Names That Mean Dawn

This elegant, minimally-spelled name could be a variant of Rosanna/Roseanna. But it's also the Portuguese version of Roxana, with all the meaning and history of the name, but none of the "Roxanne" associations.

Gry is becoming a popular name in Denmark where it is currently in the Top 50. Despite its beautiful meaning, the similarity of its sound to the English word gruel is unlikely to make this a winning choice for English-speakers.

Aroon, also spelled Haroon, is the mythic charioteer of the dawn.

Zerlina is a variation of Zerlin, meaning "beautiful dawn". Zerlina is most famous as the wily, clever servant girl in Mozart's opera Don Giovanni, where she is the only character to seemingly get her way.

One of the many Indian names now surging in popularity in the U.S..

To most, the name Austra is most likely to be connected to Australia (or Austria), but to Latvians, Austra was the goddess of the dawn.

A uniquely Slovene name, ideal for a son born in the early morning.

The name of the Hindu goddess of the dawn, also spelled Ushas.

Eostre is the Anglo-Saxon goddess of Spring and dawn. In ancient times, the pagans had festivals and feasts celebrating Eostre, but this practice was eventually overtaken by the Christian Easter holiday. The connection between the traditions is evident today in cultures that speak English and Germanic languages, as the name Easter is derived from Eostre. Most other languages derive the name of the holiday from the Hebrew word Pesach, meaning "Passover."

Al-Falaq or The Daybreak is the 113th chapter of the Qur'an in Islam. Falaq is slowly increasing in use as a girl name in the US, but still remains very rare. Falaq Naaz is an Indian actress with this name.

Although a variant of the operatic Zerlina, Zerline has her own theatrical tale. She is the star character of the opera Fra Diavolo by Daniel Auber. Zerline, daughter of the innkeeper of Terracina, is in love with an impoverished soldier, Lorenzo, but her father wants her to marry the rich old Francesco. Various tragedies and events occur. In the end, Zerline is free to marry her beloved Lorenzo.

Good choice for a baby born in a hopeful time.

A rare French name deriving from Latin albus "white", also related to the French word for "dawn", aube.

Subtle choice for a baby born in the early morning.

A vowel-rich Māori name with a natural meaning. New Zealand is known in Māori as Aotearoa, which can be translated as "land of abiding day" or "land of the long white cloud".

Haroon, also styled as Aroon and Harun, is the mythic charioteer of the dawn.

A pretty Slovene name related to the Slavic goddess of the dawn.

International option with a sunny, hopeful meaning.