# Given names that have a meaning



## anahiseri

Spanish is a funny language in many ways, for example when it comes to given names. There are a lot of women whose name is a word that means something: something material or a concept. The following list contains the names of people I know personally, in fact friends.
*Pilar* - pillar, column
*Mar* - sea
*Luz* - light
*Amparo* - protection
*Concepción* - conception (fertilization)
The origin of these names, or in fact the complete name, in many cases, is an expression of the kind *Mary of the pillar,  *Mary being the Virgin Mary, Mother of Christ; the different Marys are like avatars, sculptures of Mary with certain special attributes. 
In fact, the original name in some cases is changed when the name is shortened. Example: Amparo. The corresponding Virgin Mary is *María de los desamparados*, literally, *Mary of the unprotected people*. Actually, you may believe it or not, there are still women called "desamparados". 
And then there is a little problem you have when your parents had the nice idea of calling you "fertilization". As the word is long and not so nice, it is usually shortened to *Concha*, just because of phonetic similarity. "concha" means shell, which is not so bad after all. Well, but there is a catch: in several South American countries, "concha" also means. . . . . well, I don't know if I should type the word.  It's the external female sexual organ. (Maybe not well defined, but I'm sure you understand.
Well, after all these explanations, I INVITE Spanish speakers to add to my list, and people in whose language / culture there is something similar, to tell us about it. I can't wait!

More Spanish female names, list suggested by one of my friends called "column":
*soledad* = loneliness
*montaña* = mountain
*resurrección* = resurrection
*remedios* = remedies
*reyes* = kings
*misericordia* = mercy
*dolores* (*Lola*) = pain


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## jazyk

All of these names also exist in Portuguese, except Montaña/Montanha, at least I've never seen it.


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## DearPrudence

Those names do sound a bit funny to my French ears. But we do have similar things in French, just a bit less religious I guess.
I'll probably forget many, but here are a few. There are generally for women, but I'll start with two masculine names (here in blue) though:
*Pierre *(~ Peter: stone) (I suppose this is a famous one, even abroad)
*Loup *(wolf (not very common))

Then, you have *fruit *for women:
*Clémentine *(clementine)
The ones below are less common:
*Cerise *(cherry)
*Myrtille *(blueberry)
*Prune *(plum)
*Vanille *(vanilla)

*Flowers*:
*Rose* (Rose)
*Marguerite *(Daisy)
*Capucine *(nasturtium)
*Violette *(violet)

*Stones*:
*Ambre *(amber)
*Jade *(jade)

*Concepts*:
*Aurore *(dawn)
*Clémence* (clemency)
*Clément* (clement)
*Constance *(constancy)
*Constant *(constant)
*Victoire *(victory)
*Céleste *(celestial)
*Mélody *(melody, tune)
*Blanche *(white)
*Octave *(octave)


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## Circunflejo

anahiseri said:


> I INVITE Spanish speakers to add to my list


There are many of them. Even if we stick just to women names and overlook men names. Some of them:

*Places*:

África = Africa
Cala = Creek
Camino = Path
Carmen = Some sort of house with a garden or an orchard (local word from Granada)
Claustro = Cloister​Henar = Hayfield
Llanos = Plains.
Prado = Field/Meadow.
Sagrario = (Church) Tabernacle.
Sol = Sun.​
*Concepts*:

Ángeles = Angels​Angustias = Anguishes
Antigua = Old (female; used just for things; not for humans)
Aparecida = Appeared (female)
Asunción = Assumption
Constancia = Constancy​Consuelo = Solace
Clemencia = Clemency​Esperanza = Hope
Felicidad = Happiness​
*Concepts (2):*​ 
Gloria = Glory
Gracia = Grace
Inmaculada = Immaculate (female)
Leticia = Happiness
Lucía = Shined
Máxima = Maximum (female)
Mercedes = Mercies
Milagros = Miracles
Natividad = Nativity
Paz = Peace
Victoria = Victory
Visitación = Visit​
*Animals*:

Marta = Pine Marten
Paloma = Pigeon

*Weather related names:*

Lluvia = Rain
Nieves = Snows
Rocío = Dew

*Colours:*

Blanca = White (female)
Violeta = Violet

*Others:*

Gema = Gem
Iris = Iris
Rosario = Rosary
Tecla = Key​
*Flowers, plants, trees:
*
Adelfa = Nerium
Angélica = Angelica
Azucena = Lilium
Camelia = Camellia
Dalia = Dahlia
Flor = Flower
Hortensia = Hydrangea
Jazmín = Jasmine
Lila = Syringa
Lis = Fleur de lis
Magnolia = Magnolia
Margarita = Ox-eye daisy
Melissa = Melissa
Pino = Pine
Rosa = Rose
Silene = Silene
Verónica = Veronica


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## anahiseri

Wow, Circunflejo, no me había dado cuenta que hay tantos!

