Summary of Names of Length 3
- What are some cool 3 letter names?
- What are unisex names with 3 letters?
- What is a 3 letter name for a boy?
- What are 20 boy names?
This is a list of names in which the length is 3.
Originally a Frisian short form of
Adalbert
(and other names starting with the Old German element
adal
“noble” and a second element beginning with
b
).
Means
“father of”
in Arabic. This is commonly used as an element in a kunya, which is a type of Arabic nickname. The element is combined with the name of one of the bearer’s children (usually the eldest son). In some cases the kunya is figurative, not referring to an actual child, as in the case of the Muslim caliph
Abu Bakr
.
From the English word meaning
“highest rank”
. More commonly a nickname, it is occasionally used as a given name.
Originally a short form of Germanic names such as
Adelaide
or
Adelina
that begin with the element
adal
meaning “noble”. Saint Ada was a 7th-century Frankish abbess at Le Mans. This name was also borne by Augusta Ada King (1815-1852), the Countess of Lovelace (known as Ada Lovelace), a daughter of Lord Byron. She was an assistant to Charles Babbage, the inventor of an early mechanical computer.
From Yoruba
adé
meaning
“crown”
, also a short form of other names beginning with this element.
Originally a short form of Germanic names beginning with the element
adal
meaning
“noble”
.
Means
“first”
in Indonesian and
“beautiful, good, valuable”
in Javanese, both ultimately from Sanskrit
आदि (ādi)
meaning “first, prime”.
From a Turkic title (usually rendered
agha
in English) meaning
“lord, master”
.
From the Old High German element
ekka
, Old Saxon
eggia
meaning
“edge, blade”
(Proto-Germanic *
agjō
). Alternatively it could be from Old High German
egi
meaning
“fear”
(Proto-Germanic *
agaz
). This was the name of a 7th-century Duke of Friuli.
From the name of a town in the Basque province of Gipuzkoa in Spain. It is located on the slopes of Mount Pagoeta, and may be related to Basque
aiher
“slope, inclination”.
From Japanese
晶 (aki)
meaning “clear, crystal”,
明 (aki)
meaning “bright, light, clear” or
秋 (aki)
meaning “autumn”. It can also come from
亜 (a)
meaning “second, Asia” combined with
希 (ki)
meaning “hope”. Other kanji or combinations of kanji can form this name too.
Means
“excellence, elevation”
in Arabic, from the root
علا (ʿalā)
meaning “to be high”.
Means
“earth, land”
in Igbo. In traditional Igbo religion Ala (called
Ani
or
Ana
in other dialects) is an earth goddess associated with fertility and ancestors.
Originally a short form of Germanic names beginning with the element
adal
meaning
“noble”
.
Derived from Old Norse
alfr
meaning
“elf”
. In Norse legend this was the name of king, the suitor of a reluctant maiden named
Alfhild
. She avoided marrying him by disguising herself as a warrior, but when they fought she was so impressed by his strength that she changed her mind.
Means
“lofty, sublime”
in Arabic, from the root
علا (ʿalā)
meaning “to be high”. Ali ibn Abi Talib was a cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet
Muhammad
and the fourth caliph to rule the Muslim world. His followers were the original Shia Muslims, who regard him as the first rightful caliph.
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Means
“born on Saturday”
in Akan.
From Japanese
亜 (a)
meaning “second, Asia” and
美 (mi)
meaning “beautiful”. Other kanji combinations are possible.
Means
“my people”
or
“my nation”
in Hebrew.
Means
“life”
in Arabic, from
عمر (ʿamara)
meaning “to live long, to thrive”. Amr ibn al-As was a companion of the Prophet
Muhammad
. The final
و
is generally not pronounced in this name.
English form of the Old French name
Amée
meaning
“beloved”
(modern French
aimée
), a vernacular form of the Latin
Amata
. As an English name, it was in use in the Middle Ages (though not common) and was revived in the 19th century.
Form of
Anna
used in various languages.
Often from Sino-Vietnamese
英 (anh)
meaning “flower, petal, brave, hero”. This name is frequently combined with a middle name to create a compound name; the meaning of
Anh
can change depending on the Sino-Vietnamese characters underlying the compound.
From the name of an old Armenian city, of unknown meaning. Now in eastern Turkey, in the 10th and 11th centuries it was the capital of the Kingdom of Armenia, though it was later abandoned and is now only ruins.
English and Manx form of
Anne 1
. In the English-speaking world, both this spelling and
Anne
have been used since the late Middle Ages. Currently
Ann
is less popular than
Anne
(and both are less popular than their relatives
Anna
and
Hannah
).
