What names have meanings connected with being small?
Paul and Vaughn have meanings connected with being small. Paul comes from Latin Paulus, "small", while Vaughn comes through the Welsh surname Vaughan from a word meaning "little".
Explore the names below and follow any name to its full history.
Vaughn Welsh · small, little one
Lek Thai · small, little; a classic of the Thai nickname system, in which every child gets a short call-name (chue len) used everywhere but paperwork, alongside a long formal name. Lek belongs to the grandparent generation of call-names, from before English-word picks took over.
Noy Lao · little one; the archetypal Lao call-name. Like Thai, Lao pairs a formal multi-syllable name with a short everyday nickname, and Noy is so widely used that many Lao American women go by it in every setting, whatever the birth certificate says
Yuvan Sanskrit · young, youthful
Paula Latin · small, humble
Paulo Portuguese · small; a classic Brazilian first name frequently chosen by Nikkei families for its ease in Portuguese
Polina Russian · small, humble
Pavel Russian · small, humble
Paul Latin · small, humble
Unni Malayalam · little one in Malayalam; evokes Unnikrishnan, the child Krishna worshipped at Kerala's Guruvayur temple, and works as both a pet name and a standalone given name
Toshiko Japanese · quick, clever child
Emiko Japanese · blessed, beautiful child
Tomoko Japanese · wise child, friend child
Omolara Yoruba · child of the family, cherished child
Sachiko Japanese · happy child, fortunate child
Keiko Japanese · blessed child, respectful child; a common Nisei-generation name across Brazil's Nikkei community
Wren English · small bird
Yuko Japanese · gentle, excellent child
Chinni Telugu · little one, tiny (native Telugu chinna); an affectionate home name that sometimes becomes the everyday name, though rarely the certificate name
Bambi Italian · From Italian bambino, child; established as a given name by Felix Salten's 1923 novel and the Disney film it inspired.
Hideko Japanese · excellent, outstanding child
Yoshiko Japanese · good, righteous child
Kanya Thai · young lady, maiden
Mariam Arabic · form of Maryam and of the Greek Old Testament's Mariam; the root is debated, perhaps Egyptian mry, 'beloved'
Nhi Vietnamese · little girl, little one (a common affectionate name ending)
Michiko Japanese · beautiful path, beautiful child
Shizuko Japanese · quiet child
Sven Scandinavian · young man, youth (Swedish)
Yasuko Japanese · peaceful child
Sayuri Japanese · small lily
Marcel French · form of Marcellus, a diminutive of Marcus (probably from the god Mars); a common Haitian given name
Paulette French · small, diminutive of Paul
Riko Japanese · jasmine child, logical child
Muna Nepali · bud, young sprout; the heroine of Muna Madan (1936), Laxmi Prasad Devkota's verse epic and the best-loved work of Nepali literature; two syllables Americans pronounce right on the first try
Young-ja Korean · flourishing child; a Japanese-colonial-era generation name (the "-ja" ending borrowed from Japanese "-ko") once extremely common, now mostly kept as a grandmother's middle name
Hiroko Japanese · tolerant, generous child, or abundant, prosperous child
Aiko Japanese · beloved child; carried by early Nisei-generation Nikkei families in Sao Paulo
Soo-ah Korean · elegant child
Teruko Japanese · shining child
Ayako Japanese · child of color, or of woven design, depending on the kanji
Leimomi Hawaiian · pearl lei, child of pearl
Paolo Italian · small, humble (Italian form of Paul); a spelling favored by modern Filipino families
Sadako Japanese · virtuous child
Momoko Japanese · peach child, or hundred child
Mitsuko Japanese · child of light
Pol Catalan · small, humble (a Catalan form of Paul); a short modern pick that travels well beyond Catalonia
Noriko Japanese · child of ceremony, or chronicle child
Yukiko Japanese · snow child
Kazuko Japanese · harmonious child
Etsuko Japanese · child of joy
Pablo Spanish · Spanish form of Latin Paulus, "small"
Colt English · young horse
Natsuko Japanese · summer child
Hanako Japanese · flower child; an old-fashioned name once so common it became shorthand for 'Japanese girl,' still found among Brazil's oldest Nikkei families
Chieko Japanese · wisdom child
Fuyuko Japanese · winter child
Selvi Tamil · young woman; also carries the sense of "prosperous one," traditionally used as an honorific for unmarried women
Maung Maung Burmese · literally young brother (မောင်မောင်); Maung alone is the boys' honorific, but doubled it becomes a true given name, borne by a president of Burma. Doubling is a beloved Burmese pattern, as in Cho Cho, Hla Hla and Win Win
Kiyoko Japanese · pure, clear child, or holy child, depending on the kanji
Tarun Telugu · young, youthful, fresh (Sanskrit taruna); common in the 1990s-2000s Telugu cohorts
Kyoko Japanese · mirror child
Hisako Japanese · child of long life, or of long ago, depending on the kanji
Miriam Hebrew · wished-for child
Kimiko Japanese · valuable, beautiful child, or noble child, depending on the kanji
Khadija Arabic · premature child; name of the Prophet Muhammad's first wife
Reiko Japanese · child of the tinkling of jade, or child of ceremony
Paweł Polish · small, humble (Polish form of Paul)
Pauline Latin · feminine form of Paul, 'small, humble'
Omotola Yoruba · a child is worth wealth
Nobuko Japanese · child of trust
Ifeyinwa Igbo · nothing compares to a child
Haruko Japanese · spring child
Junko Japanese · pure child
Sumiko Japanese · clear child
Mieko Japanese · child of beauty and favor
Yumiko Japanese · child of the archery bow, or beautiful child, by its kanji
Siu-Ming Cantonese · little or small; bright or clear (小明)
Lionel French · diminutive of Leon/Lion, meaning 'young lion'
Fumiko Japanese · child of writing
Brook English · English word name for a small stream
Phaolo Vietnamese · small, humble (Vietnamese form of Paul)
Ilavarasi Tamil · princess, the young queen (ilam, young + arasi, queen); pure Tamil royalty vocabulary
Nwakaego Igbo · a child is greater than wealth
Yoko Japanese · ocean child
Page English · An English occupational surname, from Old French page, young attendant, ultimately Greek paidion, child
Akiko Japanese · bright child, crystal child or autumn child, depending on the kanji
Setsuko Japanese · child of verse and melody
Makiko Japanese · a -ko 'child' name; the element before varies with the kanji chosen (one reading: ma 'true' + ki 'hope')
Mineko Japanese · a classic -ko "child" name; the Mine element varies with the kanji chosen, often "peak" (峰子)
Brooke English · a form of Brook, from an English surname for someone who lived near a small stream
Which of these fits YOUR family? →