105 Names That Mean Death and Darkness

While knowingly giving your precious bundle of joy a name that means death may seem dark to many, some parents will be surprised to find a distinct choice among these devious epithets that perfectly fits their little miracle. 

Related: 50 Dark But Beautiful Names for Baby Girls

Why Choose a Baby Name That Means Death? 

In Western culture, death is a topic usually discussed grimly or avoided altogether. In other cultures though, death is treated as a celebration of life and it is often seen as a way to connect with the spiritual world. Life and death go hand in hand and there’s a history full of gods and rulers related to the darkness.

Choosing the right baby girl name or baby boy name is one of the first and most important choices a parent has to make. 

Baby Girl Names That Mean Death (with Origins) 

Whether you’re looking to avoid names that are related to death and darkness or seeking them out specifically, we’ve gathered up a list of unique names for you to look through!

Girl Names That Mean Death Starting with A to L

1. Abiba - An African name that means “child born after grandmother died”.
2. Achlys - This is a Greek name that means “mist”. It is also the epithet of the goddess of misery. She represents the cloud of darkness or “mist” that envelopes people’s eyes in death.
3. Adaliah - This biblical name means “one who draws water, poverty, cloud, or death”.
4. Agrona - An Old English name meaning “goddess of strife and slaughter”. It is also an Old Celtic name meaning “battle” or “slaughter”. This is also the name of the Brythonic (Celtic) goddess of war and death.
5. Amaia - This Basque name means “the end” or “resolution”.
6. Amaya - Of Japanese origins, this name means “the end” or “night rain”.
7. Angerona - This Latin name means “goddess of anguish”. Ango is the Latin word for to choke or strangle, making this title a description of a type of death.
8. Atropos - In Greek mythology, this is one of the three fates. These were the divinities who oversaw human life. As the story goes, Atropos was responsible for cutting the thread, bringing death to the human associated with it.
9. Bacia - A Ugandan name meaning “family deaths ruined the home”.
10. Chiwa - An African name that means “death”.
11. Clotho - This is the name of one of the other three fates in Greek mythology. This name means “weaver”.
12. Deianira - A name with Greek origins that means “ man destroyer”.
13. Desdemona - This Greek name means “misery” or “ill-fated”.
14. Dolores - This Latin name means “lady of sorrows”.
15. Ernaline - This is a Celtic name that means “battle to the death” and an Old German name that means “earnest” or “vigorous”.
16.  Freyja - In Norse mythology, this is the goddess of love, fertility, war, and death.
17. Hel - This is the name of the goddess of the dead in Norse mythology.
18. Hunapo - Of Maori origins, this name means “hidden darkness”.
19. Itishree - This is a Hindi name that means “the end”.
20. Kalma - In Finnish mythology, this is the name of the goddess of death.
21. Keres - This Greek name means “death spirits”.
22. Khalida - This name has Arabic origins and it means “immortal”, “everlasting”, and “deathless”.
23. Libitina - A Latin name meaning “death”.
24. Lilith - This Hebrew name means “of the night” or “night demon”. In Jewish folklore, this was the first wife of Adam and the wife of Lucifer, making her closely associated with death.
25. Lorelai - In German legends, this was the name of a siren whose beautiful melodies lured men to their deaths. This name means “alluring temptress”.
26. Louhi - This is another Finnish name that means “goddess of death” or “snake”.

Girl Names That Mean Death Starting with M to Z 

27. Mara - In Sanskrit, this name means “death”. Additionally, in the Bible, this title is described as an expression of grief after a death, hence the Hebrew meaning of “bitter”.
28. Morana - This Slavic name means “death” or “illness”. It is also the moniker of the goddess of winter and death in European mythology.
29. Morrigan - In Irish and Celtic mythology, this goddess is known as the “bringer of death”.
30. Morticia - This name is based on the Latin word “Mort”, which translates to death.
31. Mrithun - An Indian name that means “lord of death”.
32. Odin - This is the name of the god of war and the dead in Old Norse mythology.
33. Omisha - A Hindi name meaning “goddess of birth and death”.
34. Persephone - From Greek mythology, this is the name of the Queen of the underworld, a title she gained after her abduction by Hades, King of the underworld! The name means “bringer of destruction” or “bringer of death”.
35. Prantika - An Indian name that means “the end”.
36. Shivani - This is the Hindi Goddess Parvati. Her name means “life and death”.
37. Tanda - A Native American name that means “the seer of life and death”.
38. Thana - This is an Arabic name meaning “death”. From Greek mythology, this is the feminine form of Thanatos.
39. Ultima - A Latin baby name that means “last” or “endmost”.
40. Yama - This is the name of the Hindu God of death and justice. Other names for this mythical figure include Kala and Dharmaraja.

