Andren

Meaning: (Male, Manly, Brave, Virility, Defender of Men, Latinized patronymic from the personal name Andreas. This ancient surname recorded world-wide in over two hundred and fifty spellings, and including as examples Andre, Aindrias, Andrew, Anders, Jendrusch, Vondrak, Dandy, Andriol, Andretti, Ondracek, Vondraeck, Andress, Jedrzejewicz, and Andriuis, is of pre Christian Greek origins. It derives from the personal name "Andreas", meaning manly, and was held by the first of Christ's disciples. Prior to the 10th century a.d., the name as a first name only, there were no surnames before the medieval period, was almost exclusively held by members of the church, one of the first of such recordings being that of a monk "Andreas", in the English Domesday Book of the year 1086. The name gained in popularity throughout Europe after the 12th century Crusades to free the Holy Land. These expeditions were largely unsuccessful, nethertheless it became the normal practice for returning soldiers to name their children after biblical and particularly Christian, saints or martyrs. St Andrew is the patron saint of both Scotland and Russia, and legend has it that his remains were brought to what is now the city of St. Andrew's in Scotland, in the year 900 a.d.. Certainly the name is very popular in that country. The surname was also one of the earliest settler names in America. Anthony Andrew being recorded in the first listings for the state of Virginia in 1623. The very first recorded spelling of the family name anywhere, is probably that of William Andreu, which was dated 1237, in the ancient charters of the county of Buckinghamshire, England, in the year 1237. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop", often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling. http://www.surnamedb.com/Surname/Andren )

Origin: (Swedish, Latin, Old Greek)

Pronunciation: (AENDerAHN, AN-dren)

Gender: Male, Possibly Uni-Sex

I first saw and came to like this name when looking up longer names with Ren in them as I have a character named Ren I thought to give a longer name to and have him be nicknamed Ren but I decided against it and kept Ren as his full name. But I added Andren to my list for my blog. The meanings are strong and brave. It has a long history of use or rather all its variants have long history of uses.

Aldea

Meaning: (Wealthy, One who is Wealthy and Prosperous, Hamlet)

Origin: (Teutonic, Germanic, Spanish)

Pronunciation: (AOLDiyAH, al-DEE-uh)

Gender: Female, Possibly Uni-Sex

This was the name of a mythical Star-Trek planet that was proved to be true. They were an advanced but infertile race that tried to steal and then did steal children from the Enterprise. I really liked the name as I have liked many of the Star Trek names and added some to this blog like, Kestra, Danar, Guinan, Jadzia, Miles, Satie, Ardra, and Minuet *see all these listed on list of posts*. The meanings are really nice and the over all look is interesting.

Grady

Meaning: (Illustrious One, Noble, Man of Rank, From an Irish surname which was derived from Ó Grádaigh meaning "Descendant of Grádaigh". The name Grádaigh means "Noble" in Gaelic.)

Origin: (Irish, English, Gaelic)

Pronunciation: (GRAY-dee)

Gender: Male  

I heard it as the last name of Owen *see on list of posts* an ex-navy guy who works with the Velociraptor on the Island in the Jurassic World movie and first name of one of the new Dual Survival guys. I love the meanings a lot as I love Noble meaning names as everyone who reads my blog well knows. I don’t think I will ever use the name for a character as the name doesn’t really make me love it. I mean I love the meanings but the name itself doesn’t really flow that great for me. I might use it as a surname but as a first name I just don’t see it but maybe if the right character came along then I might very well use it.

Owen

Meaning: ("Young Warrior", "Well Born", "Noble", “Lamb”, “Born of the Yew Tree.” In Northern Ireland the name Eoghan is found in Tir Eoghan, County Tyrone or “The Land of Eoghan” and is often accompanied by Roe in memory of the Irish patriot Eoghan Roe (”Red Eoghan”) O’Neill who won a great battle over the British at Benburb in 1646.

Recorded as Owens and occasionally Owenson, this is a Royal Welsh surname, being, it is claimed, descent from the ancient tribes of North Wales. It is a patronymic of Owen, which is derived either from the ancient Celtic personal name Owain, adapted from the Latin "Eugenius", meaning "Well-Born", or from the Old Welsh word "Oen", meaning the Lamb. Given the warrior status of the clan, this seems an unlikely explanation. Owain or Owen has long been one of the most popular of all Welsh personal names, and some thirty-nine Owains are featured in ancient Welsh legends. Hereditary surnames were a later adoption in Wales than almost any other European country, not becoming 'fixed' until the 17th century/ Examples of the name recording include Owen Gwynedd, a 12th Century chieftain, and Owen Glendower (Owain Glyndwr), 1353 - 1416, the greatest hero of Welsh history. He was the Prince of Wales who established the Welsh parliaments and nearly became an independent king of Wales, but was defeated by Henry IV of England. The personal name was first recorded in England in 926, in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles, as "Uwen", and the much later coat of arms has the unusual blazon of a red field, charged with six gold pineapples. The first recorded spelling of the family name in any form may be that of Ralph Owein. This was dated 1221, in the Assize Rolls of Warwickshire", during the reign of King Henry 11th of England, 1216 - 1272. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling. http://www.surnamedb.com/Surname/Owens )