Thank you, Dear Prudence.
I hadn't realized that so many French women are named after flowers and beautiful concepts. Of course I know the words (my French is not perfect but acceptable), but somehow I didn't relate the names to their meanings.
In Spanish also many girls are given the name of a flower: Rosa, Margarita, Delia ....


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## swindaff

Italian (close to Spanish) has many examples.
Generally, -a is for girls, -o for boys, -e can be both. I'll write any possible exception.

Flower names are countless - only for girls
Margherita - Daisy
Rosa - Rose (we also have Rosario/Rosaria, but that comes from Our Lady of the Rosary - Virgin Mary)
Melissa - Melissia
Dalia - Dahlia
Iris - Iris
Jasmin(e) - Jasmin (The Italian form "Gelsomina" is very rare and old-fashioned)

Colours - only for girls
Rosa - pink
Celeste - light blue
Azzurra - light blue
Bianca - white
Viola - violet
Candida - very white (not really a colour, but rather a not common adjective)
Dora - similar to "dorato" (golden - colour); improperly used as the short form of "Addorlorata" sometimes

Connected to religion
Grazia - Grace
Addolorata - in pain (even the Spanish "Dolores" - pains is used; I fell that as it is not Italian, its meaning sounds more nuanced)
Assunta - adjective for "Assumption"
Angelo/a - Angel
Angelica - Angelic
Immacolata (Imma) - Immaculate (also means "very white")
Benedetto/a - blessed
Domenica - Sunday (we also have "Domenico)
Pasquale (boy) - adjective for "Easter"
Salvatore (boy) - saviour

Abstract
Letizia - gladness
Gloria - glory
Felicia/Felicita - referring to "felicità" - happiness
Gioia - joy
Gaia - cheerful, jolly
Bonaria - benevolent
Fedele - faithful
Fortunato/a - lucky
Fortuna - luck

Stones
Gemma - gem
Ambra - amber
Giada - jade

Others
Franco/a - Frank (Franco can also be a shot form for "Francesco")
Pino (short for "Giuseppe") - Pine
Clemente - Clement
Costanzo/a - Costancy
Vittorio/a - victory
Chiara - light (as opposite to "dark")
Aurora - dusk
Alba - dawn
Stella - star
Massimo - Maximum
Donato - given
Alice (girl) - anchovy
Colomba - dove
Barbara - Barbaric
Elsa - hilt of a sword
Flora - flora
Guido - I drive
Gustavo - I savoured
Leone (boy) - lion (rare)

_Very old names, not so common nowadays_
Ottone (boy)- brass
Amabile (boy)- lovable
Amato - loved
Regina - queen
Germano/a - Germanic
Romano - Roman
Severo - strict
Desiderio/a - wish
Modesto - modest
Prospero - prosperous
Remo - oar
Fermo - still (adjective)
Fosca - dull, sombre
Norma - norm, rule
Fiammetta - little flame
Giusto - right (as opposite to "wrong")
Italia - Italy (also "Italo" was used) - common during the Fascist age
Perpetua - never ending (it is an adjective - not commonly used)
Placido/a - placid, calm
Primo - first


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## Stoggler

There are a fairly small number of flower names used as given names in English: Rose, Lily, Violet, and Daisy are probably the most common.  They did fall out of fashion and were old ladies’ names when I was young, but they are back in fashion again (something I can testify to: our four-month old girl is called Lily).


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## anahiseri

Thank you, Al.ba
So for the moment we can see that the situation in Portugal, Italy and France is similar to Spain, although without reference to the Virgin Mary (not sure in the case of Portugal - ?)
I'm eager to read about Germanic languages. I can't think of many female names in German which mean something; but maybe the problem is just that the words have changed over time and we con't recognize them anymore. Karin, Dagmar, Susanne, Heike, Helga, Birgit. . . maybe they mean something after all.