From Japanese
葵 (aoi)
meaning “hollyhock, althea”,
蒼 (aoi)
meaning “blue, green” or an adjectival form of
碧 (ao)
meaning “blue, green”. Other kanji with the same reading can form this name as well.
Meaning unknown, possibly of Sumerian origin. In Armenian legend this was the name of an Armenian king who was so handsome that the Assyrian queen
Semiramis
went to war to capture him. During the war Ara was slain.
Short form of Old Norse feminine names beginning with the element
áss “god”
.
Norwegian form of
Åsa
, as well as a Swedish and Danish variant. It was used by the Norwegian dramatist Henrik Ibsen in his play
Peer Gynt
(1867), where it belongs to the mother of the title character.
Short form of
Ashley
. It can also come directly from the English word denoting either the tree or the residue of fire.
Derived from Old Norse
askr “ash tree”
. In Norse mythology Ask and his wife
Embla
were the first humans created by the gods.
Variant of
Eve
. A famous bearer was the American actress Ava Gardner (1922-1990). This name became very popular throughout the English-speaking world in the early 21st century, entering the top ten for girls in the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. It began to rise sharply after 1997, possibly inspired by the actress Heather Locklear and musician Richie Sambora when they used it for their baby daughter that year.
Originally a short form of Germanic names beginning with the element
awi
, of unknown meaning. This was the name of a 9th-century Frankish saint. It was also borne by a 12th-century poet from Melk, Austria.
Possibly from the name of the prayer
Ave Maria
, in which
Ave
is Latin meaning
“greetings, salutations”
. In Estonian it is also associated with the word
ava
meaning “open”.
From Japanese
彩 (aya)
meaning “colour”,
綾 (aya)
meaning “design”, or other kanji characters with the same pronunciation.
Means
“sign, evidence”
in Arabic, referring to a sign of the divine. It also means
“verse”
, as in one of the passages that make up the Quran.
Means
“dawn”
in Akkadian. In Akkadian mythology this was the name of the goddess of the dawn, associated with sexual appeal and beauty. She was the consort of the sun god
Shamash
. The Babylonians sometimes called her
kallatum
meaning “the bride”.
This name was assumed by Ayn Rand (1905-1982), originally named Alice Rosenbaum, a Russian-American writer and philosopher. She apparently based it on a Finnish name she had heard, but never seen written.
From Yoruba
ayọ̀
meaning
“joy”
, or a short form of other names containing this element.
From Chinese
白 (bái)
meaning “white, pure”,
百 (bǎi)
meaning “one hundred, many” or
柏 (bǎi)
meaning “cypress tree, cedar” (which is usually only masculine). Other Chinese characters can form this name as well. This name was borne in the 8th century by the Tang dynasty poet Li Bai, whose given was
白
.
From Chinese
宝 (bǎo)
meaning “treasure, jewel, precious, rare”,
褒 (bāo)
meaning “praise, honour” or
苞 (bāo)
meaning “bud” (which is usually only feminine). Other Chinese characters are possible as well.
From Egyptian
bꜣ
meaning
“soul, godly power”
and the feminine
t
suffix. Bat was an Egyptian cow goddess. During the Middle Kingdom she became closely associated with
Hathor
, and the two were eventually merged.
Meaning unknown. This was the name of a Sumerian mother goddess, also associated with healing and midwifery.
Possibly from Egyptian
bs
meaning
“flame”
. It has also been suggested that it derives from a Nubian word meaning
“cat”
. Bes was an Egyptian god, possibly of Nubian origin, who functioned as a household protector. He was initially depicted as a lion rearing on its hind legs, later becoming more humanlike.
From Chinese
斌 (bīn)
meaning “refined” or
宾 (bīn)
meaning “guest”, as well as other characters that are pronounced similarly.
Short form of
Robert
. It arose later than
Dob
,
Hob
and
Nob
, which were medieval rhyming nicknames of Robert. It is borne by the character Bob Cratchit in Charles Dickens’ novel
A Christmas Carol
(1843). Other famous bearers include American folk musician Bob Dylan (1941-) and Jamaican reggae musician Bob Marley (1945-1981).
Means
“pine tree”
in Slovene. It is also a short form of names containing
bor
, such as
Borislav
or
Boris
.
Means
“soul, life”
or by extension
“darling, sweetheart”
in Turkish, from Persian
جان (jān)
.
Diminutive of
Catherine
. It can also be a nickname from the English word for the animal.
From an Argentine expression meaning
“hey!”
. This nickname was acquired by the Argentine revolutionary Ernesto Guevara while he was in Cuba.
Means
“god, spiritual being”
in Igbo, referring to the personal spiritual guardian that each person is believed to have. Christian Igbo people use it as a name for the personal Christian god (as opposed to the omnipresent
Chukwu
, though the names are used synonymously in some contexts). This can also be a short form of the many Igbo names that begin with this element.
