A Cast of Names Both Old and New
Gen is a Japanese male name with a variety of meanings depending on the kanji used: gen 源 "source, origin"; gen 彦 "lad, boy"; gen 玄 "mysterious, occultness; deep, profound; black"; gen 元 "cause, origin; beginning; former time"; gen 幻 "fantasy, phantom; vision; illusion; apparition" There are other meanings depending on the kanji used. Written in hiragana it's げん. Gen is also …
Gidget is a female given name first created by author Frederick Kohner for his novel Gidget, the Little Girl with Big Ideas (1957), who based it on his daughter Kathy, an avid surfer in Malibu at the time. Apparently Gidget is a portmanteau of the words girl and midget, so the name essentially means "little girl". In the novels, Gidget's real …
China is the name of a country in East China as well as the name of a fine porcelain. The origin behind the name isn't clear-cut. It may have originated from Persian čin چین (China) via Sanskrit Cīna (China) which may have originated from the name of the Qi 秦 (pr. chin) dynasty, the first imperial dynasty of China lasting from …
Ghazal is the name of a poetic form often used in romantic poetry of the Middle East and South Asia; the verses deal with loss and romantic love consisting of rhyming couplets and a refrain, and typically consists of no less than five and no more than fifteen couplets. The origin of the word derives …
Sample comes from an English surname, originating as an Anglo-Norman locational name for someone who came from an of various places in Normandy called St. Paul, named for the churches dedicated to Saint Paul, which means "small, humble". Sample is also an English word referring to a small part or quantity used to determine the entire quality of a …
García is a Spanish male name of uncertain etymology, the name of several kings of Pamplona and Navarre. It may have derived from a Basque origin, either from Basque hartz meaning "bear" or gazte meaning "young". It may also possibly be derived from a Germanic source, perhaps meaning "war" or "young warrior", or perhaps from Visigothic garxa or garcha …
Carly is a female given name, the feminine form of Carl which comes from Proto-Germanic *karilaz meaning "free man" derived from a PIE root word. It was originally used to refer to men who were not thralls or or servants but who still lived at the bottom of society, connoting the idea of someone who was free. …
Despina is a Greek female name, the modern Greek form of Despoina which means "lady, mistress of the home" from *des-potnia "mistress of the house" (the feminine form of *déms pótis "master of the house") derived from PIE *dṓm (home; house) and *pót-nih (wife, mistress). In Greek mythology, Despoina is the daughter of Demeter and Zeus, goddess of the Arkadian cults; Despoina was also used as an epithet …
Xanthe is the name of several minor figures in Greek mythology. It means "yellow" or "blonde-haired" derived from Greek xanthos (yellow), given to someone who had blonde hair but could also be applied to horses of bay or chestnut coloring. The origin of the word is unknown. Origin: unknown Variants: Xanthi (Modern Greek) Xantho (Ancient Greek) Xanthia …
Jaka is an Indonesian male name meaning "young (unmarried) man" or "young man", referring to a bachelor, which comes from Javanese. Jaka is also a Slovene male name, the Slovene form of Jacob which comes from Hebrew Ya’aqov meaning “holder of the heel” or “supplanter”. Origin: Javanese, Hebrew
Shemar is an African-American male name, a variant of Shamar which has a few possible origins: the first is that it originated as a variant of Lamar, which comes from a French surname meaning "the pool"; it may also be a variant of Jamar, itself a blended form of Jamal (an Arabic name meaning "handsome, beauty") and Lamar; it may …
Talon is an English word referring to the sharp, hooked claw of a bird of prey, such as a hawk or falcon. It comes from Old French talon (heel "of the foot") via talus (ankle, anklebone "of an animal") derived from a PIE root word. Talus also refers to a small die or cube made from the knucklebones …