Origin: (Welsh, Old Irish)

Pronunciation: (O-ən (English), OH-ehn, O-uhn, O-in)

Gender: Male

The meanings are strong and great and the long history of use is also great. This is a well known first and last name which means given its short and easily recognized then it also is easily pronounced which is a major plus. I just came to like this when watching the movie Jurassic World. Owen Grady *see on list of posts* is an ex-navy guy who works with the Velociraptor on the Island.

This is another great Irish name that would work just about anywhere and has a very defender of the weak kind of look but also can seem a bit brainy too It’s really up to the author as to what kind of character they see when they use this name.

Amethyst

Meaning: (Jewel. A purple or violet gemstone. Also 'Against intoxication.' According to ancient Greek superstition an amethyst protected its owner against the effects of strong drink.)

Origin: (Greek, English (Rare))

Pronunciation: (A-mə-thist, AM-ə-thist, go to this link and run your cursor over the name Amethyst to hear how it is said: http://howjsay.com/pronunciation-of-amethyst )

Gender: Female

The real first name of rapper Iggy Azalea, she was born Amethyst Kelly. I hadn’t thought to add this gem name until I saw it was Iggy Azaleas real name and then I started to see it as a name. It goes well with other gem / jewel names, Opal *see on list of posts*, Beryl *see on list of posts*, Emerald or Esmeralda *see on list of posts*, Sapphire *see on list of posts*, Ruby, Pearl, Jade *see on list of posts*, Peridot *see on list of posts*, Olivine *see on list of posts*, Ambra *see on list of posts*, and Carnelian/Cornelian *see on list of posts*.

I think this is an interesting rarely used gem name and I like it for that quality. Also Amethysts are very beautiful gems. I think it would be amazing if the character is named Amethyst upon birth because her eyes are purple to violet like an Amethyst gem. I also like the Greek thought that Amethysts would protect the wearer from the effects of strong drink. All in all I really like this name and would like to see it used a bit more but not so much so that it becomes over used like some gem names.

Melanie

Meaning: (Derived from the Greek μελανία (melania), "Blackness" and that from μέλας (melas), meaning "Dark". Borne in its Latin form by two 5^th Century saints: Melania the Elder (-410) and her granddaughter Melania the Younger (383-439), the name was introduced to England by the Normans in its French form Melanie. The name was used by English speakers in the Middle Ages, introduced via French settlers, but its use did not persist. It saw a revival in the mid 17th century, and received another boost in the 20th century from a character of the same name in the highly popular Margaret Mitchell novel Gone with the Wind (1936) and subsequent film. It was originally given to children with dark complexion, hair, or eyes.)

Origin: (Latin, Old Greek, English, German, Dutch, French)

Pronunciation: (MEL-ə-nee (English), ME-lah-nee (German), MEH-lə-nee, MEHL-ah-Niy (English) or MEH-Laa-Niy (German))

Gender: Female

I came to like this name more when seeing it as the name of Melanie Martinez the singer whose song ‘Pity Party’ I really love right now. I of course have heard of this name my whole life. I had a friend in middle school whose name was Melanie. The meanings are very lovely and exotic in my opinion. It variant forms and this form have been used for so many years and have such a long history of use and such a prominent use as well that it would make using this anywhere in any era acceptable. And of course the nickname options are nearly endless: Mel, Mellie, Melly, Mels, Lanie, Anie (pronounced like Annie), Elan, Lane, Melan, the list can go on.

Joanne

Meaning: (God is Gracious, Joanne (alternate spellings Joann, Jo Ann, Johann, Johanne, Jo-Ann, Jo-Anne) is a common given name for females, being a variant of Joanna, the feminine form of John; derived from the Latin name Johanna with the meaning in Hebrew of "God is gracious". In Northern Ireland of 1975, "Joanne" was the most frequently used name for female newborns, though by the early years of the 21st Century, the name had declined in popularity so that it could not be counted among the twenty most frequently used.

Sometimes in modern English Joanne is reinterpreted as a compound of the two names Jo and Anne, and therefore given a spelling like JoAnne, Jo-Anne, or Jo Anne. However, the original name Joanna in ancient Greek and Latin is a single unit, not a compound. The names Hannah, Anna, Anne, Ann are etymologically related to Joanne just the same: they are derived from Hebrew חַנָּה Ḥannāh 'grace' from the same verbal root meaning 'to be gracious'.

In the United Kingdom, its popularity peaked during the 1970s, when it was frequently among the 10 most popular female names. However, by the 1980s it had fallen out of the top 10 and by 1994 it wasn't even in the top 100.)