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## bibax

Circunflejo said:


> Margarita = Ox-eye daisy


_pearl_ in Latin ("margaritas ante porcos", to cast pearls before swines);


Circunflejo said:


> Verónica = Verónica (plant)


rather a Latin variant of Berenike = _bearer of victory_ in Greek;


Al.ba said:


> Germano/a - Germanic


rather from Latin frater germanus/soror germana _blood brother/sister_, hence hermano/a in Spanish, Germain in French;


Circunflejo said:


> Camelia = Camellia (plant)


the plant was named after Jiří Josef Kamel (Georgius Josephus Camellus, Jorge Camel), born in Brno (Bohemian Kingdom), a Moravian Jesuit missionary and botanist, living in Philippines;

One of the rarest given names in the Czech Republic is *Egid* (only one bearer of the name), and *Egyd* (also one), both from Graeco-Latin aegis (gen. aegidis) > Aegidius.


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## anahiseri

in German, a rather common male name that comes to my mind is
*Wolfgang*
for those who don't speak German: *wolf's walk*


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## swindaff

bibax said:


> rather from Latin frater germanus/soror germana _blood brother/sister_, hence hermano/a in Spanish, Germain in French;


I made no referrence to etymology at all. I was just saying what the word "germano" means in Italian.


anahiseri said:


> *Wolfgang*
> for those who don't speak German: *wolf's walk*


Oh, gosh!  never thought about that!


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## sound shift

The cult of the Virgin Mary is much less popular in Protestant areas than it is in Catholic ones, and large parts of the Germanic-speaking countries are (nominally) Protestant, so I think you will find fewer names describing Mary in those areas.


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## bibax

In our country (with an intricate religious history - Hussites, Utraquists, Protestants, Catholics) some above mentioned names connected to [Catholic] religion (Addolorata, Modesta, Klementina, Assunta, etc.) are given exclusively to the nuns. I cannot imagine a little Czech girl named, say, Imakuláta (Immaculata). There are some nuns with this name, however.


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## Circunflejo

anahiseri said:


> Wow, Circunflejo, no me había dado cuenta de que hay tantos



Solo era una (pequeña) muestra. Otros pocos:

*Concepts:
*
Adoración = Adoration
Amor = Love
Bárbara = Barbaric
Modesta = Modest (female)
Perpetua = Everlasting (female)
Plácida = Placid (female)
Purificación = Purificatión
Resurrección = Resurrectión
Romana = From Rome (female)
Severa = Severe (female)
Trinidad = Trinity

*Natural Word*:

Celestina = Celestine
Flora = Flora

*Sky related:
*
Alba = Dawn
Aurora = dusk
Estrella = Star

*Others*:

Clara = Egg white
Cruz = Cross
Diana = Dartboard
Magdalena = Something similar to a cupcake
Regla = Rule


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## anahiseri

Circunflejo said:


> Clara = Egg white


yes, but I think as a name it's the meaning "light" (referring to colour)


> Diana = Dartboard


Yes, but I suppose it has been taken from the Roman godess


> Magdalena = Something similar to a cupcake


yes, but this is a name from a women in the New Testament, long before there were cupcakes or (rather) *muffins*


> Regla = Rule


I had not heard that one...... whoever gave their daughter that name should be in prison. Especially considering it is the common colloquial word to refer to a woman's period!


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## Circunflejo

@anahiseri I agree with your comments about Magdalena, Clara and Diana but I think we should overlook whether it was before the egg or the hen because otherwise we should review many of the suggested names (specially those related with flowers, animals...).

Regarding Regla, the INE says there are 1078 women in Spain whose name is Regla. The causer: Virgen de Regla - Wikipedia, la enciclopedia libre


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## merquiades

Regla sounds fine if you can also have Dolores.
María de la O is also weird


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## Circunflejo

merquiades said:


> if you can also have Dolores



...and Angustias as I quoted above. We too have Socorro (help/succord) that I didn't quote it yet.


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## Mahaodeh

anahiseri said:


> Spanish is a funny language in many ways, for example when it comes to given names.



Why would you think that this is funny? I'm sure that all names had a meaning at some point, but either the language evolved and the word is no longer used, or the name is borrowed from another language. 

I don't see that as funny, I see it as nice and makes the name much more meaningful.


