Names That Mean My

A name used in the Middle East but that could easily work in the US. As a girls' name, Nuri can also be a short form of Nuria. It was chosen by Christy Lefteri for the protagonist of her novel, The Beekeeper of Aleppo which may have familiarized people with the name.

This sleek Italian name was raised from the dead by Mexican Mozart in the Jungle star Gael Garcia Bernal, who chose it for his son (he also has a daughter named Libertad). For athletic inspiration, Lazaro Alvarez, boxing for Cuba, is the three-time world champion lightweight boxer. Lazarus and root name Eleazar are both also destined for comebacks.

Intriguing twist on several familiar names, though many people will mistake this for Elsa, Eliza, and so on.

One of the most modern-sounding Old Testament names, Imri is short and sweet enough to travel easily around the world. It is the name of two minor biblical figures, and also used by modern Hebrew speakers.

Nuri might be a nickname for the place name Nuria, popular in Spain and Portugal as a honorific for the Virgin Mary. Nuri is also a usually-masculine name heard in the Middle East, but to the Western ear it might work for girls or boys.

Variation of Aviela/Abiela, feminine forms of the Biblical Aviel/Abiel "God is my father", and related to Avielle.

Feminine form of Adriel, a Biblical choice which has been really heating up in the US in recent years. Feels like a natural successor to Adrienne and Arielle.

Intriguing Russian possibility, even though proper pronunciation would not be obvious. Ilya might be a more manageable option.

This is a streamlined spelling of the biblical Hephzibah. Hephzibah is an Old Testament name that came into use in the 17th century, but is not often used today. It does have less formal nicknames Eppie and Hepsie, which seem revivable. Hephzibah "Eppie" Cass/Marner is the heroine of George Eliot's novel Silas Marner and Hepzibah Smith is a witch in the Harry Potter series.

Yeshua is often considered the "real" name of Jesus, via the Hebrew to Greek to Latin to English evolution of Yeshua to Iesous to Iesus to Jesus. It is also used as a common alternative of Yehoshua in the later parts of the Hebrew Bible, making it a variation of Joshuah.

An Israeli place-name as well as being the Hebrew form of Gabriel.

Often stands alone in Israel, but rarely here.

If Liv can stand on it's own, why not Miv?

This Hebrew name deserves consideration by parents looking for a traditional by underused girls name with a gorgeous meaning.

Probably most familiar to English-speakers as Zsa Zsa Gabor's last name, the rise of other Eastern European boys' names like Casimir, Milo and Laszlo make Gabor an increasingly wearable option.

A rare alternative to Tobias, with a lesser-known Biblical story.

Adonai is a title meaning "my lords" used in the Torah and in Jewish prayer to refer to God, whose name is forbidden to be spoken. Even the title Adonai is considered by some Orthodox Jews to be too holy to say outside of prayer, being replaced by HaShem, meaning "The Name". This makes Adonai a highly culturally loaded choice, which is never used as a name in the Jewish community. Nevertheless, several dozen boys and a handful of girls receive this name each year in the US.

A common girl name in Israel that could travel well to the US.

Nickname form Gaber is currently the more fashionable variation in Slovenia.

This play on the phrase "My heir" is climbing quickly, and was the fastest-rising boy name outside of the Top 1000 in 2022 — given to 74 baby boys, compared to 10 in 2021. This fits in with the grandiose and royal theme in the naming sphere, including rising names Legend, Legacy, and the like.