A Cast of Names Both Old and New
Liana is the name of a type of long-stemmed wooded vines that grows in the jungle, derived from Middle French lien (to bind) via Latin ligo (to bind) which derives from PIE root word *leyǵ- (to bind, tie). Liana is also derived as a short form of names ending in -liana such as Eliana (a possibly a variant of Aeliana, the feminine form… Continue reading Liana
Delinda is a female given name which seems to be a modern coinage, probably a combination of the prefix De- combined with Linda, originally a short form of Germanic element linde or lindi meaning “soft, tender” or “linden tree, lime tree” though it could also be associated with Germanic lind meaning “serpent, dragon, snake”. It's also possible that it rose up as a shortened… Continue reading Delinda
Belina was the name of a 12th century French saint who died protecting her virginity. It's seems the name is a Gascon diminutive of Isabel, the medieval Occitan form of Elizabeth, the English form of Hebrew ‘Elisheva meaning “my God is an oath” or “my God is abundance”. Belina is also a Croatian, Slovene, and Serbian word meaning "whiteness". It's also… Continue reading Belina
Torrence comes from a Scottish surname derived from a place name derived from Gaelic torran meaning "hillock" or "mound". It may also have derived from an Irish surname, Ó Toráin meaning "descendant of Torán", the latter an Irish male name meaning "little lord" or "little hero, champion" from Irish tor (lord, hero, champion) and the diminutive suffix -án. It's also possible… Continue reading Torrence
Liyana is an Arabic female name meaning "soft, tender, gentle, delicate" from Arabic root word l-y-n (to become soft, tender). It's also a Zulu female name derived from a word meaning "it is raining/it's raining". I've also seen it listed as a Chinese female name meaning "beautiful + elegant, graceful, refined + graceful, elegant" with the Chinese… Continue reading Liyana
Celinda is a female given name, probably a blend of Celia (which either means "heaven, sky" from Latin Caelia or from a shortened form of Cecelia meaning "blind) and Linda, originally a short form of Germanic element linde or lindi meaning “soft, tender” or “linden tree, lime tree” though it could also be associated with Germanic lind meaning “serpent, dragon, snake”. It's also possible that it's a variant form… Continue reading Celinda
Lena originally started out as a short form of names ending in -lena such as Helena (derived from Ancient Greek possibly meaning "torch" or "corposant" though it may also be deirved from Greek selene meaning "moon"), Madgalena (which means "of Magdala" from the name of a village, Magdala deriving from Hebrew migdal meaning "tower"), Abilena (a variant of Abilene, the name of an ancient place in Syria, also known… Continue reading Lena, Lina
Belinda is a female given name of uncertain origin and meaning. Though the first part of the name is often associated with Italian bella meaning "beautiful" (which comes from Latin bellus "beautiful, pretty, handsome"), the name has an older Germanic source, Betlindis, so it seems more likely that the first element is Germanic in origin. While the second… Continue reading Belinda
Miwa is a Japanese female name with a variety of meanings depending on the kanji used: "beauty; beautiful + harmony; Japanese style; peace; soften; Japan" (美和); "beauty; beautiful + wheel; ring; circle; link; hoop; counter for wheels and flowers" (美輪); "beauty; beautiful + ring; circle; link; wheel" (美環); "three + wheel; ring; circle; link; hoop; counter… Continue reading Miwa
Terry is an English unisex name originally used as a diminutive of Terence (which comes from Roman family name Terentius which is of uncertain meaning though it could be derived from Latin terens meaning "rubbing, wearing away" from Latin terere (to rub, to wear out) though it might also be related to Sabine terenus meaning "soft") or Theresa ( comes from Greek Therasia, the name of… Continue reading Terry