From Sino-Vietnamese
志 (chí)
meaning
“will, spirit”
. This was a name adopted by the Vietnamese revolutionary Hồ Chí Minh (1890-1969) in the 1940s.
From a surname that meant
“quiet, shy, coy”
from Middle English
coi
.
From the Old Norse byname
Danr
meaning
“a Dane”
. This was the name of several semi-legendary Danish kings.
From Japanese
暖 (dan)
meaning “warm” or other kanji that are pronounced the same way.
From Chinese
丹 (dān)
meaning “cinnabar, vermilion, red” or other characters that are pronounced similarly.
Means
“mother-of-pearl, nacre”
in Hebrew.
From an English surname, which was derived either from the town of Dax in France or from the Old English given name
Dæcca
(of unknown meaning). The name was brought to public attention by the main character in the 1966 novel
The Adventurers
and its 1970 movie adaptation. It became popular in the 2010s due to its similarity to other names like
Max
and
Jax
.
Short form of names beginning with
D
. It may also be given in reference to the
Dee
River in Scotland.
Meaning uncertain, possibly cognate with the Irish goddess
Danu
. Alternatively it could be connected to Celtic *
gdonos
meaning
“of the earth”
. This was the name of the parent of
Gwydion
,
Arianrhod
and others in Welsh mythology. The gender of Dôn is not explicitly stated in Welsh sources, but modern scholarship typically asserts she is female.
Means
“generation”
in Hebrew.
Short form of
Andre
. A famous bearer is the American rapper and music producer Dr. Dre (1965-), born Andre Young.
From Sino-Vietnamese
維 (duy)
meaning
“maintain, preserve, fasten”
.
Means
“two, second”
in Indonesian, ultimately from Sanskrit
द्वि (dvi)
.
Means
“queen”
or
“beautiful woman”
in Turkish.
Means
“behaviour, style, demeanour”
in Turkish.
Means
“ascension”
in Hebrew, a derivative of
עָלָה (ʿala)
meaning “to ascend”. In the Books of Samuel in the Old Testament he is a high priest of the Israelites. He took the young
Samuel
into his service and gave him guidance when God spoke to him. Because of the misdeeds of his sons, Eli and his descendants were cursed to die before reaching old age.
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Means
“my God”
in Hebrew, also a short form of names such as
Elijah
that begin with this element.
Short form of names beginning with
El
, such as
Eliisabet
. It could also be from Estonian
elu
meaning
“life”
.
From Japanese
恵 (e)
meaning “favour, benefit” or
江 (e)
meaning “bay, inlet” combined with
麻 (ma)
meaning “flax”. Other kanji combinations can also form this name.
From Japanese
恵 (e)
meaning “favour, benefit” or
絵 (e)
meaning “picture, painting” combined with
美 (mi)
meaning “beautiful”. Other kanji combinations are possible.
Means
“fifth born child”
in Akan.
Means
“dawn”
in Greek. This was the name of the Greek goddess of the dawn.
Derived from Albanian
erë
meaning
“wind”
.
Means
“born on Sunday”
in Akan.
Form of
Ḥawwa
(see
Eve
) used in the Greek Bible. However, the first instance of the name
Ḥawwa
in the Greek Old Testament (at
Genesis 3:20
) is translated as
Zoe
.
From Sino-Korean
恩 (eun)
meaning “kindness, mercy, charity” or
銀 (eun)
meaning “silver, money”, as well as other hanja characters that are pronounced in the same way. It usually occurs in combination with another character, though it is sometimes used as a stand-alone name.
Form of
Eve
used in various languages. This form is used in the Latin translation of the New Testament, while
Hava
is used in the Latin Old Testament. A notable bearer was the Argentine first lady Eva Perón (1919-1952), the subject of the musical
Evita
. The name also appears in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel
Uncle Tom’s Cabin
(1852) belonging to the character Little Eva, whose real name is in fact Evangeline.
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From the Hebrew name
חַוָּה (Ḥawwa)
, which was derived from the Hebrew word
חָוָה (ḥawa)
meaning
“to breathe”
or the related word
חָיָה (ḥaya)
meaning
“to live”
. According to the Old Testament Book of Genesis, Eve and
Adam
were the first humans. God created her from one of Adam’s ribs to be his companion. At the urging of a serpent she ate the forbidden fruit and shared some with Adam, causing their expulsion from the Garden of
Eden
.
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In part from the English word
fay
meaning
“fairy”
, derived from Middle English
faie
meaning “magical, enchanted”, ultimately (via Old French) from Latin
fata
meaning “the Fates”. It appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth’s chronicles in the name of
Morgan
le Fay. In some cases it may be used as a short form of
Faith
. It has been used as a feminine given name since the 19th century.
