The name is composed of the Welsh words, gwyn (white, fair, blessed) and llwyf (elm tree). The name was borne by a 7th-century Welsh saint of whom very little is known. Her feast day is November 30th.
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Gwawr is derived from the Welsh word for “dawn,” whereas Gwawrdydd is from the Welsh meaning, “daybreak.”
In Welsh legend and early medieval hagiography, Gwawr is mentioned as one of the daughters of Brychan Brycheiniog, a 5th-century Welsh chieftain and saint reputed to have had many saintly children.
A notable bearer is Welsh concert soprano, Gwawr Edward (b. 1984).
Gwawr continues to experience quiet usage in Wales, whereas Gwawrdydd remains rare, last experiencing rare use in the mid 1800s. Another rarer variation is Gwawrwen (fair dawn; white dawn; holy dawn).
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Prosdocimus is a Late Latin form of the Greek Προσδόκιμος (Prosdokimos), derived from prosdokein, meaning “the awaited; the expected,” allegedly used for a long awaited child.
The name is best known from Saint Prosdocimus, a 1st-century Christian bishop and missionary of Greek origin, who evangelized the region around Patavium (Padua) in northern Italy. He is venerated as the first bishop and patron saint of Padua, and a major church, the Basilica di San Prosdocimo, adjoining the Abbey of Santa Giustina, bears his name. His cult was established early in the Christian era and remained locally important throughout the Middle Ages.
Because of the saint’s regional veneration, the given name Prosdocimo remained rare and was used mainly in the Veneto, occasionally appearing in baptismal records in Padua and neighboring areas. Outside northern Italy it has always been exceptional, preserved chiefly in ecclesiastical or hagiographic contexts.
The designated name-day is November 7th.
International Variations
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Mannix is the Anglicized form of the early Irish given name Mainchín, a diminutive of Old Irish manach, meaning “monk.” The root manach comes from Latin monachus, “monk,” introduced to Ireland through early Christian monasticism.
Mainchín was a popular given name among early Irish saints, particularly during Ireland’s monastic age (6th–8th centuries). Notable bearers include: Saint Mainchín of Limerick, a 6th-century bishop and the patron saint of the city; and Saint Mainchín of Corann, a lesser-known saint of County Sligo.
As Irish names were adapted into English, Mainchín became Mannix (also occasionally Manix or Mannex). Over time, this Anglicized given name also evolved into a family surname, carried by descendants of those named Mainchín.
The name gained brief international attention through Archbishop Daniel Mannix (1864–1963) of Melbourne, a prominent Irish-Australian religious leader, and through the late-1960s detective series Mannix, which reintroduced the name to modern audiences.
Today, Mannix is a rare but genuine revival of an ancient Irish Christian name — never invented, never fabricated from a surname, but descended directly from one of Ireland’s earliest monastic names. It combines the humility of its meaning (“little monk”) with the strong, contemporary rhythm of names ending in -x (Felix, Lennox, Maddox).
Another Anglicized form is Munchin.
Other forms include:
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A 19th-century gem and late 20th-century vampiric monikor, the name is of uncertain meaning but has its origins in Medieval Spain. It is likely of Visigothic origins, possibly derived from Gailawera or Geloyra, which stem from gails (happy) or (spear); and wers (friendly, agreeable, true).
It should be noted that Elvira (Latin: Iliberri or Iliberis) was an ancient Iberian and later Roman city located near present-day Granada, in Andalusia, southern Spain. However, in this case, it is likely derived from an Iberian source, meaning “new town.”
It was a popular female name among the royal family of Castille & León, producing two queens who bore this name, Elvira of Castile, Queen of León (965–1017) and Elvira of Castile, Queen of Sicily (c. 1100–1135).
It was later used in Mozart’s 1787 opera Don Giovanni (libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte), in which Donna Elvira is one of Don Giovanni’s former lovers. This likely popularized the name outside of the Iberian peninsula.
By the turn of the 20th-century, Elvira was not unknown in the United States, though never overly popular, it peaked at #254 in 1914, but fell out the Top 1000 by 1981, the same year Elvira, Mistress of the Dark came on the scene.
The real Halloween link began in 1981, when actress Cassandra Peterson created the camp-horror TV hostess Elvira, Mistress of the Dark for a Los Angeles late-night show (Movie Macabre).
Dressed in a plunging black gown with a beehive of jet hair, Elvira presented old horror movies with sardonic humor — blending Gothic sex appeal, irony, and B-movie kitsch.
The character became a pop-culture icon: Halloween TV specials, films, pinball machines, comic books, and even perfume lines immortalized her as the Queen of Halloween.
Outside the United States, this name does not have such associations. In Sweden, it has been among the top 100 girls’ since 1998 and peaked at #25 in 2014. As of 2024, it came in at #40.