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## Dymn

Most Spanish names (or European for that matter) come from obscure Latin, Germanic, Greek or Hebrew sources. That's why most names don't really _have a meaning_ or people don't think of them as having one. I'd bet most people don't know the meaning of their own name. Once I met a girl called Nerea, and she didn't even know her name was Basque.

That's why people find _funny _names that do have a clear meaning in Spanish, because it's not usual, even if in more self-centered societies (e.g. China afaik) that's actually the norm.


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## Mahaodeh

Dymn said:


> self-centered societies (e.g. China afaik) that's actually the norm.



'self-centred societies'? I'm sure you don't mean anything negative by this, but I'm not sure what you mean exactly. 

It's not the norm in Arabic. The vast majority of names have clear meanings that people understand and often use in everyday life. The ones that don't usually lead people to ask "what does your name mean?"


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## merquiades

Dymn said:


> Most Spanish names (or European for that matter) come from obscure Latin, Germanic, Greek or Hebrew sources. That's why most names don't really _have a meaning_ or people don't think of them as having one. I'd bet most people don't know the meaning of their own name. Once I met a girl called Nerea, and she didn't even know her name was Basque.


A few Spanish girls names seem to have surprisingly clear meanings to me:   Paz, Luz, Esperanza, Clara, Mar, Aurora, Azucena, Rosa, Flor.   Some of them do correspond to other languages too.


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## Dymn

Mahaodeh said:


> 'self-centred societies'? I'm sure you don't mean anything negative by this, but I'm not sure what you mean exactly.


Hmmm poor word choice I guess. I meant languages which don't have much foreign influence.

For example neither Arabic nor Chinese have a large portion of their vocabulary derived from other languages. All European languages have a strong influence from Greek and Latin (except for Icelandic which has a deliberately purist linguistic policy). Besides the first language of Christianity was Hebrew and there's also been a strong influence from Germanic names.

E.g. 10 most popular baby names by gender in Catalonia 2015 and their origin:

*Male*: _Marc _(Latin), _Àlex _(Greek, short for _Alexandre_), _Martí _(Latin), _Hugo _(Germanic), _Biel _(Hebrew, short for _Gabriel_), _Èric _(Germanic), _Nil _(Greek), _Jan _(Hebrew, short for _Joan_), _Pol_ (Latin, variant of _Pau_), _Pau _(Latin)

*Female*: _Martina _(Latin), _Júlia _(Latin), _Laia _(Greek, short for Eulàlia), _Lucía _(Latin), _Maria _(Hebrew), _Emma _(Germanic), _Aina _(Hebrew, variant of Anna), _Paula _(Latin), _Noa _(Hebrew), _Carla _(Germanic)

Only "Nil" has a clear meaning (the river) for modern-day Catalans.



merquiades said:


> A few Spanish girls names seem to have surprisingly clear meanings to me:   Paz, Luz, Esperanza, Clara, Mar, Aurora, Azucena, Rosa, Flor.   Some of them do correspond to other languages too.


It's not _rare_, but not common either. And most of them are falling out of use, especially the longer ones (Dolores, Mercedes, Concepción, Rosario...)


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## merquiades

Aina and Biel sound pretty awful to my ears.  Noa is masculine in English.  Julia is the nicest one, and I'm a bit surprised that Maria is still on the list.
Nil is not an adaption of Neal?

Those long names like Concepción (I guess they all become Concha) and Dolores (Lola?) are very heavy indeed.

I seems to me there is a trend for naming children Basque names even if they don't have that ancestry:  Aitor, Iker, Pachi, Nerea, Miren, Ainhoa, Mikel, Maite, Nora, Goran, Fermin......


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## Dymn

merquiades said:


> Nil is not an adaption of Neal?


There's even a thread in the Catalan forum.



merquiades said:


> I seems to me there is a trend for naming children Basque names even if they don't have that ancestry: Aitor, Iker, Pachi, Nerea, Miren, Ainhoa, Mikel, Maite, Nora, Goran, Fermin......


Yes.

I've looked for the origins of the 100 most popular baby names in Catalonia, weighted them by frequency and this is the summary:

1. Latin: 30%
2. Hebrew: 26%
3. Germanic: 18%
4. Greek: 12%
5. Romance: 7% (a Catalan or Spanish common noun)
6. Basque: 4%
7. Celtic: 2%
8. Arabic: 1%


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## Circunflejo

Some more:

Aparecida=Appeared
Caridad=Charity
Cinta=Tape
Consolación=Consolation
Espino=(haw)thorn
Pastora=Shepherd (female)
Salud=Health
Valle=Valley


merquiades said:


> Pachi


Patxi. There's no ch in Basque.


merquiades said:


> Goran


 Did you mean Gorka?


