Dauphine, the patron saint of tailors.
The name came to England via the Normans in the form of Clare, and the male Latin form of Clarus was borne by a British saint of Rochester, a Benedictine monk. Both forms of Clare and Clara were very popular prior to the Reformation in England and both names were revived during the 19th century.
In recent years, for whatever reason, the French spelling of Claire has often times been the preferred choice among American parents. In 2008, Claire came in at # 62 in the U.S Top 1,00o Female Names, while its elder English counterpart of Clare came in at # 679. In fact, even the Latinate version of Clara is far more prevalent than Clare, coming in at # 206.
Clara/Klara is a popular choice throughout Northern and Central Europe.
Other forms of the name include:
Diminutive forms are the French, Clairette, the Italian, Chiaretta, Chiarina and Claretta.
There is the masculine Latin form of Clarus and the French masculine form of Clair.
Gender: Feminine
Origin: Albanian
Meaning: “greenery; verdure.”
(bleh-REE-nah)
Derived from the Albanian word blerim describing a shade of green, roughly translating as “spring-green,” the adjective is used to describe the greenery of plants, grass and leaves.
The masculine form is Blerim (bleh-REEM).
Gender: Feminine
Origin: Greek
Meaning: “milky white.”
Pronunciation (gah-lah-TAY-ah)
The name is found in Greek mythology. It borne by a wood nymph who lived on the Isle of Sicily; she was pursued by the giant, Polyphemos, but rejected his advances and fell in love with a local mortal by the name of Acis. In his jealousy, Polyphemos bashed Acis’ skull with a rock. Grief-stricken, Galatea transformed Acis into a stream.
Another Galatea was the object of Pygmalion’s affection. He carved a beautiful statue and fell in love with it, after praying to Aphrodite, the statue came to life and was named Galatea, due to the milky white texture of her skin.
Possible nickname options include Gala & Tea.
The name is used in Spanish and Italian.
Other forms include:
Gender: Feminine
Origin: Greek
Meaning: “blonde; yellow; yellow-brown.”
Pronunciation: (ZAN-thee)
Ξανθη
This was the name of one of the daughters of the minor Greek god, Oceanus. She was a nephalai nymph who was responsible for yellow tinged clouds. It was also the name of an Amazon and it was borne by the wife of Aesclepius.
In Classical Greece, the name was most likely bestowed upon fair haired girls or used as a sort of nickname for blondes, the equivalent of the English nickname, Blondie, and of the Latin Flavia.
Blonde hair was considered an exotic trait, and was therefore a rarity, yet pertained much admiration. The Greeks considered it as a sign of divinity, in fact, the Greeks liked to believe that the Gods all had blonde hair, especially Aphrodite.
If the idea of an X name is too much to fathom on a child, then you might prefer the slightly more tamed and Italianate Flavia or Flaviana. Xan would make an incredibly spunky nickname option.
Another form is Xanthia and the masculine form is Xanthos (Ξανθος)