Names That Mean Light

Spiritual author Deepak Chopra made this familiar, if not particularly accessible, outside the Indian community. 

Deepak

Shaviv

Lucasta was invented by seventeenth century poet Richard Lovelace for a collection of poems dedicated to a lover named Lucy, and is familiar through the Eugene O'Neill play and film Anna Lucasta. Lucasta is a distinctive, rarely used choice and a logical extension of the Luke/Luc/Luca names.

Lucasta

A pretty addition to the Au-girl names like Audrey, Aurora and Autumn. The beginning Aur syllable, which often relates to gold, makes this an appropriate and one of the more unusual <a href="https://nameberry.com/list/351/names-for-autumn-babies">names for autumn babies</a>.

Auretta

One way to spin grandma Helen or Ellen's name off the beaten track. The legendary Azenor was a tragic 6th century Breton princess who was mother to a saint. This personage also may be known as Senara.

Azenor

The origins of Senara, the name of a Cornish saint who is patron of the village of Zennor, are not so straightforward. Some say she was the same person as Azenor, a legendary Breton princess whose mother-in-law cast her out to sea in a trunk. Other stories say she was a mermaid turned Christian. 

Wherever she came from, Senara is that rarest of names: lovely, straightforward, and unusual all at the same time. Since it may be related to Helen or Eleanor, it can be used as an honorific for one of those names -- though grandma Helen may understandably think it's a stretch.

Senara

Pronounced lee-sha, Laoise is the feminine form of the Irish mythological names Lugh and Lugus, which means light. Lugus was the Celtic god of commerce and craftsmanship, the equivalent of the Roman Mercury, thought to inspire the later Irish hero Lugh. Laoise is among the Top 100 <a href="https://nameberry.com/baby-names/804/irish-names-for-girls">Irish names for girls</a>, but Americans will definitely have pronunciation issues.

Laoise

Clarimond is related to the Occitan name Esclarmonde, and is probably the more wearable of the two variations. 

Seventeenth century French novelist Nicolas des Escuteaux used the name for the eponymous heroine of his novel, Clarimond et Antonide.
 

It's a very rare name, but with Claire and Clara in favor, Clarimond could fit right in.

Clarimond

Esclarmonde de Foix was an Occitan countess and an important figure in Catharism, a medieval Christian movement, which allowed women and men to both hold church offices. 
Her tale inspired an opera by the same name by Jules Massenet; the name is also featured in Kate Mosse's bestselling novel Labyrinth.
 Esclarmonde has a stunning meaning and a mellifluous sound and would make an unusual but intriguing choice. Another version is Clarimond.

Esclarmonde

Argider is a somewhat used boys' name in Basque-speaking parts of Spain. 

Argider

This name may mean light but is likely to be heavy to wear outside of Spain. 

Argi

Gerel

Cassander is the masculine form of Cassandra, and the name of an ancient king of Macedon from the 3rd century BC. It could make a nice alternative to Alexander or a refreshing way to honour a female relative named Cassie/Cassandra/Sandra.
 
Despite its familiar sounds and elegance, Cassander didn't appear in the US stats for boys until 2024, when the rise of Cassius, Caspian, Evander, and Leander has likely allowed parents to separate it from its feminine form and worry less about it only ever being heard as Cassandra. Six boys were given the name in 2024, though we could see that number rise in coming years.

Cassander

Heleena

It's pronunciation is identical to that of Lucian, but this spelling makes it appear to rhyme with "cushion," so we suggest sticking with the original.

Lushion

This word name shines bright and comes with the nickname Bea.

Beacon

This gender-neutral Indonesian name feels familiar but unique. 

Damar

A pretty and lively Slavic diminutive of Helena or Magdalena, long used as a standalone. In Czechia, it was a Top 10 choice from 1960 to 1991, and it still ranks highly there today.

Lenka

The Faroese term for "ray of light", seen as a feminine name on the Faroe Islands.

Glæma

This unisex Hebrew name has held rather steady for boys while falling for girls in Israel.