Tuesday, May 1, 2012

April Showers Bring....

May flowers! Happy, uh, May Day? We'll go with that.
On the heels of my bird-themed post, a flower-themed post also seemed like a fun idea. So, here're various flower-names from other languages. Unless otherwise noted, these are female.

  • Aoi (ah-oh-ee, Japanese)--"hollyhock"
  • Aravind (ahr-ah-vind, Hindi)--"lotus" [masculine]
  • Amaranta (ah-mah-RAHN-tah, Spanish & Italian)--"amaranth"
  • Ayame (ah-yah-may, Japanese)--"iris"
  • Azucena (ah-soo-SEH-nah, Spanish)--"madonna lily"
  • Brânduṣa (brahn-DOO-shah, Romanian)--"crocus"
  • Briallen (bree-AHL-len, Welsh)--"primrose"
  • Capucine (kah-poo-SEEN, French)--"nasturtium"
  • Crina (KREE-nah, Romanian)--"lily"
  • Cullen (KUL-len, Irish)--"holly" [masculine]. Variant is Quillan.
  • Celyn (KEL-in, Welsh)--"holly" [masculine]
  • Daphne (DAF-nee, Greek)--"laurel"
  • Đurđica (joor-JITS-ah, Croatian)--"lily of the valley" [also the Croatian form of Georgia]
  • Eirlys (IRE-lis or AYR-lis, Welsh)--"snowdrop"
  • Endzela (end-ZEL-ah, Georgian)--"snowdrop"
  • Ffion (FEE-on, Welsh)--"rose" or "foxglove"
  • Hollis (HOL-lis, English)--"holly tree" [usually masculine]
  • Ianthe (ee-AN-thee or eye-AN-thee, Greek)--"violet"
  • Ibolya (ee-boy-ah, Hungarian)--"violet"
  • Ivančica (ee-vahn-CHEE-tsah, Croatian)--"daisy"
  • Irit (ee-reet, Hebrew)--"asphodel"
  • Jessamine (JES-sah-min, English)--"jasmine"
  • Kamala (kah-mah-lah, Hindi)--"lotus"
  • Kielo (KEE-eh-loh, Finnish)--"lily of the valley"
  • Kiku (kee-koo, Japanese)--"chrysanthemum"
  • Laleh (lah-LAY, Persian)--"tulip"
  • Lan (LAHN, Chinese & Vietnamese)--"orchid"
  • Liên (LEE-en, Vietnamese)--"lotus"
  • Madara (mah-DAH-rah, Latvian)--"galium"
  • Madelief (mah-deh-LEEF, Dutch)--"daisy"
  • Marganita (mahr-gah-nee-tah, Hebrew)--"scarlet pimpernel"
  • Margarita (mahr-gah-REE-tah, Spanish)--"daisy" [also the Spanish form of Margaret]
  • Marguerite (mahr-ge-REET, French)--"daisy" [also the French form of Margaret]
  • Mawar (MAH-wahr, Indonesian)--"rose"
  • Melati (mel-AH-tee, Indonesian)--"jasmine"
  • Nasrin (nahs-REEN, Persian)--"wild rose"
  • Nóinín (NOH-neen, Irish)--"daisy"
  • Nurit (noo-REET, Hebrew)--"buttercup"
  • Orvokki (OHR-voh-kee, Finnish)--"pansy"
  • Raisa (rye-sah or rye-zah, Yiddish)--"rose"
  • Ren (ren, Japanese)--"lotus" [can also mean "love"]
  • Rhoda (ROH-dah, English)--from Greek, "rose"
  • Rotem (roh-TEM, Hebrew)--"retama" [unisex, more often masculine]
  • Rozenn (ROH-zen, Breton)--"rose"
  • Růžena (roo-ZHEN-ah, Czech)--"rose"
  • Sakura (sah-koo-rah, Japanese)--"cherry blossom"
  • Sayuri (sah-yoo-ree, Japanese)--"small lily"
  • Spomenka (spoh-MEHN-kah, Croatian)--"forget-me-not"
  • Vartan (VAHR-tahn, Armenian)--"rose" [masculine]
  • Vered (veh-REHD, Hebrew)--"rose"
  • Vuokko (VOO-oh-ko, Finnish)--"anemone"
  • Yolanda (yoh-LAHN-dah, Spanish)--from Latin, "violet"
  • Yuri (yoo-ree, Japanese)--"lily"

1 comment:

  1. Hana means "flower" (generic, which is I know not what you were going for) in Japanese. I think it's a pretty alternative for those wanting to get away from the more traditional Hannah.

    ReplyDelete