16 entries from the /names/ index. Names with their own individual page link out.
Meaning: Greek "blessed" or "happy" (makarios; the same word used in the Beatitudes).
Figure: Multiple desert and monastic saints; principally Macarius the Great (c. 300-391).
Multiple desert and monastic saints carry the name Macarius. Macarius the Great (c. 300-391) is one of the principal Egyptian desert fathers, whose teachings shaped Eastern Christian monastic tradition. The name has been in continuous Orthodox use.
Meaning: Hebrew "my messenger."
Figure: Last of the twelve minor prophets; book of Malachi closes the Old Testament in the Christian canon.
Malachi is the last of the twelve minor prophets, whose book closes the Old Testament in the Christian biblical order. The prophecy of the coming messenger (Malachi 3:1; 4:5-6) is read in the New Testament as fulfilled in John the Baptist. The name has come into modern use, particularly in English-speaking Protestant and Evangelical families.
Meaning: Greek "pearl" (margaron).
Figure: Multiple major saints: Margaret of Scotland (eleventh-century queen); Margaret of Antioch (legendary virgin martyr); Margaret Mary Alacoque (Sacred Heart visionary).
Multiple major saints carry the name Margaret. Margaret of Scotland (c. 1045-1093) is the queen who reformed Scottish church and court; she is honored on November 16. Margaret of Antioch (legendary martyr) is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers of medieval devotion. Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647-1690) received the Sacred Heart revelations. The name has been in continuous Christian use across the centuries.
Meaning: Latin "of Mars" or "dedicated to Mars" (the Roman god), Christianized in usage.
Figure: Evangelist; companion of Peter and Paul; author of the second gospel (Acts 12:12; Colossians 4:10; 1 Peter 5:13).
Mark is the evangelist traditionally identified as the John Mark of Acts (whose mother's house was a meeting place for the Jerusalem church), as the author of the second gospel (drawing in part on Peter's memory, by ancient tradition), and as the founder of the church at Alexandria. He is the patron of the Coptic Orthodox tradition and of Venice. The Catholic, Orthodox, and Anglican calendars commemorate him on April 25.
Meaning: Aramaic "lady" or "mistress."
Figure: Sister of Mary of Bethany and Lazarus; figure of active hospitality (Luke 10:38-42; John 11; John 12:1-3).
Martha is the sister of Mary of Bethany and Lazarus, the one Jesus gently reproves in Luke 10:38-42 for being "anxious and troubled about many things" while her sister Mary chose "the one thing needful." Her confession of faith in John 11:27 ("Yes, Lord, I have believed that you are the Christ, the Son of God") parallels Peter's in Matthew 16:16. The Catholic calendar commemorates her with Lazarus and Mary on July 29.
Meaning: Hebrew of contested etymology, traditionally interpreted as "bitter," "beloved," or "rebellion."
Figure: The Theotokos; Mother of Jesus; Mother of God (Luke 1-2; Matthew 1-2; Acts 1; John 19).
Mary is the mother of Jesus, the Theotokos (God-bearer) of Catholic and Orthodox tradition. Her "let it be done to me according to your word" (Luke 1:38) and her Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55) are foundational texts of Christian discipleship. The name in its many forms (Mary, Maria, Marie, Maryam, Miriam) is among the most-used Christian women's names worldwide.
Meaning: Hebrew "Mary" plus "of Magdala" (a town on the Sea of Galilee).
Figure: Disciple from whom seven demons were cast (Luke 8:2); first witness of the resurrection (John 20:11-18).
Mary Magdalene is the disciple from whom seven demons were cast out (Luke 8:2), one of the women who followed Jesus and supported the disciples' work from their means, the witness at the foot of the cross (John 19:25), and the first witness of the resurrection (John 20:11-18). Pope Francis in 2016 raised her feast on July 22 to the rank of a feast, marking her as the Apostle to the Apostles.
Meaning: Hebrew "gift of the Lord" (Mattithyahu).
Figure: Apostle and Evangelist; tax collector before his call (Matthew 9:9; Mark 2:14, where the same figure is called Levi).
