My Favourite Names

Here is a list of my favourite names:

I have included the ethno-linguistic origin of the name, the meaning, pronunciations for any uncommon names, and any famous places, characters, historical figures or celestial objects bearing that name.

Girls' Names

Apolline (French)- form of the Greek Apollonia, from Apollo, the Greek god of sunlight, music and poetry; minor character in the Harry Potter series

Augusta (Latin)- 'great', 'magnificent'; name of Neville Longbottom's grandmother in Harry Potter

Bellatrix (Latin)- feminine form of bellatricus, meaning 'warrior'; can also be taken to mean beautiful female; star in the constellation Orion; a female Death Eater in the Harry Potter series

Benatar (Invented)- stage name of American pop-rock singer Pat Benatar

Caith (Invented)- variant of Keith and Katherine; pronounced kayth

Callisto (Greek)- 'most beautiful'; one of Jupiter's moons; Greek nymph

Caralyn (English)- combination of the Latin Cara ('dear, 'beloved') and the English Lyn ('lake')

Cohen (Irish)- Anglicanisation of Ó Cadhan

Elizabeth (Hebrew)- 'God's promise', 'God is my oath'; Elizabeth I, Elizabeth II, Elizabeth Hurley, Elizabeth Taylor, mother of John the Baptist

Gabrielle (Hebrew)- 'heroine of God'; Gabrielle Solis from 'Desperate Housewives', minor character in the Harry Potter series

Ginevra (Italian)- Italian name for the Swiss city of Geneva; Italian version of the Welsh Jennifer, meaning 'fair one'; name of Harry Potter's wife

Lionora/Ailionóra (Irish)- name borne by noble Irish women (apparently there once was such a thing); variant of Eleanor

Loretta (Italian)- 'laurel'; singer Loretta Lynn, actress Loretta Young

Miramar (Hebrew; Spanish)- variant of Miriam, meaning 'wished for child', 'bitter' or 'rebellious'; it can be translated from Spanish to mean 'seaview'; coastal suburb of New Zealand's capital city, Wellington

Nora/h (English)- diminuitive of the Latin Eleanor, meaning 'light'; Norah Jones

Rahera (Maori)- transliteration of the Hebrew Rachel, meaning 'ewe'

Sariana (Invented)- derived from Sari and Riana

Siana (Invented; Polynesian; Indian)- diminuitive of Sariana; city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh; pronounced see-ah-na

Siri (Scandinavian; Hebrew; Hindu)- variant of the Scandinavian/Germanic Sigrid, meaning 'fair victory'; variant of Sarah, meaning 'princess'; one of the 7 ancient cities of Delhi

Zoheret (Hebrew)- 'she shines'

Boys' Names

Adam (Hebrew)- 'earth'; Adam Sander

Ari (Hebrew) -'lion', 'eagle'; Ari Gold from Entourage

Caleb/Calev (Hebrew) -'dog', 'servant of the Lord'; Caleb Followill, lead singer of the Kings of Leon

Christian (Greek)- 'follower of Christ'; hero in 'Pilgrim's Progress', Christian Dior, Dr. Christiaan Barnard

Daniel (Hebrew)- 'God is my judge'; Biblical prophet who was thrown in the lion's den, Daniel Day-Lewis, Daniel Boone, Danny DeVito, Daniel Radcliffe

Draco (Greek; Latin)- in Latin it means 'dragon'; name of a constellation; ancient lawgiver in Athens, character in the Harry Potter series

Gabriel/Gavriel/Gavi (Hebrew)- 'God's able-bodied one', 'hero of God'; name of one of the archangels, Peter Gabriel, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Gavi Ashkenazi

James (English)- variant of the Hebrew Jacob, meaning 'he who supplants'; James Brown, James Joyce, James Carter, Jimmy Stewart, name of Harry Potter's father

John (Hebrew)- 'the Lord is gracious'; one of the 12 Apostles, John the Baptist, John Wayne, John Key (Prime Minister of New Zealand), John F. Kennedy, John Lennon, Johnny Depp

Joseph (Hebrew)- 'Jehovah increases'; Joseph Conrad, Joseph of the Technicolour Dreamcoat, Joseph Fiennes

Josiah (Hebrew)- 'Jehovah helps'; Biblical king of Judah, Josiah Wedgewood, sixth of Nadya Suleman's octuplets

Jossi (Hebrew)- variant of Yossi, meaning 'he will enlarge'; diminuitive of Joseph, Yosef

Liev (Russian; Hebrew; Scandinavian)- variant of the Russian Lev, itself a variant of Leo; also a variant of the Jewish surnames Levi, Levy, Lew; variant of Lief, meaning 'heir'; Liev Schreiber

Lior (Hebrew)- 'my light'; Israeli actor Lior Ashkenazi

Michael (Hebrew)- 'who resembles God?'; Biblical archangel, Michael J. Fox, Michael Caine, Michael Jackson

Nathaniel (Hebrew)- 'God has given'; one of the 12 Apostles

Patrick (Latin)- Irish form of the Latin Patricius, meaning 'patrician, noble'; Patrick Swayze, Patrick Dempsey

Sirius (Latin)- The Dog Star, the brightest star seen from Earth; character in the Harry Potter series

Thomas (Aramaic)- 'twin'; one of the 12 Apostles, Thomas a Becket, Thomas Aquinas, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Edison, Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks, Tom Riddle (Lord Voldemort)

Vincent/Vinesh (Latin; Indian)- 'prevailing' in Latin; 'pious' in Hindu; Vincent Price, Vin Diesel, Vinnie Jones, Vincent van Gogh

Now, because I am the analytical bitch, I have compiled some statistics:

Statistics

45% of all names were of Hebrew origin
Of the boys' names, 70% were of Hebrew origin
Of the girls' name, 20% were of Hebrew origin

15% of boys' names were of Irish origin.
10% of girls' names were of Irish origin.
12.5% of all names were of Irish origin.

25% of girls' names were the name of a character in the Harry Potter series.

25% of boys' names were the name of a character in the Harry Potter series.

Thus, a total of 25% of all names were from the Harry Potter series.