Names by Origin
French Names
Names from the French tradition, blending Latin, Germanic and Celtic roots.
Adelaide
noble kind
Adele
noble
Alain
Amelie
hardworking
Anouk
grace
Antoine
priceless
Armand
soldier
Aubrey
elf ruler
Augustin
great, magnificent
Aurelie
golden
Avril
April
Baptiste
to dip, baptise
Bastien
venerable
Beatrice
she who brings joy
Bellamy
fine friend
Camille
Celeste
heavenly
Celine
heavenly
Charles
free man
Charlotte
free woman
Claire
bright, clear
Claude
lame
Claudine
lame
Colette
victory of the people
French forms and accents
French given names draw on Latin, Germanic and Celtic sources, reshaped by French phonology and spelling. Accents matter — Étienne, Céline and Noël are not just decorative variants of their unaccented forms. The collection favours the established French shapes: Guillaume rather than William, Olivier rather than Oliver. Many of these names are used across French-speaking communities, not only in France.
Cross-cultural forms
A number of names here have close cognates in other European languages, and some travelled into French from elsewhere. That is normal for a tradition shaped by Latin and Germanic contact, and it does not weaken the French association. Where a meaning is shown it rests on a recognised Latin, Germanic or Greek root; names whose derivation is uncertain are shown without one.
Meanings are included where reliable information is available. These names reflect a naming tradition, not current popularity in any country.