Afrikaans Boy Names
Afrikaans male names come primarily from Dutch, with strong input from Biblical and Germanic traditions. A clear masculine marker is the Latinized -us ending in older formal names (for example Petrus, Stephanus, Gerhardus), often shortened in use to forms like Hardus or Sarel. Diminutive endings such as -ie are also used for men and can appear as official names or nicknames (for example Jakkie, Hennie).
Current usage for boys mixes established Afrikaans forms with concise modern variants, and double given names (for example Jan-Hendrik) remain in circulation. Examples seen today include Andries, Charl, Corne, Hardus, Heindrik, Jurie, Lourens, Riaan, Ryno, and Sarel.
| Name | Meaning | Origins | Gender | Popularity (last 10y) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Riaan | Little king / kingly | Afrikaans, Gaelic, Irish | Boy | 1,379 #1 | |
| Divan | From Persian/Arabic diwān (“council, register, collection of poems” or a high official); alternatively used as a variant of Sanskrit Devan meaning “divine, of the gods.” | Afrikaans, Arabic, Indian, Persian, Sanskrit | Boy | 25 #2 | |
| Jurie | Farmer, earth-worker (derived from Georgios/George) | Afrikaans, Dutch, Slavic | Boy | 13 #3 | |
| Jaen | God is gracious | Afrikaans | Boy | 5 #4 | |
| Jorryn | Modern variant with uncertain etymology; possibly related to Jordan ('to flow down') or names derived from George ('farmer'), but meaning is not well established | Afrikaans, Dutch | Boy | 5 #5 | |
| Andrie | Manly, brave | Afrikaans, Dutch | Boy | — | |
| Andries | Manly; 'man' (from Greek root andr-) | Afrikaans, Dutch | Boy | — | |
| Bartho | Son of Talmai (commonly interpreted as 'son of the furrows' or 'son of the farmer') | Afrikaans, Aramaic | Boy | — | |
| Boetie | Affectionate diminutive meaning "little brother" or "bro" | Afrikaans | Boy | — | |
| Charl | Free man (man) | Afrikaans | Boy | — | |
| Corne | Derived from Cornelius, from Latin 'cornu' meaning 'horn'. | Afrikaans, Dutch | Boy | — | |
| Faf | A pet form of François/Francis - ultimately from a word meaning 'Frenchman' or 'free man'. | Afrikaans | Boy | — | |
| Gys | 'bright pledge' (from Old German elements gisil 'pledge/hostage' + beraht 'bright') | Afrikaans, Dutch | Boy | — | |
| Hardus | Strong, hardy | Afrikaans, Dutch | Boy | — | |
| Heindrik | Home ruler; ruler of the household | Afrikaans, Dutch | Boy | — | |
| Hentie | Derived from Hendrik/Henry, meaning 'home ruler' or 'ruler of the household'. | Afrikaans, Germanic | Boy | — | |
| Jakkie | Diminutive of Jacob - 'supplanter' or 'holder of the heel' (little Jacob) | Afrikaans, Dutch | Boy | — | |
| Kraai | Crow (the bird) | Afrikaans, Dutch | Boy | — | |
| Lourens | From Laurentum; 'crowned with laurel' | Afrikaans, Dutch | Boy | — | |
| Manlie | Manly; masculine, strong | Afrikaans, Dutch | Boy | — | |
| Opa | Informal word for 'grandfather'; can also be an exclamation of celebration in Greek | Afrikaans, Dutch, German | Boy | — | |
| Ryno | From the Germanic element ragin 'counsel' - broadly 'counselor' or 'wise advisor' (often a pet form of Rein- names) | Afrikaans, Dutch | Boy | — | |
| Sarel | Likely 'prince of God' (from Hebrew Sariel); used as an Afrikaans masculine given name and sometimes considered a local form related to Karel/Charles. | Afrikaans, Hebrew | Boy | — | |
| Seppie | God will add / God increases | Afrikaans, German | Boy | — |
Afrikaans Boys name popularity over time
Aggregated births across United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany for every Afrikaans-origin name in our dataset.