Origin: (Ancient Greek, Latin, English, French, Hebrew)

Pronunciation: (Joh-AN, Jo-AN (English), zho-AN (French))

Gender: Female           

I have used this name as the name of a governess of my main character before in one of my Historical Fiction Novellas. I also came to like it in the Hunger Games movies. The meaning is very nice and it has a long history of use and many different spelling options. Though a common name by most people it has fallen out of use in the recent era so you are probably not liable to hear of a lot of kids in school with this name if you’re thinking of this as a baby name. As for a character name it is very nice but I still see this as a secondary characters name but it would do well no matter how prominent the characters role is in their story.

Halcyon

Meaning: (Calm, Peaceful, Tranquil, Happy, Carefree, Derived from the name of a Greek mythological sea bird. Commonly used in the expression 'halcyon days. It is derived from Alkyon meaning 'Kingfisher'; Halkyon 'Kingfisher'; Hals 'Sea'. Halcyon is a genus of kingfisher birds; the name thus means 'kingfisher'. Etymologically, the name is Latinized from Halkyone (Greek), which is itself a variant of 'Alkyone'. The root elements are the Greek Alkyon and Halkyon, with the 'h' added by mythological associations. Ovid wrote in Roman mythology that Alcyone's father Aeolus, the god of the winds, held back the storms whenever Alcyone, as a kingfisher, laid her eggs on the beach. This gave rise to the term 'halcyon days', the mythical seven days in winter when storms do not occur.)

Origin: (Greek)

Pronunciation: (HHAELSiy-ahN, HAL-see-uhn)

Gender: Female, Possibly Uni-Sex

Alcyone *see on list of posts* has the same meaning and comes from the same root and associated the same mythology but looks different so authors may wish to use one over the other for a character. Look at Alcyone on this blog to get more of the mythology associated with both names. I was listening to music and Ellie Goulding has a CD from a few years ago called Halcyon Days and I became interested in that phrase as I had literally never heard of it before so I had to Google it. The meaning of this and the mythology behind the phrase is really quite lovely and I like it all a ton. Both Alcyone and Halcyon have great meanings and interesting looks about them.

Halcyon seemed a name of a chemical or something when I first saw it so others may assume the name is something odd at first but again if used just right by an author this could be really great in a story, whether used as character name or the Halcyon Days phrase used to mean something in the story.  

Mahanaim

Meaning: (Two Camps, A site E of the Jordan where Jacob, after parting from Laban, encountered a company of angels. Jacob then called the place “Mahanaim.” (Ge 32:1, 2) The meaning of the name (“Two Camps”) may allude to “the camp of God,” as represented by his angels, and to the camp of Jacob. Apparently sometime later a city was built on the site. In the 15th century B.C.E., this city was first assigned to the Gadites and then to the Levite Merarites.—Jos 13:24, 26; 21:34, 38. *information taken from Insight Book Volume 2 Published by Jehovah’s Witnesses*)

Origin: (Hebrew, Biblical)

Pronunciation: (MAHHHAHNEYihM)

Gender: Male

I was reading my bible a few weeks ago and came across this name. It is one of those biblical names I kind of really like but am not sure how it could used on a character as it’s not exactly a breeze to say and having to write it over and over would be a pain for an author. Plus seeing it written could be a pain for the reader as it will slow up the story having to say the name but if maybe it were given a nickname or something it may make it easier.

The meaning is decent and the long history of use is great for it can be used in pretty much any era. I think this name is just waiting for the right author and character to come along to make it really great in a story, well great in a book besides the Bible.

Madeira

Meaning: (Sweet Wine, Place name: a group of volcanic islands in the North Atlantic off Morocco. The main island, also called Madeira, is known for the wine made there. Metonymic occupational name for a carpenter, from Madeira 'Wood', 'Timber' (Late Latin materia, from classical Latin materies 'Material', 'Substance'). Local name from the island of Madeira, which was named with Portuguese Madeira 'Timber' because of the timber that grew there.)

Origin: (Portuguese, Spanish, Late Latin)

Pronunciation: (MAHDIHRAH, MAH-DARE-AH)

Gender: Female. Possibly Uni-Sex

I was watching a show on TV about islands of the worlds that are helping create new green energy sources and one of the islands was the Island of Madeira. What I thought was cool was the irrigation canals called Levadas. Madeira itself seems it would be a beautiful name and the meanings are quite lovely, beautiful, and strong. The meaning Sweet Wine reminds me of my other favorite word turned name Sangria *see on list of posts*.

The pronunciation MAH-DARE-AH is how I pronounce the name which is based off how I have often heard it pronounced. The name also reminds me of Caldera as in a volcanoes Caldera. It is a very exotic name but not sure how I would like to see it used on a character but I would definitely though be up to seeing it used as a character name if used in the right way.