Names beginning with O
Every name in Namewise's catalogue whose recorded spelling begins with O, listed alphabetically. Names are grouped by the spelling a registrar published, so a name spelled differently in another country appears under that spelling's own letter.
415 names beginning with "O"
Full profile: deeper editorial detail. Official popularity record: sourced statistical evidence, editorial detail not yet written. Name identity record: exists in the catalogue with limited current evidence. Namewise is expanding editorial depth over time.
Commonly interpreted as 'olive tree', though the true root is debated.
Possibly 'deer friend' (Irish), or possibly derived from an Old English/Old Norse name meaning 'god spear' — the origin is genuinely disputed.
Traditionally interpreted as 'little deer', combining an Old Irish word for deer or stag with a diminutive ending.
The origin is genuinely disputed between two theories: one traces it to an Old Irish phrase commonly rendered as 'deer friend'; the other links it to a Germanic compound commonly interpreted as 'god's spear', possibly brought to Ireland by Norse settlers.
The Anglicized form of Órlaith, combining Irish 'ór' (gold) with 'flaith' (sovereignty, royalty) — traditionally read as 'golden princess' or 'golden sovereignty'.
From Old Norse Óðinn, connected to the root 'óðr' meaning 'frenzied, furious, inspired'. The supreme god of war, wisdom and death in Norse mythology, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *Wōdanaz.
From Old Irish Odrán, combining 'odar' (dun-coloured, greyish-brown, tan) with a diminutive suffix — 'little dun/ashen one'. Borne by St Patrick's charioteer Odrán and by St Odhrán (Oran) of Iona, companion of St Columba.
The root element (odar) is tagged by Behind the Name's own category system as relating to a dun or grayish-brown colour, but no source gives an explicit stated translation — treat this as a tentative, lower-confidence reading rather than a settled meaning.
Showing 24 of 60 names on this page.