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## bibax

The commonest given names (we still say *křestní jméno* = christening/baptismal name) in the Czech Republic:

1. Jiří 301629 (Georgios)
2. Jan 294737 (Ioannes)
3. Marie 274228
4. Petr 272711
5. Jana 267395 (Ioanna)
6. Josef 221125
7. Pavel 202677 (Paulus)
8. Martin 186404
9. Jaroslav 179284
10. Tomáš 178680
11. Eva 154570
12. Miroslav 151736
13. Hana 147485
14. Anna 137256
15. Zdeněk 130092
16. František 128748 (Franciscus)
17. Václav 127403 (Wenceslaus)
18. Michal 122082
19. Lenka 118881
20. Kateřina 116796
Mostly names of saints, evangelists, apostles, etc.
Only Jaroslav, Miroslav, Václav, Lenka, Zdeněk are of the Slavic origin.

In the past the most common names were Josef and Marie.
(The given names of my grandparents: Josef and Marie [probability of this combination was very high], František and Alžběta [Elisabeth], common European names)


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## ThomasK

I think this trend is fairly new, but strong:

*Merel*, blackbird
*Rune
Wolf* (used to be uncommon)
*Lente* (spring)

Cannot find any more now, but I'll be back, I suppose.


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## apmoy70

Greek:

Flowers/plants:
*«Ανθή»* [anˈθi] (fem.) --> _bloom_ < Classical neuter noun *«ἄνθος» ắntʰŏs*.
*«Ευανθία»* [evanˈθi.a] (fem.) --> _nicely blossoming flower_ < Classical female first name *«Εὐάνθη» Eu̯ántʰē* & *«Εὐανθία» Eu̯antʰíā* < Adverb & prefix *«εὐ-» eu̯-* + *«ἄνθος»* (see previously).
«Εὐάνθη» was the name of the mother of the three Graces in ancient Greek mythology.
*«Μαριάνθη»* [maɾiˈanθi] (fem.) --> _Mary's blossom_ < *«Μαρία»* [maˈɾi.a] --> _Mary_ + *«ἄνθος»* (see earlier).
*«Χρυσάνθη»* [xriˈsanθi] (fem.) --> _Chrysanthemum_, lit. _golden flower_ < *Chrysanthemum*.
*«Μελιά»* [meˈʎa] (fem.) & *«Μελίνα»* [meˈlina] (fem.) --> _honey flower_ < name of the tree *Melia azedarach* that produces honey-coloured flowers < Αncient Greek *«μέλι» mélĭ* --> _honey_.
*«Ιάνθη»* [iˈanθi] (fem.) --> _Viola_ < name of the plant *«Ἰάνθη» Ĭắntʰē* (fem.) which is Viola < Classical neuter *«ἴον» íŏn* --> _colour violet_ (probably an early Luwian loan) + *«ἄνθος»* (see above).
*«Γιασεμή»* [ʝaseˈmi] (fem.) --> _Jasmine_ < name of the *Jasmine* flower & plant < Persian یاسمین via Turkish Yasemin.
*«Αμαρυλλίς»* [amaɾiˈlis] (fem.) --> _name of the Amaryllis flower_, lit. _sparkling_ < *Amaryllis* plant & flower < Classical Gr. v. *«ἀμαρύσσω» ămărússō* --> _to sparkle, twinkle (of the eye)_; according to Beekes "the word may well be of Pre-Greek origin, with ἀ- interchanging with reduplication and the suffIx -υξ/ -υγξ, which is typical of the substrate language and shows prenasalization."
*«Αμυγδαλιά»* [amiɣðaˈʎa] (fem.) --> _Almond tree_ < Classical Gr. name of *Almond* tree, *«Ἀμυγδαλέα» Ămŭgdăléā* (fem.) which after synizesis becomes in MoGr «Αμυγδαλιά»; either a substrate word, or an early Semitic loan.
*«Δάφνη»* [ˈðafni] (fem.) --> _Laurel_ < Classical Gr. name of plant *Grecian Laurel*, *«Δάφνη» Dắpʰnē* (fem.); a typically Pre-Greek word showing several types of variation.
*«Βαΐα»* [vaˈi.a] (fem.) & *«Βάγια»* [ˈvaʝa] (fem.) --> _Palm leaf_ < Classical Gr. fem. name of the Palm leaf *«βαΐς» băís* (possibly from Egyptian b'j via Luwian). The name is associated with the Sunday before Easter on which the Orthodox Church commemorates Christ's triumphal entry in Jerusalem, known as "Palm Sunday."
*«Μηλιά»* [miˈʎa] (fem.) --> _Apple tree_ < Classical Gr. fem. *«Μηλέα» Mēléā* which in MoGr becomes «Μηλιά» after synizesis; probably a Mediterranean Wanderwort.
*«Γαρυφαλλιά»* [ɣaɾifaˈʎa] (fem.) & *«Γαρουφαλλιά»* [ɣaɾufaˈʎa] (fem.) --> _carnation_, a boomerang word:
Αncient Greek *«καρυόφυλλον» kărŭópʰullŏn* > Vulgar Latin garofulum > Ven. garofolo > Byz. Gr. γαρύφαλλον garýphallon.
*«Τριανταφυλλιά»* [triandafiʎa] (fem.) --> _thirty-petals-bud, rose_ < Koine neut. stranded adjective *«τριαντάφυλλον» trĭăntắpʰullŏn* --> _flower with thirty petals_ which used to modify the noun *«ῥόδον» rʰódŏn* --> _rose_ = «τριαντάφυλλον ῥόδον».
Τριαντάφυλλο(ν) became the name of the rose flower in the vernacular.

