Cornish Girl Names
Cornish female names draw on the Cornish (Kernewek) Brythonic Celtic language, local saints, and Cornish place‑names. A clear feminine marker is the Brythonic adjective pair gwynn/gwen, where the feminine gwen appears in personal names; this underlies forms such as Gwen-/Gwenn- and the related -wen/-wenna seen in Morwenna. Many women’s names also come directly from saints (Morwenna, Ia, Mabyn, Merryn) and from toponyms (Demelza, Lamorna).
Modern use mixes revived Cornish forms with Anglicized spellings. Jennifer, the Cornish form of Gwenhwyfar, spread widely in the 20th century alongside local spellings like Jenefer. Recent Cornish usage favors Kerensa/Karenza (from Cornish “love”), Demelza, Morwenna, Mabyn, Merryn, Ia, and Lamorna.
Showing 48
of 48 names
| Name | Meaning | Origins | Gender | Popularity (last 10y) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Imogen | Maiden; beloved | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | 8,805 #1 | |
| Jennifer | Fair one; 'white phantom' | Cornish | Girl | 7,360 #2 | |
| Merryn | Of the sea / sea-born | Celtic, Cornish | Girl | 193 #3 | |
| Jenifer | 'Fair one' or 'white phantom' (from Welsh gwen 'white, fair' + hwyfar 'smooth/phantom') | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | 185 #4 | |
| Tamzin | Twin | Aramaic, Cornish, English, Greek, Latin | Girl | 50 #5 | |
| Demelza | Derived from a Cornish place-name; exact meaning uncertain - often given loosely as 'of the valley' or 'from the hill/fort.' | Cornish | Girl | 32 #6 | |
| Morwenna | Sea maiden ('mor' = sea + 'gwen/wen' = fair/white/maiden) | Cornish | Girl | 31 #7 | |
| Jeniffer | Fair one; often glossed as 'white phantom' or 'white wave' | Cornish | Girl | 28 #8 | |
| Ia | Associated with Saint Ia (St Ives); etymology uncertain - probably a form of the Irish saint name Íde/Ita | Cornish | Girl | 16 #9 | |
| Kerensa | Love, beloved, affection | Cornish | Girl | 6 #10 | |
| Ginnifer | Fair or white; 'fair one' | Cornish | Girl | 5 #11 | |
| Karenza | Love; affection | Cornish | Girl | 5 #12 | |
| Jenyfer | Derived from Welsh Gwenhwyfar, commonly interpreted as 'fair' or 'fair one' (sometimes glossed 'white/phantom') | Cornish | Girl | 3 #13 | |
| Carenza | Beloved; love, affection | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Elywenah | Derived from 'Elowen' meaning 'elm tree'; can be interpreted as 'fair/blessed elm' | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Eunys | Good victory / victorious | Cornish, Greek | Girl | — | |
| Eylwen | Fair and blessed | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | — | |
| Genifer | Fair or white; 'fair one' (derived from Gwenhwyfar/Guinevere) | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | — | |
| Gwennap | From the Welsh/Cornish element 'gwen' meaning 'white, fair, blessed' (also a Cornish place-name); broadly 'fair' or 'blessed'. | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | — | |
| Gwennifer | Fair/white, blessed; associated with Guinevere/Jennifer | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | — | |
| Igraina | Of uncertain meaning; best known as a form of Igraine, mother of King Arthur - connoting noble/royal lineage | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Igraine | Uncertain; etymology debated. Best known as the name of King Arthur's mother in Arthurian legend. | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Jenefer | Fair, white; often rendered 'white/ fair one' or 'white phantom' | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | — | |
| jenfer | Derived from Welsh Gwenhwyfar, commonly interpreted as 'white phantom' or 'fair one'. | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | — | |
| Jenifir | Derived from Welsh Gwenhwyfar, meaning 'white/fair one' or 'white wave.' | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Jenji | White phantom | Cornish, English, Welsh | Girl | — | |
| Jennefer | Derived from Gwenhwyfar: 'white, fair' or loosely 'white phantom' / 'fair one'. | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | — | |
| Jennepher | Fair/white one; often rendered 'white phantom' or 'white wave' (from Gwenhwyfar) | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | — | |
| Jennfier | Fair one (from Welsh gwen 'white, fair' + hwyfar 'smooth/phantom') | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | — | |
| Jenni-Lee | Combination of Jennifer ('fair/white one') and Lee ('meadow/clearing') - 'fair one of the meadow' | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | — | |
| Jennifar | Fair one; 'white wave' or 'white phantom' | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| jennifur | Derived from Gwenhwyfar - 'white, fair, or blessed' (often interpreted as 'white/fair one' or 'white enchantress'). | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | — | |
| jennipher | Fair one; 'white phantom' (from Welsh) | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Karensa | Love; beloved | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Karenzah | Beloved; love | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Lamorna | From the Cornish place-name Lamorna (Lamorna Cove); associated with the cove/sea - exact original meaning uncertain. | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Lyonesse | Mythical sunken/drowned land off the coast of Cornwall from Arthurian legend; used as a feminine literary name. | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Mabyn | Derived from 'mab' meaning 'son' or 'young one' - often interpreted as 'young one' or 'little child' | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Merynn | Uncertain - commonly interpreted as 'sea' (Celtic/Latin influence) or linked to Mary/Miriam meanings such as 'beloved'/'sea of bitterness'; may also be a modern invented name without a traditional meaning | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Morgaynah | Related to Morgan/Morgana: 'sea-born' or 'bright sea' | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Morgenna | Born of the sea (sea-born; sea maiden) | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | — | |
| Morwena | Sea maiden; from mor 'sea' + gwenn 'white/fair/blessed' | Breton, Cornish | Girl | — | |
| morwynn | Fair/white sea; by extension 'maiden of the sea' | Cornish, Welsh | Girl | — | |
| Pernael | No established meaning. Possibly related to Petronilla ('rock') or, if composed with '-el', loosely '...of God' - speculative | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Rosewen | Fair or white rose | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| tammyn | Diminutive of Tamara ('palm tree') or Tamsin ('twin') | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Veryan | Associated with Veranus; often interpreted as 'true' or 'of Veranus' | Cornish | Girl | — | |
| Ysella | 'God is my oath' (derived from Hebrew Elisheba via Isabella) | Cornish | Girl | — |
Cornish Girls name popularity over time
Aggregated births across United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany for every Cornish-origin name in our dataset.
48
Names in this origin
7
With data in 2024
873
Births 2024
12,368
Peak year 2000