Baby Boy Names That Mean Death (with Origins) 

There are some cultures that do look down upon naming your child certain titles, and many countries have actually banned certain names. Some of these include Akuma and Lucifer. While these titles do not mean death, they are definitely associated with it! In fact, these names are both titles for the devil.

Boy Names That Mean Death Starting with A to K

1. Admatha - This Biblical boy name means “a cloud of death”.
2. Aeron - While this name means “shining light” in Hebrew, it is also the Welsh name of the god of battle and slaughter in Celtic mythology.
3. Ahimoth - This is another Biblical name that means “brother of death”.
4. Ajal - A Muslim name meaning “hour of death”.
5. Akuji - This African name means “dead and awake”.
6. Ankou - In Breton (Cornish) Mythology, this is the personification of death.
7. Anpu - This is the name of the Egyptian god of the dead.
8. Anubis - This is the Greek form of Anpu, which means “to decay”.
9. Arawn - This is the name of the Welsh king of the Otherworld. This is the Celtics version of the realm of the dead.
10. Ares - A Greek name that means “god of war” and “ruin”.
11. Athanasios - A Greek name meaning “immortal” or “noble”. This title for one who cheats death can be shortened to Thanos or Athan.
12. Azmaveth - This is a biblical name that means “strong death”.

13. Balor — This is an Irish name that means “the deadly one”. In Celtic mythology, this is a one-eyed giant whose gaze brought death to those around him.
14. Berodach - A biblical name that means “the son of death”.
15. Claeg - An English name that means “one that is subjected to death”.
16. Dáinn - An Old Norse name meaning “dead”.
17. Dearil - This is a Scottish and German name that means “call of death”.
18. Enma - This is the name of the Buddhist god of hell. This name serves as the personification of death.
19. Ernesh - An Indian name meaning “sincere” or “battle to the death”.
20. Hazarmaveth - A biblical name meaning “dwelling of death”. Hazar is a fun nickname for this mouthful of a title!
21. Javaraya - From the state of Karnataka, this Indian name means “god of death”
22. Jeevak - This is another Indian name, which refers to the time from the present until death.
23. Jerimoth - A Biblical name that means “he that fears or rejects death”. This is a great alternative to the name Jeremy.
24. Kalabhiti - A Hindu name meaning “of who death is afraid”.
25. Kalakuta - This Indian and Sanskrit name means “potion of death”.
26. Kalaraja - In Sanskrit, this name means “lord of death”.
27. Kalayavan - An Indian name meaning “as horrible as death”.
28. Kaliya - This is another Indian name meaning “time of death”.
29. Kritanta - Of Indian origin, this name means “god of death”.

Boy Names That Mean Death Starting with L to Z

30. Mabuz - This is an Arthurian name that means “ruler of Death Castle”.
31. Maveth - A unisex name with Hebrew origins that means “death”.
32. Meremoth - Of biblical origins, this name means “bitterness of death”.
33. Merripen - This American Gypsy name means “death or life”.
34. Methusael - This biblical name means “who demands his death”.
35. Mort - An Old French name meaning “death”, “dead”, or “still water”.
36. Mors - Of Latin origins, this name means “death”.
37. Mot - This Ugaritic name means “death”.
38. Mrithun - An Indian name that means “lord of death”.
39. Nirnasha - This is an Indian name meaning “deathless”.
40. Owuo - This is the name of the god of death in various African mythologies.
41. Pluto - This is the Greek name for the god of the dead. Better known as Hades, this was the god of the underworld.
42. Sephtis - A Persian name meaning “eternal death”.
43. Supay - Of Incan origins, this name means “God Of evil death”.
44. Sychar - This is a biblical name that means “end”.
45. Than - A Vietnamese name meaning “death”.
46. Thanatos - This Greek name means “death”. In Greek mythology, he is the God of death and rules with Hades in the underworld.
47. Tuoni - This is the name of the god of the underworld in Finnish mythology.
48. Tuwile - This Kenyan name means “death is inevitable”.
49. Uqbah - A Muslim baby name meaning “the end of everything”.

Gender-Neutral Names That Mean Death

1. Jolon - This Native American name means “valley of dead oaks”.
2. Kritanta - A unisex Indian name meaning “god of death”.
3. Lefu - Of African origin, this name means “death” or “sickness”.
4. Letum - This Latin name means “death” or “god of non-violent death”.
5. Omega - A Greek name that means “the end” or “great”.
6. Shinigami - In Japanese mythology, this is a death god.

Names That Mean Angel of Death 

1. Abaddon - This is a Hebrew name that means “ruin” or” destruction”. He is considered an angel of death and was the king of an army of locusts.
2. Azazel - In Christian, Jewish, and Islamic religions, this is the name of the angel of death. This title is the Hebrew word for “scapegoat”.
3. Azrael - A Hebrew name that means “angel of god”. However, this is also the name for the angel of death in many religions. This is the spiritual being who brings souls to the afterlife.
4. Dabria - An English name meaning “an angel of death” and a Latin name meaning “name of an angel”.
5. Samael - This is a Hebrew name that means “venom” or “poison of God". It is also the epithet for the archangel of death in Christian and Jewish religions.

