Mizan

  • Origin: Arabic موازين‎; Ethiopic ሚዛን
  • Meaning: “balance; scales.”
  • Gender: Male

The name comes from the ancient Semitic root √W-Z-N / √ʾ-Z-N, meaning “to weigh, measure, or balance.”

Its Arabic use is from mīzān (ميزان) → “balance, scales,” appearing throughout the Qur’an as the mīzān al-ʿadl — the scales of divine justice and its Geʽez / Amharic use comes from mäzan / mizan (መዛን), meaning “measure, equilibrium, fairness.”

Compare to Hebrew moznaim (מאזניים) “the balances,” also symbolizing moral and cosmic fairness and the name of the astrological sign of Libra, though it is not used as a given-name.

In the Islamic world, Mizan represents the moral equilibrium of the universe — the balance by which every soul’s deeds are weighed.

In Ethiopian usage, Mizan retains the literal sense of “measure” but has become a spiritual and philosophical name, expressing inner balance and moral clarity. It’s also a familiar place name — as in Mizan Teferi, “Prince of Balance,” a town in southwest Ethiopia.

A Kurdish form is Mîzan.

Mizani is the Swahili form and is a unisex name.

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Makeda

  • Origin: Amharic / Geʽez: ማክዳ
  • Meaning: debated
  • Gender: Feminine
  • Pronunciation (muh-KAY-dah)

Makeda (also rendered Makda or Mäkēda) is a female name of Ethiopian origin, best known as the traditional name of the Queen of Sheba in Ethiopian, Eritrean, and Geʽez sources.

In the Kebra Nagast (“The Glory of Kings”), Ethiopia’s national epic written in Geʽez, Makeda is portrayed as the Queen of Sheba who visits King Solomon in Jerusalem — a story paralleling the biblical and Qurʾānic accounts. Through her union with Solomon, she becomes the ancestress of the Solomonic dynasty, which ruled Ethiopia for centuries.

While the precise etymology of the name in Geʽez or Amharic is debated, some Ethiopian scholars interpret it as meaning “greatness, prominence, power,” and according to the original legend, it means “not thus,” from when she proclaimed it was thus not right to worship the sun but the God of the Hebrew Bible. Other sources relate it to the same root as the name Magdala (tower), and others have suggested it is a corruption of Candace.

In modern Ethiopia, Makda is a variation.

This name was given to Bob Marley’s daughter in 1981, which set off a trend of use in the African-American community.

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Sifan

Sifan Hassan
  • Origin: Oromo
  • Meaning: “I am for you.”
  • Gender: Feminine
  • Pron: SEE-vun

The name is composed of the Oromo words, Siif (for you) and an (I am, me).

A notable bearer is Dutch-Ethiopian runner, Sifan Hassan (b. 1993).

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Baatii, Bati

  • Origin: Oromo
  • Meaning: “the moon.”
  • Gender: unisex

The name comes directly from the Oromo word meaning, “moon.”

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