Concepts:
*«Χαρά»* [xaˈɾa] (fem.) --> _joy_ < Classical Gr. fem. *«χαρά» kʰărā́* (idem)**
«Χάρις»* [ˈxaris] (fem.) --> _grace_ < Classical Gr. fem. *«χάρις» kʰáris* (idem)**
«Ευτέρπη»* [efˈterpi] (fem.) --> _delight_ < Classical fem. *«εὐτέρπη» eu̯térpē* (idem) < Adverb & prefix *«εὐ-» eu̯-* + ancient v. *«τέρπω» térpō*.
*«Ευφροσύνη»* [efroˈsini] (fem.) --> _merriment_ < Classical fem. *«εὐφροσύνη» eu̯pʰrŏsúnē* (idem) < Adverb & prefix *«εὐ-» eu̯-* + fem. *«φρήν» pʰrḗn*. Its very common familiar version is *«Φρόσω»* [ˈfroso] (fem.).
*«Ευγενία»* [evʝeˈni.a] (fem.) --> _noble, gentle_ < Classical fem. *«εὐγένεια» eu̯génei̯ā* (idem) < Adverb & prefix *«εὐ-» eu̯-* + Classical neut. *«γένος» génŏs*.
*«Ευδοκία»* [evðoˈci.a] (fem.) --> _good will, satisfaction_ < Classical fem. *«εὐδοκία» eu̯dŏkíā* (idem) < Adverb & prefix *«εὐ-» eu̯-* + ancient v. *«δοκέω/δοκῶ»** dŏkéō* (uncontracted)/*dŏkô* (contracted).
*«Ευδοξία»* [evðoˈk͡si.a] (fem.) --> _good repute, honourable_ < Classical fem. *«εὐδοξία» eu̯dŏk͡síā* (idem) < Adverb & prefix *«εὐ-» eu̯-* + ancient fem. *«δόξα» dók͡sā*.
*«Ευθυμία»* [efθiˈmi.a] (fem.) --> _good spirit, jollity_ < Classical fem. *«εὐθυμία» eu̯tʰūmíā* (idem) < Adverb & prefix *«εὐ-» eu̯-* + ancient Greek masc. *«θυμός» tʰūmós*.
*«Ευφημία»* [efiˈmi.a] (fem.) --> _good omen_ < Classical fem. *«εὐφημία» eu̯pʰēmíā* (idem) < Adverb & prefix *«εὐ-» eu̯-* + ancient v. *«φημί» pʰēmí*.
*«Ευλαμπία»* [evlamˈbi.a] (fem.) --> _good light, shining forth_ < Koine fem. *«εὐλαμπία» eu̯lămpíā* (idem) < Adverb & prefix *«εὐ-» eu̯-* + ancient v. *«λάμπω» lắmpō*.
*«Ευμορφία»* [evmorˈfi.a] (fem.) --> _beautiful presence, woman of beauty_ < Koine fem. *«εὐμορφία» eu̯mŏrpʰíā* (idem) < Adverb & prefix *«εὐ-» eu̯-* + ancient fem. *«μορφή» mŏrpʰḗ*. Its familiar forms are *«Μορφία»* [morˈfi.a] (fem.) & *«Μόρφω»* [ˈmorfo] (fem.).
*«Ευπραξία»* [efpraˈk͡si.a] (fem.) --> _good conduct, benevolence_ < Koine fem.  *«εὐπραξία» eu̯prăk͡síā* (idem) < Adverb & prefix *«εὐ-» eu̯-* + ancient fem. *«πρᾶξις» prâk͡sis*.
*«Ευρύκλεια»* [eˈvrikli.a] (fem.) --> _famous, glorious_ < Classical fem. *«εὐρύκλεια» eu̯rúklei̯ā* (idem) < ancient adjective *«εὐρύς» eu̯rús* + ancient neut. *«κλέος» kléŏs*.
*«Ευσταθία»* [efstaˈθi.a] (fem.) --> _stable, well built_ < Koine fem. *«εὐσταθία» eu̯stătʰíā* (idem) < Adverb & prefix *«εὐ-» eu̯-* + ancient fem. *«στάσις» stắsis*. It's the Greek equivalent of the Latin name Constance.
*«Ευτυχία»* [eftiˈçi.a] --> _happiness, fortune_ < Koine fem. *«εὐτυχία» eu̯tŭkʰíā* (idem) < Adverb & prefix *«εὐ-» eu̯-* + ancient fem. *«τύχη» túkʰē*.
*
** both from PIE *ǵʰer- _to be full of cheer, enjoy_ cf Lat. horī, _to encourage_, Proto-Germanic *gernaz > Eng. yearn.


