How popular is the baby name Nergui in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name Nergui.

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Popularity of the baby name Nergui


Posts that mention the name Nergui

Names that mean “name”

Jheronimus signature

I love coming across personal names with definitions that refer to names. Some examples:

  • Behnam means “good name” in Persian.
  • Hieronymus, meaning “sacred name,” is based on the Greek words hieros, “sacred,” and onoma, “name.”
    • Jerome is the English form of Hieronymus.
      • Jerónimo is the Spanish form of Jerome.
    • Jheronimus was the form of Hieronymus used by Dutch painter Hieronymus Bosch (1450-1516).
  • Kainoa, meaning “the namesake,” is based on the Hawaiian words ka, “the” (singular), and inoa, “name.”
    • Kainoakupuna means “the namesake of one’s ancestor.”
  • Nainoa, meaning “the namesakes,” is based on the Hawaiian words na, “the” (plural), and inoa, “name.”
  • Nergüi means “no name” in Mongolian.
  • Shem means “name” in Hebrew. (The eldest of Noah’s three sons was called Shem.)
    • Sem is a variant form of Shem. (It’s popular in The Netherlands right now.)

Do you know of any others?

Image: Adapted from Jheronimus Bosch 006 central panel 03 detail 01 (public domain)

Mongolian names: Bilguun, Nergüi, Sazug

Camel in Mongolia
Camel in Mongolia

Around the time I spotted the names Wicahpi and Wakinyan in the SSA’s baby name data, I also noticed a few Mongolian names:

Bilguun means “sage” or “wise,” and both Temuujin* and Temuulen were derived from the Mongol word temür, meaning “iron.” I’m not sure about the definition of Sodbileg, though. (Anyone know?)

While looking up these definitions, I found some other interesting Mongolian names, like these super-long ones:

  • Dorjsurenjantsankhorloonerguibaatar
  • Ochirbaynmunkhdorjsurenjav
  • Olzmedekhkhuukhenbaatar
  • Naimanzuunnadintsetseg, “eight hundred precious flowers”
  • Enkhtuguldurbaysgalan
  • Mongolekhorniiugluu, “Mongol country’s morning”
  • Uuliinyagaantsetseg, “pink flower of mountain”
  • Ulamundrakhtuya

And these super-short ones:

  • Az, “luck”
  • Od, “star”
  • Ur
  • Ya
  • Ish
  • Och, “sparkle”

Many older Mongolians have apotropaic names, which were meant to ward off evil spirits. Examples include Enebish, “not this one,” Khunbish, “not human,” and Nergüi, “no name.”

Apotropaic names have since fallen out of favor, but many modern Mongolian baby names have similarly odd definitions. Writer Louisa Waugh, who spent time teaching English in Mongolia, had students named Buttakuz, “camel-eyes,” and Sazug, “smelly.” She asked fellow teacher Gansukh (“steel axe”) about the names:

‘Why would anyone call their child “Camel-eyes”?’

‘Have you ever looked at a camel’s eyes?’ she replied. ‘They’re beautiful’.

It’s true – Tsengel is full of long-lashed, coy-eyed camels. So Butta-kuz is really quite a compliment. As for Smelly, that took a bit more unravelling. ‘It’s affectionate,’ said Steel Axe. ‘No-one thinks it is offensive. As a name, in Mongolia, it actually implies that he smells quite nice.’

Do you known of any other Mongolian names? Have any favorites?

*Temuujin, “iron-worker,” was Genghis Khan’s birth name. I typically see it spelled Temujin.

Sources: N.Khurelbaatar: There are 1000 people with extraordinary and unusual names living in Mongolia, In the eye of the beholder, Mongolian Name – Wikipedia, Mongolian Names

Image: Adapted from A little white camel 02 by Alexandr frolov under CC BY-SA 4.0.