R: rolled, rich and rooted in roses
The Phoenicians named their R resh, meaning head, and drew it as a head in profile. In many languages the letter is rolled with the tip of the tongue, which gives R names a lively, rolling sound. In Irish, Spanish, Russian and Hindi, an R feels like a small drum roll at the start of a name.
Rose by many names
The rose gives the letter its most abundant family. Rose is the English flower name, Roisin is the Irish "little rose", Rosalie means "rose garden", Rosa is the Italian form, and Rosalba means "white rose". Ruby adds a deep red gemstone to the palette. All of them suit a vintage-inspired child, and nicknames such as Rosie and Ro are easy.
Royal R names and Welsh rh
A second theme is royalty. Regina is Latin for queen, and Rani means queen in Hindi. Rhiannon, a figure from Welsh legend, means "great queen". Welsh spelling adds a twist: rh stands for a breathy, voiceless R, which is how Rhys, Rhian, Rhiannon and Rhodri get their distinctive start. More Welsh names are easy to find in the list.
The Indian R names bring a strong sound with plain meanings. Ravi is the sun, Raj is king, and Rishi is a sage. Irish adds Ronan (little seal) and Ruairi (red king).
R names worth a closer look
- Roisin
An Irish take on rose, with a lyrical sound and a pretty meaning.
- Rhiannon
A Welsh name from legend, known worldwide thanks to song.
- Ronan
An Irish boy name with a gentle meaning and a modern edge.
- Rani
A Hindi name meaning queen, short and easy.
- Rufus
A playful Latin name for a red-haired child, charming and unusual.
Famous people whose first names start with R
- Rosa Parks, the civil rights activist whose refusal to give up her bus seat helped spark the Montgomery bus boycott
- Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the US Supreme Court justice and champion of gender equality
- Rabindranath Tagore, the poet who became the first non-European Nobel laureate in literature
- Ray Charles, the soul and R&B pioneer
- Rachel Carson, the marine biologist and author of Silent Spring
- Ravi Shankar, the sitar virtuoso who brought Indian classical music to the world
- Rosalind Franklin, the chemist whose X-ray images helped reveal the structure of DNA
Questions about R names
How do you pronounce Roisin?
It sounds like "ro-SHEEN".
How do you pronounce Rhys?
It sounds like "Reece".