The names I picked for today’s “Same name- different country” were all inspired by beloved characters from children’s literature. Let’s take a look at some international variations of these wonderful names.
Today’s names are – Alice, James, Laura, and Peter
Alice
A German name meaning “noble”. Alice is rising in popularity and is currently #127 here in the U.S. It is also the name of the main character in Lewis Carroll’s “Alice in Wonderland”.
A few variations of Alice include:
Ada – German, Hungarian, & Polish
Adalheidis – Old German
Adelaida – Hungarian
Adelheid – Dutch & German
Aileas – Scottish
Aleid – Dutch
Aleida – Dutch & German
Alica – Slovak
Alicia – Spanish
Alícia – Catalan
Alicja – Polish
Alida – Dutch, German, & Hungarian
Ailís – Irish
Alis – Welsh
Aliz – Hungarian
Alli – Finnish
Alisa – Finnish & Russian
Eilís – Irish
Eilish – Irish
Heida – German
Heidi – Danish, Finnish, German, Norwegian, & Swedish
Which is your favorite variation of Alice?
Alice is in my top 20 names for girls, but there is something so sweet about the name Heidi. I also love the Irish variation Eilís.
James
A variation of the name Jacob meaning “supplanter”. James is a fairly popular name at #14 in the United States. James is the lead character in Ronald Dahl’s “James and the Giant Peach”.
A few variations of James include:
Giacobbe – Italian
Giacomo – Italian
Hamish – Scottish
Iago – Galician
Jacob – Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, & Swedish
Jacobus – Dutch & Late Roman
Jacques – French
Jago – Cornish
Jaime – Portuguese & Spanish
Jakab – Hungarian
Jakes – Basque
Jakob – Croatian, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, German, Norwegian, & Swedish
Jákob – Hungarian
Jakov – Croatian
Jakub – Czech, Polish, & Slovak
Jeppe – Danish
Kimo – Hawaiian
Séamus – Irish
Yakov – Bulgarian, Hebrew, & Russian
Yakub – Arabic
So many takes on James! Which is your favorite variation?
I’ve loved James ever since I was a little girl. My teenage crush on Jakob Dylan draws me to the Jakob spelling as well.
Laura
A Latin name meaning “bay laurel”. Laura is a classic name that is currently #280 in the U.S. It is also well known as the name of the lovable character and author, Laura Ingalls Wilder from “The Little House on the Prairie”.
A few variations of Laura include:
Lára – Icelanic
Laure – French
Laurette – French
Laurine – French
Llora – Catalan
Lora – English & Italian
Lorette – French
Lowri – Welsh
There are tons of diminutives of Laura as well – ie: Lori, Loreen, etc.
Which is your favorite variation of Laura?
I think Lára has a lovely flare.
Peter
A Greek name that means “rock”. Peter is #205 in the U.S. There are so many great Peter’s in children’s literature! Peter Pan from J.M. Barrie’s “Peter Pan”, “Peter Rabbit” from stories by Beatrix Potter, and Peter Pevensie from C.S.Lewis’ “Chronicles of Narnia”, just to name a few.
A few variations of Peter include:
Peder – Danish, Norwegian, Swedish
Pedr – Welsh
Pedro – Spanish & Portuguese
Pere – Catalan
Petar – Bulgarian, Croatian
Petras – Lithuanian
Petr – Czech
Petri – Finnish
Petro – Ukrainian
Petros – Greek
Petrus – Dutch, German
Petter – Norwegian, Swedish
Pier – Dutch
Piero – Italian
Pierre – French
Piers – English
Pieter – Dutch
Pietro – Italian
Pika – Hawaiian
Which is your favorite variation of Peter?
Piero has a smooth, romantic feel to me. I also like the Greek Petros.
Wishing you a magical week!
~Meagan
