Do you want to go old school with your baby’s name? Here are some old Filipino names that still sound good up to now.
When you’re expecting, one of the biggest things that would put pressure on you is coming up with a good name for your baby. Your child’s name will stay with him forever so it has to be unique (because hey, your baby is unique) and have a good ring to it.
Nowadays, a lot of people name their kids uniquely using some Filipino or foreign words. Some name their kids after their favorite TV or movie characters hoping the child would have the same personality.
However, if you want your child to have a name that has a bit of history and you want to pay tribute to your roots, you can go with the classic old Filipino names.
Thinking of what to name your baby? How about old but classic Filipino names? | Image from Freepik
How did Filipinos name their children?
The Philippines was a colony of Spain for over 300 years, which is why most of our ancestor’s names have a Hispanic ring to it, such as Corazon, Caridad or Domingo.
Next came the Americans, so we also have the usual names like Richard or Jenny, but most of our ancestors had Spanish names.
Since we’re also a predominantly Catholic country, religion was another factor in old Filipino names. Parents loved naming their kids after saints, or different translation of Biblical phrases like Emmanuel for “God is with us.”
However, the more patriotic ones still chose to name their children after ancient Filipino names and terminologies such as Datu, Malaya or even Luzviminda.
If you haven’t come up with a name for your baby and you want the classic old Filipino names, you’re in luck. We’ve come up with a list of 50 names for girls and another 51 for boys, with their origin and meaning.
Old Filipino names for girls
- Amihan – Filipino term for “east wind”
- Amalia – Latin for “hard working”
- Carmela – A classic Filipino name that stands for “garden”
- Sophia – Taken from Zofia which means “wisdom”
- Benilda – A classic Filipino name that stands for “beautiful”
- Ligaya – Filipino term for “happiness”
- Marisol – Taken from “Mary of Solitude”
- Bituin – Filipino term for “star”
- Flordeliza – Derived from a spanish term that means “Liza’s flower”
- Imelda – From the Old High German word Irmhild, which means “universal flight”
- Liezel – Tagalog version of Elizabeth meaning “God is abundance”
- Luzviminda – A combination of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao
- Luningning – Filipino term for “brilliant”
- Dolores – One of the Spanish names given to the Virgin Mary
- Victoria – Stands for “winner and conqueror”
- Yolanda – Stands for “violet flower”
- Sheila – From the latin Caelia, which means “heavenly”
- Rita – A girl’s name that stands for “Pearl”
- Myra – Greek origin meaning “sweet-smelling oil”
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Joanna – Hebrew origin meaning “God is gracious”
- Juana – Spanish version of Joanna
- Luna – Italian origin which means “moon”
- Clara – From late latin name Clarus, which means “clear, bright, famous”
- Cristina – An Italian girl’s name which means “Follower of Christ”
- Daniela – Feminine form of Daniel which means “God is my judge”
- Ada – German for “noble”
- Aliana – version of Eliana, which is Hebrew for “my God has answered.”
- Amanda – Latin for “she must be loved”
- Arabella – Latin meaning “Leading to prayer”
- Aurora – Latin for “dawn”
- Belinda – Spanish for “pretty one”
- Blanca – Spanish for “white” or “pure”
- Bighani – a Filipino term meaning “charmed”
- Caridad – Spanish term for “charity”
- Carmen – Spanish for “garden”
- Catrina – a version of Katrina which in German means “pure”
- Charo – a shorter form of Rosario meaning “rosary” in Spanish
- Cielo – Italian for “Sky”
- Corazon – Spanish for “heart”
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Diwa – a Filipino term for “spirit”
- Esmeralda – Spanish term for “emerald”
- Gabriela – female version of Gabriel, which is Spanish for “God is my strength”
- Gemma – Italian for “precious stone”
- Hiraya – an ancient Filipino term meaning “fruits of hope”
- Hiyas – a Filipino term for “jewels”
- Lucia – Italian term for “light”
- Likha – a Filipino word for “create”
- Malaya- a Filipino term for “free”
- Mutya – a Filipino word for “darling”
- Yumi – short for Mayumi, which is Filipino for “gentle”
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Old Filipino names for boys
- Alejandro – a Greek name that means “defender of mankind”
- Bayani – Filipino term for “hero”
- Joselito – Spanish origin meaning “may God give”
- Crisanto – Spanish form of Chrysanthus, which means “golden flower”
- Ernesto – Old High German origin meaning “serious, intense, sober“
- Alon – Filipino term for “wave”
- Antonio – From a Roman clan name that means “highly praiseworthy”
- Bagwis – Filipino term for “long feather”
- Bayani – Filipino term for “hero”
- Dakila – Filipino name for “big and great”
- Kidlat – Filipino term for “lightning”
- Tomas – Portuguese origin meaning “twin”
- Emil – Latin for “A rival”
- Isagani – From the Filipino term “masaganang ani” which means “bountiful harvest”
- Victor – Latin name which means “conqueror”
- Nimuel – Name for “peace”
- Jomari – Combination of the names Joseph and Mary
- Gregorio – From the Greek name “Gregorios” which means “vigilant”
- Datu – Old Filipino term for “leader”
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Buhawi – Filipino term for “Tornado”
- Angelo – From the Greek term “angelos” which stands for “messenger”
- Andres – Filipino male name for “brave & manly”
- Fernando – Germanic origins for “journey-ready”
- Melchor – One of the Three Wise Men
- Luis – French origin for “renowned warrior”
- Abel – Hebrew for “a breath”
- Abraham – Hebrew for “father of nations”
- Adan – another form of Adam, which is Hebrew for “son of the earth”
- Adonis – Greek for a “god”
- Agustin – Latin for “the exalted one”
- Alfonso – Spanish for “noble and ready”
- Arturo – Italian form of Arthur which means “bear”
- Benjamin – Hebrew for “son of the right hand”
- Brando – Italian version of Brand which means sword
- Carlos – Spanish version of Charles, which means “free man”
- Daniel – Hebrew for “God is my judge”
- Domingo – Spanish name meaning “born on a Sunday”
- Elias – Greek version of Elijah, which means “Yahweh is my God”
- Emmanuel – Hebrew for “God is with us”
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Hari – Filipino word for “king”
- Isaac – Hebrew for “laughter”
- Jaime – Spanish version of James which means “supplanter”
- Javier – Spanish version of Xavier which means “light”
- Leonides – another form of the name Leonid, which in Russian means “lion”
- Makisig – a Filipino term for “dashing”
- Malik – in Arabic means “king”
- Miguel – Spanish form of Michael, which in Hebrew means “Who is like God?”
- Nicolas – another form of Nicholas, which is Greek for “people of victory”
- Rafael – Spanish version of Raphael, which means “God has healed”
- Ricardo – Portuguese version of Richard which means “dominant ruler”
- Sandro – shorter form of Alessandro, which in Italian means “defending men”
Image from Freepik
Sources: Baby Names, Behind the Name, Nameberry
