Romanian given names reflect a Romance language base shaped by Eastern Orthodox Christianity and regional contact. Many traditional names come from saints’ names in Greek or Latin forms: Ion/Ioan, Gheorghe, Nicolae, Mihai; Maria, Elena, Ana, Ioana. Feminine names typically end in -a. Masculine forms often end in -u or -iu (Radu, Ionuț, Tiberiu) or -ea (Mircea). Romanian makes extensive use of diminutive and hypocoristic suffixes such as -uț/-uța, -ică/-iță, and -el/-ela, producing forms like Ionuț, Nicu, Vasilică, Mitică, and Steluța. Compound given names are common, especially with Maria and Ion/Ioan (for example Ana-Maria, Ioan-Florin).
Historical layers include Slavic (Bogdan, Dragoș), Greek (Gheorghe, Nicolae), and Latin (Florin) influences, with additional regional borrowing in multiethnic areas. Modern usage mixes traditional Romanian forms with international names, a trend that accelerated after the 1990s; diacritics (ă, â, î, ș, ț) may be omitted in diaspora records. Romania does not use a patronymic middle name system, and there is no single defining pattern beyond these mixed linguistic sources and productive diminutive morphology.
| Name | Meaning | Origins | Gender | Popularity (last 10y) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marin | Of the sea; maritime | English, French, Latin, Romanian, Spanish | Unisex | 4,938 #1 | |
| Roma | From Rome (the city). | Hindi, Italian, Latin, Romanian, Sanskrit | Girl | 844 #2 | |
| Illiana | Possibly 'bright, shining' (from Greek Helen/Hélénē) or 'God has answered' (from Hebrew Eliana); often used as a variant of Iliana/Ileana. | Greek, Hebrew, Romanian, Slavic, Spanish | Girl | 675 #3 | |
| Alexandru | Defender of men | Latin, Romanian | Boy | 417 #4 | |
| Vlad | To rule | Romanian, Slavic | Boy | 346 #5 | |
| Calin | Derived from Slavic 'kalina' meaning 'viburnum' or 'guelder rose' (a flowering shrub). | Romanian | Boy | 226 #6 | |
| Mirel | Derived from 'mir' meaning 'peace' (or from Albanian 'mirë' meaning 'good') | Romanian | Boy | 213 #7 | |
| Romani | Associated with the Romani (Roma) people; alternatively derived from Latin meaning 'Roman' or 'from Rome'. | Latin, Romanian | Unisex | 202 #8 | |
| Alin | 'Comforter' or 'one who soothes' (from Romanian verb 'a alina'); meanings may vary when treated as a variant of Aline/Alan | Romanian | Unisex | 186 #9 | |
| Ovidio | Derived from Latin 'Ovidius', possibly from 'ovis' meaning 'sheep' - 'shepherd' or 'sheep-like'. | Italian, Latin, Portuguese, Romanian | Boy | 158 #10 | |
| Ioan | God is gracious | Romanian, Welsh | Boy | 142 #11 | |
| Ioana | God is gracious | Romanian | Girl | 141 #12 | |
| Ion | God is gracious | Latin, Romanian | Boy | 139 #13 | |
| Django | From Romani, meaning "I awake" or "to awaken" | Romanian | Boy | 132 #14 | |
| Aureliano | Golden, gilded | Italian, Latin, Portuguese, Romanian | Boy | 120 #15 | |
| Otilia | From the Germanic element od 'wealth, fortune' - 'fortunate, wealthy, prosperous' | Romanian | Girl | 119 #16 | |
| Iosif | From Hebrew Yosef, meaning 'He will add' or 'God will increase'. | Hebrew, Romanian | Boy | 112 #17 | |
| Ilinca | Derived from Elijah - "My God is Yahweh." | Romanian | Girl | 107 #18 | |
| Ovi | Multiple: diminutive of Ovidiu (from Latin ovis 'sheep' → 'sheep/shepherd'), nickname of Oliver/Olivia (linked to 'olive/olive tree'), or from Marathi ovī meaning 'verse/poem'. | Bengali, English, Romanian, Scandinavian | Unisex | 107 #19 | |
| Vasile | Royal, kingly | Greek, Romanian | Boy | 101 #20 | |