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From Chinese
芬 (fēn)
meaning “fragrance, aroma, perfume” (which is usually only feminine) or
奋 (fèn)
meaning “strive, exert” (usually only masculine). Other Chinese characters are also possible.
Originally a Frisian short form of
Ferdinand
(and other names starting with the Old German element
fridu
“peace” and a second element beginning with
n
).
Either from the English word
fox
or the surname
Fox
, which originally given as a nickname. The surname was borne by George Fox (1624-1691), the founder of the Quakers.
Means
“valley, ravine”
in Hebrew.
From the English word
gay
meaning
“gay, happy”
. By the mid-20th century the word had acquired the additional meaning of “homosexual”, and the name has subsequently dropped out of use.
From Egyptian
𓎼𓃀𓃀 (gbb)
meaning
“earth”
. In Egyptian mythology he was the god of the earth and crops. His consort was his sister the sky goddess
Nut
.
Meaning unknown. This is the name of a hero in the 10th-century Persian epic the
Shahnameh
.
Means
“rose”
in Turkish, ultimately from Persian.
Means
“flower, rose”
in Urdu and Pashto, ultimately from Persian.
From Chinese
国 (guó)
meaning “country” or other Chinese characters pronounced in a similar way.
Old French form of
Wido
. The Normans introduced it to England, where it was common until the time of Guy Fawkes (1570-1606), a revolutionary who attempted to blow up the British parliament. The name was revived in the 19th century, due in part to characters in the novels
Guy Mannering
(1815) by Walter Scott and
The Heir of Redclyffe
(1854) by C. M. Yonge.
Alternate transcription of Hebrew
גַּיְא
(see
Gai
). This is the more common transcription.
From Chinese
海 (hǎi)
meaning “sea, ocean” or other characters that are pronounced similarly.
Medieval diminutive of
Harry
. In Shakespeare’s two historical plays about Henry IV, Prince Hal is the name of the future King Henry V.
Means
“hot, warm”
in Hebrew. In the Old Testament, Ham is one of
Noah
‘s three sons, along with
Shem
and
Japheth
. He was the ancestor of the Egyptians and Canaanites.
From Chinese
汉 (hàn)
meaning “man”, also referring to the Han Chinese people, or
翰 (hàn)
meaning “writing, painting”. Other characters can form this name as well.
From Chinese
昊 (hào)
meaning “summer, sky, heaven”,
浩 (hào)
meaning “great, numerous, vast”, or other characters that are pronounced similarly.
In Norse mythology this was the name of the daughter of
Loki
. She got her name from the underworld, also called Hel, where she ruled, which meant “to conceal, to cover” in Old Norse (related to the English word
hell
).
Means
“pretty, favourable”
in Burmese.
From Chinese
华 (huá)
meaning “splendid, illustrious, Chinese” or
花 (huā)
meaning “flower, blossom” (which is usually only feminine). Other Chinese characters can form this name as well.
From Sino-Vietnamese
慧 (huệ)
meaning
“bright, intelligent”
or
蕙 (huệ)
meaning
“tuberose (flower)”
.
From Chinese
慧 (huì)
meaning “intelligent, wise” (which is usually only feminine),
辉 (huī)
meaning “brightness”, besides other characters that are pronounced similarly.
From Sino-Vietnamese
有 (hữu)
meaning
“to have”
or
友 (hữu)
meaning
“friend, companion”
.
From Sino-Korean
慧 (hye)
meaning “bright, intelligent” or other characters that are pronounced in the same way. Although it does appear rarely as a single-character name, it is more often used in combination with another character. A notable bearer was a 6th-century king of Baekje.
From Egyptian
jꜥḥ
meaning
“moon”
. In Egyptian mythology this was the name of a god of the moon, later identified with
Thoth
.
Anglicized form of Scottish Gaelic
Iain
, itself from Latin
Iohannes
(see
John
). It became popular in the United Kingdom outside of Scotland in the first half of the 20th century, but did not begin catching on in America until the 1960s.
Derived from the Germanic element
id
possibly meaning
“work, labour”
(Proto-Germanic *
idiz
). The Normans brought this name to England, though it eventually died out there in the Middle Ages. It was strongly revived in the 19th century, in part due to the heroine in Alfred Tennyson’s poem
The Princess
(1847), which was later adapted into the play
Princess Ida
(1884) by Gilbert and Sullivan.
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From Old Irish
Íte
, possibly derived from
ítu
meaning
“thirst”
. This was the name of a 6th-century Irish nun, the patron saint of Killeedy.