Esgar
More gems among the surnames of English, Anglo-Norman and Norse origin, which have so far seen little use as given names. Today is E.
- Ede — from the Old English girl’s name Eda from ēad ‘rich’, a name in its own right in the early Anglo-Saxon period, although later it was used more as a short form of Edith.
- Eaglen — from the Norman-French Egelina, the feminine of Egil, an ancient Germanic name of uncertain meaning.
- Eames — from Old English ēam ‘uncle’.
- Easterby — from the Old Norse áustr í bý meaning ‘east of the village’.
- Eastley – from Old English ēast ‘east’ + lēah ‘wood’, ‘woodland clearing’, ‘glade’, ‘pasture’ and ‘meadow’.
- Edbrough — from the Old English girl’s name Edburg; ēad ‘rich’ + burh ‘fortified place’.
- Edis – from the Old English girl’s name Edusa, a name of uncertain meaning, but probably a short form of Eadgifu or Edith. Var: Eddis.
- Edney, Edoney — from the Old Norse name Idhunna ‘love-work’, the name of the Goddess of Youth. Var: Idony.
- Effemy — from Euphemia, a Greek name meaning ‘auspicious speech’. Also Effeny and Effeney.
- Elberry — from Elberry, Devon. Probably Old English elle(n) ‘elder’ + burh ‘fortified place’.
- Elion — from Helléan in Brittany, a place of uncertain meaning, possibly connected with Breton huel ‘high’ or Middle Breton haelon ‘brows’.
- Ellerby — from Ellerby. Old English personal name Ælfweard ‘elf-guard’ + Old Norse bý ‘farmstead’, ‘village’ and ‘settlement’. Var: Ellaby.
- Ellery — from the personal names Hilary (originally a male name). Latin hilaris ‘cheerful’ and Eularia, a form of Eulalia, a Greek name meaning ‘sweetly-speaking’.
- Elmley — from one of the places of the name. Old English elm ‘elm’ + lēah ‘wood’, ‘woodland clearing’, ‘glade’, ‘pasture’ and ‘meadow’.
- Elver — from the Old English personal name Ælfhere – ælf ‘elf’ + here ‘army’.
- Elvery — from the Old English personal name Æthelfrið — æthel ‘noble’ + frið ‘peace’.
- Elvey, Elvy – from the Old English girl’s name Ælfgifu ‘elf-gift’.
- Embra — probably from Emborough, Somerset. Old English emm ‘flat-topped’ + beorg ‘mound’ and ‘hill’. It may also be a variant of Amery.
- Emeney, Emmony — from Ismenia, a medieval name of uncertain origins.
- Emley — from Emley, Yorkshire. Old English personal name Em(m)a (probably here a male name) + lēah ‘wood’, ‘woodland clearing’, ‘glade’, ‘pasture’ and ‘meadow’.
- Ensor — from Edensor, Derbyshire (home to the famous Chatsworth House). Old English personal name Eadin (from ēad ‘rich’) + ofer ‘sloping bank’ and ‘ridge’.
- Esgar, Esger — from the Old Norse name Ásgeirr ‘(a) God-spear’.
- Eveleigh – from a lost village called Eveleigh in Devon. Old English male personal name Eafa or Eofa + lēah ‘wood’, ‘woodland clearing’, ‘glade’, ‘pasture’ and ‘meadow’. Eafa/Eofa are short forms of names beginning with eofor ‘boar’.
- Everley — from Everley, Yorkshire. Old English eofor ‘boar’ + lēah ‘wood’, ‘woodland clearing’, ‘glade’, ‘pasture’ and ‘meadow’.
- Eversley — from Eversley, Kent. Old English eofor ‘boar’ + lēah ‘wood’, ‘woodland clearing’, ‘glade’, ‘pasture’ and ‘meadow’.
Nook of Names
I think Embra is actually quite a nice name, and can see the potential of Everley as well, thinking about it.
Ellery, Emley, Everley, and Eveleigh definitely have potential in the US. They fit right in with the current -ley and -ry fever. I think Elion has potential for boys whose parents are concerned about Elliot going to the girls.
Eveleigh is a name I suggested on my blog (no takers!), but I like Elion. It sounds strong and not really that unusual.
[...] Ellison – Surnames on girls are a touchy subject, but attitudes tend to soften if the name is in the middle spot. Other elaborate E choices include Ellington, Ellery, Elliot, Emerson, Emery, and all of these ideas over at Nook of Names. [...]
[...] Ede – From Old English ēad “rich” and “happy”; used as a personal name in its own right in medieval times, as well as featuring in many compound names, such as Edith, Edmund, Edward, Edwin, etc. [...]
[...] Elvy – Elvy only got a brief mention as a little used surname-as-first name, but I think it’s got a lot going for it. With the variants Elvey and Elvie, it slips in comfortably alongside all those lovely resurrected Victorian -ie names, many of which are already in favor in the UK (such as Evie, Millie, Maisie, etc) and others like Elsie and Edie on the rise. Unlike many of these, however, though it has the ring of a pet-form about it, and certainly can be used as a nickname for names such as Elvina and Elvira, Elvy is a bona fide name in her own right. [...]