22 Galician Baby Names and Their Meaning
According to Spain’s National Institute of Statistics (INE), nowadays, some of the most common names that Spaniards choose for their newborns are Galician baby names. For example, Noa, which means “tranquility,” or Gael, which means “man gifted with generosity.”
There are many beautiful names of Galician origin, both for girls and boys, which can be a great option for a future child… especially if you live in this region of Spain or are somehow linked to that culture. But, of course, you don’t have to be a Spaniard to appreciate the beauty and uniqueness of these names.
So, whether you live in Galicia, are of Spanish decent, or just want an original name, take note of the list below!
22 Galician baby names and their meaning
In the following article, we’ll present 22 Galician baby names, divided into two groups: 11 for girls and 11 for boys. Discover the beautiful meaning of each of them!
Galician names for girls
- Antía: This is one of the most frequent names of Galician origin; its meaning is “flowered.”
- Carmela: This is the Galician form of Carmen and refers to the “garden” or “garden of God.” Other Galician variants of this name are Carmiña or Carme.
- Catuxa: This is the Galician variant of Catalina, which literally means “pure.”
- Celtia or Zeltia: This is a typical Galician name that means ‘of the Celts’.
- Lúa: Is the Galician form of Luna, which refers to “the one that shines and sparkles.”
- Maruxa: The hypocoristic Galician name for Mary, that is, an affectionate and familiar way of referring to this name.
- Mencia: A name of Galician origin that means “indulgent” or “harmless” (benign).
- Olalla: This name is common in Galicia and means “well spoken.” Another Galician variant of this name is Baia.
- Sabela: The equivalent name in Spanish is Isabel and means “place of health.”
- Tareixa: This is the Galician variant of the name Teresa, which means “hunter.”
- Uxía: In Spanish it can translate to Eugenia and its meaning is “well born” or “from a good family.” It’s one of the most popular Galician names.
Galician names for children
- André: This is the Galician variant of Andrés, which means “brave.”
- Anxo: the equivalent name in Spanish is Ángel and means “messenger.”
- Bieito: This is the Galician form of Benedict or Benito, which literally means “blessed.”
- Breixo: This is a name of Celtic origin that means “very true.”
- Estevo: Is Spanish and can be translated as Stephen and means “crowned” or “victorious.”
- Martiño: Is the Galician variant of the name Martín, which means “warrior.”
- Paio: Is a name of Galician origin that refers to the “man of the sea.”
- Roi: This name is more and more frequent in Galicia and means “glorious.” It’s a variant of Rodrigo.
- Tristán: A typical Galician name which means “noise.”
- Xián: This is the Galician form of Julián and means “with strong roots.”
- Xurxo: The Galician variant of Jorge, which means “peasant.”
Why choose Galician baby names?
Spain is a country with an immense linguistic plurality, which is very enriching on a cultural and social level. However, this wasn’t always the case.
Unfortunately, during the Franco regime, Spanish was the only “valid” language. This even affected the choice of names for babies, since all names that weren’t in Spanish were strictly forbidden.
Luckily, today Spaniards are free to choose the names they want to give their children, regardless of the language or origin of the child. And this is something to celebrate! And, one way to do this is to choose Galician names for babies.
In this way, in addition to claiming the normalization and use of Galician in everyday life, Galicians and all Spaniards can select names that represent the culture, history, and tradition of Galicia itself.
Another important reason for giving newborns names in Galician is that the language is very pleasant to the ear, so its proper names are also very beautiful and pleasant to the ear.
Have you already chosen a name for your baby? Would you like to choose one of the Galician names we’ve just proposed?
All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.
- Salazar, S. (2016). El gran libro de los nombres para tu bebé. Guía ilustrada de nombres para niño y niña. Barcelona: Planeta.
