Unique Names from History

The historical Atossa was the daughter of Cyrus the Great of the Persian Empire. Atossa first married her brother Cambyses II, but was later married to Darius I. She gave birth to their son Xerxes I, the next Achaemenid king.

The first bearer of this majestic name was a 12th century prince of Taranto and Antioch, whose father gave him the nickname of Bohemond (after a mythical giant called Buamundus gigas) due to his large size at birth. The name was thereafter used as a given name by his descendants.

Siddhartha Guatama was the real name of Buddha, born in India in the 5th century BC. It has thus become a significant name among Buddhists, who follow Buddha's teachings.

Everyone has heard of Genghis Khan, 12th century warrior and founder of the Mongol empire. The name was brought into the modern world by soccer star Hope Solo and football player Jerramy Stevens, who chose it as the middle name for their son Vittorio, whose twin sister is named Lozen after a female Apache warrior.

Thurston Howell was the snooty millionaire on Gilligan's Island, but these days such surname names don't have the same elitist air.

Ovid is the English form of the Roman family name Ovidius, which possibly comes from the word for sheep. It is the usual English name for the first-century poet Publius Ovidius Naso.