Names That Mean Day

Dinesh is a popular Indian name -- it stands for the sun in Hindu texts -- made familiar in the US by the HBO show Silicon Valley via the character played by Kumail Nanjiani. With the emphasis on the second syllable, Dinesh is a name that translates easily.

Also spelled Beltane and Beltain, this festival on May 1 marks the beginning of summer. It was described in old Irish and Scottish texts, and has been revived as a cultural festival, and by neopagans. It is often celebrated with bonfires and greenery, and would be an inventive name for a baby born at this time of year. The name is thought to derive from an old Celtic word meaning "bright fire".

Lowdy is a variation of Loveday, a name given to babies in medieval England who were born on days when adversaries would come together to resolve their conflicts amicably. Loveday continued to be used in Cornwall long after it died out in the rest of England and is considered a traditional Cornish name despite its Anglo-Saxon roots.

Holyday is an archaic term from which "holiday" is derived. It would make a meaningful middle for a child born on an important religious holiday.

A modern name likely inspired by the Latin phrase carpe diem meaning "seize the day".

Tori Amos added a little extra something to the already pretty elaborate Natasha for her daughter's name.

Both graceful and melodious.

Almost unheard of in recent years, Dagobert has some connections to the French diaspora. Pere Dagobert was an eighteenth century Capuchin monk who immigrated to New Orleans from Quebec. Dagobert I was a king of the Merovingian dynasty in the seventh century.

Tish for the twenty-first century.