Sun names come from almost every language: Sol and Soleil from Latin roots, Sunniva and Solveig from Old English and Old Norse, Heulwen from Welsh, Ravi and Surya from Sanskrit, Shams from Arabic, Inti from Quechua. One of the oldest is Samson, from the Hebrew word for sun. Every meaning here has been checked against a cited source, mostly Behind the Name and Wiktionary, and ranks for England and Wales come from the ONS.
Some names are sold as sun names on weak evidence. Cyrus, Elio and Eliana are the common ones. We've kept them in, marked uncertain, so you can see what the sources actually say.
By Rich · 13 November 2026 · 65 names · 22 with their real rank in England and Wales · every meaning checked against the sources below
Checked The meaning is recorded in the sources below.
Word name A modern name made from a real word.
Disputed The meaning is disputed or popular but unproven.
Old English and Old Norse both used sól or sunne for the sun, and a few names built on them are still around. Sunniva ('sun gift') is the Norwegian form of an Old English name. Solveig, 'sun strength', is well known in Scandinavia, and Solfrid is a 19th-century Norwegian coinage. They're unusual in England but easy to say and spell.
Pairing and nicknames
Short sun names (Sol, Ravi, Shams, Inti) suit longer surnames, and three-syllable ones like Sunniva, Savitri and Heliodoro suit short ones. Sunniva and Solveig shorten naturally to Sunny and Sol, which gives a child a choice between a formal name and an everyday one.
Day names
Sunday is a 'day name', given to a child born on that day. The habit is strongest in parts of West Africa, where Sunday and Monday are used for boys and girls. If you like the idea, it carries the sun meaning through Old English sunnandæg, 'sun's day'.
Names That Mean 'Light': Over 70 real names that mean 'light', 'lamp' or 'brightness', from Lucy and Nur to Uriel and Kiran, with every meaning checked against a cited source.
Names That Mean 'Moon': Over 60 real names that mean 'moon', 'moonlight' or 'full moon', from Luna and Selene to Qamar and Mahina, each meaning checked against a cited source.
Names That Mean 'Star': Over 60 real names that mean 'star', from Stella, Estelle and Seren to Najm and Tara, with sourced meanings and the 'star' names that are myths.
Names That Mean 'Fire': Real names that mean 'fire', 'flame' or 'hearth', from Aidan and Seraphina to Azar and Keahi, plus popular 'fire' names that don't mean 'fire' at all.
Names That Mean 'Love': Over 70 real names that mean 'love', 'beloved' or 'dear', from Amy, Mabel and Carys to David, Kevin and Aroha, with sources and a few famous myths.
What Is Onomastics? The Study of Names (Naming Library): Onomastics is the study of names. What anthroponymy and toponymy cover, and how scholars trace what a name meant from its earliest spellings.
Old Norse Names: How Viking-Age Names Worked (Naming Library): How Old Norse names were built: two-part names like Þorsteinn, patronymics, and bynames like Fairhair and Bloodaxe, plus what survives in England.
Old English (Anglo-Saxon) Names (Naming Library): How Anglo-Saxon names like Æthelstan and Edith were built from two Old English words, what the parts meant, and which names survived 1066.
Welsh Names and Surnames (Naming Library): How Welsh names worked: ap, ab and ferch, how Powell, Price and Bowen grew out of them, why Jones is so common, and what Welsh first names mean.
Frequently Asked Questions
+What girl names mean 'sun'?
Soleil (French), Sunniva ('sun gift'), Solveig ('sun strength'), Heulwen (Welsh, 'sunshine'), Saulė (Lithuanian), Arev (Armenian) and Güneş (Turkish). Sol, Spanish for sun, is mainly a girl's name in Spanish.
+What boy names mean 'sun'?
Samson comes from the Hebrew word for sun. Ravi, Surya and Suraj mean 'sun' in Sanskrit and Hindi, Helios in Greek, and Tonatiuh in Nahuatl. Shams (Arabic) and Inti (Quechua) are also used.
+What name means 'sunshine'?
Heulwen in Welsh and Shandiin in Navajo both mean 'sunshine'. Sunshine itself is also used as an English word name.