Names That Mean Little
Across 13 pages
of 13
Oban
Scottish place name
"the little bay"
A pretty town in Scotland, named for its perfect horseshoe-shaped bay.
Oshin
Manx
"little deer"
This Manx form of the popular Irish name Oisín is perhaps a more intuitive spelling outside of Ireland.
Prunelle
French
"little plum"
This sweet, fruity French name debuted in the American charts in 2020 (but dipped out again the following year). Although it's offbeat, the spunky nicknames Prue and Nell(ie) definitely work in its…
Anshika
Hindi
"beautiful little thing"
A sweet-sounding Hindi name with a lovely meaning.
Rousseau
French surname
"little redhead"
Philosophical surname that could make an unusual first for a red-headed girl.
Aodhnait
Irish, Gaelic
"little fire"
An ancient Irish saint's name derived from the same root as the popular Aidan.
Dill
Diminutive of Dillon, Irish
"little"
More commonly a pet form of Dillon than an independent name, but Suzanne Collins used it as such for a female character in her series The Hunger Games .
Maedoc
Irish
"little fire"
Derived from the Irish M'Aodh Óg , making it a relative of Aidan. Saint Máedóc (also known as Áedán) of Ferns was a 7th-century Irish bishop.
Aulus
Latin
"little grandfather"
One of the most common ancient Roman forenames, but extremely rare today. Other Roman names like Aurelius are trending upwards, so this could be an off-the-radar option.
Laika
Russian
"little barking one"
The name of the first dog in space is the quintessential Russian dog name, equivalent to Fido or Rover. Fittingly, it derives from the verb layat' , meaning "to bark".
Tuulikki
Finnish
"little wind"
Tuulikki is a Finnish name meaning "little wind" -- tuuli means wind in Finnish -- and also the name of a forest goddess. Supermodel Else Hosk, whose mother is Finnish, chose this name for her…
Lunete
Welsh or French, Latin
"idol, image; little moon"
Variant of Lunet
Cellan
Welsh place name, possibly "little cell"
"little cell"
An attractive alternative spelling to Kellan, but the authentic Welsh "ll" sound may be hard to come by outside Wales.
Geza
Hungarian
"little prince"
Spelled Géza in Hungarian, this is the modern form of Gyeücsa. It derives from a Hungarian noble title: gyeü , with a diminutive suffix. This was the name of a 10th-century leader of the Hungarians,…
Zissy
Yiddish
"little sweet one"
Dimunitive of Zisel, from a Yiddish word meaning "sweet".
Rosalita
Spanish
"little rose"
A pretty and lively diminutive form of Rosalia.
Faolan
Irish Gaelic
"little wolf"
Properly spelled with a fada in Gaelic (Faolán), this name is the origin of the Irish surname Phelan. It derives from the Gaelic fáel "wolf", plus a diminutive suffix, making this a handsome hidden…
Ettie
English diminutive or names ending with 'etta' or 'ette'
"little"
Ettie or Etty works as a nickname for any name with a prominent "et" sound, usually at the end: think Henrietta, Juliette or Colette. The -ette ending is a French diminutive suffix.
Sebulon
Finnish and Scandinavian variation of Zebulon, Hebrew
"exaltation; little dwelling"
You lose the zippy Z with the Nordic form of Zebulon, but the softer nickname Seb is nice.
Cruzito
Spanish
"little cross"
Spanish masculine diminutive of Cruz