Names That Mean Friend or Friendly

  1. Boudewijn
    • Origin:

      Dutch
    • Meaning:

      "brave friend"
    • Description:

      Dutch form of Baldwin
  2. Pal
    • Sadik
      • Origin:

        Swahili
      • Meaning:

        "friend"
      • Description:

        Frequently found in all three forms: Sadik, Sadiki, and Sadiq.
    • Faunia
      • Origin:

        Latin feminine variation of Faunus
      • Meaning:

        "to befriend"
      • Description:

        Faunia is more often rendered as Fauna, who was a Roman goddess of fertility, women and healing. Faunia was the downtrodden yet loving heroine of Philip Roth's Human Stain. Faunia and Fauna have more gravitas than the doe-like Fawn.
    • Lauge
      • Origin:

        Danish
      • Meaning:

        "fellow / partner"
      • Description:

        Lauge is unheard of in most English-speaking countries, but is in the Top 50 in many Nordic countries. Despite is lovely meaning, Lauge's pronunciation and spelling issues are unlikely to make it popular outside of Scandinavia.
    • Winfrey
      • Origin:

        Variation of Winfrith, English
      • Meaning:

        "peaceful friend"
      • Description:

        Oprah's almost mononymic first name is too closely tied to her personality (and brand) for us to recommend it as a baby name in good faith. Her surname, however, is definitely name-worthy. Winfrey works as a modern update to Whitney, with the added bonus of being associated with one of the most influential women of our time.
    • Inas
      • Origin:

        Arabic
      • Meaning:

        "sociability"
      • Description:

        Inas is one of those simple but rare names that's worth a look, whether you're trying to bridge Arabic and English cultures or are looking for a meaningful, unusual choice. No baby girls were named Inas in the US last year. For English speakers, the second syllable rhymes with has or jazz.
    • Tomoya
      • Origin:

        Japanese
      • Meaning:

        "friend"
    • Farquahar
      • Origin:

        Anglicized form of Irish and Scottish Fearchar
      • Meaning:

        "dear man"
      • Description:

        Definitely a far stretch for any child.
    • Herophile
      • Origin:

        Greek
      • Meaning:

        "friend of the heroes"
      • Description:

        In Greek Mythology, Herophile was Aphrodite and Poseidon's daughter and a sibyl who predicted the fall of Troy.