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## Encolpius

I can recall only *Ibolya *("violet - the flower") female name. *Virág *is, I think, modern name, it means flower.


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## Penyafort

Circunflejo said:


> Magdalena = Something similar to a cupcake
> 
> Cinta=Tape



I seriously hope parents who name their daughter Magdalena do that in the full knowledge that it means 'from Magdala' and not thinking she looks like a cupcake... But these days one never knows.

I'd translate Cinta as Ribbon.



merquiades said:


> Aina and Biel sound pretty awful to my ears.  Noa is masculine in English.  Julia is the nicest one, and I'm a bit surprised that Maria is still on the list.



Euphony is certainly subjective. Aina sounds better to me than the most common Anna. I concur that Júlia sounds nice but in Catalan, with a graphic accent. Julia in Spanish, though, sounds harsher to me because of the jota sound.

I'd say masculine Noa in English tends to be written Noah.


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## Circunflejo

One more: Edurne is a Basque name meaning snow


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## Ghabi

Dymn said:


> even if in more self-centered societies (e.g. China afaik) that's actually the norm.


I think in ancient China people (at least the educated ones) were conscious of the meaning of their names, due to the "courtesy name" system, as one's courtesy name is related to one's given name in terms of meaning.

For example, if your given name is Sagacious, then your courtesy name may be Wise (synonymous); or if your given name is White, then your courtesy name may be Black (antonymous). Punning is often involved. For example, if your given name is Knight, and your courtesy name may be Day.

The courtesy name can often help philologists to find out, or at least make an educated guess at, the meaning of an obscure word. For example, if someone's given name is Jabberwock, with a courtesy name Terror, then one may make a stab at the interpretation of the word.

As the courtesy name system has become obsolete in the modern Chinese-speaking world, one's probably not quite conscious of the meaning of one's name, sharing good Alice's wonder, "_Must_ a name mean something?"


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## Awwal12

anahiseri said:


> I INVITE Spanish speakers to add to my list, and people in whose language / culture there is something similar, to tell us about it.


Russian "meaningful names" of that kind are rare, I am afraid, being almost exclusively the Evangelic Вера, Надежда and Любовь (meaning Faith, Hope and Charity Love). Even if some other names, including recently invented ones, also may contain recognizable roots, they are formed with use of certain specific formants (Светлана, Любава, Снежана) or according to ancient composition models (consider, for instance, Владимир).


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