Matthew is the apostle who was a tax collector at the time of his call by Jesus (Matthew 9:9), traditionally identified as the author of the first gospel. He is the patron saint of accountants, bankers, and tax collectors. The Catholic and Anglican calendars commemorate him on September 21; the Orthodox calendar on November 16.
Meaning: Hebrew "gift of the Lord" (closely related to Matthew; from Mattityahu).
Figure: Replacement for Judas Iscariot among the Twelve (Acts 1:15-26).
Matthias is the disciple chosen by lot to replace Judas Iscariot among the Twelve after the Ascension (Acts 1:15-26). The name appears in modern Christian use, particularly in some Catholic and Orthodox families.
Meaning: Latin "greatest" (the superlative of magnus, expanded).
Figure: Saint Maximilian Kolbe; Polish Franciscan martyr of Auschwitz (1894-1941).
Saint Maximilian Kolbe is the twentieth-century Polish Franciscan who volunteered to die in place of a fellow prisoner at Auschwitz, taking the man's place in the starvation bunker where he died on August 14, 1941. Canonized by John Paul II in 1982 as a Martyr of Charity, his witness shaped twentieth-century Catholic spirituality and devotion. The Catholic calendar commemorates him on August 14.
Meaning: Spanish "mercies," referring to Our Lady of Mercy (Mercedes).
Figure: Our Lady of Mercy; the Mercedarian order founded in 1218 to ransom captives.
Mercedes is the Spanish Marian name referring to Our Lady of Mercy (Maria de las Mercedes), the patron of the Mercedarian order founded in 1218 by Saint Peter Nolasco for the ransom of Christian captives held by the Moors. The Catholic feast is September 24. The name has been in continuous Hispanic Catholic use.
Meaning: English "mercy" or "compassion" (from Latin misericordia).
Figure: The Christian virtue; a divine attribute named throughout scripture and Christian tradition.
Mercy is in continuous use as a given name in English-speaking Protestant families. The name takes its meaning from the Christian theological virtue of mercy, a divine attribute the Christian tradition particularly honors. Catholic devotion to Divine Mercy (particularly through Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska) has made the name resonate in modern Catholic families as well.
Meaning: Hebrew "who is like the Lord" (a shortened form of Michael).
Figure: Eighth-century BC prophet; book of Micah, including the prophecy of Bethlehem (Micah 5:2).
Micah is the prophet whose Micah 5:2 prophecy ("But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah...") is quoted in Matthew 2:6 as fulfilled in the birth of Jesus at Bethlehem. The name has come into substantial modern Christian use across English-speaking families.
Meaning: Hebrew of contested etymology; traditional interpretations include "bitter," "beloved," and "rebellion."
Figure: Sister of Moses and Aaron; led the women in song after the crossing of the Red Sea (Exodus 15:20-21).
Miriam is the sister of Moses and Aaron, the prophetess who leads the women of Israel in song and dance after the crossing of the Red Sea (Exodus 15:20-21). Her Hebrew name is the same as that of Mary the mother of Jesus (Mary is the Greek form via Maria). Modern Christian families use both forms.
Meaning: Latin of contested etymology; possibly from Greek monos, "alone," or possibly from a Berber root.
Figure: Saint Monica; mother of Augustine of Hippo (c. 331-387).
Saint Monica is the fourth-century mother of Augustine of Hippo, the figure whose prayers across decades (recorded by Augustine himself in The Confessions) brought her son from a wayward life to the Christian faith. She is the patron saint of mothers, particularly of those praying for the return of a wayward child. The Catholic and Anglican calendars commemorate her on August 27, the day before Augustine's own feast.
Meaning: Hebrew of contested etymology, possibly with Egyptian roots; traditionally interpreted as "drawn out" (from the water).
Figure: Lawgiver; led Israel out of Egypt (Exodus through Deuteronomy).
Moses is the central figure of the Pentateuch, the lawgiver through whom God brought Israel out of Egypt and to whom God gave the Torah on Mount Sinai. Christian tradition reads him as a typological figure of Christ; he appears with Elijah at the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-8).