Names That Mean Dark or Deadly 

1. Adrienne - This Latin name means “dark”.
2. Ahma - Of Japanese origin, this baby girl's name means “dark rain”.
3. Ahriman - Of Persian origins, this boy's name means “evil spirit” or “destruction”.
4. Apollo - A Greek name that means “destroyer” and “manly”.
5. Aridam - An Indian name meaning “destroyer of foes”.
6. Bellinor - Of French origin, this boy's name means “a beautiful and dark person”.
7. Blake - This Old English name means “black” or “dark”.
8. Charna - A Yiddish girl’s name that means “dark” or “black”.
9. Ciara - This Irish name means “ruddy” or “dark”.
10. Cole - An English name that means “black coal”.
11. Dahak - A Hindu name meaning “destroyer”.
12. Daray - This Irish name means “dark”.
13. Darcel - An Irish boy's name meaning “dark”.
14. Darcie - This Irish girl's name means “dark girl”.
15. Darth - Every Star Wars fan knows this name. This German title means “dark”.
16. Delaney - This is an Irish boy's name that means “dark”.
17. Deyanira This female title has Greek and Spanish origins and means “capable of great destruction”.
18. Donovan - Of Irish origins, this name means “dark warrior”.
19. Doug - An Old English name that means “dark water”.
20. Dougal - Another Old English name that means “dark water”.
21. Doyle - Of Old English origins, this name means “dark stranger”.
22. Dubheasa - This Irish girl's name means “dark beauty”.
23. Duncan - This is another Old English name that means “dark warrior”.
24. Duvessa - Another Irish girl name that means “dark beauty”.
25. Erebus — This is the name of the Greek god of darkness.
26. Gedeon - This is a Hebrew baby name that means “destroyer” or “mighty warrior”.
27. Hadeon - A Ukrainian baby boy name that means “destroyer”.
28. Heolstor - Of Anglo-Saxon origins, this name means “darkness”.
29. Jela - A gender-neutral name of Swahili origin that means “father suffered during birth”.
30. Jemisha - A Hindu name that means “queen of the night” or “queen of the darkness”.
31. Kali - A unisex baby name with Sanskrit origins meaning "black one".
32. Kek - An Egyptian boy's name meaning “god of darkness”.
33. Keket - This is the name of the Egyptian goddess of darkness.
34. Kerrin - A Gaelic name meaning “dark eyes”.
35. Kuragari - Of Japanese origin, this name means “darkness”.
36. Leila - This is an Arabic, African, and Hebrew girl name that means “dark beauty”.
37. Onyx - Meaning “claw” or “dark black”, this name has Greek origins.
38. Orpheus - A Greek name that means “darkness of the night”.
39. Perran - Of Cornish origins, this name means “little dark one”.
40. Perseus - This Greek demigod was known for killing monsters. His name means “avenger” or “destroyer”.
41. Runihura - This is an Egyptian baby name that means “destroyer”.
42. Sable - An English and Slavic name meaning “black”.
43. Sauda - An African and Arabic name meaning “black”, “dark”, and “love”.
44. Shamhuth - Of biblical origins, this boy's name means “destruction” or “desolation”.
45. Sullivan - This is a Gaelic name meaning “black eyes”.
46. Tamala - An African name that means “dark tree”.
47. Tamasvi - This Indian girl's name means “one who has darkness inside”.
48. Tamesis - This gender-neutral English name means “dark one”.
49. Tamisra - Of Bengali origin, this name means “she who is full of darkness”.
50. Tynan - An Irish name that means “dark” and “dusky”.
51. Whiro - This is the name of the Lord of Darkness in Maori mythology. It is a Polynesian name that means “lizard”.
52. Zelda - A German name that means “dark battle”.
53. Ziddim - This is a biblical name that means “treasons” or “destructions”.

It is important to remember that it is the person who defines the name, not the other way around. Many evil figures in our history have virtuous names but turned out to be truly wicked people. Examples include Adolf Hitler, whose first name means “noble”, and Ivan the Terrible, whose name means “God is gracious”.

What this means is that you won’t curse your little one into being an evil child by choosing a dark or death-themed name! There are some really fantastic choices here that have equally great meanings! Whichever way you feel about the topic, a death-related title would certainly stand out above the rest.  

Looking for more ominous inspiration? Try out these fiery dragon baby names or look at our list of names for little witches and vampires!

For more baby name inspiration check out these popular baby name lists:

• Top 1000 Most Popular Baby Girl Names in the U.S.
• Top 1000 Most Popular Baby Boy Names in the U.S.

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