It’s a popular name in the Balkans, even spinning off a male form of Elvir (Bosnian and Albanian).
Other forms include:
Obscure Lithuanian male forms are the Lithuanian, Elvyras; the Polish, Elwir(o), and the Italian Elviro.
Name days: August 25 (Austria), July 16 (Croatia), February 10 (Hungary), January 25 (Spain), March 1 (Sweden), November 21 (Slovakia), August 13 (Latvia).
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The name is from the Old German, magin, magen (powerful) and wulf (wolf).
The name was borne by a 9th-century saint, a godson of Charlemagne, who according to legend found his monastery on the spot where he saw a stag appear with a cross between its antlers.
It is also a German surname, in which case, it is a patronymic derived from the given-name.
The designated name-day is October 5th.
Usage
The name is used in Dutch-speaking countries, German-speaking countries and Nordic countries, though nowadays, it is rather old fashioned.
German Diminutives
International Variations
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The name is composed of the Greek words, ἱερός (holy to; sacred to) and θεός (God). It first appears as a given name in Christian tradition, being borne by the first bishop of Athens who was said to have been converted and trained by St. Paul himself.
The modern Greek form is ‘Ierotheos and the designated name-day in Greece is September 29th.
The name has also been borne by several Greek patriarchs.
International Variations
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Derived from the ancient Greek male name Πτολεμαῖος (Ptolemaios), which in turn comes from πτόλεμος (ptólemos), meaning “war” or “battle.”
The word ptólemos is an older Aeolic dialectal form of πόλεμος (pólemos), the standard Classical Greek word for “war,” sharing the same root with the English word, “polemic.”
Ptolemy I Soter (367–283 BCE) was a general of Alexander the Great and later became Pharaoh of Egypt, founding the Ptolemaic Dynasty (323–30 BCE). This dynasty ruled Egypt for nearly three centuries and ended with Cleopatra VII, the most famous bearer of the family’s legacy.
Claudius Ptolemaeus (Ptolemy) (2nd century CE) was the famed Greek astronomer, mathematician, and geographer of Alexandria, whose Almagest shaped Western astronomy for over a millennium.
According to the Book of 1 Maccabees (135/4 BC), Ptolemy of Jericho betrayed his father-in-law, Simon the High Priest, by murdering him and his two sons while they slept as guests under his roof. This act of treachery is used in Dante Alighieri’s The Inferno, in which the ninth circle of Hell is called Ptolomea after him, a frozen realm reserved for those who betray their guests.
Ptolomy is also the name of an early Christian saint.
In the English-speaking world, Ptolomy has been used on and off since the 18th-century. It appeared in the U.K’s top 500 boys’ names in 2004, ranking in at #906.
A modern bearer is American author, Ptolemy Tompkins. Celebrity couple Gretchen Mol and Tod Williams bestowed this on their son in 2007.
Common English short forms include: Tollie, Tolly, and Tal.
International Variations
Female forms include the sensual Ptolemaïs (Πτολεμαΐς) and the Italian, Tolomea.
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The name Prosper comes from the Latin Prosperus, meaning “fortunate,” “successful,” or “prosperous.” It is derived from the Latin verb prōspere, “to cause to thrive, to be favorable,” ultimately from pro- (“forward”) and spēs (“hope”).
Saint Prosper of Aquitaine (c. 390–455) was a Christian writer and theologian who defended the doctrines of Saint Augustine. His influence made Prosper a well-established saint’s name in medieval France, especially in Aquitaine and Provence.
In France, the name was relatively common at the turn of the 20th-century, ranking in at #96 in 1902. In the USA, it never ranked as high but did make it to the Top 1000, peaking at # 886 in 1881.
Several other early Christian saints and bishops also bore the name.
The most famous literary bearer is Prospero, the magician-duke in William Shakespeare’s The Tempest (1611).
The Puritans occasionally used Prosper as well.
The designated name-days include: June 25th (Denmark & France), September 2nd (Croatia), June 23rd (Poland).
International Variations
Female Forms
Diminutives
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Both names are rooted in the Old Irish adjective odhar, meaning “dun, pale, sallow, greenish-grey.” The word originally described earthy or muted colors — the shade of an animal’s coat, or a green-brown hue in nature.
Odhrán (modern spelling in Irish, often Anglicized as Oran or Orin) is a diminutive form: odhar + -án, meaning “little pale one” or “little sallow/greenish one.”
Odharnait is the feminine form, built from odhar + –ainait, a feminine diminutive ending.
Odhrán is well-attested in medieval Ireland. A 6th-century saint named Odhrán of Iona (also called Odran) was a companion of St. Columba and is remembered as one of the first Irish Christian martyrs. His feast day is celebrated on October 27.
Anglicized Male Variations
Anglicized Female Variations
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