| Daia | Varies by origin - commonly linked to 'compassion, mercy' (from Sanskrit Daya) or used as a feminine form/variant of Diana ('divine, heavenly'); in some Romanian contexts it appears as an archaic rural term. | Romanian, Sanskrit | Girl | 91 #21 | |
| Florin | Flower; flowering, flourishing | Romanian | Boy | 90 #22 | |
| Tereza | Harvester | Czech, Greek, Latin, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak | Girl | 78 #23 | |
| Oana | God is gracious | Romanian | Girl | 74 #24 | |
| Dacian | From Dacia; a member or native of the ancient Dacians | Romanian | Boy | 72 #25 | |
| Ileanna | Generally 'bright, shining' or 'torch' (from Greek Helen/Helena); sometimes linked to Hebrew Eliana meaning 'My God has answered'. | Greek, Hebrew, Italian, Romanian, Spanish | Girl | 67 #26 | |
| Baïa | A feminine name used in Georgia; in Romance-language contexts it is derived from the word for 'bay' (coastal inlet); in Romanian it relates to 'bath'. | Georgian, Italian, Roman, Romanian, Spanish | Girl | 59 #27 | |
| Mihai | "Who is like God?" (rhetorical praise of God's uniqueness) | Romanian | Boy | 54 #28 | |
| Simina | He has heard | Latin, Romanian | Girl | 45 #29 | |
| Iulia | Derived from the Roman family name Julius; commonly interpreted as 'youthful' or 'soft‑haired'. | Romanian | Girl | 42 #30 | |
| Razvan | Joyful, brings happiness | Romanian | Boy | 32 #31 | |
| Floria | Flower; flowering/blossom | Latin, Romanian, Spanish | Girl | 31 #32 | |
| Darie | From Darius/Daria: 'possessor/holder of goodness' or 'maintainer' | Romanian | Boy | 28 #33 | |
| Ilie | My God is Yahweh | Greek, Hebrew, Romanian | Boy | 26 #34 | |
| Buna | Amharic: 'coffee'. Romanian: 'good' or used as a greeting ('hello'). Also a geographic name (Buna/Bojana river) in the Western Balkans. | Albanian, Amharic, Romanian | Girl | 22 #35 | |
| Dumitru | Devoted to Demeter; follower of the goddess of agriculture | Romanian | Boy | 20 #36 | |
| Daian | Likely a variant form; can be associated with Hebrew 'Dayan' meaning 'judge' or with Slavic roots meaning 'doer/actor'; often used without a fixed traditional meaning. | Romanian | Boy | 19 #37 | |
| Anamari | Combination of Ana ('grace') and Mari/Maria (from Mary - variously 'bitter', 'beloved' or 'sea'), roughly 'graceful beloved' or 'grace + Mary' | Romanian | Girl | 18 #38 | |
| Liviu | Derived from the Roman family name Livius; possibly meaning "bluish" or "envious" | Romanian | Boy | 18 #39 | |
| Nuta | Often a diminutive of Anna (meaning "grace"); in Polish the word 'nuta' also means 'musical note' or 'tune'. | Polish, Romanian, Slavic | Girl | 17 #40 | |
| Marieta | Diminutive of Maria - commonly interpreted as 'bitter' or 'beloved' | Catalan, Romanian, Slavic | Girl | 13 #41 | |
| Rominna | From Rome; Roman | Latin, Romanian | Girl | 12 #42 | |
| Floran | Flowering, blooming; flourishing | Latin, Romanian | Boy | 10 #43 | |
| Radu | Happy, joyful; willing/eager | Romanian | Boy | 10 #44 | |
| Ciprian | Man/person from Cyprus | Romanian | Boy | 9 #45 | |
| Anda | Feminine form/diminutive of Andrew/Andreas meaning "manly, strong"; in some Albanian contexts associated with "dream" or "desire" | Albanian, Latvian, Romanian | Girl | 8 #46 | |
| Catalin | Pure | Romanian | Boy | 8 #47 | |
| Daci | Of Dacia; Dacian, 'from Dacia' | Latin, Romanian | Unisex | 5 #48 | |
| Serafim | 'Burning ones' or 'fiery ones' (angelic beings); figuratively 'ardent' or 'fiery' | Bulgarian, Hebrew, Romanian, Serbian, Spanish | Boy | 5 #49 | |
| Mircea | Derived from Slavic 'mir' - 'peace' or 'world' (often interpreted as 'peaceful') | Romanian | Boy | 3 #50 |
Aggregated births across United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany for every Romanian-origin name in our dataset.
