Names that mean light
This list groups names by the literal gloss at the start of each meaning, not the cultural notes that follow. Closely related meanings are gathered under light. Tap any name for its story, or grow a tree and see which of them belong in your family.
Gilang Indonesian ยท bright, shining, radiant
Alohi Hawaiian ยท bright, radiant, shining
Luningning Filipino ยท brightness, radiance
Rangsan Thai ยท light, radiance
Hikaru Japanese ยท light, radiance
Phoebe Greek ยท bright, radiant, shining one
Akari Japanese ยท light, brightness
Electra Greek ยท shining, amber, radiant
Sorcha Irish ยท radiant, bright
Niamh Irish ยท bright, radiant; a beloved mythological name, kept in its Irish spelling by heritage-proud families
Quang Vietnamese ยท bright, radiant
Ningning Filipino ยท radiance, shine
Arjun Sanskrit ยท bright, shining
Roshan Persian ยท bright, shining; genuinely Persian, carried into Nepali through centuries of contact, and one of Nepal's most common men's names
Aoife Irish ยท beauty, radiance; a beloved warrior-queen name from Irish mythology, kept close to its Irish spelling in heritage-proud families
Kwang Korean ยท light, shine; the kwang of names like Kwang-soo
Myung Korean ยท bright, light and clear; more often a name element than a standalone name
Kalea Hawaiian ยท bright, joyful, clear
Helena Greek ยท Latinate form of Helen; the deeper Greek etymology is uncertain, with light or torch only a traditional proposal
Deepa Sanskrit ยท lamp, light
Huy Vietnamese ยท bright, glorious
Klara German ยท clear, bright
Nellie English ยท diminutive of Nell, a medieval short form of names beginning with El (Eleanor, Ellen, Helen)
Svetlana Russian ยท star, light
Angshuman Bengali ยท possessing rays of light, radiant; an epithet of the sun (Sanskrit ansu, ray + man, mind/spirit)
Win Burmese ยท bright, radiant (แแแบแธ); a Wednesday-morning name (letters l and w). It reads as the English word win, one reason Burmese American families keep it unchanged on US paperwork
Akira Japanese ยท bright, clear, intelligent
Arko Bengali ยท sun, ray of light; a Bengali form of the Sanskrit arka, an epithet of the sun god Surya
Hei Cantonese ยท bright, splendid, or prosperous (็)
Helen Greek ยท light, torch
Sanaa Arabic ยท traditionally 'brilliance, radiance'; also the capital city of Yemen
Meira Hebrew ยท light, to illuminate
Eleni Greek ยท shining light
Chiara Italian ยท clear, bright, famous
Della English ยท diminutive of Adela or Adelaide (adal, "noble"); famously borne by Della Reese
Albert Germanic ยท noble and bright (Adalbert: adal "noble" + beraht "bright")
Albie English ยท noble, bright; nickname-style for Albert
Bertie English ยท bright, famous; short for Herbert, Albert, or Bertram
Akio Japanese ยท bright, luminous man
Meir Hebrew ยท one who shines, gives light
Teja Telugu ยท radiance, brilliance, fire (Sanskrit tejas); a Telugu favorite both alone and in compounds like Ravi Teja and Sai Teja, and short enough to need no nickname anywhere
Anh Vietnamese ยท bright, intelligent; hero (an extremely common name element used alone)
Yoon-seo Korean ยท shining and auspicious
Deepthi Sanskrit ยท brightness, radiance (Sanskrit dipti); the -th- spelling marks the Kerala romanization against North Indian Dipti
Lucero Spanish ยท morning star, bright light
Sandeep Sanskrit ยท blazing, a kindled light
Lucia Spanish ยท light; Spain's #1 girls' name for over a decade running
Lucinda Latin ยท light
Noor Arabic ยท light
Luciana Italian ยท light
Ora Hebrew ยท light
Hikari Japanese ยท light
Lucius Latin ยท light
Luc French ยท light
Lux Latin ยท light
Diya Sanskrit ยท oil lamp, light
Liwayway Filipino ยท dawn, early morning light
Lin Burmese ยท bright, clear (แแแบแธ); spelled Lin, Linn or Lynn in the US, where it slides neatly into American name patterns
Zia Arabic ยท traditionally 'light, splendor'
Dawn English ยท daybreak, first light
Amitava Bengali ยท boundless light, boundless splendor; a Bengali form of Amitabha, the name of a principal Buddha of Mahayana Buddhism
Zahir Arabic ยท Arabic name meaning 'shining, radiant'
Meron Amharic ยท our light, our gift
Aydin Turkish ยท traditionally 'enlightened, bright'
Hubert Germanic ยท bright mind, bright heart
Zahara Arabic ยท traditionally 'shining, flower'
Hellen Greek ยท traditionally torch, light; true root debated
Kirana Indonesian ยท ray of light
Kiran Sanskrit ยท ray of light; a unisex name used since the first big wave of Indian American immigration, and a near-homophone of the Irish name Kieran ("dark-haired"); two unrelated names, same sound, used across both communities
Reaksmey Khmer ยท ray of light; from Sanskrit rashmi
Clara Latin ยท "clear, bright, famous," from clarus; St. Clare of Assisi gave it saintly standing, and the Nutcracker's heroine dances under it every December. A vintage classic revived across Europe and the Americas alike
Javier Spanish ยท new house, bright
Xavier Basque ยท from the Basque place name Etxeberria, meaning new house
Teruko Japanese ยท shining child
Bertha Germanic ยท traditionally 'bright, famous'
Akemi Japanese ยท bright beauty
Jhilmil Bengali ยท sparkle, glitter, twinkle, especially the shimmer of light on water or stars
Leora Hebrew ยท my light
Uri Hebrew ยท my light; father of the craftsman Bezalel in the Bible, and a modern Israeli standard
Claire French ยท "clear, bright," from the Latin clara; carried through the centuries by St. Clare of Assisi, whose name France polished into Claire. One syllable of pure light, and the modern favorite among all its spellings
Kwang-ho Korean ยท bright and grand; a solid grandfather-generation name, now usually kept as a middle name honoring an elder
Wilbert Germanic ยท resolute, bright-willed
Elaine French ยท form of Helen, "shining light"; Arthurian romance in England, and one of Brazil's defining girl names of the 1970s and 80s
Kiara Italian ยท variant of Chiara/Ciara, "clear, bright"
Clare Latin ยท 'clear, bright, famous', from Latin clarus
Arunny Khmer ยท dawn light; from Sanskrit aruna
Latsamy Lao ยท ray of light, radiance (from Sanskrit rasmi, in the Lao pronunciation that turns r toward l); also spelled Ratsamy
Tejinder Punjabi ยท brilliance, radiance, joined with Indra's name (tej + inder)
Deepak Sanskrit ยท lamp, light (a heritage name kept strong by first-generation parents)
Munir Arabic ยท luminous, giving light (from nawwara, 'to illuminate')
Which of these fits YOUR family? โ